A poet, novelist, literary critic, and authority on and translator of Serbo-Croatian literature, Kornhauser was born in Gliwice in 1946. He is one of the outstanding and most durable exponents of the "New Wave" poetry of the 1970s. He took part then in the opposition to the communist authorities.
As a poet he has always been an individualist. Aside from New Wave sensitivity to the falsehoods inherent in public discourse, he exhibits an original and often surrealistic imagination and a wide range of poetic means and subjects, from reports on scenes from everyday life to unusual visions imbued with symbolic language. Kornhauser's work is marked by a consciousness of being a citizen and a part of a generation, of the need to defend basic values. Yet it is also lyrically attuned to its own very personal truths and experiences. His prose relies on subjective experience, exploiting his own spiritual biography and the collective biography of his generation. Kornhauser's novels reveal the fascinating story of a young boy coming to terms with his Jewish origins, with domestic traditions and the domination of his father. Then the boy matures intellectually through reading and discussion with his peers, in the face of unusually strong pressure from the world of politics. The author shows us how his own personality was shaped among such diverse influences.
Source: www.polska2000.pl; copyright: Stowarzyszenie Willa Decjusza.
Selected Bibliography
Poetry:
- Nastanie święto i dla leniuchów (Coming of the Holiday for the Slothful). Warsaw: Iskry, 1972.
- W fabrykach udajemy smutnych rewolucjonistów (In the Factories, We Pretend to Be Sullen Revolutionaries). Krakow: WL, 1973.
- Zabójstwo (Homicide). Krakow, privately printed and uncensored, 1973.
- Stan wyjątkowy (State of Emergency). Warsaw: PIW, 1978.
- Zjadacze kartofli (The Potato-Eaters). Krakow: WL, 1978.
- Zasadnicze trudności (Fundamental Difficulties). Warsaw: Czytelnik, 1979.
- Każdego następnego dnia (Each Next Day). Krakow: ABC, 1981.
- Hurrraaa!. Krakow: WL, 1982.
- Inny porządek: 1981-1984 (A Different Order). Krakow: Oficyna Literacka, 1985.
- Za nas, z nami (For Us, With Us). Warsaw: Czytelnik, 1985.
- Kamyk i cień (A Pebble and a Shadow). Poznań: a5, 1996.
- Było minęło (Been and Gone). Warsaw: Nowy Świat, 2001 (more...).
Novels:
- Kilka chwil (A Few Moments). Krakow: WL, 1975.
- Stręczyciel idei (The Procurer of Ideas). Krakow: WL, 1980.
- Dom, sen i gry dziecięce. Opowieść sentymentalna (House, Dreams, and Childhood Games: A Sentimental Tale). Krakow: Znak, 1995.
Selected translations:
- Bulgarian: Osa zad stykłoto (selected poetry). Sofia: AngoBoy, 1997.
- Croatian: Kuca, sam i djecje igre (Dom, sen i gry dziecięce). Ljubljana: Egzil ABC, 1996.
- Dutch: Poetri. Rotterdam: Rotterdamse Kunststichtung, 1986.
- Serbian: Nacelne teŠkoce (selected poetry). Vršac: Književna Opština, 1989.Kamicak i senka (Kamyk i cień). Belgrade: Pismo, 1998.Signalizam (Sygnalizm). Prosveta, 1998.