Biography Essay

Endre Ady's writings have synthesized the tradition of Hungarian poetry with the most important trends of modern European literature (especially symbolism and expressionism). His work has inspired not only poetic trends that have continued and fully realized his innovations but also, indirectly, those writers that have placed themselves in opposition to his ideas. His art has been influential in the whole Central and Eastern European region; many of his poems were published in Czech, Polish, Romanian, and Slovakian translations during his lifetime. His influence, however, can be felt even beyond the region: his poems have been translated into twenty-two languages, and several editions of his works have been published in Croatian, German, Hebrew, Italian, Spanish, Serbian, and English. Ady's poetic innovations had no immediate antecedents in Hungarian literature; the last flourishing period in Hungarian lyric poetry was produced by the romantic generation from the 1820s through...