Gerrit Komrij is one of the major figures in the Dutch poetry world. He’s a poet, a critic and a anthologizer of Dutch poetry. I like him because he’s one of the few people in the Dutch literature scene who’s not afraid to speak what’s on his mind, who doesn’t hide behind the terror of silence when he sees something he doesn’t like. He’s also a quite good poet, a stern and sometimes feared critic and one of the few people that actually cared enough about Dutch culture to attempt to anthologize it.

Today Gerrit posted an item on his weblog saying that his latest anthologies, “De Nederlandse po�zie van de twaalfde tot en met de zestiende eeuw and “De Nederlandse po�zie van de zeventiende en de achttiende eeuw” (Dutch poetry from the 12th to the 16th century and Dutch poetry from the 17th to the 18th century) sold exactly 24 copies in one years time. ‘The comments freeze in my throat’ Gerrit wrote. I’m totally baffled by this number as well. It’s the ultimate insult, the product of a society that has utterly forgotten and despised its own roots.

That might sound hypocritical coming from a guy who chose to discontinue his weblog in dutch. I am aware of that. But it’s exactly why I chose to discontinue writing in Dutch. I do not want to serve such an audience. I’d rather try master a foreign language than be content to serve a few hundred people, a scene summarized by an insulting cloak of silence, where everyone is afraid to speak what’s on his mind, where no one dares say anything positive or negative about each other. Oh please. I have better things to do in this world.

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