Derek Mahon
Derek Mahon was a prominent Irish poet born in Belfast on November 23, 1941. He pursued his education at the Royal Belfast Academical Institution and later at Trinity College, Dublin, where he majored in French. Mahon began his poetry career in the mid-1960s, releasing his first collection, *Twelve Poems*, in 1967, followed by several notable works, including *Night Crossing*. After spending time in London as a freelance journalist, he returned to Northern Ireland in 1977, where he held a writer-in-residence position at the New University of Ulster and worked with the BBC. His poetry often reflects themes of exile and the violence associated with Northern Ireland's history, influenced by literary figures such as Samuel Beckett and W. H. Auden. Throughout his prolific career, Mahon published numerous volumes of poetry and received multiple prestigious awards, solidifying his reputation as one of Ireland's foremost poets. He continued to create impactful poetry until his later years, with works like *Harbour Lights* published in 2005.
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Subject Terms
Derek Mahon
Poet
- Born: November 23, 1941
- Birthplace: Belfast, Northern Ireland
- Died: October 1, 2020
- Place of death: Cork, Ireland
Biography
Derek Mahon was born in Belfast, Northern Ireland, on November 23, 1941. He attended the Royal Belfast Academical Institution from 1953 to 1960, and Trinity College, Dublin, from 1960 to 1965, majoring in French. He taught at various schools around the world after his graduation and began publishing poems in the mid- 1960s. His first book of poetry appeared in 1967, Twelve Poems. He quickly followed this volume with Design for a Grecian Urn in 1967 and his first major book of poetry, Night Crossing in 1968.
In 1970, he returned to the United Kingdom, living in London, where he pursued a career as a freelance journalist, writing book and drama reviews and serving in various editorial capacities. During the 1970s, Mahon published eight more books of poetry. Returning to Northern Ireland in 1977, Mahon took a position as writer in residence at the New University of Ulster in County Derry. From there, he went to the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) where he wrote adaptations and screenplays.
During the 1980s, Mahon’s work was varied. He completed several impressive translations, including the much-honored translation of Selected Poems by Philippe Jaccottet in 1987 and an adaptation of Molière’s play The School for Wives in 1986. He also completed several books of poetry, most notably Courtyards in Delft in 1981, The Hunt by Night in 1982, and The Chimeras in 1982. He also prepared a number of screenplays aired on the BBC. During the 1980s, Mahon additionally worked as the poetry and fiction editor of the New Statesman in London.
In many of Mahon’s poems he explores the theme of exile, as have many other Irish poets living abroad. In addition, the violence of Northern Ireland finds its way into many poems, as does a consideration of the prison house of history. Some critics suggest that Mahon was deeply influenced by the work of Samuel Beckett as well as by Louis MacNeice and W. H. Auden.
The decades of the 1990s and 2000s were productive ones for Mahon. He published some ten books of poetry and numerous translations. He was commissioned to write a version of Cyrano de Bergerac by the National Theatre of London in 2004. Mahon lived in Dublin and continued to produce high quality poetry; his Harbour Lights was published in 2005.
Mahon is a highly honored poet, garnering many awards for his work. His honors include the Irish American Foundation Award, a Lannan Foundation Award, a Guggenheim Fellowship, The Irish Times/Aer Lingus Poetry Prize, the American Ireland Fund Literary Award, The C. K. Scott Moncreiff Translation Prize for his translation of The Selected Poems of Philippe Jaccottet, and the Eric Gregory Award. Readers selected Derek Mahon as one of the top ten Irish poets in a survey conducted in 1999.
Bibliography
"Derek Mahon." Poetry Foundation. Poetry Foundation, n.d. Web. 8 Apr. 2016.
Haughton, Hugh. The Poetry of Derek Mahon. Oxford: Oxford UP, 2007. Print.
Mahon, Derek. "Derek Mahon, The Art of Poetry No. 82." Interview by Eamonn Grennan. Paris Review. Paris Review, Spring 2000. Web. 8 Apr. 2016.