Josip Murn Aleksandrov
Encyclopedia
Josip Murn, also known under the pseudonym Aleksandrov (4 March 1879 – 18 June 1901) was a Slovene symbolist
poet
. Together with Ivan Cankar
, Oton Župančič
, and Dragotin Kette
, he was regarded as one of the beginners of modernism
in Slovene literature. After France Prešeren
and Edvard Kocbek
, Murn was probably the most influential Slovene poet of the last two centuries.
as an illegitimate son to a poor woman. His mother moved to Trieste
soon after his birth, leaving him in foster care
to some relatives from the suburbs of Ljubljana.
As a teenager, he enrolled in the local high school, where he came in contact with other young Slovene literates, such as Ivan Cankar
, Dragotin Kette
, and Oton Župančič
, who experimented new trends in European poetry. He was a gifted student, shy, but also very self-confident. He started writing poetry at a very young age and soon achieved a very high level of quality. His talent was spotted by a high-class society woman Franja Tavčar, the influential wife of the national-liberal
politician and author Ivan Tavčar
, who arranged for him a scholarship to study at the University of Vienna
.
In 1898 he moved to Vienna
, spending there a year mostly visiting literary cafés and art exhibitions. Strongly influenced by the Viennese Secession, he wrote a series of poems with the common title Fin de siècle, in which he delivered his impressions on the life in the metropolis
.
In 1899, he moved back home and started traveling around the Slovene Lands
. He spent several months in Upper Carniola
, when he observed the peasant life style. He began to incorporate peasant motifs in his symbolist poetry. He took elements not only from Slovene, but also from Irish
, Scottish
, Slovak
, and Latvian
folk motifs.
He later traveled to the Austrian Littoral
, visiting his mother in Trieste
and living briefly in Grado
before settling in the Vipava Valley
for some time. There, he decided to adopt the pseudonym Aleksandrov, reminiscent of Slavic
peasant archaism
, and moved to an even more simple and impressionist poetic expression.
He settled in Ljubljana in 1901, renting a small room in a slum building on the banks of the river Ljubljanica
(an abandoned sugar factory, known as Cukrarna). He died there at the age of 22 from tuberculosis
, on the same bed as his friend Dragotin Kette
just two years before.
He is buried in the Žale
cemetery, next to the tombs of Dragotin Kette, Ivan Cankar and Oton Župančič, in what is known as the "monument of Slovene modernism" (Spomenik slovenske moderne).
rejected him as a decadent
. Even some of his closest colleagues, namely Cankar
and Župančič
, did not look favorably on his poetic endeavor, regarding it as too symbolist, abstract, "anemic," and "non-lively." He did gain some recognition during his Vienna period, when his poems were published in established literary magazines such as Ljubljanski zvon
, but the later developments in his poetry did not receive a positive response by the public.
His fame came soon after his death. The literary critic, Ivan Prijatelj, edited a volume of his collected poems in 1903, jointly with a brilliant essay which gained recognition both to Murn and to Prijatelj himself as a literary critic. Prijatelj's essay also influenced Oton Župančič
to change his opinion on Murn's poetry; as an homage to his late friend, Župančič wrote the poem "Manom Josipa Murna Aleksandra" (To the Manes
of Josip Murn, a.k.a. Aleksandrov). By the end of the decade, Murn was already firmly established in the Slovene literary canon.
His poetry had a huge influence on successive generations of poets, particularly Alojz Gradnik
, Srečko Kosovel
, Miran Jarc
, France Balantič
, Edvard Kocbek
, Dane Zajc
, Niko Grafenauer
, and Jože Snoj
. Snoj dedicated extensive studies to Murn's poetry.
Murn was probably among the most influential Slovene poets of the last two centuries, although probably not among the most popular ones.
