Wislawa Szymborska

Maria Wisława Anna Szymborska (Polish: Maria Wisława Anna Szymborska, Polish pronunciation: [viˈswava ʂɨmˈbɔrska]; July 2, 1923 – February 1, 2012) was a Polish poet and translator, known as the "Mozart of poetry". In 1996, Szymborska won the Nobel Prize in Literature for "poetry that reveals with ironic accuracy fragments of human reality in its historical and biological context." Szymborska's private life is kept away from the public eye. Her early work was influenced by socialist realism, but she later gradually turned to a focus on everyday life and personal emotions. In addition to poetry, she publishes columns in literary magazines and works as a translator.