On September 28, 1971, the Greek lyric poet George Serferis passed away.
In 1928, the Greek translation of the famous French poet and critic Valéry's philosophical essay "An Evening Conversation with Mr. Teste" was published. The translator was signed "Georges-Seferis", and people I looked through this new book curiously. The deep philosophical meditation and reasoning in the book aroused people's strong interest, but I couldn't find out who the translator was, because this was the first time that the name "Sephiris" was used. appeared in the poetry world.
George Serphiris, whose real name was George Serphiriadis, was born in 1900 in Smyrna (also known as Izmir, now in Turkey) in Asia Minor. His father taught at the University of Athens, teaching international law. He is very fond of poetry and has translated and composed some poems and won awards. The son is influenced to a certain extent by his father in terms of career and hobbies. Serphiris came to Athens in 1914 and entered the Law Department of the University of Athens after graduating from high school. From 1918 to 1924, he studied in France, graduated from the law department of Sorponne College in Paris, and then went to England. From 1926, he began to serve in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
Sephiris began to study poetry while in college. He has a strong interest in contemporary poetry from Britain, France and other countries, and has translated many works. After the Greek translation of "An Evening Talk with Mr. Test" was published, he published his first collection of poems in March 1931, entitled "The Turning Point". In the 1920s, due to various social and political reasons at the time, the Greek poetry world was enveloped in a negative and decadent atmosphere. Many people felt despair about reality, lost confidence in life, and felt that reality was empty, the future was incomprehensible, and there was only the past. It is eternal, and only the memory of the past can bring some comfort to the desperate soul. Physical fatigue, mental pain, aimlessness of life, etc. have become themes that poets often describe to express their inner anguish and melancholy. Serphiris's poems have relatively simple language and relatively novel images, which bring some vitality to the poetry world full of sorrow. His poems bear the imprint of French Symbolist poetry. The deep emotions, meditation and exploration of life in the poems clearly reflect Valéry's influence on him. The poet pursued life passionately and seemed to find something in life, but when he explored further, he found nothing. Practice made him realize that life itself is not as simple, clear and beautiful as imagined, it is mysterious and profound. His "Abandonment" is a representative song:
On the mysterious coast,
Like silver doves glowing with white light,
It was hot at noon and our mouths were dry;
The sea water was salty and hard to drink.
On the golden beach,
We wrote its name;
The pleasant sea breeze blew,
Erased our handwriting.
We sincerely, sincerely,
with pain and desire,
greet life! Oh, wrong,
We had no choice but to change our lives.
The nihilism and despair revealed in this poem reflect the poet's inner depression, which is also the mark of the times. The long poem "Pool" published by the poet in 1932 has an ideological tendency similar to that of his first collection of poems, "The Turning Point".
The 1930s was a period when Serphiris' poetry creation gradually matured. At this time, he devoted himself to studying the works of the British poet Thomas Eliot, an important representative of modern poetry in Britain and the United States, and translated and introduced his works. In terms of artistic views, he was greatly influenced by Eliot. A collection of poems published in 1935 "Myth and History" is one of his excellent poetry collections. This collection includes 24 poems including "The Messenger", "The Well", "The Argonauts", "South Wind" and "Migration". The literal translation of the title should be "History in Myths". The poet said in the preface: "I chose this title taking into account the meaning of the two parts of the collection: mythology - because it is obvious that I have used certain mythological elements; history - because I want to make what I express, not The events that depend on me and the characters in the story have certain connections with each other.” Therefore, these 24 poems are both independent and connected. From 1919 to 1922, Greece and Turkey fought over territorial issues. The Greek army suffered a complete defeat in Asia Minor. The poet's hometown of Smyrna was also reduced to ruins during the war. This incident left a tragic shadow in the hearts of many Greeks. In the smoke of war, the ideal world of the poet's childhood was reduced to ashes, and everything he loved was destroyed.
What was left was only a "weak echo". This tragic scene inspired the poet Infinite pain, he was full of worries about the future of the nation, which was further shown in "Myth and History". The poet resurrects history in reality, while at the same time casting reality into a mythical color. In the poem, he reviewed history and reproduced myths through fictitious artistic images, intertwining historical facts with myths and legends. The protagonist in the poem even sailed with characters from myths and legends, and witnessed many historical tragedies and ancient civilizations. The moving pictures remind people of their own reality and evoke the indelible sadness in their hearts.
In 1940, the poet compiled and published a collection of poems he wrote between 1937 and 1940, titled "Logbook". At that time, the flames of World War II had spread, and some poems in the collection of poems, such as "My Sun" and "The Last Day", painted pictures of the suffering of being enslaved by fascism. The firm spirit shown by the people in the disaster inspired him and gave him hope of getting rid of the disaster. Some of his poems from this period showed angry feelings. This is rare in his previous poems. Some poems in the collection still take ancient myths and ancient historical legends as their themes. The poet believes that the changes of the times will not completely destroy ancient civilization, and the ruins left in ancient times contain lessons for future life. He feels that history should not be regarded as something that has died, but as something that still exists and remains relevant to reality. The poet expressed his feelings about the times through legends and history. In 1940, the poet also published the poem "Exercises", which collected his works from 1928 to 1937.
During World War II, Seferis went into exile with the Greek government. His poems of this period expressed his anxiety about the fate of his nation and the world and his eagerness for the victory of justice. He praised the people fighting for freedom. The melancholy mood often revealed in previous poems has weakened at this time, and the form of poetry has become more popular. In 1944 he created the sequel to "The Logbook".
After the end of World War II, the poet returned to Athens and published the collection of poems "The Thrush" in 1947. The title of the collection of poems is taken from the name of a ship sunk by the Germans during the war. The last part of the poem praises the light. This collection of poems was generally well received. After 1948, the poet was mainly engaged in diplomatic work and served as counselor or ambassador of Greece in West Asia and some European countries. From 1957 to 1962, he served as ambassador to the United Kingdom, which was his last diplomatic post. After that, he retired back to Athens. In 1955, he published the third part of the collection of poems "Logbook". He also published some poems, but the number Not many. Between 1950 and 1980, his collection of poems was reprinted many times, and some poems were set into songs, which were widely circulated.
While engaged in poetry creation, Serphiris also translated and introduced the poems of many European and American writers. In addition to the British poet Eliot, there were also French poets Paul-Eluard and Laurent. He also showed a strong interest in the American poet Ezra Pound. Serphiris is a famous contemporary Greek poet. As early as 1946, he won the Literary Award named after the famous Greek poet Palamas. In 1960, he received an honorary doctorate from the University of Cambridge in the United Kingdom. He was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1963 for "his outstanding lyrical poetry, which are the product of a deep feeling for Greek culture."
Seferis on September 28, 1971 He died of illness, and the Greek people held a grand funeral for him.