Symbolism (arts)
Symbolism was a late nineteenth-century art movement of French, Russian and Belgian origin in poetry and other arts. In literature, the style had its beginnings with the publication Les Fleurs du mal by Charles Baudelaire...
poet
Poet
A poet is a person who writes poetry. A poet's work can be literal, meaning that his work is derived from a specific event, or metaphorical, meaning that his work can take on many meanings and forms. Poets have existed since antiquity, in nearly all languages, and have produced works that vary...
. Together with Ivan Cankar
Ivan Cankar
Ivan Cankar was a Slovene writer, playwright, essayist, poet and political activist. Together with Oton Župančič, Dragotin Kette, and Josip Murn, he is considered as the beginner of modernism in Slovene literature...
, Oton Župančič
Oton Župancic
Oton Župančič was a Slovene poet, translator and playwright.Župančič is regarded, alongside Ivan Cankar, Dragotin Kette and Josip Murn, as the beginner of modernism in Slovenian literature...
, and Dragotin Kette
Dragotin Kette
Dragotin Kette was a Slovene Impressionist and Neo-Romantic poet. Together with Josip Murn, Ivan Cankar and Oton Župančič, he is considered as the beginner of modernism in Slovene literature.-Life:...
, he was regarded as one of the beginners of modernism
Modernism
Modernism, in its broadest definition, is modern thought, character, or practice. More specifically, the term describes the modernist movement, its set of cultural tendencies and array of associated cultural movements, originally arising from wide-scale and far-reaching changes to Western society...
in Slovene literature. After France Prešeren
France Prešeren
France Prešeren was a Slovene Romantic poet. He is considered the Slovene national poet. Although he was not a particularly prolific author, he inspired virtually all Slovene literature thereafter....
and Edvard Kocbek
Edvard Kocbek
Edvard Kocbek was a Slovenian poet, writer, essayist, translator, political activist, and resistance fighter. He is considered as one of the best authors who have written in Slovene, and one of the best Slovene poets after Prešeren...
, Murn was probably the most influential Slovene poet of the last two centuries.
Life
Murn was born in a condominium in the very center of LjubljanaLjubljana
Ljubljana is the capital of Slovenia and its largest city. It is the centre of the City Municipality of Ljubljana. It is located in the centre of the country in the Ljubljana Basin, and is a mid-sized city of some 270,000 inhabitants...
as an illegitimate son to a poor woman. His mother moved to Trieste
Trieste
Trieste is a city and seaport in northeastern Italy. It is situated towards the end of a narrow strip of land lying between the Adriatic Sea and Italy's border with Slovenia, which lies almost immediately south and east of the city...
soon after his birth, leaving him in foster care
Fosterage
Fosterage, the practice of a family bringing up a child not their own, differs from adoption in that the child's parents, not the foster-parents, remain the acknowledged parents. In many modern western societies foster care can be organised by the state to care for children with troubled family...
to some relatives from the suburbs of Ljubljana.
As a teenager, he enrolled in the local high school, where he came in contact with other young Slovene literates, such as Ivan Cankar
Ivan Cankar
Ivan Cankar was a Slovene writer, playwright, essayist, poet and political activist. Together with Oton Župančič, Dragotin Kette, and Josip Murn, he is considered as the beginner of modernism in Slovene literature...
, Dragotin Kette
Dragotin Kette
Dragotin Kette was a Slovene Impressionist and Neo-Romantic poet. Together with Josip Murn, Ivan Cankar and Oton Župančič, he is considered as the beginner of modernism in Slovene literature.-Life:...
, and Oton Župančič
Oton Župancic
Oton Župančič was a Slovene poet, translator and playwright.Župančič is regarded, alongside Ivan Cankar, Dragotin Kette and Josip Murn, as the beginner of modernism in Slovenian literature...
