Poet and writer (b. 1946, Kayseri
– d. 1 August 2013, İstanbul). He has written some of his articles under the
pen name Semih Güngör. He attended Kayseri M. Karamancı Primary School (1967)
and graduated from Kayseri Night High School (1967) and then Istanbul
University, Faculty of Literature, Department of Turkish Language and
Literature (1973). At İstanbul University, he studied Turcology, Philosophy,
the History of Theatre and English Literature. In his school years, he worked
as a technician at Kayseri Main Repair Factory. He worked at the Turkish
National Student Association’s Press and Publishing Headquarters. He took part
in the preparation of the dictionary of the Kubbealtı Community. After
completing his studies at university, he worked as a literature teacher in high
schools in İzmit (1974-78) and İstanbul (1978-81). He worked as a Turkish
language lecturer at Mimar Sinan University (1974-78). Between 1988 and 1992,
with an appointment by the Turkish Council of Higher Education and the Ministry
of National Education, he taught Turkish to foreigners at the Institute of
Modern Languages in Islamabad, Pakistan as an assistant professor. When he
returned to Turkey, he resumed his former job at Mimar Sinan University and
between 1996 and 1998 he was a member of the City Theatres Repertoire Board. In
1998, he retired form his job in the university to concentrate on his literary
works. After retiring, for a while he worked as a cultural adviser at Tuzla
Municipality (1998-2000). He continues his work as a freelance writer.
His first works were published in the magazine Filiz (Kayseri) in 1966. Later, his poems and articles were published in journals and magazines such as Millî Gençlik (1968-69), Tohum (1969-70), Hisar (1970-80), Türk Edebiyatı (1972), Edebiyat (1972-75), Mavera (1975-80), Yeni Sanat (1974-75), Sedir (1980), Millî Gazete (1973) and Yeni Devir (1977-85), Türkiye (1985). His play named Umut Suları (Waters of Hope) was performed at the Turkish National Student Association’s Theatre. Besides his efforts in improvements to Turkish cultural life and introducing important artists and their works to a wider audience, he has also taken part in programs on radio and television and made contacts with foreigners with the aim of introducing Turkish literature abroad. He was part of the administration team at the magazines Millî Gençlik, Yeni Sanat and Sedir. He established Suffe Publications and published a cultural annual called Suffe Kültür Sanat Yıllığı (Suffe Culture Art Annual, 1982-88). In 1975, his novel Kaybolmuş Günler (Lost Days) and in 1981 his poetry book Hicret Destanı (The Legend Of Hegira) won the Turkey National Culture Award. With his novels Dönemeç (The Curve) in 1980 and Bir Aşk Serüveni (An Adventure of Love) in 1995, he won the Writers Union of Turkey Novelist of the Year Award. He also received various awards in İstanbul University, Faculty of Literature’s literature competitions. Many theses have been prepared related to his literary works and some have been translated and published. His play named Çengi (Dancing Girl) that he had adapted from a play by Ahmet Mithat Efendi with the same name was performed at İstanbul City Theatre’s Gaziosmanpaşa Stage under the directorship of Naşit Özcan.
In his first works, he gave a
voice to loneliness, the refuge in dreams, impossible love and the basic values
of and the longings for the past experienced by people who become uncomfortable
in big cities. In his poems, he gives space to the main motifs of Turkish
literary tradition and the breakdown and suffering in morality. In his novels,
he discusses the youth who profoundly feel the sorrows of the period in which
they live and cross-generational conflicts. He takes as his themes the
suffering of youth in love the confusion of identity along with social change
reflecting in the culture of cities and the efforts of disbanded families to
come together again. He also discusses the responsibility of being conscious of
the past. He brings to the forefront of his works the Anatolian people’s
problems in their hometowns and their struggles to exist in big cities.
