Captain Michalis
Encyclopedia
Captain Michalis is one of the most widely read books of modern Greek literature
which has been translated and published in several languages. It was written by Nikos Kazantzakis
and was first published in Greek in 1953. The writer was influenced by his early years on the island of Crete
and uses explicit Greek words and the Cretan
idiom in a way that preserves it untouched.
of the Cretans against the Ottoman Empire in the year 1889.
Captain Michalis has been translated into many languages, including Turkish.
Modern Greek literature
Modern Greek literature refers to literature written in the Greek language from the 11th century, with texts written in a language that is more familiar to the ears of Greeks today than is the language of the early Byzantine literature, the compilers of the New Testament, or, of course, the...
which has been translated and published in several languages. It was written by Nikos Kazantzakis
Nikos Kazantzakis
Nikos Kazantzakis was a Greek writer and philosopher, celebrated for his novel Zorba the Greek, considered his magnum opus...
and was first published in Greek in 1953. The writer was influenced by his early years on the island of Crete
Crete
Crete is the largest and most populous of the Greek islands, the fifth largest island in the Mediterranean Sea, and one of the thirteen administrative regions of Greece. It forms a significant part of the economy and cultural heritage of Greece while retaining its own local cultural traits...
and uses explicit Greek words and the Cretan
Crete
Crete is the largest and most populous of the Greek islands, the fifth largest island in the Mediterranean Sea, and one of the thirteen administrative regions of Greece. It forms a significant part of the economy and cultural heritage of Greece while retaining its own local cultural traits...
idiom in a way that preserves it untouched.
Plot introduction
The book deals with the rebellionRebellion
Rebellion, uprising or insurrection, is a refusal of obedience or order. It may, therefore, be seen as encompassing a range of behaviors aimed at destroying or replacing an established authority such as a government or a head of state...
of the Cretans against the Ottoman Empire in the year 1889.
Explanation of the novel's title
It is thought that the book is titled after Kazantzakis' father Michalis Kazantzakis from whom the writer was inspired. The word Captain is not used in its naval or military rank sense, but more as a chieftain title given to prominent members of the Cretan society. Freedom or Death was added as a subtitle to the second edition in Greek released by Difros publishers in Athens in 1955 and was the preferred English (US) title. In the UK the book was published as Freedom and Death.Major characters
- Captain Michalis
- Captain Polyxigis
- Nuri Bey
- Emine Hanum
Publication history
- 1953, Finland (titled "Vapaus tai Kuolema" translated into Finnish by Elvi Sinervo), Kustannusokeylitio Tamni, Helsinki.
- 1954, Germany, (titled "Freiheit oder Tod", translated by Helmut von den Steinen), Herbig, Berlin.
- 1955, Sweden, (titled "Frihet eller död", translated into Swedish by Börje Knös), Ljus, Stockholm.
- 1955, Norway, (titled "Frihet eller død", translated into Norwegian by Leif Kristiansen),Tanum, Oslo.
- 1955, Denmark, (titled "Frihed eller død", translated into Danish by Karl Hornelund), Jespersen og Pio, Copenhagen.
- 1955, Holland, (titled "Kapitein Michalis", translated into Dutch by H.C.M. Edelman), De Fontein, Utrecht.
- 1955, USA, (titled "Freedom or Death, a novel", translated by Jonathan Griffin), Simon and Schuster, New York.
- 1956, Great Britain (titled "Freedom and Death, a novel", translated by Jonathan Griffin), Bruno Cassirer, Oxford ISBN 0851810128.
- 1956, France (titled "La Liberté ou La Mort", translated by Gisèle Prassinos and Pierre Fridas), Plon, Paris.
- 1956, Yugoslavia (titled "Kapitan Mihalis", translated into Slovenian by Jose Udović), : Cankarjevna, Ljubljana.
- 1957, Iceland (titled "Frelsið eða dauðann", translated into Icelandic by Skúli Bjarkan), Almenna bókafélagið, Reykjavík.
- 1957, Argentina (titled "Libertad o muerte", translated into Spanish by Rosa Chacel), Carlos Lohlé, Buenos Aires.
- 1958, Portugal (titled "Liberdade ou morte", translated into Portuguese by Maria Franco), Cor, Lisbon.
- 1958, Hungary (titled "Mihálisz kapitány", translated into Hungarian by Abody Béla), Európa, Budapest.
- 1959, Italy (titled "Capitan Michele", translated by Edvige Levi Gunalachi), Martello, Milan.
- 1960, Poland (titled "Kapetan Michal", translated into Polish by Katarzyna Witwicka), Czytelnik, Warsaw.
- 1960, Czechoslovakia (titled "Kapitán Michalis" translated into Czech by František Štuřík and Mariana Stříbrná), Československý spisovatel, Prague.
- 1961, Bulgaria (titled "Kapitan Mikhalis", translated into Bulgarian by Georgi Kufov), Narodna Kultura, Sofia.
- 1963, Israel (titled "Herut O Mavet" - "חרות או מוות"), Am Oved, Tel Aviv http://simania.co.il/bookdetails.php?item_id=21088.
- 1965, USSR (titled "Kapitan Mihalis: Svoboda abo smert", translated into Ukrainian by Ivan Hrechanivs'ky, Viktoriia and Iannis Mochos), Vydavnytstvo Khudozhn'oi Literatury "Dnipro", Kiev. The book however was never translated into Russian.
- 1967, Turkey, (titled "Ya hürriyet ya ölüm (Kapetan Mihalis)", translated by Nevzat Hatko), Ararat, Istanbul.
- 1973, Iran, (titled "Azadi ya marg", translated into Persian by Muhammad Qazi), Khvarazmi, Tehran.
- 1973, Albania (titled, "Ja vdekje, ja liri", translated into Albanian by Enver Fico), Shtepia Botuese "Naim Frasheri" Tirana.
- 1976, Egypt, (titled "al-Hurriya wa-l-maut"), al-Hay'a, Cairo.
- 1982, China, (titled "Zi you huo si wang", translated into Chinese by Wang Zhenji yi), Wai guo wen xue chu ban she, Peking.
- 2002, Lithuania (titled "Kapitonas Michalis", translated into Lithuanian by Diana Bučiūtė), Vaga, Vilnius.