Yordan Radichkov
Encyclopedia
Yordan Radichkov (October 24, 1929 - January 21, 2004) was a famous Bulgaria
n writer and playwright. Some literary critics state http://books.guardian.co.uk/news/articles/0,6109,1135860,00.html that he is the most significant figure in Bulgarian literature
in the last third of the 20th century. Some literary critics have referred http://books.guardian.co.uk/news/articles/0,6109,1135860,00.html to him as the Bulgarian Kafka or Gogol.
, he began his career as Vratsa
regional correspondent for the Narodna mladezh (National Youth) newspaper and later on took over editorial duties.
This romantic style was gradually replaced by a style of parody and the grotesque, with an increase in folkloristic elements, including folk fantasy and humor. Radichkov began parodying styles and reality: his works deprived objects of their natural dimensions and took them out of context; he combined disparate genres and transformed reality into a comic theater, defusing absurd aspects of life by means of laughter. A mixture of the fantastic and the real, Radichkov's works combined images of industrial civilisation with those of a remote mythical past, and were sometimes defined as a Balkan magic realism
. His parodic style was initially met with animosity from the ruling Communist party (he was often accused of primitivism, escapism and dark agnosticism). Much of his writing (prose and plays) draws on characters and the ethnography
of his native North-West Bulgaria. The fact that his own village Kalimaniza was destroyed and it site is currently under the waters of the "Ogosta
" dam (1983) became a recurring theme in his writing and another metaphor for the detachedness of the "modern" world from the one to which Radichkov brings his readers in his reminiscings. Another major theme of his writing is nature and wildlife. In his prose he makes a masterful use of the often chaotic and irrational manner villagers and hunters narrate stories Over the years Radichkov has gained popularity and recognition in Bulgaria and the international community, including a Nobel Prize
nomination.
Radichkov's 1966 script for the film Goreshto pladne (Hot Noon) was a story about humanity's efforts to save a trapped boy from drowning in a surging river and was a huge success for the writer. Baruten bukvar (Gunpowder Primer), his 1969 novel was the first in his homeland to talk about Socialism through a powerful blend of profanity, fantasy and folkloric wisdom rather than simple idealization. The award-winning Posledno liato (The Last Summer, 1974) is a parable of a man trying desperately to stay faithful to his own identity in a dynamically changing world.
He also wrote a number of domestically and internationally acclaimed children's books. Of these Nie Vrabchetata (We, the Sparrows) has gained particular popularity in Bulgaria. In 1996 Malki zhabeshki istorii (Little Frogs' Stories) won the Hans Christian Andersen
award for children's literature.
Radichkov often illustrated his works with his own abstract drawings that have become another hallmark of his artistic presence.
Radichkov is particularly famous for his mastery of language, the richness of his Bulgarian and his use of dialectisms. Critics have stated that "the real main character in the work of Radichkov is the word". Probably the greatest manifestation of Radichkov's impact on Bulgarian culture is the fact that his work introduced a number of neologisms and expressions in the every-day Bulgarian language.
, 2003), the prestigious Italian prize Grinzane Cavour
(1984) and the prize of the International Academy of the Arts in Paris (1993). A founding member, and first president (1984–1991) of the Bulgarian-Swedish Association for Friendship, he received the Swedish national Order of the Polar Star
(1988).
He was a prominent figure in Bulgaria
's public life - a member of the Union of Bulgarian Writers since 1962, he was elected MP for the Bulgarian Socialist Party
in 2001, but quickly resigned in disagreement and spent the last years of his life increasingly withdrawn from politics.
Radichkov's works have been translated in more than 30 languages and in 2001 he was nominated for the Nobel prize for literature.
on Livingston Island in the South Shetland Islands
, Antarctica is named after Yordan Radichkov.