WORKS:
POETRY: Rüya Çağrısı (The Call of Dreams, 1973), Devran (Wheel of Fortune, 1978), Hicret Destanı (The Legend of the Hegira, 1981, translated into Arabic by Dr. Muhammed Harb with the name Melhametü Hicre -The Battle of the Hegira and published in the magazine El Belağ in 1981), Şiirler (Poems, 1983), Bir Gülü Andıkça (Whenever One Remembers a Rose, 1997).
SHORT STORY: Geçmiş Zaman Aynası (The Mirror of Past Times, 1976, new edition named Pancur (Shutter), 1998), Devrim Otomobili (The Automobile of Revolution, 2003).
NOVEL: Kaybolmuş Günler (The Lost Days, 1975), Dönemeç (The Curve, 1980), Güzel Ölüm (Beautiful Death, 1982), Bir Aşk Serüveni (An Adventure of Love, 1995), Yollar ve İzler (Roads and Footprints, 2002, translated into English as “Roads and Footprints” by Masud Akhtar Shaikh in 2003 and published in Konya).
PLAY: Umut Suları (The Waters of Hope, 1973, performed at the Turkish National Students Association Theatre, but not published), Telefon (The Telephone, radio play, published in Yeni Sanat, February 1974), Çengi (Dancing Girl, musical play, an adaptation from Ahmet Mithat Efendi’s play with the same name, 1999).
ESSAY: Edebiyat Geleneği (The Tradition of Literature, 1975), Devlet ve Zihniyet (State and Mentality, 1980), Muhacir (The Immigrant, 1981), Roman Düşüncesi ve Türk Romanı (The Idea of the Novel and the Turkish novel, 1998), Kültür Hayatımız (Our Cultural Life, 1999), Edebiyat Sohbetleri (Conversations of Literature, 2003).
RESEARCH: Dede Korkut Kitabı (The Dede Korkut Book, 1984), Necip Fazıl Kısakürek (Necip Fazıl Kısakürek 1985), Asaf Hâlet Çelebi (Asaf Hâlet Çelebi 1986), Ziya Osman Saba (Ziya Osman Saba 1987), Haldun Taner (Haldun Taner 1988).
SPEECH: Sanat ve Edebiyat Konuşmaları (Speeches on Art and Literature, 1999).
TRAVEL LITERATURE: Zügüdar - Babil’den Tac Mahal’e Gezi Notları
(Zugudar-Travel Notes from Babel to the Taj Mahal, 2003).
He has also prepared collections
and simplifications.
REFERENCE: Necip Fazıl Kısakürek / Babıali (1975), Muzaffer Uyguner (Türk Dili, Eylül 1975), Seyit Kemal Karaalioğlu / Resimli Türk Edebiyatçılar Sözlüğü (2. bas. 1982), Bahaettin Karakoç (Kültür ve Sanat, Kasım 1982), Necmettin Türinay / Geleneğin Dünyası Yeniliğin Ufukları (1983), İhsan Işık / Yazarlar Sözlüğü (1990, 1998) - Türkiye Yazarlar Ansiklopedisi (2001, 2004) – Resimli ve Metin Örnekli Türkiye Edebiyatçılar ve Kültür Adamları Ansiklopedisi (2007, 2009), Ahmet Kabaklı / Türk Edebiyatı (Şiir, Cilt: 4, 1991), Behçet Necatigil / Edebiyatımızda İsimler Sözlüğü (18. bas. 1999), Şükran Kurdakul / Şairler ve Yazarlar Sözlüğü (gen. 6. bas. 1999), A. Vahap Akbaş / Muhtasar Bir Portre Denemesi (Seviye, Mart-Nisan 1999), Abdullah Satoğlu / Kayseri Ansiklopedisi (2002), Yazar Mustafa Miyasoğlu vefat etti (AA - hurriyet.com.tr, 1 Ağustos 2013), Türkiye Yazarlar Birliği / Türkiye Kültür Sanat Yıllığı (2014).