, who experimented new trends in European poetry. He was a gifted student, shy, but also very self-confident. He started writing poetry at a very young age and soon achieved a very high level of quality. His talent was spotted by a high-class society woman Franja Tavčar, the influential wife of the national-liberal
Liberalism in Slovenia
This article gives an overview of liberalism in Slovenia. It is limited to liberal parties with substantial support, mainly proved by having had a representation in parliament. The sign ⇒ means a reference to another party in that scheme...
politician and author Ivan Tavčar
Ivan Tavcar
Ivan Tavčar was a Slovene and Yugoslav writer, lawyer, and politician.- Biography :Tavčar was born into a poor peasant family of Janez and Neža née Perko in the Carniolan village of Poljane near Škofja Loka in what was then the Austrian Empire and is now in Slovenia. It has never been entirely...
, who arranged for him a scholarship to study at the University of Vienna
University of Vienna
The University of Vienna is a public university located in Vienna, Austria. It was founded by Duke Rudolph IV in 1365 and is the oldest university in the German-speaking world...
.
In 1898 he moved to Vienna
Vienna
Vienna is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Austria and one of the nine states of Austria. Vienna is Austria's primary city, with a population of about 1.723 million , and is by far the largest city in Austria, as well as its cultural, economic, and political centre...
, spending there a year mostly visiting literary cafés and art exhibitions. Strongly influenced by the Viennese Secession, he wrote a series of poems with the common title Fin de siècle, in which he delivered his impressions on the life in the metropolis
Metropolis
A metropolis is a very large city or urban area which is a significant economic, political and cultural center for a country or region, and an important hub for regional or international connections and communications...
.
In 1899, he moved back home and started traveling around the Slovene Lands
Slovene Lands
Slovene Lands or Slovenian Lands is the historical denomination for the whole of the Slovene-inhabited territories in Central Europe. It more or less corresponds to modern Slovenia and the adjacent territories in Italy, Austria and Hungary in which autochthonous Slovene minorities live.-...
. He spent several months in Upper Carniola
Upper Carniola
Upper Carniola is a traditional region of Slovenia, the northern mountainous part of the larger Carniola region. The centre of the region is Kranj, while other urban centers include Jesenice, Tržič, Škofja Loka, Kamnik, and Domžale.- Historical background :...
, when he observed the peasant life style. He began to incorporate peasant motifs in his symbolist poetry. He took elements not only from Slovene, but also from Irish
Ireland
Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...
, Scottish
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
, Slovak
Slovaks
The Slovaks, Slovak people, or Slovakians are a West Slavic people that primarily inhabit Slovakia and speak the Slovak language, which is closely related to the Czech language.Most Slovaks today live within the borders of the independent Slovakia...
, and Latvian
Latvia
Latvia , officially the Republic of Latvia , is a country in the Baltic region of Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by Estonia , to the south by Lithuania , to the east by the Russian Federation , to the southeast by Belarus and shares maritime borders to the west with Sweden...
folk motifs.
He later traveled to the Austrian Littoral
Austrian Littoral
The Austrian Littoral was established as a crown land of the Austrian Empire in 1849. In 1861 it was divided into the three crown lands of the Imperial Free City of Trieste and its suburbs, the Margraviate of Istria, and the Princely County of Gorizia and Gradisca, which each had separate...
, visiting his mother in Trieste
Trieste
Trieste is a city and seaport in northeastern Italy. It is situated towards the end of a narrow strip of land lying between the Adriatic Sea and Italy's border with Slovenia, which lies almost immediately south and east of the city...
and living briefly in Grado
Grado, Italy
Grado is a town and comune in the north-eastern Italian region of Friuli-Venezia Giulia, located on a peninsula of the Adriatic Sea between Venice and Trieste....
before settling in the Vipava Valley
Vipava Valley
The Vipava Valley is a valley located in the Slovenian Littoral, between the towns of Nova Gorica and Vipava.-Geography:It is a narrow valley, serving as the main passage between Friulian lowland and central Slovenia, and thus also an important corridor connecting Northern Italy to Central Europe...
for some time. There, he decided to adopt the pseudonym Aleksandrov, reminiscent of Slavic
Slavic languages
The Slavic languages , a group of closely related languages of the Slavic peoples and a subgroup of Indo-European languages, have speakers in most of Eastern Europe, in much of the Balkans, in parts of Central Europe, and in the northern part of Asia.-Branches:Scholars traditionally divide Slavic...
peasant archaism
Archaism
In language, an archaism is the use of a form of speech or writing that is no longer current. This can either be done deliberately or as part of a specific jargon or formula...
