Denis Devlin facts for kids

Denis Devlin (born April 15, 1908 – died August 21, 1959) was an important Irish poet. He was part of a group of poets who wrote in a new, modern style in the late 1920s. Some of his friends in this group included Samuel Beckett and Brian Coffey. Denis Devlin also had a career as a diplomat, working for his country in other parts of the world.

Early Life and Education

Denis Devlin was born in Greenock, Scotland. His parents were Irish, and his family moved back to Dublin, Ireland in 1918.

He went to school at Belvedere College. In 1926, he began studying to become a Roman Catholic priest at Clonliffe College. As part of his studies, he took classes in modern languages at University College Dublin (UCD). There, he met and became good friends with Brian Coffey. In 1930, they published a book of poems together called Poems.

In 1927, Devlin decided not to become a priest and left Clonliffe College. He finished his first degree (a BA) at UCD in 1930. That summer, he went to the Blasket Islands to get better at speaking the Irish language.

Between 1930 and 1933, he studied literature in Europe. He went to Munich University in Germany and the Sorbonne in Paris, France. During this time, he met other famous writers like Samuel Beckett and Thomas MacGreevy. After his studies abroad, he returned to UCD. There, he completed his advanced degree (a MA) with a special paper about the writer Montaigne.

Working as a Diplomat and Later Writings

In 1935, Denis Devlin joined the Irish Diplomatic Service. This meant he worked for the Irish government in other countries. He spent several years living in different places like Rome, Italy; New York, USA; and Washington, USA.

While working as a diplomat, he met other famous writers. These included the French poet St. John Perse and American poets Allen Tate and Robert Penn Warren. Devlin later translated a book of poems by St. John Perse into English. After Devlin passed away, Allen Tate and Robert Penn Warren helped edit a collection of his own poems called Selected Poems.

Since Denis Devlin's death, two collections of all his poems have been published. The first was in 1964, edited by his friend Brian Coffey. The second was published in 1989 by J.C.C. Mays.

Denis Devlin's personal papers, including his writings and letters, are kept at the University College Dublin Archives.