Misak Medzarents
The Complete Lyric Poems

Misak Medzarents, 1886-1908, was the second great lyric poet of the Western Armenian language after Bedros Tourian. During his tragically short life he published several slim volumes of verse. The poems, written in a complex and allusive language that deploys ancient Armenian, local dialect, and the vocabulary of Symbolism combine vivid evocations of the traditional rural life of his home village, fabulous nocturnal reveries, cries of loneliness, and celebrations of nature and life. He was a poet native to the realms of joy; though in his final verses, published posthumously, there are hints of a transition to a realistic, urban style and political, revolutionary themes. This is the first complete translation of his works, together with the Armenian text, into any language.