John Felstiner's translation of "Death Fugue" by Paul Celan states the last line of the second stanza as: "jab your spades deeper you lot there you others play on for the dancing" whereas Jerome Rothenburg states it as: " jab your spades deeper you men you other men you others play up again for the dance." This section strikes a mournful chord in my heart.
I read the book Night by Elie Wiesle, and there was a character in that book who played his violin as the Jewish people marched onward through cold and pain. This line of the poem reminds me of the sad emotion that filled me when I read that book. Music is something that I can connect to more than anything else; it can raise my spirits, but it can also fill me with a profound sadness. Imagining people being forced to play music while they dig their own graves is abhorrent to me. The songs that they would have played would have been the saddest of lamentations.
The imagery of song brings to light the importance of music in relation to emotional expression. At the vigil for Professor Miller, those in attendance sang hymns of comfort. I think that those songs summed up the feelings held by those there. I did not know Professor Miller personally, but I could feel how much he affected this community. He will be greatly missed.