Bulgaria
Bulgaria , officially the Republic of Bulgaria , is a parliamentary democracy within a unitary constitutional republic in Southeast Europe. The country borders Romania to the north, Serbia and Macedonia to the west, Greece and Turkey to the south, as well as the Black Sea to the east...
n writer and playwright. Some literary critics state http://books.guardian.co.uk/news/articles/0,6109,1135860,00.html that he is the most significant figure in Bulgarian literature
Bulgarian literature
Bulgarian literature is literature written by Bulgarians or residents of Bulgaria, or written in the Bulgarian language; usually the latter is the defining feature...
in the last third of the 20th century. Some literary critics have referred http://books.guardian.co.uk/news/articles/0,6109,1135860,00.html to him as the Bulgarian Kafka or Gogol.
Early life
Born in a poor family in the village of Kalimanitza, Montana ProvinceMontana Province
Montana Province is a province in northwestern Bulgaria, bordering Serbia in the southwest and Romania in the north. It spreads its area between the Danube river and Balkan mountain. As of February 2011, the province has a population of 148,098 inhabitants, on territory of 3,635.5 km²...
, he began his career as Vratsa
Vratsa
Vratsa is a city in northwestern Bulgaria, at the foothills of the Balkan Mountains. It is the administrative centre of the homonymous Vratsa Province. As of February 2011, the town has a population of 60,482 inhabitants....
regional correspondent for the Narodna mladezh (National Youth) newspaper and later on took over editorial duties.
Writing career
Radichkov's literary career began as he started writing short stories for the Vecherni novini (Evening News) newspaper and his early collections caught the attention of readers and critics alike with their lyricism and directness. In 1959, he published his first full-length book, Sarczeto bie za horata (The Heart Beats for the People), followed by Prosti rutse (Simple Hands, 1961) and Oburnato nebe (A Sky Turned Upside Down, 1962), all written in the socialist-realist official style.This romantic style was gradually replaced by a style of parody and the grotesque, with an increase in folkloristic elements, including folk fantasy and humor. Radichkov began parodying styles and reality: his works deprived objects of their natural dimensions and took them out of context; he combined disparate genres and transformed reality into a comic theater, defusing absurd aspects of life by means of laughter. A mixture of the fantastic and the real, Radichkov's works combined images of industrial civilisation with those of a remote mythical past, and were sometimes defined as a Balkan magic realism
Magic realism
Magic realism or magical realism is an aesthetic style or genre of fiction in which magical elements blend with the real world. The story explains these magical elements as real occurrences, presented in a straightforward manner that places the "real" and the "fantastic" in the same stream of...
. His parodic style was initially met with animosity from the ruling Communist party (he was often accused of primitivism, escapism and dark agnosticism). Much of his writing (prose and plays) draws on characters and the ethnography
Ethnography
Ethnography is a qualitative method aimed to learn and understand cultural phenomena which reflect the knowledge and system of meanings guiding the life of a cultural group...
of his native North-West Bulgaria. The fact that his own village Kalimaniza was destroyed and it site is currently under the waters of the "Ogosta
Ogosta
The Ogosta , is a river in Northern Bulgaria, a right tributary of the Danube. It takes it source from Vrazha Glava Peak on the border with Serbia. The towns of Chiprovtsi, Montana and Miziya are situated on the river's banks....
" dam (1983) became a recurring theme in his writing and another metaphor for the detachedness of the "modern" world from the one to which Radichkov brings his readers in his reminiscings. Another major theme of his writing is nature and wildlife. In his prose he makes a masterful use of the often chaotic and irrational manner villagers and hunters narrate stories Over the years Radichkov has gained popularity and recognition in Bulgaria and the international community, including a Nobel Prize
Nobel Prize
The Nobel Prizes are annual international awards bestowed by Scandinavian committees in recognition of cultural and scientific advances. The will of the Swedish chemist Alfred Nobel, the inventor of dynamite, established the prizes in 1895...
nomination.
Radichkov's 1966 script for the film Goreshto pladne (Hot Noon) was a story about humanity's efforts to save a trapped boy from drowning in a surging river and was a huge success for the writer. Baruten bukvar (Gunpowder Primer), his 1969 novel was the first in his homeland to talk about Socialism through a powerful blend of profanity, fantasy and folkloric wisdom rather than simple idealization. The award-winning Posledno liato (The Last Summer, 1974) is a parable of a man trying desperately to stay faithful to his own identity in a dynamically changing world.
