John Jordan (1930–1988) was an Irish poet and short-story writer.

Life and work

Born in the Rotunda Maternity Hospital,

Dublin Dublin (; , or ) is the capital and largest city of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. On a bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster, bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, a part of th ...

on 8 April 1930, Jordan was educated at

Synge Street CBS Synge Street CBS (colloquially Synger) is a boys' non-fee-paying state school, under the auspices of the Edmund Rice Schools Trust, located in the Dublin 8 area of Dublin, Ireland. The school was founded in 1864 by Can ...

University College, Dublin University College Dublin (commonly referred to as UCD) ( ga, Coláiste na hOllscoile, Baile Átha Cliath) is a public research university in Dublin, Ireland, and a member institution of the National University of Ireland. With 33,284 student ...

(U.C.D.) and Pembroke College, Oxford. In his teens he acted on the stage of the

Gate Theatre The Gate Theatre is a Theater (structure), theatre on Cavendish Row in Dublin, Ireland. It was founded in 1928. History Beginnings The Gate Theatre was founded in 1928 by Hilton Edwards and Micheál MacLiammóir with Daisy Bannard Cogley and Ge ...

, Dublin, before winning a Scholarship in English and French to

Oxford University Oxford () is a city in England. It is the county town and only city of Oxfordshire. In 2020, its population was estimated at 151,584. It is north-west of London, south-east of Birmingham and north-east of Bristol. The city is home to the ...

from U.C.D. In the mid-1950s he returned to U.C.D. as a lecturer in English and taught there until the end of the 1960s. He also lectured on sabbatical leave at the

Memorial University Memorial University of Newfoundland, also known as Memorial University or MUN (), is a public university in the province of Newfoundland and Labrador, based in St. John's, with satellite campuses in Corner Brook, elsewhere in Newfoundland and i ...

Newfoundland Newfoundland and Labrador (; french: Terre-Neuve-et-Labrador; frequently abbreviated as NL) is the easternmost province of Canada, in the country's Atlantic region. The province comprises the island of Newfoundland and the continental region ...

and briefly at

Princeton University Princeton University is a private university, private research university in Princeton, New Jersey. Founded in 1746 in Elizabeth, New Jersey, Elizabeth as the College of New Jersey, Princeton is the List of Colonial Colleges, fourth-oldest ins ...

in the US Founding member of

Aosdána Aosdána ( , ; from , 'people of the arts') is an Irish association of artists. It was created in 1981 on the initiative of a group of writers with support from the country's Arts Council. Membership, which is by invitation from current member ...

. He was a celebrated literary critic from the late 1950s until his death in June 1988 in

Cardiff Cardiff (; cy, Caerdydd ) is the capital and largest city of Wales. It forms a principal area, officially known as the City and County of Cardiff ( cy, Dinas a Sir Caerdydd, links=no), and the city is the eleventh-largest in the United Kingd ...

, Wales, where he had been participating in the Merriman Summer School. He was a short-story writer, a poet and a broadcaster. In 1962 he re-founded and edited the literary magazine ''

Poetry Ireland Poetry Ireland ( ga, Éigse Éireann) is an organisation for poets and poetry, in both Irish and English, in the island of Ireland. It is a private nonprofit organisation that receives support from The Arts Council of Ireland and The Arts Council of ...

'' (hoping "in the humblest of ways, to contribute towards the recreation of Dublin as a literary centre"). In this journal, he introduced a number of poets who were to become quite famous later, including

Paul Durcan Paul Durcan (born 16 October 1944) is a contemporary Irish poet. Early life Durcan was born and grew up in Dublin and in Turlough, County Mayo. His father, John, was a barrister and circuit court judge; father and son had a difficult and forma ...

Michael Hartnett Michael Hartnett ( ga, Mícheál Ó hAirtnéide) (18 September 1941 – 13 October 1999) was an Irish poet who wrote in both English and Irish. He was one of the most significant voices in late 20th-century Irish writing and has been called " Mu ...

and

Seamus Heaney Seamus Justin Heaney (; 13 April 1939 – 30 August 2013) was an Irish poet, playwright and translator. He received the 1995 Nobel Prize in Literature.

. This series of ''Poetry Ireland'' lasted until 1968–69. In 1981 he became the first editor of the new magazine published by the Poetry Ireland Society, called ''

Poetry Ireland Review ''Poetry Ireland Review'' is a journal of Irish poetry published three times a year by Poetry Ireland, the national Irish poetry organisation. ''Poetry Ireland Review'' publishes the work of both emerging and established Irish and internationa ...

