Poet
(b. 1829, Kandilli / İstanbul – d. 17 May 1880, Adana). He first attended quarter high school
in Kandilli and School
of Literary Sciences. He
became a civil servant at Sublime Porte Office after having graduated from Bayezid Elementary School. He became fifth clerk
of Royal Chamberlain with the help of Mustafa Reşit Paşa (1856). He learnt
French with his own efforts. He translated Tartuffe
and Engizisyon Tarihi (Inquisition
History) from French during his office as a clerk. When Ali Paşa became the
Grand Vizier, he was dismissed from his office at the palace (1861). He was
assigned as Under-secretary of Policemen in 1861. He became ambassador of Athens after thirteen
days. He resigned. He was assigned as the governor of Cyprus (1862).
He took the title Paşa. He could not work on literature in Cyprus and
returned to İstanbul when he was selected a member of Supreme Council of
Justice. He resigned again. He took part in the Young Ottomans Society that
struggled for the foundation of constitutional rule and fled to Paris (1867) with the
will of Mustafa Fazıl Paşa, who was a supporter of the society. He published
the newspaper Hürriyet in London with Namık Kemal
for a short time (1868). He went to Geneva
(1870) when he heard that Mustafa Fazıl Paşa reached an agreement with İstanbul
government. Next year, he returned to İstanbul when Ali Paşa died. After the
dethronement of Sultan Abdülaziz, he became a member of the State Council
(1876). He was assigned to the commission, which prepared the The Main Laws. He
was the governor of Syria
(1877), Konya and Adana with the title of viziership at the
time of Abdülhamit II. His tomb is in Adana.
When he died, all of the money remained from him were only one lira and sixty
kurus.
Ziya
Paşa continued the divan poetry with success in Tanzimat period and is popular
even today especially with his famous work Terkib-i
Bend (Collected Couplets) in which he observed and criticized the social
corruptions and that was published in 1870. He collects principal
characteristics of Tanzimat Literature in his art. Terci-i Bend,
his one of the most famous poems in Divan* form and written in 1859, made Ziya
Paşa famous with its content full of wisdom in a religious and mystic
atmosphere. There is uprising in Terci-i Bend and peace in Terkib-i
Bend. He
did not leave the old literature even he supported renovation in poetry and
language. He wanted to achieve that renovation without leaving the old
completely. Ziya Paşa was the most evident representative of the eclectic
delight of his time. In his article Şiir
ve İnşa (Poetry and Construction), he defended that spoken language of the
people had to be written language and to utilize folk poetry. His three-volume
anthology Harabat (The Ruins)
consisting of the selections of Divan* poets was criticized by his close friend
Namık Kemal. There are a long prologue in verse Mukaddime-i Harabat (Prologue of Harabat) and kasides* in Turkish, Arabian and Persian in the first volume,
poems in Turkish, Arabian and Persian in the second volume and mesnevis* in
Turkish and Persian in the third volume.
WORKS:
Zafernâme (The
Book of Victories, satires in prose and verse that he wrote for Ali Paşa, 1868,
new edition, 1975), Harabât (The
Saloon, in 3 volumes, Anthology of Arabian – Persian – Turkish Poetry, 1925;
with the name Poetry of Ziya Paşa, 1960),
Rüya (The Dream, prose, 1910),
Veraset Mektupları (Inheritance Letters, 1910).
He
has also translations from French.
