Caoineadh Henryk Piotrowski

Publication Instance Details #2840

Publication Overview

Translation	Is Multilingual	Explicit Irish Context?	Ekphrasis	Has Paratext?	Reference to News, Media or Technology
No	No	Yes	No	No	No

Details

Human Rights Issues	Displacement/Forced Migration Poverty/Deprivation/Lack of Sustenance
Irish Context	Minority/refugee rights (Ireland)
Languages	Irish
Genre	Short Lyric
Medium	Print Collection
Notes	From the Irish Pages publication of this poem: 'Henryk Piotrowski (born 1943) was a homeless person who came to Ireland from Poland in search of work. Whilst asleep in an industrial bin , he was crushed to death by a commercial waste pick-up truck. He had been sleeping rough after a hostel for Eastern European migrants in Dublin city centre was closed. His body was subsequently found in a waste management depot on the outskirts of the city'. In this poem, the speaker laments Piotrowski in the terms of the Irish 'Caoineadh' and uses the word 'Oidhe' to describe his death - a reference to a tragic and brutal death, such as 'Oidhe Clainne Lir'. The speaker of the poem speaks directly to Piotrowski, sympathizing with his plight and showing understanding of how he came to be on the streets of Dublin. In framing this man's death in terms of the 'caoineadh', the speaker of the poem creates a sense of import and tragedy about this man's untimely death.