C.P. Cavafy's "Comments" on His Poems: A Scholarly Edition

FAIN: FT-59727-12

Diana Haas
University of Lille 3 (Villeneuve d'Ascq 11742 France)

The creative journey of C.P. Cavafy (1863-1933), the Alexandrian Greek poet who has secured a place on the world stage as a major poet of the twentieth century, is characterized by a continuous process of revision and examination. Through the painstaking "scrutiny" of his poems--to use his own term--he aims to meet and maintain the high standards of philosophical consistency, historical accuracy and linguistic precision that he set for his work. As tangible evidence of this process the corpus of Cavafy's fifty manuscript "comments" on his poems offers a unique window onto his poetic laboratory as he readies a poem for the critical moment of publication, or fine-tunes an earlier version. The scholarly edition of this important archival material, with diplomatic transcription and full commentary, sheds light on individual poems while offering new insights into important aspects of the poet's entire oeuvre, from the use of historical sources to the exploration of sexual identities.

Associated Products

C.P. Cavafy: Unpublished Self-Comment on the Poem "The Naval Battle” [in Greek] (Article)
Title: C.P. Cavafy: Unpublished Self-Comment on the Poem "The Naval Battle” [in Greek]
Author: Diana Haas
Abstract: This paper constitutes a pre-publication of Cavafy's self-comment on the poem "The Naval Battle". It first discusses the editorial principles and rules applied in the integral edition of the corpus, referring to the importance, underlined by Renata Lavagnini in her edition of the Unfinished Poems, of adapting editorial practice to the specific demands of the texts. In the case of Cavafy's self-comments, which are intimately related to the poetic process, a method was devised to serve the needs of the non-specialist as well as the specialist. The transcription of the comment on "The Naval Battle" is given accordingly, along with its critical apparatus, followed by a description of the manuscript, full annotation of references, and commentary. The commentary deals in depth with the relationship between the text and Cavafy's re-working of the poem following its original composition. Cavafy's self-comment, through its juxtaposition of Aeschylus' and Herodotus' versions of Xerxes' retreat and discussion of the "proper" placement of the lamentation in time and space, reveals significant information on his attitude toward poetry's dialogue with history.
Year: 2012
Primary URL: http://www.logeion.upatras.gr/index.php/component/content/article?id=129
Secondary URL: http://www.logeion.upatras.gr/images/2012_PDF/HAAS_Logeion_2.pdf
Access Model: open access
Format: Journal
Periodical Title: Logeion. A Journal of Ancient Theatre
Publisher: Crete University Press

C.P. Cavafy: Unpublished Self-Comment on the poem “'The rest I will tell to those down in Hades’” [in Greek] (Article)
Title: C.P. Cavafy: Unpublished Self-Comment on the poem “'The rest I will tell to those down in Hades’” [in Greek]
Author: Diana Haas
Abstract: This paper constitutes a pre-publication of Cavafy's self-comment on the poem "'?he rest I will tell to those down in Hades'", the title of which quotes Ajax's last words before his suicide in the tragedy by Sophocles (Ajax 865). The diplomatic transcription is followed by a description of the manuscript and commentary. As the self-comment refers to the earlier, non-extant version of the poem (1893), an attempt is first made to establish possible thematic connections with other texts belonging to the poet's early period. Specifically, the ethical issue of the exoneration of "wicked" (kakoi) or "blameworthy" people for reasons concerning "responsibility" and "cause" is traced to other self-comments (on the poems "The Windows" and "Chè fece.... il gran rifiuto") and personal notes of the poet. A discussion follows on the possible relationship with the use of the word "kakos" in the Ajax, first in Athena's words in the prologue and then in Ajax's suicide speech. Particular attention is given to the matter of the tragic hero's social isolation and his attitude toward his "wicked" enemies, a theme that resonates in "Aimilianos Monai, Alexandrian, A.D. 628-655", the only known poem by Cavafy in which the expression "wicked people" occurs.
Year: 2013
Primary URL: http://www.logeion.upatras.gr/index.php/component/content/article?id=149
Secondary URL: http://www.logeion.upatras.gr/images/2013/HAAS_2013Final.pdf
Access Model: open access
Format: Journal
Periodical Title: Logeion. A Journal of Ancient Theatre
Publisher: Crete University Press

C.P. Cavafy: Unpublished Self-Comment on the poem "Voices" [in Greek] (Article)
Title: C.P. Cavafy: Unpublished Self-Comment on the poem "Voices" [in Greek]
Author: Diana Haas
Abstract: This paper constitutes the third pre-publication of one of Cavafy’s fifty self-comments on his poems, following the method devised for the integral edition of the corpus (diplomatic transcription and description of the manuscript, annotation of references and commentary). Here the self-comment on the poem “Voices” is examined within the context of the re-writing of an earlier version of the poem (entitled “Sweet Voices”) in the spirit of the poet’s “philosophical scrutiny” of his work during the period 1903-1904, a procedure substantiated by other archival evidence. The text is also discussed with regard to the unique testimony it contains concerning a relatively little known facet of the poet’s publishing strategy (first documented by G.P. Savidis in The Cavafian Editions, 1966), namely the “trial” distribution of gelatin hectograph (“velocograph”) copies of his poems. The discussion serves in this way to shed light on certain obscure areas in Cavafy’s idiosyncratic and complex procedure of poetic revision. Special consideration is given to the fact that the poet returns to the examination of the poem in 1906, a year characterized by intense self-criticism and doubt with regard to sections of his earlier production -- an attitude which, significantly, coincides with his decision to safeguard his independence as an artist by avoiding the commercialization of his work.
Year: 2015
Primary URL: http://www.universitystudiopress.gr/general/bookTitle.asp?tblCode=4907-16
Secondary URL: http://www.universitystudiopress.gr/docs/4907-16.pdf
Access Model: subscription only
Format: Journal
Periodical Title: Kondyloforos. Annual Journal of Modern Greek Literature [in Greek]
Publisher: University Studio Press

Commenting on Cavafy's "Self-comments" [in Greek] (Conference Paper/Presentation)
Title: Commenting on Cavafy's "Self-comments" [in Greek]
Author: Diana Haas
Abstract: With Cavafy’s manuscript “self-comments” as its focus, the paper deals with the poet as commentator of his own work as well as with the editorial and philological issues that arise when editing the specific texts. The aim of the editor’s commentary is to provide the fullest possible understanding and appreciation of an idiosyncratic and demanding corpus of archival material. Cavafy’s “self-comment” on the poem “The Retinue of Dionysus” is discussed as an example.
Date: 11/04/2013
Primary URL: http://www.philology.uoc.gr/conferences/Cavafy/
Conference Name: C.P. Cavafy: Poetics and Poetry [in Greek], Department of Philology, University of Crete and Municipality of Rethymno, Crete, Greece

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