EDITOR'S NOTE
Most of this issue consists of essays and poems presented during a memo–
rable event, the International Czeslaw Milosz Festival, which took place at
Claremont-McKenna College in Claremont, California, April 24-27, 1998.
American and Polish poets-Catholic and Jewish-and students from
around the world united to celebrate and exchange ideas, and to hear won–
derful poetry.
Unfortunately, we had to omit presentations by Jonathan Aaron, Arista
Maria Cirtautas, Linda Gregg, Robert Hass, Leonard Nathan, and Lillian
Vallee, and poetry readings by Linda Gregg, Jane Hirshfield, Steve Kowit,
Bronislaw Maj, Leonard Nathan, and
Al
Zolynas; were not given pernus–
sion to print many of the poems that were read; and had to shorten a
number of papers and poems throughout.
Also,
abbreviations are due to
lack of space and to avoid repeating what previous speakers had said.
However, the interested reader can find the complete poems in the books
mentioned. The contributors to this issue are identified in the text.
I want to thank all the participants for their understanding of an edi–
tor's problems; special thanks to Tony Milosz, who provided simultaneous
translations, and to Lillian Vallee, who translated the original papers by Jan
Blonski, Alexander Fiut, Jerzy Illg, Wojciech Karpinski , and Bronislaw
Maj. Thanks also to Bonnie Snortum, Director of the Marian Miner Cook
Athenaeum where the Festival was held, and to John Baarsh and Ryan
Winters, Claremont-McKenna students who provided introductions. I
especially thank Robert Faggen, Chair of the Department of Literature at
Claremont-McKenna, for having made this event possible. And thanks to
Czeslaw Milosz for being, and for being there.
EK
