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Chana Bloch

チャナ・ブロック

Chana Bloch

Aliases: Florence Ina Faerstein
Pen Names: Florence Ina Faerstein（Birth name (maiden name)）

Profile

Gender
Female
Born
1940-03-15 （New York City (The Bronx), U.S.）
Died
2017-05-19 （Berkeley, California, U.S.） age 77
Nationality
United States
Languages
English, Hebrew
Religion
Jewish humanist
Residence History
The Bronx, New York → Berkeley, California

Career

Occupations
poet, translator, scholar, English professor
Active Years
1973-2017
Affiliations
Mills College
Influenced By
Yehuda Amichai, Dahlia Ravikovitch, George Herbert

Education

Cornell University
Degree: B.A.
Country: United States
Brandeis University
Judaic Studies / English Literature
Degree: M.A.
Country: United States
Received M.A. degrees in Judaic Studies and English literature
University of California, Berkeley
English
Degree: Ph.D.
Country: United States
Ph.D. in English

Awards

Di Castagnola Award
Work: Blood Honey
Organization: Poetry Society of America
Result: 受賞
Felix Pollak Prize in Poetry
Work: Mrs. Dumpty
Organization: University of Wisconsin Press
Result: 受賞
PEN Award for Poetry in Translation
Work: Open Closed Open (co-translated with Chana Kronfeld)
Organization: PEN
Result: 受賞
Times Literary Supplement Book of the Year (selection)
Work: The Song of Songs (co-translated with Ariel Bloch)
Organization: Times Literary Supplement
Result: 選出
National Endowment for the Arts Fellowship (poetry)
Organization: National Endowment for the Arts
Result: フェローシップ
National Endowment for the Arts Fellowship (translation)
Organization: National Endowment for the Arts
Result: フェローシップ
National Endowment for the Humanities Fellowship
Organization: National Endowment for the Humanities
Result: フェローシップ
Pushcart Prize (two times)
Organization: The Pushcart Prize
Result: 受賞
92nd Street Y Discovery Award
Organization: 92nd Street Y Poetry Center
Result: 受賞

Awards & Nominations

Works

Major Works

The Secrets of the Tribe

1981 Poetry

Early collection exploring family, Jewish background, and personal memory, blending intimate and historical voices.

familymemoryJewish identity

The Past Keeps Changing

1992 Poetry

A collection treating the relationship between past and present, the flow of time, and personal change.

timechangerecollection

Mrs. Dumpty

1998 Poetry

Poems addressing self-image and womanhood, mixing humor and pain. Winner of the Felix Pollak Prize.

womanhoodself-awarenesshumor and pathos

Blood Honey

2009 Poetry

A mature collection dealing with family history, lineage, and personal loss. Winner of the Di Castagnola Award.

losslineagehistory

Swimming in the Rain: New and Selected Poems

2015 Poetry (new and selected)

A volume of new and selected poems that reflects on her career and recurring concerns.

reflectionrelationshipsaging and memory

The Moon Is Almost Full

2017 Poetry

A late collection published in 2017, containing meditations on life and death.

life and deathend of lifequietude

Bibliography

  • The Secrets of the Tribe (poetry, 1981)
  • The Past Keeps Changing (poetry, 1992)
  • Mrs. Dumpty (poetry, 1998)
  • Blood Honey (poetry, 2009)
  • Swimming in the Rain: New and Selected Poems (poetry, 2015)
  • The Moon Is Almost Full (poetry, 2017)
  • Hovering at a Low Altitude: The Collected Poetry of Dahlia Ravikovitch (co-translator, 2009)
  • Open Closed Open (by Yehuda Amichai; co-translator with Chana Kronfeld, 2000)
  • Yehuda Amichai: The Selected Poetry (co-translator with Stephen Mitchell, 1986; rev. ed. 1996)
  • The Song of Songs (co-translator with Ariel Bloch, 1995)
  • The Window (Dahlia Ravikovitch; co-translator with Ariel Bloch, 1989)
  • A Dress of Fire (Dahlia Ravikovitch; translator, 1978)
  • Spelling the Word: George Herbert and the Bible (criticism, 1985)

Adaptations

  • Chana's Story (song cycle by David Del Tredici)
  • The Song of Songs (cantata by Jorge Liderman, based on Bloch and Bloch's translation)

Translations by Author

  • Hovering at a Low Altitude: The Collected Poetry of Dahlia Ravikovitch (co-translator)
  • Open Closed Open (Yehuda Amichai; co-translator)
  • Yehuda Amichai: The Selected Poetry (co-translator)
  • The Song of Songs (co-translator with Ariel Bloch)
  • The Window (Dahlia Ravikovitch; co-translator)
  • A Dress of Fire (Dahlia Ravikovitch; translator)

Style & Themes

Literary Style
lyrical, intimate voiceprecise and attentive translation stylecareful construction of poetic images
Recurring Motifs
Jewish identityfamily and memorydeath and losslanguage and translation

Health

  • cancer
    晩年（長期闘病）
    After a prolonged battle with cancer, she died in 2017. The illness affected her late creative and translation work.

Legacy

Chana Bloch left an important mark as a poet, translator, and scholar in contemporary American poetry. She is noted for her English translations of Hebrew poets and her poems addressing family, memory, and Jewish themes; she also served many years as an educator at Mills College.

In Popular Culture

  • David Del Tredici's song cycle "Chana's Story"
  • Jorge Liderman's cantata "The Song of Songs" (based on Bloch's translation)

Trivia

  • Born Florence Ina Faerstein.
  • Taught at Mills College from 1973 to 2005 and directed its Creative Writing Program.
  • Known for translations of modern Hebrew poets such as Yehuda Amichai and Dahlia Ravikovitch.
  • Died in 2017 after a prolonged battle with cancer.