The page of Groch, Erik, English Reception
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Reception
Characteristics of his WritingHe entered official literature in 1989 with a collection of poems Private Lessons in Sadness. Groch’s poetics is based on the so-called Christian lyric in its more civil variation. Especially in the second book his poetry is expressed in a modern way by including a lyrical character. His old witch is a symbol of evil in human lives but semantic ambiguity makes the whole story slightly puzzling and burdened with many secrets, breaking the fairy tale stereotype to which the reader is tempted to succumb at first. In his third book of poems Brothersister the author made a significant shift from playful to a more meditative kind of poetry which is reminiscent of Biblical parables, but the semantic framework of each poem is much more intimate and personal. Elementary noetic and value related findings of the lyrical subject have a certain hidden parallel in Foucault’s "cultural archaeology" of human history – from mythological to religious to layers of memory created by modern civilisation. The author however does not lose touch with everyday life. All minute details accompanying man on his way to himself are included in the concept of "the Universe" and "its creatures". Positive outcomes of Groch’s poems are effectively connected with nature as the basis for his metaphors and poetical allegories. The author puts special accent on the need for understanding and love not only between humans but also in relation to all living things surrounding man and nurturing him with their breath. Here the theosophical tradition derived from St. Francis of Assisi can be traced. Groch has thus considerably expanded the range of expressing his poetical talent. Moving from lyrical situations through composed imagery of the story to poetical language as a medium of human existence is characteristic of Groch’s works. While becoming more and more aware of the impossibility to capture the world in words, his potential for deep meanings grows leading him close to poetical mysticism. The poetical works of Erik Groch are the most interesting of those written by his contemporaries.
On the Author
Groch has enriched the concept of tradition and intertextuality by an area of the unspoken where tradition "signs up" to the author’s code rather than the theme. On the other hand, Erik Groch’s interest in fairy tales shown in his second book has been complemented by his interest in "primitive", or to be precise, in proto-religions and neopaganism. Groch’s phytomorphic and zoomorphic metaphors make accessible the world of long forgotten original unity and cultural layers. The publishing and perceptional background of the eighties created a certain semiotic counterpoint that was later modified into semiotic profit. Considering the almost eccentric differentiation between prose and poetry, which came as a reaction to the loyal civility of poetry during the seventies, Groch prefers simple means of expression of elementary meanings. (Stanislava Chrobáková)
Awards
Ivan Krasko Prize for the best debut (for Private Lessons in Sadness)
