Constantine P. Cavafy
Konstantinos Petrou Kavafis (Greek: Κωνσταντίνος Πέτρου Καβάφης [ka'vafis]; April 29 (April 17, OS), 1863 – April 29, 1933), known, especially in English, as Constantine P. Cavafy and often published as C. P. Cavafy (/kəˈvæfi/), was a Greek poet, journalist, and civil servant from Alexandria. A major figure of modern Greek literature, he is sometimes considered the most distinguished Greek poet of the 20th century. His works and consciously individual style earned him a place among the most important contributors not only to Greek poetry, but to Western poetry as a whole.
Constantine P. Cavafy | |
|---|---|
Constantine Cavafy in 1929 | |
| Native name | Κωνσταντίνος Καβάφης |
| Born | April 29, 1863 Alexandria, Egypt Eyalet |
| Died | April 29, 1933 (aged 70) Alexandria, Kingdom of Egypt |
| Resting place | Greek Orthodox Cemetery, Alexandria, Al Iskandariyah, Egypt |
| Occupation | Poet, journalist, civil servant |
| Nationality | Greek |
| Notable awards | Silver medal of the Order of the Phoenix |
| Signature | |
Cavafy's poetic canon consists of 154 poems, while dozens more that remained incomplete or in sketch form weren't published until much later. He consistently refused to publish his work in books, preferring to share it through local newspapers and magazines, or even print it himself and give it away to anyone who might be interested. His most important poems were written after his fortieth birthday, and were published two years after his death.
Cavafy's work has been translated numerous times in many languages. His friend E. M. Forster, the novelist and literary critic, first introduced his poems to the English-speaking world in 1923; he referred to him as "The Poet", famously describing him as "a Greek gentleman in a straw hat, standing absolutely motionless at a slight angle to the universe." His work, as one translator put it, "holds the historical and the erotic in a single embrace."