Love at First Sight

"A Word on Statistics" by Wislawa Szymborska (2002)

Using her famous wit and irony, in “A Word on Statistics” (2002), Szymborska explores the absurdity of statistics and their inability to measure human character. The poet satirically calculates how many out of every 100 people are good, helpful, fearful, and so forth. The obviously myopic nature of the data gives the poem a humorous air. The poem concludes that the only constant figure in human life is mortality.

"Nothing Twice" by Wislawa Szymborska (1998)

In “Nothing Twice” (1998), Szymborska treats themes shared with “Love at First Sight”: chance and time. The poem reflects on inconsistency within peoples’ lives. It uses figurative language and rhetorical questions to encourage the reader to compare and contrast various circumstances. Focusing again on day-to-day events, Szymborska underlines the individuality of each human being and asks the reader to revel in the distinctiveness of every moment.

"Photograph from September 11" by Wislawa Szymborska (2005)

Returning to the serious historical subjects of her early career, in a “Photograph from September 11” (2005), Szymborska memorializes the victims of the terrorist attacks in New York City on 9/11. With solemnity and respect, she describes widely circulated photographs of the people who jumped from the burning upper stories of the Twin Towers.