He also wrote a number of domestically and internationally acclaimed children's books. Of these Nie Vrabchetata (We, the Sparrows) has gained particular popularity in Bulgaria. In 1996 Malki zhabeshki istorii (Little Frogs' Stories) won the Hans Christian Andersen
Hans Christian Andersen
Hans Christian Andersen was a Danish author, fairy tale writer, and poet noted for his children's stories. These include "The Steadfast Tin Soldier," "The Snow Queen," "The Little Mermaid," "Thumbelina," "The Little Match Girl," and "The Ugly Duckling."...
award for children's literature.
Radichkov often illustrated his works with his own abstract drawings that have become another hallmark of his artistic presence.
Radichkov is particularly famous for his mastery of language, the richness of his Bulgarian and his use of dialectisms. Critics have stated that "the real main character in the work of Radichkov is the word". Probably the greatest manifestation of Radichkov's impact on Bulgarian culture is the fact that his work introduced a number of neologisms and expressions in the every-day Bulgarian language.
Awards and public recognition
Radichkov has been awarded a wide number of awards for literature, theatre, and film, both is his homeland and abroad, among them the Order of Stara Planina (the highest order of BulgariaBulgaria
Bulgaria , officially the Republic of Bulgaria , is a parliamentary democracy within a unitary constitutional republic in Southeast Europe. The country borders Romania to the north, Serbia and Macedonia to the west, Greece and Turkey to the south, as well as the Black Sea to the east...
, 2003), the prestigious Italian prize Grinzane Cavour
Grinzane Cavour
Grinzane Cavour is a comune in the Province of Cuneo in the Italian region Piedmont, located about 50 km southeast of Turin and about 45 km northeast of Cuneo.Grinzane Cavour borders the municipalities of Alba and Diano d'Alba....
(1984) and the prize of the International Academy of the Arts in Paris (1993). A founding member, and first president (1984–1991) of the Bulgarian-Swedish Association for Friendship, he received the Swedish national Order of the Polar Star
Order of the Polar Star
The Order of the Polar Star is a Swedish order of chivalry created by King Frederick I of Sweden on 23 February 1748, together with the Order of the Sword and the Order of the Seraphim....
(1988).
He was a prominent figure in Bulgaria
Bulgaria
Bulgaria , officially the Republic of Bulgaria , is a parliamentary democracy within a unitary constitutional republic in Southeast Europe. The country borders Romania to the north, Serbia and Macedonia to the west, Greece and Turkey to the south, as well as the Black Sea to the east...
's public life - a member of the Union of Bulgarian Writers since 1962, he was elected MP for the Bulgarian Socialist Party
Bulgarian Socialist Party
The Bulgarian Socialist Party is social-democratic political party in Bulgaria and successor to the Bulgarian Communist Party. The BSP is a member of the Party of European Socialists and Socialist International, and is currently led by Sergei Stanishev....
in 2001, but quickly resigned in disagreement and spent the last years of his life increasingly withdrawn from politics.
Radichkov's works have been translated in more than 30 languages and in 2001 he was nominated for the Nobel prize for literature.
Honour
Radichkov PeakRadichkov Peak
Radichkov Peak rises to 500 m in Levski Ridge, Tangra Mountains, eastern Livingston Island in the South Shetland Islands, Antarctica. The peak overlooks Srebarna Glacier to the southwest and Magura Glacier to the northeast and has steep and ice-free eastern slopes...
on Livingston Island in the South Shetland Islands
South Shetland Islands
The South Shetland Islands are a group of Antarctic islands, lying about north of the Antarctic Peninsula, with a total area of . By the Antarctic Treaty of 1959, the Islands' sovereignty is neither recognized nor disputed by the signatories and they are free for use by any signatory for...
, Antarctica is named after Yordan Radichkov.