From illiteracy to recognition as one of Brazil’s most renowned poets, Salgado Maranhão’s remarkable journey progressed from life as a subsistence farmer to a world-class writer.
Illiterate until the age of 15, Maranhão spent most of his youth laboring on his family’s subsistence farm. Despite the odds, Maranhão has since become one of Brazil’s most celebrated poets.
Maranhão and Alexis Levitin, a premier translator of Portuguese poetry, are on tour in the United States to share the stunning English-language translations of “Blood of the Sun” and “Tiger Fur.”
On Thursday, April 21, Maranhão and Levitin will give a poetry reading at Saint Martin’s University and The Evergreen State College.
Dr. Jamie Olson, an English professor at Saint Martin’s University, was instrumental in bringing Maranhão and Levitin to Olympia. Olson has known Levitin for nearly decade through the American Literary Translators Association (ALTA).
“Levitin is a very charismatic guy. He is fun, kind and always has interesting comments,” Olson said. “While I have had the opportunity to work with him for the last seven years during the ALTA conference where he hosts a session for translators like myself to share our work, I have also had the opportunity to see Maranhão and Levitin during their first national tour. They are excellent poetry readers. They have a dynamic that is very engaging, and they both have a great sense of humor. The readings are a lively and fascinating back and forth rather than a full reading in Portuguese followed by the translation in English. The interplay between Maranhão and Levitin is captivating.”
Maranhão is the author of 10 books of poetry, many of which he has received some of the highest of literary awards. These accolades are noteworthy achievements. Yet, Maranhão’s remarkable journey from rural poverty to becoming one of the best-known poets of his generation in Brazil is also a fascinating accomplishment.
Most recently, Maranhão was honored with the poetry award by the Union of Brazilian Writers for his retrospective collection “A Cor da Palavara” (“The Color of the Word”). He has won every major literary award available in Brazil, including the Brazilian PEN Club prize (2014), the Brazilian Academy of Letters’ poetry prize (2011), and the Jabuti Award (1999), Brazil’s highest literary award. After publication of his bilingual collection, “Blood of the Sun,” Maranhão ventured on a three month reading tour throughout the United States with visits to 52 universities. He is now back touring in the United States with his second book, “Tiger Fur,” which was published last fall.
Alexis Levitin has tranlsated 38 books including Clarice Lispector’s “Soulstrom” and Eugenio de Andrade’s “Forbidden Words” in addition to Maranhão’s “Tiger Fur” and books from many other authors. Levitin has been honored with three Fulbright Scholarships and two National Endowment for the Arts Translation Fellowships. He has held translation residencies at the Banff International Translation Center, the European Translators Collegium in Straelen, Germany and the Rockefeller Foundation Study Center at the Bellagio.
During their visit to Saint Martin’s University and The Evergreen State College, Maranhão and Levitin will read from “Blood of the Sun” and “Tiger Fur.” Olson remarks, “If Maranhão were giving this similar poetry reading in Brazil, undoubtedly the room would be packed with standing room only and a line waiting outside to hear any portion of his reading. We are hoping our local community recognizes the significance of bringing such an accomplished writer, one of Maranhão’s caliber, to Saint Martin’s University.”
The poetry readings from Maranhão and Levitin are part of the Saint Martin University’s Robert A. Harvie Social Justice Lecture Series. The series was created to raise awareness of social justice issues within the community and across the nation. Admission to lecture series events is free and open to the public.
Poetry Reading by Salgado Maranhão and Translator Alexis Levitin
Thursday, April 21, 2016
Admission is free and open to the public.
1:00 p.m. at The Evergreen State College in Seminar 2 Complex, Room C4107
7:30 p.m. at Saint Martin’s University in the Worthington Conference Center
