Todos Osmachka

Teodosiy Stepanovych Osmachka (; – 7 September 1962), known as Todos Osmachka , was a Ukrainian writer, poet and translator. Representative of symbolism, expressionism, and neo-romanticism. Member of the writers' associations such as Association of Writers (Aspis) and "Lanka" (MARS). Translator of Shakespeare's works. Osmachka criticized the communist ideology and the intelligentsia that cooperated with the authorities of the Moscow government. Persecuted by the Soviet authorities, Osmachka immigrated to Germany and later to the United States.

Early life and education Teodosiy Stepanovych Osmachka was born on in the selo of Kutsivka, Cherkassy uezd (present-day, Cherkasy Raion, Ukraine) to the family of a rural laborer Stepan, who worked in the estate of the landowner Tereshchenko, and then single-handedly gained the profession and fame of a good veterinarian. All children in the family received secondary education. Osmachka acquired higher education on his own. In 1925 he graduated from the Kyiv Institute of Public Education.

Early career In 1916, Osmachka was drafted into the ranks of the Russian army to participate in the World War I.

His working career Osmachka started by teaching in folk schools. Members of the "Lanka" literary association. From left to right: Borys Antonenko-Davydovych, Hryhorii Kosynka, Maria Halych, Yevhen Pluzhnyk, Valerian Pidmohylny and Todos Osmachka. 1925.

Literary activity Osmachka's participation in literary life began during his student years. First, he was a member of the Association of Writers (ASPYS), which was headed by Mykola Zerov, and then "Lanka" (MARS), which included Hryhoriy Kosynka (Osmachka's closest friend), Borys Antonenko-Davydovych, Yevhen Pluzhnyk, Valerian Pidmohylny and Maria Halych. It was printed in the midst of preparations for the trial against the Ukrainian intelligentsia - the Union for the Liberation of Ukraine when the ideological press clamped down on individual freedom of creativity. The 1930s ideological persecutions known as the Executed Renaissance had already taken away the first close friends of the poet - Hryhoriy Kosynka, Dmytro Falkivskyi, and Valerian Pidmohylny.

Persecution by the Soviet authorities A wave of denunciations in the form of literary and critical articles branded Osmachka as the "enemy of the people". Escaping from repression, Osmachka made his way to Podillia, intending to cross the Polish border illegally. This time he was sent to prison on charges of espionage.

Expecting death, Osmachka makes the last decision - to fight, but "not as a means of strength, but as a means of weakness" and feigns madness. He was transferred to a psychiatric hospital in Kyiv. He was released, then arrested again. After another series of simulated seizures, Osmachka was released again. After that Osmachka began to hide wherever he could: in the houses of friends, cabins, in isolated farms and villages where he was not well known, sometimes even in his native village. There he joined the literary life of the city, but imprisonment and torture left an imprint on his life. Osmachka became suspicious, mistrustful, withdrawn, and afraid of The People's Commissariat for Internal Affairs (NKVD), which made it difficult for him to communicate with people. Through the efforts of his friends, he was sent to the United States and placed for treatment at the Pilgrim State Hospital near New York. The influence of neo-romanticism is noticeable in late poetry collections. In his works, Osmachka paid particular attention to Ukrainian folk traditions and ethnography.

Commemoration

In Cherkasy, one of the alleys is named after Todos Osmachka. In his native village, one of the streets is named after Osmachka, and a memorial plaque has also been installed. The charitable foundation "Todos Osmachka" was founded. In 2004, the play "Day of Spirits," based on the works of Todos Osmachka, was staged at the Kyiv Young Theater. In 2005, Mykhailo Slaboshpytskyi published the biographical novel "Poet from Hell (Todos Osmachka)," for which he was awarded the Shevchenko National Prize. In 2013, the Todos Osmachka Literary Prize was established.