, and moved to an even more simple and impressionist poetic expression.
He settled in Ljubljana in 1901, renting a small room in a slum building on the banks of the river Ljubljanica
Ljubljanica
The Ljubljanica is a river in the southern part of Ljubljana Basin in Slovenia. The capital of Slovenia, Ljubljana, is situated on the river. The Ljubljanica rises to the south of the town Vrhnika and outflows in the Sava River about downstream from Ljubljana. Its largest affluent is Mali graben....
(an abandoned sugar factory, known as Cukrarna). He died there at the age of 22 from tuberculosis
Tuberculosis
Tuberculosis, MTB, or TB is a common, and in many cases lethal, infectious disease caused by various strains of mycobacteria, usually Mycobacterium tuberculosis. Tuberculosis usually attacks the lungs but can also affect other parts of the body...
, on the same bed as his friend Dragotin Kette
Dragotin Kette
Dragotin Kette was a Slovene Impressionist and Neo-Romantic poet. Together with Josip Murn, Ivan Cankar and Oton Župančič, he is considered as the beginner of modernism in Slovene literature.-Life:...
just two years before.
He is buried in the Žale
Žale
Žale Central cemetery , often abbreviated to Žale, is the largest and the central cemetery in Ljubljana. It is located in the Bežigrad district and operated by the Žale Public Company.- History :...
cemetery, next to the tombs of Dragotin Kette, Ivan Cankar and Oton Župančič, in what is known as the "monument of Slovene modernism" (Spomenik slovenske moderne).
Reception
Murn remained mostly unacknowledged by contemporary critics. The doyen of 19th-century Slovene poetry, Anton AškercAnton Aškerc
Anton Aškerc was a Slovene poet and Roman Catholic priest, best known for his epic poems.Aškerc was born into a peasant family near the town of Rimske Toplice in the Duchy of Styria, then part of the Austrian Empire . His exact birthplace is unknown because his family was on the move at the time...
rejected him as a decadent
Decadent movement
The Decadent movement was a late 19th century artistic and literary movement of Western Europe. It flourished in France, but also had devotees in England and throughout Europe, as well as in the United States.-Overview:...
. Even some of his closest colleagues, namely Cankar
Ivan Cankar
Ivan Cankar was a Slovene writer, playwright, essayist, poet and political activist. Together with Oton Župančič, Dragotin Kette, and Josip Murn, he is considered as the beginner of modernism in Slovene literature...
and Župančič
Oton Župancic
Oton Župančič was a Slovene poet, translator and playwright.Župančič is regarded, alongside Ivan Cankar, Dragotin Kette and Josip Murn, as the beginner of modernism in Slovenian literature...
, did not look favorably on his poetic endeavor, regarding it as too symbolist, abstract, "anemic," and "non-lively." He did gain some recognition during his Vienna period, when his poems were published in established literary magazines such as Ljubljanski zvon
Ljubljanski zvon
Ljubljanski zvon was a journal published in Ljubljana in Slovene between 1881 and 1941. It was considered one of the most prestigious literary and cultural magazines in Slovenia.- Early period :...
, but the later developments in his poetry did not receive a positive response by the public.
His fame came soon after his death. The literary critic, Ivan Prijatelj, edited a volume of his collected poems in 1903, jointly with a brilliant essay which gained recognition both to Murn and to Prijatelj himself as a literary critic. Prijatelj's essay also influenced Oton Župančič
Oton Župancic
Oton Župančič was a Slovene poet, translator and playwright.Župančič is regarded, alongside Ivan Cankar, Dragotin Kette and Josip Murn, as the beginner of modernism in Slovenian literature...
to change his opinion on Murn's poetry; as an homage to his late friend, Župančič wrote the poem "Manom Josipa Murna Aleksandra" (To the Manes
Manes
In ancient Roman religion, the Manes or Di Manes are chthonic deities sometimes thought to represent the souls of deceased loved ones. They were associated with the Lares, Genii, and Di Penates as deities that pertained to domestic, local, and personal cult...
of Josip Murn, a.k.a. Aleksandrov). By the end of the decade, Murn was already firmly established in the Slovene literary canon.
