Nasos Vagenas

Nasos Vagenas was born in Drama, a city in northern Greece, in 1945. He completed his elementary education and the first three years of high school there before moving to Athens in 1960. He studied philology at the Universities of Athens (1963-1968), Rome (1970-1972), Essex (1972-1973), and Cambridge, where he completed a doctoral dissertation on the poetry and poetics of George Seferis (1974-1978). From 1980 to 1991, he served as a professor of Modern Greek Philology at the University of Crete, and since 1992, he has been a professor of Literary Theory and Criticism at the University of Athens. In addition to his poetry books, Nasos Vagenas has published numerous studies and essays on literature and literary criticism, establishing himself as one of the most significant Greek critics today. One of these works, "The Ironic Language," was awarded the State Prize for Criticism in 1995. In 2013, he received the essay award from the Kostas and Eleni Ouranis Foundation of the Academy of Athens for his entire body of essay work. In 2017, he was honored with the Grand Honorary Award from the magazine "Anagnostis" [www.oanagnostis.gr] for his entire body of work. Bibliography: A. Poetry - Pedion Areos, Diogenes, 1974 - Biography, Kedros, 1978 - Roxani's Knees, Kedros, 1981 - Wandering of a Non-Traveler, Kedros, 1986 - The Fall of the Flyer, Stigmi, 1989, 2nd ed. Parousia, 1997 - Barbaric Odes, Kedros, 1992 - Stephanos, Kedros, 2004 - On the Isle of the Blessed, Kedros, 2010 - Biography: Poems 1974-2014, Kedros, 2015 - Panoraia, Kedros, 2016 B. Prose - The Guild, Kedros, 1976 C. Essays - The Poet and the Dancer: An Examination of Seferis' Poetics and Poetry, Kedros, 1979 - The Labyrinth of Silence: An Essay on Poetry, Kedros, 1982 - The Goddess's Robe: Notes on Poetry and Criticism, Stigmi, 1988 - Poetry and Translation, Stigmi, 1989 - The Ironic Language: Critical Studies on Modern Greek Literature, Stigmi, 1994 - Postmodernism and Literature, Polis, 2002, 2nd, expanded ed. Polis 2012 - The Distortion of Karyotakis, Indiktos, 2005 - Moving Target, Polis, 2011 - Giostra, Mikri Arktos, 2012 - Notes from the Beginning of the Century, Polis, 2013. D. Translations - Max Frisch, The Fire Raisers, Dodoni, 1971 - Edgar Allan Poe, Ligeia, Stigmi, 1996 - Richard Burns, Black Light, Typothito, 2005 etc. E. Translations of his works into foreign languages In English: - Biography (trans. Richard Burns), Lobby Press, Cambridge, 1978 - Biography and Other Poems (trans. John Stathatos), Oxus Press, London, 1979 - The Perfect Order: Selected Poems 1974-2010 (ed. Richard Berengarten (Burns) & Paschalis Nikolaou, selected trans.), Anvil Press, London, 2011 In German: - Wanderung eines Nicht-Reisenden, (trans. Alexandra Rassidakis), Romiosini, Cologne, 1997 In Dutch: - Biografie en andere (selection from all collections, trans. Marko Fondse and Hero Howkerda), Het Grekse Eiland, Amsterdam, 1990 - Barbaarse Oden, trans. Marko Fondse and Hero Hokwerda, Styx Publications, Groningen, 1997. In Italian: - Vagabondagggi di un non viaggiatore (selection from all collections, trans. Caterina Carpinato, Crocetti Editore, Milan, 1997. In Romanian: - Ratacirile unui necalator (trans. Victor Ivanovici), Seara, Bucharest, 1998. - Ode Barbare (trans. Valeriu Mardare), Omonia, Bucharest, 2001. In Serbian: - Selection of Poems, trans. Ivan Gadjanski and Ksenija Maricki Gadjanski, Rad, Belgrade, 2001. (Photo: Dimitris Tsoublekas)