Ottoman Lyric Poetry: An Anthology (Paperback)

~ Walter G. Andrews (Editor), Najaat Black (Editor), Mehmet Kalpakl (Editor)

Editorial Reviews

Review

"This is the finest literary translation of Ottoman Turkish lyrics ever done and will shape the reception of the poetry from now on. The selection is excellent--aesthetically superior, historically representative, and stylistically coherent." Victoria Holbrook, Ohio State University "Andrews has teamed up with a first-rate philologist (Kalpakli) and a talented poet (Black), and together they have tried to ... break down resistance to Ottoman poetry and show it forth in something like its native glory." International Journal of Middle East Studies --This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.

Product Description

Like a treasure-filled storehouse to which we have lost the key, Ottoman lyric poetry is almost unknown today, particularly among Western readers. Yet, during the centuries in which the Ottoman Empire was one of the world's great powers, poetry was its central medium of cultural expression. From love to the most profound search for spiritual truth to impassioned pleas for employment or largesse, everything that touched people deeply was expressed in poetry. This anthology, the first major English translation of Ottoman poetry in nearly a century, unlocks the storehouse. The authors offer free verse translations of 75 lyric poems (whose original Ottoman Turkish texts are also included), spanning a period from the fourteenth through the early twentieth centuries. In addition to the poems, the authors provide concise background information on Ottoman history and literature, informative notes to the poems, and brief biographies of the poets. These materials give students and general readers sufficient context to understand the poems, without burdening the reading experience.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 323 pages
• Publisher: Univ of Texas Pr; 1st University of Texas Press Ed edition (July 1997)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0292704720
• ISBN-13: 978-0292704725
• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 6.2 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #2,609,489 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Exellent introduction to Ottoman Poetry, July 21, 2007

By	Gogol (England) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Ottoman Lyric Poetry: An Anthology (Publications on the Near East) (Paperback)

Nice little introduction to Ottoman poetry probably one of the most overlooked literary traditons of the Middle East. The book consists of an introduction to Ottoman Poetry then followed by translations of Ottoman poems from a selection of well known classical Ottoman poets. This is followed by the Turkish (called in my edition 'original Ottoman text' its nothing of the sort, its in modern Turkish with latin letters) After this is a brief biography of the poets featured in the book.

A nice little book if you cant find Gibbs Ottoman Poetry or dont want to pay around $200 for the 6 books, my only complaint is that the writer seriously overlooks the Sufi aspect of Ottoman poetry.