Marcin Malek (also writing under the pen name Martin Smallridge; born 24 February 1975) is a Polish poet, writer, playwright and publicist.
He is also a literature translator to Russian and English (both ways), including press articles in the field of international affairs and cultural releases as well as Russian and English-language poetry along with the letters of Alexander Sergeyevich Pushkin. Published mainly in quarterlies: "Fronda", "Tygiel Kultury", "Akcent" and monthlies: "Nowe Państwo", „Stosunki Międzynarodowe", "Opcja na prawo", "Dziś", Winner of the annual award of "Poetry&Paratheatre" journal (category: Poem of the Year) for year 2012, (work: Bieg – Czyli list do współczesnych / "Run – a letter to the present").
Malek was born on 24 February 1975, in Warsaw, Poland. He studied International Affairs (diplomacy) and Custom Administration Services. Since 2006 he lives in Ireland.
In recent years Malek devoted himself mainly to poetry. As he says: he "finally found a place where he belongs, and all that he owns, is the power of his words, and a momentous awareness of consequences".[1] He is of the opinion, that "poetry is like a spurt; elusive, and not enough to say — inexplicable".[1] In his writing "poetry is the way into the unknown is still asks questions and never hears correct answers. And so – to be a poet is no more than wander around and ask every encountered soul for directions."[1] In his opinion, poetry is "a storage of historical curiosities, in which we keep rarely used words, and poets are workers who use these words as the raw material. The snag is that they work blindly because with such material you can never be sure, and it is difficult to predict what falls out of the assembly line."[2] In his opinions of other poets he expresses himself very carefully saying that they live "somewhere out there, where we mere mortals do not have access – on the other side, in the midst of spells, myths and legends."[3] He explains that "poets have something in common with the unfortunate Icarus, whose flight and fall are widespread symbols of the human thoughtful pursuit of unattainable objectives against the natural order of the world. We want to see them as those who are in pursuit of reality, those fully aware of their tremendous responsibility, always faithful to a supreme idea, entering boldly where none seemingly normal would dare to enter – mainly because our "me" bothers us more than anything else. Poet (who lives inside us) has thousands of them – continues in perpetual flight to fall and to rise, and so it goes, he passes from one dimension to another becoming his own multiplication. Sometimes Malek calls himself an invented character, once he admitted that he associates with the ghosts, and that "under the pressure of certain words", he simply "does not know how to be himself."[1]
Chcemy znać ostatnią wersję prawdy
Kto nie widział, ten nie zrozumie
Od Puszkina do Czuchraja. Literackie szkice o Rosji
Terroryzm medialny – Nowa forma komunikacji międzyludzkiej, wrzesień 2004
Trzy maski na jedną twarz, październik 2004
Kłopotliwy Karzeł w Cieniu Giganta, październik 2004
Kto się boi Sharona?, listopad 2004
Zaolzie i Spisz, kwiecień 2005
Rosyjskie a priori, maj 2005
Apokalipsa po rosyjsku
Rosyjski übermensch
Rosja jak "dzika Bela"
Gwiazdozbiór smoka
Gwiazdozbiór smoka
Wiek Smoka
Brunatny wiatr odnowy
Rosja jak "dzika Bela"
The Jedwabne Massacre of 1941: An Interview with Marcin Malek "by Teri Schure
"Polish Death Camps" Controversy
"Portlaoise story in a time of Covid lockdown