''. Reviewer of novels for ''

The Irish Times ''The Irish Times'' is an Irish daily broadsheet newspaper and online digital publication. It launched on 29 March 1859. The editor is Ruadhán Mac Cormaic. It is published every day except Sundays. ''The Irish Times'' is considered a newspaper ...

''; wrote a column for ''Hibernia''; contributed to ''Envoy'' and ''

The Irish Press ''The Irish Press'' (Irish: ''Scéala Éireann'') was an Irish national daily newspaper published by Irish Press plc between 5 September 1931 and 25 May 1995. Foundation The paper's first issue was published on the eve of the 1931 All-Ireland ...

'', among others; TV presenter and arts interviewer. Defended Gaelic literature and translated

Pádraic Ó Conaire Pádraic Ó Conaire (28 February 1882 – 6 October 1928) was an Irish writer and journalist whose production was primarily in the Irish language. In his lifetime he wrote 26 books, 473 stories, 237 essays and 6 plays. His acclaimed novel '' ...

. Edited ''The Pleasures of Gaelic Literature'' (Mercier Press, 1977), and his translation of one of

Aogán Ó Rathaille Aodhagán Ó RathailleVariant Irish spellings of his name include ''Aogán'' and ''Ua Rathaille'' or Egan O'Rahilly (c.1670–1726), was an Irish language poet. He is credited with creating the first fully developed Aisling. Early life It is tho ...

's essays was published in The ''Pleasures of Gaelic Poetry'' (London: Allen Lane, 1982). Championed the later plays of

Seán O'Casey Seán O'Casey ( ga, Seán Ó Cathasaigh ; born John Casey; 30 March 1880 – 18 September 1964) was an Irish dramatist and memoirist. A committed socialist, he was the first Irish playwright of note to write about the Dublin working classes. ...

. His ''Collected Poems'' (Dedalus Press) and ''Collected Stories'' (Poolbeg Press) were edited by his literary executor, Hugh McFadden, and published in Dublin in 1991. His Selected Prose, ''Crystal Clear'', also edited by McFadden, was published by Lilliput Press in Dublin in 2006. Jordan's ''Selected Poems'', edited with an Introduction by Hugh McFadden, was published in February 2008 by Dedalus Press. Uncollected stories appeared in ''Penguin Book of Irish Short Stories'', ''Cyphers'', and the ''Irish Press'', among other places. His literary papers & letters are now held in the

National Library of Ireland The National Library of Ireland (NLI; ga, Leabharlann Náisiúnta na hÉireann) is the Republic of Ireland's national library located in Dublin, in a building designed by Thomas Newenham Deane. The mission of the National Library of Ireland i ...

. In 1953 the young Irish artist Reginald Gray was commissioned by University College Dublin to design the decor and costumes for their production of "The Kings Threshold" by W.B. Yeats. The leading role was given to John Jordan. During the preparations for the production Gray started a portrait of Jordan, which he never finished. This work now hangs in The

Dublin Writers Museum The Dublin Writers Museum was opened in November 1991 at No 18, Parnell Square, Dublin, Ireland. The museum occupies an original 18th-century house, which accommodates the museum rooms, library, gallery, and administration area. The annexe behin ...

, Ireland.

Bibliography

Collections of poetry

*''Patrician Stations'', New Writers Press (Dublin, 1971) *''A Raft From Flotsam'', Gallery Press (Dublin, 1975) *''Blood and Stations'', Gallery Press (Dublin, 1976) *''With Whom Did I Share The Crystal'', (St. Bruno Press, 1980) *''Collected Poems'', Dedalus Press, (Dublin, 1991) *''Selected Poems'', Dedalus Press, (Dublin, 2008)

Prose

*''Yarns'', Poolbeg Press, (Dublin, 1977) *''Collected Stories'', Poolbeg Press, (Dublin, 1991) *Selected Prose: ''Crystal Clear'', Lilliput Press (Dublin, 2006)

Editor

*''The Pleasures of Gaelic Literature'' (Mercier Press, 1977) *''Poetry Ireland'', 1962–68 os. 1–8 *''Poetry Ireland Review'', 1981– *Special issue on Kate O'Brien, ed. John Jordan, ''Stony Thursday Book'', vol. 7, 1981

Notes