Yakub KOLAS, Belorussian poet and writer. People’s Poet of the Belorussian Soviet Socialist Republic from 1926.The creativity of the national poet of Belarus Yakub Kolas makes the whole epoch in a history of the Belarussian literature.
Background
Ethnicity:
Jakub Kolas (a real name is Mickiewicz Konstantin Mikhaylovich) was born on November 3, 1882 in the Akinchitsy village of the Stolbtsovsky region of the Minsk area in a family of a forester.
Konstantin Mikhailovich Mitskevich was born on November 03, 1882 on the farm Okinchitsy near the village Nikolaevshina of former Minsk district Minsk of the Minsk area (nowadays Stolbtsy district of the Minsk area) in the forestman family of Mikhail Kasimirovich Mitskevich, which works in forestry of the Polish magnate of prince Radzivil. The childhood of small Kostus has passed in unusually beautiful places of Belarus - picturesque woods, the great river Neman have found in soul of the boy a sensual response. "In every moment of natural phenomena for me all was executed of deep interest and sense, and each seen element of a nature for me had its person, strictly outlined individuality, certain life, conscious, animated. I lived mainly by internal world, world of images and dreams, about which I spoke nobody", - the poet wrote later about the times of his childhood.
Education
Initial education the future writer has received from the home teacher, so-called "director", then was Nikolaevschina national school, during study in which Kostus has tried to write verses. The first literary experiences - poem "Spring" and басня "Crow and fox" were a consequence of hobby for products of Russian literary coryphaeuses: Krylov, Pushkin, Lermontov, Zhukovskij, Nekrasov, Gogol, Tolstoy.
After terminating an elementary school the father of the 12-year's boy Mikhail Kazimirovich, hotly maintained by the school teacher, decided "to let the son go in a science ". This far-seeing fatherly decision has opened a door in life to the young man.
In 1898 he acts in Nesvizh teacher's seminary. Under influence of the talented teacher - wordmaker Fedot Andreevich Kudrinskij collects and writes down oral national creativity and materials on ethnography. In the future these records will form in a basis of the first Belarussian novel "On a cross-road" ("Na rostanyakh").
Career
In 1898 he acts in Nesvizh teacher's seminary. Under influence of the talented teacher - wordmaker Fedot Andreevich Kudrinskij collects and writes down oral national creativity and materials on ethnography. In the future these records will form in a basis of the first Belarussian novel "On a cross-road" ("Na rostanyakh").
After terminating a teacher's seminary (1902) the newly born teacher is directed for job to a countryside on Polesie (villages Lusino, Pinkovichi). It was time civil and political stand of the person of Yakub Kolas, time of revolutionary rise. Promoting among peasantry, trained by him radical revolutionary job and having adjusted close connections with the teachers - adherents, Kolas became one of the initiators of convocation of illegal teacher's congress (1906), which purpose was connection to the All-Russia union of the teachers and active aspiration to annigilation of an imperial mode by direct influence on the peasants and their organizations. The congress was opened by police, and its participants by the Order of council of the Minsk management of national schools dismissed from posts and are taken under a consequence.
The loss of job became new stimulus for creativity. Having accepted the offer of the publicist A. Vlasov, Konstantin Mitskevich becomes the employee of the newspaper "Nasha dola", where for the first time places a poem "Our native territory" under a pseudonym Yakub Kolas. The day of September 01, 1906 is considered as the official beginning of professional creative activity Yakub Kolas.
One of the important vital stages of the young poet was the years which have been spent in the Minsk prison (15.09.1908 - 15.09.1911) on accusation of convocation of teacher's congress. Despite of heavy conditions of existence, he writes much. That fact is indicative, that the first collection "Songs of the complaint" has left when he was prisoner.
Being in prison, Kolas with nostalgia recollected to lovely heart of Stolbtsy vicinity, numerous family - the father, mother, uncle Antos, brothers and sisters. Willy – nilly it was necessary anew to consider past and future life. Were based on these memoirs, there is a plan about a spelling of poems "Novaya zemla" and "Symon-musician", which subsequently, passing through squall of vulgarizator criticism, it will be fated to become by the card of the Belarussian classical literature.
The Pinsk period of Kolas was extremely fruitful - he was finally ratified on the Belarussian literary field, qualitatively has expanded frameworks of the creativity, is persistent him improve. Result of fruitful job was release of two collections of the stories ("Apaviadanni") 1912, "Тhe Native phenomena" ("Rodnyja Zjavy") 1914. It was one of the first professional samples of the Belarussian national prose and poetry. Written in Pinsk verses, allegorical stories and so on. Will make a basis of the program collections of Yakub Kolas "Echo" ("Vodgulle") 1921 and "Fairy tales of life" ("Kazki Zhittsa") 1921-1956 later.
The active creativity of Yakub Kolas at this time for the first time was noticed by progressive criticism.
In the beginning of the 20th century on him have paid attention, besides the Belarussian researchers of the poets C. Polujan and M. Bogdanovich, russian of critics A. Pogodin, C. Vengerov, L. Kleinbart, writer M. Gorkij, Polish poet Ezhi Yankovskij etc.
All of them marked the priority of national subjects is true a national basis of products, their humanistic orientation.
In a course of Imperialistic war in September 1915 Yakub Kolas was mobilized in imperial army. After the ending of the Aleksandr military school (1916, Moscow) in a rank of praporshchik serves in a spare shelf of Perm (Russia). In the summer 1917 in a rank of podporuchik is directed on the Romanian front. In September 1917 is demobilised from army on a condition of health. Since autumn 1917 till May 1921 work in a post of the inspector of national schools in Obojan and villages of Kursk area (Russia). the hardness of hungry life in evacuation shares together with wife Marija Dmitrievna, which works the teacher at rural school too. Later Yakub Kolas the War to war " (1927-1931), " V debryakh Pollesija " (" V pushchakh Pollesija ") (1929-1956), story "Bog" ("Drygva") 1933 pay to display of circumstances of World war I and Civil war in the stories, plays.
On a call of BSSR government in 1921 comes back in Minsk., in parallel, pedagogical activity Yakub Kolas begins active scientific one. He works in a Scientific - terminological commission under the tax of oral national creativity of Institute of the Belarussian culture, teaches in the Belarussian pedagogical technical school and Belgosuniversity the Byelorussian language and technique of his teaching.
Politics
Communist Party member from 1943
Views
Native places, close to heart, - "native corner" is of the farm Okinchitsy, Albuts, Lastok, Smolna, the village Nikolaevschina frequently praised by the artist of a word, and to this day save contribution of memory to this man.
Personality
"In every moment of natural phenomena for me all was executed of deep interest and sense, and each seen element of a nature for me had its person, strictly outlined individuality, certain life, conscious, animated. I lived mainly by internal world, world of images and dreams, about which I spoke nobody", - the poet wrote later about the times of his childhood.
In this formation itself Yakub Kolas saw two mighty factors - seminar poetic experiences under vast influence of the liked teacher and his native word - newspaper "Nasha dola" and "Nasha zemla" - first democratic national editions in the Belarussian language.
Quotes from others about the person
"In publicistic deviation of a poem Kolas lifts a question on features of a national way of Belarus, which renders on crossroads of different cultures, religious confessions, geopolitical aims."
Connections
After exiting from prison, having extracted through the friends the certificate on political reliability, during 1912-1914 Kolas edified in a church school of the city of Pinsk. Here has met the future wife, young teacher of railway school Marija Dmitrievna Kamenskaja. The wedding was held on June 03, 1913.