Rainer Maria Rilke

1875-1926. Admired by his contemporary poets, but not well-known among the general public until after his death, Rainer Maria Rilke is now considered one of the greatest poets of the 20th century. He is especially famous for the nonfiction Letters to a Young Poet, for The Duino Elegies, and for the oft-anthologized poem, "The Archaic Torso of Apollo."