Dezső Kosztolányi

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Dezső Kosztolányi (1885–1936) was a famous Hungarian poet and prose-writer.

Contents 1 Biography 2 Writings 3 Bibliography 4 External links

[edit] Biography

Kosztolányi was born in Szabadka (Subotica) in 1885, then part of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, but which now lies in northern Serbia. The city serves as a model for the fictional town of Sárszeg, in which he set his novella Skylark as well as The Golden Kite. Kosztolányi studied at the University of Budapest, where he met the poets Mihály Babits and Gyula Juhász, and then for a short time in Vienna before quitting and becoming a journalist--a profession he stayed with for the rest of his life. In 1908, he replaces the poet Endre Ady, who had left for Paris, as a reporter for a Budapest daily. In 1910, his first volume of poems The Complaints of a Poor Little Child brought nationwide success and marked the beginning of a prolific period in which he published a book nearly every year. In 1936, he died from cancer of the larynx.

[edit] Writings

The literary journal Nyugat (Hungarian for "West"), which played an invaluable role in the revitalization of Hungarian literature, was founded in 1908 and Kosztolányi was an early contributor, part of what is often called the "first Nyugat generation," publishing mainly in poetry.

Starting in the 1920's he wrote longer prose works and novels, including Nero, the Bloody Poet (to the German edition of which Thomas Mann wrote the introduction), Skylark, The Golden Kite, and Anna Édes. In 1924 he publishes a volume of verse harkening back to his early work, entitled The Complaints of the Sad Man.

Kosztolányi also produced literary translations in Hungarian, such as (from English, at least) A Winter's Tale and Alice in Wonderland.

[edit] Bibliography

Esterházy, Péter. Introduction to the Central European Classics edition of Skylark. 1993. ISBN 963-9116-66-1

[edit] External links

• Dawnstruck (translation of his poem)