User:Zsxfi/István Géher

István Géher was born in Budapest, Hungary on January 15, 1940, and he passed away on June 11, 2012. He was a literary historian, poet, and translator of literary works.

Life

Apart from being a literary historian, poet, and translator, Géher was also known for his literary criticism. He graduated from the Faculty of Humanities of Eötvös Loránd University in 1963 with a secondary school teacher’s degree in the subjects Hungarian and English. Afterwards, he taught in Székesfehérvár. Between 1965 and 1972, he worked as an editor at Európa Kiadó. As a secondary job, he was a dramaturg at Szigligeti Theatre in Szolnok between 1968 and 1970. He began his teaching career as an assistant lecturer in 1972 at Eötvös Loránd University at the Department of English Studies. From 1985, he worked as an adjunct professor at the same department, where he got promoted to college associate professor in 1992. Eventually, he was chosen as the head of the English Department. He mostly translated English works. He was also known for his research and essays on Shakespeare. He was the most famous Hungarian researcher of Shakespeare’s works, as well as an internationally praised literary historian. His poetic and translatory work was also important, as he was the president of the Magyar Műfordítók Egyesülete (Association of Hungarian Literary Translators). He retired in 2006. After retiring, he remained a professor at Eötvös Loránd University, and he still held lectures regularly as a professor emeritus. One of his most well-known and highly appreciated classes was about literary translation, which he maintained for more or less forty years. Moreover, he was the leader of the doctorate programme of Renaissance English literature. Throughout all of his work, he considered himself to be a teacher first and foremost. Numerous Hungarian contemporary poets stepped into the spotlight whilst being a student of his, such as Dániel Varró, Júlia Lázár, Anna T. Szabó, and Mónika Mesterházi. He put great effort into looking for and supporting the next generation of poets and literary translators at the Faculty of Humanities at Eötvös Loránd University. Apart from the university, he also worked at Eötvös Collegium, where the most gifted and enthusiastic students have the opportunity to further deepen their knowledge on their desired topics via taking extra classes. At this institute, he was formally asked by István Szíjártó, the director, to establish a group of scholars researching English and American studies, which he was happy to set up. This group is still active to this day. His son, who shares his passion about poetry and translation with his father, started publishing his works under the pen-name G. István László in order for people not to confuse him with his father. His daughter, Katalin G. Kállay, is another recognized literary historian. Both of his children teach at the Faculty of Humanities at Károli Gáspár University of the Reformed Church in Hungary. He passed away at seventy-two years old. His funeral was held on June 28, 2012 at the Farkasréti Cemetery.

Works

• Mondom: szerencséd (1981, poems) – I Say: Your Luck
• Mi van, Catullus? (1984, poems) – What, Callutus?
• Mesterségünk címere. Amerikai könyvek Magyar olvasóknak, esszék (1989) – Career Charades: American Books for Hungarian Readers, essays
• Szenczi Miklós: Tanulmányok s. a. r. (1989) – Miklós Szenczi: Studies
• Shakespeare-olvasókönyv. Tükörképünk 37 darabban, esszék (1992) – Reading Shakespeare. Our reflection in 37 plays, essays
• Anakreóni dalok (1996, poems) – Songs of Anacreon
• Rádió-kollégium (1996, consisting of radio shows from between 1989-1992) – Radio College
• Pozsony (1996) – Bratislava
• Hol az a látvány? (1997, collected and new poems) – Where is that View?

Translations

• William Faulkner – Míg fekszem kiterítve (1971) – While I Lie Sprawled out

Awards

• Apáczai Csere János award (2004, 2007)
• Book of the Year Award (1992)
• Creator Award by the Soros Association (1996)
• József Attila Award (2008)
• Déry Tibor Award (2008)
• Magyar Érdemrend középkereszt polgári tagozata Award (2012)