İlhan Berk

Infobox Writer
name = İlhan Berk


birthdate = November 18, 1918
birthplace = Manisa, Turkey
deathdate = August 28, 2008 (aged 89)
deathplace =
occupation = Poet, Essayist
nationality = Turkish
period = 1969 – 2008
movement = Postmodern literature
notableworks =
awards =
influences = Arthur Rimbaud, Ezra Pound
website =

İlhan Berk (18 November 1918 – 28 August 2008) was a leading contemporary Turkish poet. He was a dominant figure in the postmodern current in Turkish poetry (termed, "İkinci Yeni"; "The second new generation") and was very influential among Turkish literary circles.

Biography

Berk was born in Manisa, Turkey in 1918 and received a teacher's training in Balıkesir. He graduated from the French Language Department of Gazi University in Ankara. Between 1945-1955, Berk served as a teacher. He later began to work for the publishing office of Ziraat Bank as a translator (1956-1969). He became specialized in translation of poetry notably by translating into Turkish works by Arthur Rimbaud and Ezra Pound. In his later years, Berk resided in Bodrum where he died on 28 August 2008.

Poetry

Berk's poetry evolved from the approach of an epical socialist to the dreamy vision of a lyrical and erotic individual. He made the "object" visible in its glory and aimed to break down the meaning. Berk's poetry takes its roots from the mythology, and a synthesis of Western and Eastern poetry traditions, yet he accomplishes to create a unique and postmodern approach.

History, geography, visual arts, cities such as Istanbul, Paris and Ankara, feed Berk's poetry and, his themes are supported by a sizable vocabulary that includes colloquial words as well as very specific ones, such as musical terms and local names of plants.

Only a small selection of Berk's poems has so far appeared in English, most notably "A Leaf About To Fall: Selected Poems" (2006) translated by George Messo.

Bibliography in English

*
*
*
*
*
*

Awards

*1979 Turkish Language Association Award
*1980 Behçet Necatigil Poetry Award
*1983 Yeditepe Poetry Prize
*1988 Sedat Simavi Literature Prize

ee also

* List of contemporary Turkish poets

References

*