Joan Vinyoli facts for kids

Joan Vinyoli i Pladevall (born July 3, 1914 – died November 30, 1984) was an important Catalan poet from Barcelona, Spain. He started writing poetry by reading the works of Rainer Maria Rilke. Early on, he was also inspired by other German poets like Goethe and Hölderlin.

Joan Vinyoli was a self-taught writer. This means he learned a lot on his own. His talent was first noticed by famous writers like Carles Riba. He published his first book of poems, Primer desenllaç (First Outcome), in 1937.

A Poet's Journey

Vinyoli's poetry changed over time. At first, he was very influenced by German poetry, especially the idea of using symbols. Later, his style became more realistic. He started using everyday language to talk about what it means to be human.

Early Life and Inspiration

When Joan was four years old, his father passed away. His family didn't have much money, but he loved the summers he spent in Santa Coloma de Farners. This place and its landscapes often appeared in his poems.

He studied business and started working at a publishing company called Labor when he was 16. He stayed there until he retired in 1979. Vinyoli saw poetry as a way to understand the world and himself. He believed it could help people find meaning and overcome life's difficulties.

Two Main Stages of His Work

Vinyoli's poetry can be divided into two main periods:

Learning and Growing (1937-1963)

This first period was about learning and finding his own voice. He published five collections of poems during these years:

• Primer desenllaç (First Outcome) (1937) - This book showed his desire to create true poetry.
• De vida i somni (On Life and Dreaming) (1948) - He saw poetry as an "almost religious mystery" during this time.
• Les hores retrobades (1951) - This book marked a step towards using symbols in his poems, moving away from just describing landscapes.
• El Callat (1956) - This was a very important and successful book from his early period.

After seven years of silence, he published Realitats in 1963. In this book, he tried to combine his older style with the more realistic poetry popular in Catalonia at the time.

Maturity and Recognition (1970-1984)

The second period was when he became very well-known and successful. Critics and the public loved his work. He also wrote a lot during this time, publishing eleven new books of poems. He also released two collections of his complete works.

During this period, he received many awards, including:

• The Generalitat of Catalonia Prize
• The City of Barcelona Prize
• The National Prize for Literature

Key Themes in His Poetry

Vinyoli's poems often explored important ideas like:

• Love: The feelings and experiences of love.
• The fleetingness of time: How quickly time passes.
• Memory: How we remember things and how the past stays with us.

He thought a lot about how everything changes and eventually becomes a memory.

Translations

Joan Vinyoli also translated the works of Rainer Maria Rilke into Catalan. These translations helped more people in Catalonia read Rilke's famous poems.

Works

• Primer desenllaç [First Outcome] (1937)
• De vida i somni [On Life and Dreaming] (1948)
• Les hores retrobades [Rediscovered hours] (1951)
• El callat (1956)
• Realitats (1963)
• Tot és ara i res [It is All Now and Nothing] (1970)
• Passeig d'aniversari [Birthday Stroll] (1984)

Translations

• Rainer Maria Rilke,Versions de Rilke (1984)
• Rainer Maria Rilke, Noves versions de Rilke (1985)

See also

In Spanish: Joan Vinyoli para niños