After five centuries of Turkish rule,
Bulgarian culture reappeared in the 19th century as writers and artists
strove to re-awaken national consciousness. Zahari Zograf painted magnificent
frescoes inspired by medieval Bulgarian art in monasteries often the carvings
of highly contemplative monks. Bulgaria's poets show a tendency to meet
with a violent and early death, lending a poignancy to the high idealism
of writers such as Hristo Botev (rebel folk poet of the late 19th century),
Dimcho Debelyanov (lyric poet killed in WWI) and Geo Milev (poet of the
post-WWI social upheavals, kidnapped and murdered by police). The grand
old man of Bulgarian literature, Ivan Vazov, is one of the few who made
it over the age of 30.
An ancient Greek myth ascribes a Thracian origin to Orpheus and the Muses,
a heritage which Bulgaria's singers still take very seriously. Orthodox
religious chants convey the mysticism of regional fables and legends, whereas
the spontaneous folk songs and dances of the villages meld classical origins
with a strong Turkish influence. International interest in Bulgarian vocal
music was ignited by groups such as Le Mystere des Voix Bulgaires, who have
taken Bulgaria's polyphonic female choir singing to a world audience.
For more than 13 centuries Bulgarians have been creating unique literature, art and music. Bulgaria has given the world men of great achievements, unparalleled in history. In the 9th century, the brothers Cyril and Methodius, recognised as the patrons of Europe, created the Cyrillic alphabet.
LITERATURE
Bulgarian Literature, literature created by the inhabitants of Bulgaria.
Bulgarian literature began in the second half of the 9th century AD with the
translations by St. Cyril and St. Methodius of religious works from Greek into
the vernacular, now known as Old Church Slavonic. From this period until the
Turkish conquest of Bulgaria (1396), Bulgarian literature consisted mainly of
similar translations of the Gospels, lives of the saints, sermons, and other
religious material. Historical chronicles were also written. During the Turkish
and Greek ecclesiastical domination (1396-1878), Bulgarian literature virtually
ceased to exist.
The 19th century marked a revival of Bulgarian literature. It had its origin in
historical works such as Istoria Slaviano-Bolgarska (History of the
Slavic-Bulgarians), written in a form of ecclesiastical Slavonic mixed with
popular language by a monk, Paisij, about 1762. After 1830, a movement in
Bulgaria for freedom from Turkish rule and Greek church domination, the
establishment of Bulgarian schools and printing establishments, and the
publication of Bulgarian grammars and other educational works all played a part
in producing a new Bulgarian literature. Before 1878 writers were concerned with
social and political questions, above all with national independence, rather
than with literary style or the problems of the inner life of the individual.
The most important writer of this pre-liberation period was the revolutionary
poet Christo Botev. The principal writer of the next period was Ivan Vazov, one
of the most prolific as well as one of the most popular of Bulgarian writers and
the one who scored a success in English translation, with his novel Under the
Yoke (1893; trans. 1912). Other important writers of this period were Stoyan
Mikhaylovski and Aleko Konstantinov. The former was a pessimistic philosopher,
disillusioned with politics; the latter was a satirist who characterized the
Bulgarian peasant in Bai Ganyu (Uncle John, 1895). In the post-liberation
period, writers increasingly emphasized technique and form, as well as harmony
and rhythm of language. Important writers of this third period are the
short-story writers Dimiter Ivanov, who wrote under the pen name of Elin Pelin,
and Yordan Yovkov; both are noted for their interest in peasant life and the
countryside.
Bulgarian literature after 1944 adhered closely to the requirements of Soviet
socialist realism. The work of some talented current writers, including the
poets Blaga Dimitrova, Lubomir Levchev, and Pavel Matev, nevertheless reveals a
fresher point of view and may signal a movement toward greater artistic freedom.
The prose of Jordan Radichkov is especially interesting. He handles historical
themes, always a Bulgarian favorite, with unusual finesse, and his short novel
Khradriatyat chovek (A Brave Man, 1967) has earned wide popularity. Elias
Canetti won the 1981 Nobel Prize for literature for his novels and plays about
individuals at odds with society. Born in Bulgaria, Canetti wrote in German and
kept homes in London, England and Zurich, Switzerland.
