Bilge Karasu (9 January 1930 – 13 July 1995), was a Turkish short story writer and novelist.

Biography

Bilge Karasu was born in 1930, in Istanbul. Bilge Karasu's parents, who later converted to Islam, were of Jewish origin, although he does not have any kinship with

Emanuel Karasu Emmanuel Carasso or Emanuel Karasu (1862 in Salonica – 1934 in Trieste) was an Ottoman lawyer and a member of the prominent Sephardic Jewish Carasso family of Ottoman Salonica (now Thessaloniki, Greece). He was also a prominent member ...

, an Ottoman politician of Jewish origin. He studied at Şişli Terakki High School and at

Istanbul University , image = Istanbul_University_logo.svg , image_size = 200px , latin_name = Universitas Istanbulensis , motto = tr, Tarihten Geleceğe Bilim Köprüsü , mottoeng = Science Bridge from Past to the Future , established = 1453 1846 1933 ...

, Faculty of Literature, Department of Philosophy. He published articles on

art criticism Art criticism is the discussion or evaluation of visual art. Art critics usually criticize art in the context of aesthetics or the theory of beauty. A goal of art criticism is the pursuit of a rational basis for art appreciation but it is quest ...

in the ''

Forum Forum or The Forum (plural forums or fora) may refer to: Common uses * Forum (legal), designated space for public expression in the United States *Forum (Roman), open public space within a Roman city **Roman Forum, most famous example *Internet ...

'' magazine between 1954 and 1959. In 1963, he returned from Europe, where he had studied on a

Rockefeller scholarship Rockefeller is a German surname, originally given to people from the village of Rockenfeld near Neuwied in the Rhineland and commonly referring to subjects associated with the Rockefeller family. It may refer to: People with the name Rockefeller fa ...

. In 1964, he started to work as a translator at the General Directorate of Press, Broadcasting, and Tourism and in the foreign broadcasting service of

Ankara Radio Ankara Radio ( tr, Ankara Radyosu) is a nationwide radio network broadcasting from Ankara. Its first broadcast was on 6 November 1927, by a 5 kW longwave AM transmitter over 1554 meters. See also * Radyo 2 Radyo 2, also known as TRT FM, i ...

. Karasu wrote radio plays for Ankara Radioı. He worked as a lecturer at Hacettepe University's Philosophy Department from 1974 until his death. He lived in a small basement on Nilgün Street in Ankara for years. He died on 14 July, 1995, at Hacettepe University Hospital,

Ankara Ankara ( , ; ), historically known as Ancyra and Angora, is the capital of Turkey. Located in the central part of Anatolia, the city has a population of 5.1 million in its urban center and over 5.7 million in Ankara Province, maki ...

where he was being treated for

pancreatic cancer Pancreatic cancer arises when cell (biology), cells in the pancreas, a glandular organ behind the stomach, begin to multiply out of control and form a Neoplasm, mass. These cancerous cells have the malignant, ability to invade other parts of t ...

. He is buried in

Karşıyaka Cemetery The Karşıyaka Cemetery ( tr, Karşıyaka Mezarlığı) is a modern burial ground located at İvedik neighborhood in Yenimahalle district of Ankara, Turkey. Administered by the Metropolitan Municipality, it is the biggest cemetery in Ankara. Ma ...

Bibliography

Stories

* '' Troya’da Ölüm Vardı'' (1963) * '' Uzun Sürmüş Bir Günün Akşamı'' (1970) * '' Göçmüş Kediler Bahçesi'' (1980) * '' Kısmet Büfesi'' (1982) * '' Lağımlaranası ya da Beyoğlu'' * '' Susanlar'' (2008) (öykü, şiir, deneme, röportaj)

Novels

* '' Gece'' (1985) * '' Kılavuz'' (1990)

Essays

* '' Ne Kitapsız Ne Kedisiz'' (1994) * '' Narla İncire Gazel'' (1995) * '' Altı Ay Bir Güz'' (1996) (ölümünden sonra yayınlandı)

Radio plays

* ''Peter Pan'' (Radyo için oyunlaştıran Bilge Karasu) (1967), Ankara Radyosu * ''Sevilmek'', (Ocak 1970), Ankara Radyosu * ''Kerem ile Kediler'', (Mart 1970), Ankara Radyosu * ''Gidememek'' * ''Aşk''

Translations

* ''Abraham Lincoln,'' Emil Ludwing, 1953, Cep Kitapları * ''Doktor Martino,''

William Faulkner William Cuthbert Faulkner (; September 25, 1897 – July 6, 1962) was an American writer known for his novels and short stories set in the fictional Yoknapatawpha County, based on Lafayette County, Mississippi, where Faulkner spent most of ...

, 1956, Yenilik Publications * ''Bella'nın Ölümü,''

Georges Simenon Georges Joseph Christian Simenon (; 13 February 1903 – 4 September 1989) was a Belgian writer. He published nearly 500 novels and numerous short works, and was the creator of the fictional detective Jules Maigret. Early life and education ...

, 1981, Karacan Publications * Salgına İnanıyorum,

Jean Cocteau Jean Maurice Eugène Clément Cocteau (, , ; 5 July 1889 – 11 October 1963) was a French poet, playwright, novelist, designer, filmmaker, visual artist and critic. He was one of the foremost creatives of the su ...

, 1968, Türk Dili (Sinema Ozel Sayısı), Ankara: Volume: 196 (January 1968), p. 422-425 * İşin Özü Bir Öykü Anlatmaktır,

Jean Renoir Jean Renoir (; 15 September 1894 – 12 February 1979) was a French film director, screenwriter, actor, producer and author. As a film director and actor, he made more than forty films from the silent film, silent era to the end of the 1960s. ...

, Türk Dili (Sinema Ozel Sayısı), Ankara: Volume: 196 (January 1968), p. 426-428

Awards

* 1963 Turkish Language Association Translation Award, The Dead Man, translated from

D. H. Lawrence David Herbert Lawrence (11 September 1885 – 2 March 1930) was an English writer, novelist, poet and essayist. His works reflect on modernity, industrialization, sexuality, emotional health, vitality, spontaneity and instinct. His best-k ...

Books written about

* '' Bilge Karasu Aramızda'' (1997) (Prepared by: Füsun Akatlı, Müge Gürsoy Sökmen) * ''Yazının da Yırtılıverdiği Yer (Bir Bilge Karasu Okuması)'' (2007); Author: Cem İleri; Metis Publications * ''Bilge Karasu'yu Okumak'' (Prepared by: Doğan Yaşat), Metis Publications, 2013. * ''Excavating Memory: Bilge Karasu’s Istanbul and Walter Benjamin’s Berlin'' (2020); Author: Ülker Gökberk; Academic Studies Press

References

* * *

Notes

1930 births 1995 deaths Writers from Istanbul 20th-century Turkish philosophers Turkish erotic artists Istanbul University alumni {{Turkey-writer-stub