His poetry had a huge influence on successive generations of poets, particularly Alojz Gradnik
Alojz Gradnik
Alojz Gradnik was a Slovenian poet and translator.-Life:Gradnik was born in the village of Medana in the Goriška Brda region, in what was then the Austro-Hungarian Empire and is today in the Goriška province of Slovenia. His father was a Slovene from Trieste who came from a poor working family...
, Srečko Kosovel
Srecko Kosovel
Srečko Kosovel was a Slovene expressionist poet who evolved towards avant-garde forms. Since the 1960s, Kosovel has become a poetic icon, in the league of the most prestigious Slovene literates like France Prešeren and Ivan Cankar. Together with Edvard Kocbek, he is considered as the most...
, Miran Jarc
Miran Jarc
Miran Jarc was a Slovene writer, poet, playwright and essayist.Jarc was born in the town of Črnomelj in White Carniola, in what was then Austria-Hungary in 1900. He was sent to school in Novo Mesto, and between 1918 and 1922 studied Slavic philology in Zagreb and Ljubljana, though he never...
, France Balantič
France Balantic
France Balantič was a Slovene poet. His works were banished from schools and libraries during the Titoist regime in Slovenia, but since the late 1980s, he has been re-considered as one of the foremost Slovene poets of the 20th century.- Life :Balantič was born in a working class family in Kamnik,...
, Edvard Kocbek
Edvard Kocbek
Edvard Kocbek was a Slovenian poet, writer, essayist, translator, political activist, and resistance fighter. He is considered as one of the best authors who have written in Slovene, and one of the best Slovene poets after Prešeren...
, Dane Zajc
Dane Zajc
Dane Zajc was a Slovenian poet and playwright. He served as president of the Slovene Writers' Association , and was awarded the prestigious Prešeren Award for lifetime achievement...
, Niko Grafenauer
Niko Grafenauer
Niko Grafenauer is a Slovenian poet, essayist, literary historian, editor and translator. He is particularly known as author of popular children literature, and for his active participation in the Slovenian public life, especially in conservative and liberal conservative platforms.He was born in...
, and Jože Snoj
Jože Snoj
Jože Snoj is a Slovenian poet, novelist, journalist and essayist.He was born in Maribor, then part of the Kingdom of Yugoslavia, into a wealthy Slovene family. His uncle, Franc Snoj, was a prominent member of the Slovene People's Party and a minister in the Royal Yugoslav Government...
. Snoj dedicated extensive studies to Murn's poetry.
Murn was probably among the most influential Slovene poets of the last two centuries, although probably not among the most popular ones.
Further reading
- Niko GrafenauerNiko GrafenauerNiko Grafenauer is a Slovenian poet, essayist, literary historian, editor and translator. He is particularly known as author of popular children literature, and for his active participation in the Slovenian public life, especially in conservative and liberal conservative platforms.He was born in...
, Josip Murn-Aleksandrov (Ljubljana: Prosvetni servis, 1965). - Vladimir Osolnik, Obrazi: Josip Murn-Aleksandrov (Ljubljana: Mladinska knjiga, 1980).
- Jože SnojJože SnojJože Snoj is a Slovenian poet, novelist, journalist and essayist.He was born in Maribor, then part of the Kingdom of Yugoslavia, into a wealthy Slovene family. His uncle, Franc Snoj, was a prominent member of the Slovene People's Party and a minister in the Royal Yugoslav Government...
, Znameniti Slovenci: Josip Murn (Ljubljana: Založba Jaroslav Skrušny, 1978).