Švantner, Ján (1949–) Works   hu sk

Biography

At the time when Ján Švantner tried to establish himself as a poet, the era of the so-called normalisation following the Warsaw Pact invasion of 1968 was just beginning. This limited the possibilities of unhindered artistic expression. The literary generation that had just arrived on the scene had a very hard time. Ján Švantner in his early poetry did not follow the most experimental currents of poetry of the Sixties, nor did he give in to the demands of political loyalty to the totalitarian regime as many of the beginning authors have done in the hopes of establishing a career. He studied Slovak and French at Comenius University in Bratislava. From 1972 to 1975 he worked at the Institute of Literature (Slovak Academy of Sciences). Then he became an editor of the Tatran publishing house and later a specialist in the Institute for Information and Culture Management. At present he works as a professional writer.

The thematic bases for his début - the collection About the Snowy Heart - are the recollections of childhood, the beauties of nature, nature`s mysteriousness inspired by his mountainous native land.
He did not add the social dimension to these themes, but gave an account of his own sentiments and inner pain. His poems abound in melancholy, sceptical and sad notes together with a boyish tenderness. Some critics at the time noted the author`s prevailing pessimism. This, however, was hardly justified as the pessimism (or optimism) of a poetic text can hardly be a criterion for the judgment of literary quality. The collection also includes poems wherein the poet pays homage to other poets (Rúfus, Lukáč, Apollinaire).

Poetry:
About the Snowy Heart (O snežnom srdci, 1972),
- Star Attack (Hviezdny úder, 1975),
- Invisible Music (Neviditeľná hudba, 1980),
- Lamp (Lampa, 1986),
- Confessions and Songs, author´s selection (Vyznania a piesne, 2006, autorský výber),
- Letter to a Poet, bibliophile (List básnikovi, 2010, bibliofília)

Translations by the author:
- J. Cocteau`s Pictures and Dreams (1984),
- N. Boileau`s The Art of Poetry (1990),
- Ch. Baudelaire`s Flowers of Evil (1993).
- L. Blaga`s Overheard by the Unicorn (1982) from Romanian.
- A. de Saint Exupery: Citadel, 2001
- Y. Bonnefoy: Where the Wind Permeates (Kam preniká vietor, 2005)

Source:
- http://www.litcentrum.sk/en/slovenski-spisovatelia/jan-svantner

(Editor of this page: Répás Norbert)