On the anniversary of the death of Yaşar Kemal, a Turkish novel and story writer who left an important mark in Turkish literature, his life began to be investigated. Yaşar Kemal is one of our writers who has succeeded in coming to the fore both with his life and his literary personality. So, who is Yaşar Kemal, where is he from? When did Yaşar Kemal die? What are the works of Yaşar Kemal?
Kemal Sadık Gökçeli, better known as Yaşar Kemal (born 6 October 1923, Hemite, Osmaniye – died 28 February 2015, Istanbul), is a Kurdish-Turkish novel and story writer and activist. His most famous work is the "İnce Memed" novel series, which he completed in about 32 years.
In 1939, at the age of 16, Yaşar Kemal published his first poem, "Seyhan", in the magazine named Fikirler. After he left secondary school, he started collecting folklore and his first book, "Laments", which includes the elegies he compiled from Çukurova and the Taurus between 1940-1941, was published by Adana Community Center in 1943. While doing his military service in Kayseri, he wrote his first story, "Pirty Story" (1946), at the age of twenty-three. In 1948, he wrote "The Shopkeeper" after the story "Baby". He met famous names such as Pertev Naili Boratav, Nurullah Ataç and Güzin Dino around the Çığ magazine published in Adana in the 1940s. In particular, the closeness of the painter Abidin Dino with his older brother Arif Dino greatly influenced the development of his world of thought and literature. While writing under the name Kemal Sadık Gökçeli for various publications, Yaşar Kemal first used the name when he entered Cumhuriyet newspaper and worked as an anecdote and interview writer for this newspaper between 1951-1963. During this period, he began to be known for his series of interviews in which he expressed the economic and social problems of the Anatolian people. The story “Baby”, which was also included in the first story book “Yellow Warm” published in 1952, was serialized here. In 1947, he wrote the first volume of the novel "İnce Memed", which would bring him great fame, but left it unfinished. He only finished the work in 1953-1954 and published it in 1955. The novel is about the character named İnce Memed, who supports the poor people of Çukurova against the aghas and fights for his people. The four-volume series was completed in thirty-two years.
Yaşar Kemal benefited from the legends and tales of Anatolia in many of his works. He was a member of the PEN Writers' Association. He received a total of 38 awards during his lifetime. He became the first Turkish writer to be nominated for the Nobel Prize in Literature.[15] He was married to Thilda Serrero between 1952-2001. After the death of his wife in 2001, he married Ayşe Semiha Baban in 2002.
He died on February 28, 2015, at the age of 91, in the hospital where he was in intensive care due to organ failure. He was buried in Zincirlikuyu Cemetery after the ceremony held on March 2, 2015.
Yaşar Kemal, who is of Kurdish origin; He criticized the armed conflicts between the PKK and Turkish security forces in the mid-1990s. He wrote his personal views on the "Kurdish Question" in various articles. Stating that the State of the Republic of Turkey has racist attitudes towards minorities, especially Kurds, Yaşar Kemal received various punishments by Turkish courts for his articles. He was prosecuted on charges of "separatist propaganda" for supporting Kurdish activists. It is also said that Yaşar Kemal made important contributions to Turkish literature in the first years after the decline of Turkish as a literary language after Atatürk's language reforms in the 1930s.
İnce Memed I, Ağrıdağı Legend, İnce Memed II, Birds da Gone, İnce Memed III are the author's best-selling books.[24] According to data based on D&R's one hundred and forty-six store and online sales, book sales increased by 417% in the week after the author's death. İnce Memed was selected as number 2017 in the list of “The 100 Best Novels of Turkish Literature Ever”, determined by the 1-person jury formed by Hürriyet newspaper in XNUMX.
YAŞAR KEMAL LITERATURE PERSONALITY
Yaşar Kemal, who could not find the opportunity to complete his education regularly, is a self-taught person in the school of life. His interest in nature, people and society at a very young age formed the basis of his works. He observed and studied the pure, untouched nature of Çukurova, where he grew up, and all living things, from ants to eagles.
Yaşar Kemal grew up with nature, plants and animals. The fact that the plant names in their works cannot be found in the translated language is one of the most common complaints of those who have translated their works into foreign languages. Folklore is indispensable for the artist who grew up in Çukurova, a region rich in folk culture. He regards folklore as his origin culture. Yaşar Kemal, who traveled not only in Çukurova but also in many regions of Anatolia on various occasions, was once again interested in the folklore of these places.
The fact that he is among the people and knows them very well is one of the elements that best shapes his art.
Hundreds of classical works that he read while working at the Ramazanoğlu Library between 1942-1944 are another element that constitutes his art. Arif, Abidin and Güzin Dinos help him read the selected works. Güzin Dino even gives the author a list of French classics, showing the books he should read. Another person who left a deep impression on him is Abdale Zeynikî, who is blind and a dengbej whose life has become legendary among the people. The existing cultural circles and intellectuals in Adana in the 1940s are also important factors in the formation of his art.
WHEN AND WHY DID YAŞAR KEMAL DIE?
Yaşar Kemal died on February 28, 2015, at the age of 91, in the hospital where he was in intensive care due to organ failure. He was buried in Zincirlikuyu Cemetery after the ceremony held on March 2, 2015.
YAŞAR KEMAL WORKS
YAŞAR KEMAL INTERVIEWS:
- Fifty Days in the Burning Forests
- Cukurova Side by Side
- Fairy Chimneys
- All This Is Through This Realm
- Soldiers of God
- In Interview Writing
- Children are Human
YAŞAR KEMAL STORIES:
- Dirty Story
- Baby, Shopkeeper
- Memet and Memet
- Yellow Hot
YAŞAR KEMAL NOVELS:
- Fine Memed
- Tin
- Pomegranate Tree on the Mound
- Mid-Male/The Other Side of the Mountain 1
- Earth Iron Sky Copper/The Other Side of the Mountain 2
- Immortal Grass/The Other Side of the Mountain 3
- Blacksmith's Bazaar Murder
- dragonfly dragonfly
- If They Kill The Snake
- Take My Eyes Watch Salih
- The Birds Are Also Gone
- Sea Blaze
- Plover Bird
- Castle Gate
- sound of blood
- Euphrates Water, Blood is Flowing, Look!
- The Ant Drinks Water (2002)
- Bare Sea Bare Island / An Island Story
- A Single Winged Bird
YAŞAR KEMAL TRIALS:
- Laments
- If the Stone Cracks
- Salt in Honey
- The Sky Remains Blue
- Rot of the Tree
- Yellow Notebook
- Master Bee
- Let Your Persecution Become
TRANSLATIONS OF YAŞAR KEMAL:
- Moonlight Jewelers