Milan Rakić

Milan Rakić (Serbian Cyrillic: Милан Ракић; 18 September 1876 – 30 June 1938) was a Serbian poet-diplomat and academic.

Biography

Early life Rakić was born on 18 September 1876 in Belgrade to father Mita and mother Ana (née Milićević). His father, educated abroad, was Serbia's Minister of Finance (1888) and his mother was the daughter of Serbian writer Milan Milićević.

He finished elementary school (grade school) and high school (gymnasium) in Belgrade. He completed law school in Paris.

Poetry He focused on dodecasyllable and hendecasyllable verse, which allowed him to achieve beautiful rhythm and rhyme in his poems. He was quite a perfectionist and therefore only published three collections of poems (1903, 1912, 1924). He wrote largely about death and non-existence, keeping the tone sceptical and ironic. Some of his most well-known poems are An Honest Song (Iskrena pesma), A Desperate Song (Očajna pesma), Jefimija, Simonida and At Gazi-Mestan (Na Gazi-Mestanu). He was a member of the Serbian Royal Academy (1934).

Death He died prematurely in 1938 in Zagreb after a surgical operation. He is interred in the Belgrade New Cemetery.

Personal life His sister Ljubica was married to Milan Grol; and his wife Milica was the daughter of Ljubomir Kovačević, a distinguished Serbian historian and politician.

Works

Poetry Collection of Poems, 1903 Collection of Poems, 1912 Collection of Poems, 1924

Other works Zasebno štampane knjige Pisma konzula Rakića, Srpski književni glasnik, collection of letters Maurice Maeterlinck, Domaće ognjišše, Srpski književni glasnik, HHHGUH, theatre review, knjiga XI. Viktor Hugo, Kralje se zabavlja, Srpski književni glasnik, theatre review, XI. Ivo Vojnović, Dubrovačka trilogija. Srpski književni glasnik, theatre review, XI. Dragutin Ilić, Neznani gost. Srpski književni glasnik, theatre review, XI. Simo Matavulj, Na slavi. Srpski književni glasnik, theatre review, XII. Paul Hervieu, Zagonetka. Srpski književni glasnik, theatre review, XIV.