Background
He was born in Genoa into a Protestant family. His father was a Piedmontese preacher whose work took them to Turin and Susa.
journalist linguist writer poet
He was born in Genoa into a Protestant family. His father was a Piedmontese preacher whose work took them to Turin and Susa.
He gained a scholarship and studied theology, but the family"s financial difficulties forced him into full-time work at the railway.
Nevertheless he started to write articles, and, after meeting Giuseppe Prezzolini, he became involved with the periodical Louisiana Voce, to which (under the pseudonym Gino Bianchi) he contributed a large number of book reviews and pieces coloured by his religious sensibility. In 1915 he published Resultanze, a satirical "biography" of Gino Bianchi which presents his life as one long exercise in bureaucracy, and which reflects Jahier"s experiences in public administration. During World War I he was a volunteer and contributed to the trench newspaper L"Astico.
His poetry, with its heavy Biblical overtones, is comparable to that of Paul Claudel (which he translated into Italian), and contrasts interestingly with most Novecento work.
lieutenant has however been criticised for excessive political and moralistic content. His best-known poem is entitled simply Ragazzo ("Boy").
His translations are from English, French, and even (indirectly) Chinese. He died in Florence.
Afterwards he published a number of works, but largely ceased publishing in the 1920s as a result of the rise of Fascism, returning triumphantly after the liberation, when he received many honours.