Ottoman Poets and Poetics in the Sixteenth Century

<p>This book offers the first-ever partial English translation and commentary of what are arguably the two most important Ottoman biographical dictionaries of poets: the <i>tezkires </i>of As¸ik C¸elebi and Latifi. While <i>tezkires </i>are mostly culled for their factual data, this book focuses on the non-entry materials, especially the prefaces. These offer intimate glimpses into the authors’ lives, charting their professional ambitions, frustrations and feuds, set against the backdrop of the sixteenth-century Ottoman literary world – a world in which patrimonial relations made and broke careers, poetry was appraised, attacked, monetised and stolen, and the ambitions of aspiring poets were fuelled and foiled.<br><br>The two <i>tezkires </i>reflect this milieu, and their authors were personally acquainted, exchanging thoughts over their work and, finally, falling out over an accusation of plagiarism. The translations are supplemented with a reflection on the nature and translatability of Ottoman high prose, a discussion of the <i>tezkire </i>genre and a detailed presentation of the two authors and their dictionaries. Through a novel study of these interconnected works, this book provides a panorama of Ottoman literary history, as well as insights into the authors’ personal struggles.</p>