Joseph Brodsky         (born 1940) Soviet Union/United States   Winner of the 1987 Nobel Prize for Literature, Joseph Brodsky grew up in Leningrad, working in a factory and educating himself. Always rebellious, Brodsky found solace in reading and writing poetry. His work came to international attention in 1964, when Soviet police arrested him for 'social parasitism" and he was sentenced to a labor camp. In 1972 Brodsky was exiled and settled in the United States. Much of his poetry, including "The Monument," is sometimes angry~ sometimes ironic, cultural criticism. The Monument Joseph Brodsky Translated from the Russian by W. S. Merwin Let us set up a monument in the city, at the end of the long avenue, or at the center of the big square, a monument that will stand out against any background because it will be quite well built and very realistic. Let us set up a monument that will not disturb anybody. We will plant flowers around the pedestal and with the permission of the city fathers we will lay out a little garden where our children will blink at the great orange sun and take the figure perched above them for a well-known thinker a composer or a general. I guarantee that flowers will appear every morning on the pedestal. Let us set up a monument that will not disturb anybody. Even taxi drivers will admire its majestic silhouette. The garden will be a place for rendezvous. Let us set up a monument, we will pass under it         hurrying on our way to work, foreigners will have their pictures taken         standing under it, we will splash it at night with the glare         of floodlights. Let us set up a monument to The Lie. Review Questions: The Lines: Literal recalling 1.      In lines 1-9, where does the speaker suggest setting up a monument? Whom will it disturb? 2.      In lines 10-20, what will the "city fathers" allow? What will "our children" think? 3.      In lines 21-35, what does the speaker say people will do? Between the Lines: Interpreting 4.      Why is it significant that the monument "will not disturb anybody"? What sort of monument do you think the speaker is suggesting? 5.      Will the monument actually portray a well-known thinker, composer, or general? Explain. 6.      What do the details in lines 21-34 suggest about human behavior? 7.      How does the last line affect your reading of the rest of the poem? What do you think "The Lie" is? Beyond the Lines: Analyze & Evaluate 8.      What role can writers play in effecting political change? Do you think the pen is mightier than the sword?