Subagio Sastrowardoyo

Subagio Sastrowardoyo (1 February 1924 – 18 July 1995) was an Indonesian poet, short-story writer, essayist and literary critic. Born in Madiun, East Java, the Dutch East Indies (now Indonesia), he studied at Gadjah Mada University, Cornell University and in 1963 graduated with an MA from Yale University. His debut as a writer came early with the publication of Simphoni (Symphony), a collection of poems, in 1957. The collection has been described as "cynical, untamed poetry, shocking sometimes". Simphoni was followed by several attempts at short story writing, including the publication Kedjananan di Sumbing (Manhood on Mount Sumbing), before Subagio settled on poetry as his main creative outlet. Subagio's collected poems have been published as Dan Kematian Makin Akrab. He spent several years teaching in Australia, firstly as a senior lecturer at Salisbury College of Advanced Education and from 1974 to 1981 he lectured at Flinders University in Adelaide, South Australia.

Subagio Sastrowardoyo died in Jakarta on 18 July 1995. Mr. Sastrowardoyo was awarded the S.E.A. Write Award in 1991. A year after his death, Mr. Sastrowardoyo was quoted in an essay by Barbara Crossette for the Week in Review section of The New York Times:

A few years ago, [John] McGlynn's foundation collected Indonesians' impressions of the United States, many of them unsettling, in a book called On Foreign Shores. One of the poets, Ajip Rosidi, reacted to New York in a poem titled "Manhattan Sonnet."

"Is it within these strong and rigid walls / one's sense of safety nestles? / All I find here is vigilance, the source of apprehension."

His compatriot Subagio Sastrowardoyo wrote about a city "where life is cheap." New York's greed, he said, "has made this place too confined for prayer or a human voice."

Selected list of works

Short stories Kejantanan di Sumbing (Manhood on Mount Sumbing), Jakarta : Balai Pustaka, 1965

Poetry Simfoni (Symphony), Yogyakarta, 1957 Daerah Perbatasan, Jakarta, 1970 Keroncong Motinggo 1975 Buku Harian, Jakarta : Budaya, 1979 Hari dan Hara, Jakarta : Balai Pustaka, 1982 Simfoni Dua (Symphony 2), Jakarta, Balai Pustaka, 1990 Dan Kematian Makin Akrab, Jakarta : Grasindo 1995

Literary criticism Sastra Hindia Belanda dan Kita (1990)

General Bakat Alam dan Intelektualisme, Jakarta : Pustaka Jaya, 1972 Manusia Terasing di Balik Simbolisme Sitor, Jakarta : Budaya Jaya, 1976 Pengarang sebagai Manusia Perba-tasan, Jakarta : Balai Pustaka, 1989 Sekilas Soal Sastra dan Budaya, Jakarta : Balai Pustaka, 1992 Wirt dies Wort!, Unkel/Rhein-Bad Honnef : Horlemann, 1991

Anthologies On Foreign Shores: American Images in Indonesian Poetry. Jakarta: Lontar Foundation, 1990. John H. McGlynn and E.U. Kratz, eds., Walking Westward in Morning: Seven Contemporary Indonesian Poets. School of Oriental & African Studies, 1990. John H. McGlynn, ed., Menagerie 1. 1992. Jakarta: Lontar Foundation, 2006. Iem Brown and Joan Davis, eds., Di Serambi/On the Verandah: A Bilingual Anthology of Modern Indonesian Poetry. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1995. Erica Manh, comp. Sharing Fruit: An Anthology of Asian and Australian Writing. Melbourne: Curriculum Corporation, 1998.

Audio recordings CDs Betty Beath; Glen Roger Davis, David Fetherolf and Anthony Vazzana, composers. Music from Six Continents (1995 Series). Ruben Silva, cond. Moravian Philharmonic Orchestra. Vienna Modern Master, 1995. ASIN: B000004A71