Elazar Benyoetz: “Wars are failures of the post-war”

The Israeli poet Elazar Benyoetz, born in Wiener Neustadt in 1937, turns 85 on March 24th. Its literary form is the aphorism, the witty idea in a free-standing literary form. The author, who lives in Tel Aviv and Jerusalem and writes exclusively in German, rarely gives interviews. He answered a few questions about his work and the current world situation for Deutsche Welle:

DW: Mr. Benyoetz, you left Israel for Germany early in the 1960s and wrote in German. How important is the German language for Israeli society and culture today?

Elazar Benyoetz: This question made it possible to go into more detail, but it can also be answered quickly and even done graphically: The Israelis in Germany. Basically, this means a twofold and threefold return: to Germany, to German, to Mendelssohn, who was the first to spread German literature, but at the same time also paved the way for the new Hebrew literature. In that sense, Moses Mendelssohn is my grandfather, about whom more and more has been spoken and printed in Israel for a few decades. That’s relevant: In Israel little or hardly any German is spoken, let alone written, but quite a bit of German is learned and quite a bit translated from German.

German-Israeli relations are stable and good, and not just superficial. The draft would still have to be done; good will cannot replace better understanding. But not only the will, also the understanding has its ideas.

And what does the German language mean to you? You live in everyday life with Ivrit, modern Hebrew, you speak Ivrit and French with your wife. When do you encounter German?

I can only answer your second question aphoristically, with aphorisms, a few would be a lot, the rest would be silence, including concealment:

Hebrew was my Bible lesson,

German – my music academy

I want the Born Judas

be in German

Today German is my Hebrew

that I am high and not holy,

but hold on to the coming deluge

Jewish-German,

alternately:

Rachamim [Erbarmen, Gnade, Mitleid] and revenge

A German couple:

God and Goethe

“As much as I love you”,

said Tamar,

“and share your needs,

Your German books

don’t come into my house!”

Their literary form is often the aphorism, a text form poor in words but rich in meaning. How relevant is this form at a time when people seem to be inundated with words and texts and long texts through modern means of communication?

It is still a dispute between the faculties,

once between sentence and essay,

today between flood and twitter

to keep it short

was always a pious wish

and unattainable.

Apparently that’s how it should be.

I’m pro-nuclear

and against atom

Occasionally, not so rarely, irony is inherent in your work. What is the significance of this own subliminal humor?

it’s witty

Irony as subliminal humor

consider,

especially since both concern the great seriousness

up and down

I can only answer that with aphorisms,

on and use:

Wisdom also gambled away

because she cannot rely on irony

and therefore have to mean too much

Irony doesn’t get talked about

Irony admits defeat

and carries off the victory

humor –

levity of melancholy

humor begins

where laughter stops

The world is in very serious times. Russia’s invasion of Ukraine shocked many people. The death toll is alarmingly high and growing every day. Millions of people have already had to leave their homes and their country as refugees. You yourself left Europe as a small child on the eve of the Second World War. You have witnessed several wars in Israel. Can this existential situation be described in literary terms? As a verse of lamentation or a psalm of lamentation? Or does that make it rather wordless?

War – Invincibility

Wars are failures

of the post war

peace is the desire

and not all;

in fact there is only war

and post-war periods

There is only peace

if people just don’t

against the war,

but also against winning

The ones in the war to the dogs

coming morality

becomes after the war

Poodle of aesthetics

The interview was conducted by Christoph Strack