NILAVRONILL TALKING WITH
POET OF THE MONTH
DANIJELA
ĆUK
NILAVRONILL: Welcome to Our Poetry Archive, dear poet.
And congratulations as the poet of this month. I would like to know your
personal views on literature or poetry in general.
DANIJELA
ĆUK:
Yes, of course, thank you very much. I think that literature and poetry are
very useful for this society and the world, they make it rich, they provide and
give so much, and everyone should be a part of that beautiful world in some
way. Only one who knows poetry in his
soul, as well as literature in general, can understand its richness and thus
become a literary rich person himself.
NILAVRONILL: What are the factors that have influenced
you immensely in the growing phase of your literary life. When, most probably
you were not certain of your future as a poet or writer. Do you think society
as a whole is the key factor in shaping up you as a poet, or your poetry
altogether?
DANIJELA ĆUK: It was
influenced by the love of poetry and some situations from real life. I have always been confident as a poet and I
think society as a whole is a key factor in shaping me and poetry. Overall life
situations and social issues have greatly influenced my poetry, so I put
everything I saw or heard in the real world into my verses and in that way I
actually created a life of poetry.
NILAVRONILL: Do you consider your literary life as an
extension of your self-existence? If so, how it is related with the time around
you?
DANIJELA ĆUK: I believe
that it is connected in a way that shapes me as a person over time and extends
the meaning of my writing. I believe that the literary world extends me as a
poet and in such a way that by giving myself to the literary world, I actually
extend the meaning of my existence. The
purpose of my life is to write in such a way as to help other people to look at
life differently and to bring them the light and hope as well as the strength
that they need so much in life, and with that I truly believe that the literary
world extends me both as a person and as a poet.
NILAVRONILL: As a poet, do socio-economy and politics
in general influence your literary visions? If so how, and if not, why?
DANIJELA ĆUK: They
influence, of course, because I extract verses from various situations and find
inspiration. All situations in this society and in the world greatly influence
my view of poetry as such, in such a way that I find myself in every
situation. Because only by starting from
myself and then through society as such can poetry come to life, make it
breathe and encourage other people to love poetry, to find in them what they
may be missing so much in life. So far,
I have succeeded in that and I hope I will continue to do so.
NilavroNill: Is it possible to put into the words
everything that as a poet you wish to express literarily? If not, why?
DANIJELA ĆUK: Yes, it
is possible. It is possible to put into words everything that the author wants
to express literary, because I know from my experience. I can’t say some words with my lips, for
example, but I turn it all into words, into every verse, and then love,
strength, hope and light can be seen in those verses. Therefore, the words that come out of the
mouth are not so important, but those that the poet can bring to life with
verses that breathe love and life.
NilavroNill: Do you agree with John Keats
(1795-1821) on his ardent believe, “Truth is beauty, beauty is truth”? Even if
we take for instance the war of Kurukshetra, the conflicts between Kauravas and
Pandavas, or the fall out of second world war in Hiroshima and Nagasaki, how
can we manage to reconcile between those truths with beauty as promulgated by
Keats?
DANIJELA ĆUK: Yes, I
agree. I agree
because beauty is really truth and truth is the beauty found in our
poetry. Beauty is everywhere around us,
we just need to find it and bring it to life.
And the goal is not only to love and appreciate what is life, but also
what may have died a long time ago but is still alive through its verses and in
its poetry. True beauty never dies,
never disappears, but always lives, it’s just important to preserve it and not
let it disappear.
NilavroNill: Too many writers believe imagery
is an essential part of poetry. Do you agree this notion? Even if we consider Leonardo
da Vinci’s words that poetry is painting that is felt rather than seen.
DANIJELA ĆUK: Yes, I agree.
I believe that this is true, because even in things that may have been
invented, that many times have no contact with reality, one can certainly find
beauty, which is deeply connected with poetry. Poetry lives in images, in
imagination, in everything that we ourselves want to live. Things that we often
think that when we see them with the naked eye, do not mean much, in fact, when
you look at them with heart, soul and poetry, they really have a great
value. You just have to see them, not
with your eyes, but with your soul and heart, and then with the poetry itself.
NilavroNill:
Do you believe, passionately
falling in love with a particular language is essential to excel in poetical
ventures? And is it possible to write poems in multiple languages preserving
same literary quality? We would like to know your own experiences.
DANIJELA ĆUK: I think and we believe that it
is so because writing poems in several languages enriches poetry. I have
written many times in foreign languages, even my poems have been translated
into several languages, and I realized then how rich it is to turn my verses
into the wonderful wealth of languages and their unique world.
NilavroNill: Do you consider poetry as an
emotional outbursts of poet’s personal sentiments? Or is it a long journey to
realize and express the universal sentiments beyond all personal limitations?
Again, we want to understand your views through your personal experiences of
your literary life as a poet.
DANIJELA ĆUK: I believe
that because feelings are closely related to the expression of emotions,
because there is no poetry without feelings, I show all my emotional side with
verses Poetry is
emotions because it is only through emotions that every verse, every word,
everything that is in the soul exists in verses. For years, I have shown my emotions in lyrics
and in such a way that I opened other people’s emotions with my writing. For example, when I wrote poetry for women
suffering from serious illnesses, it meant the world to them and gave them hope
for a better tomorrow.
NilavroNill: I would like to quote T. S.
Eliot, “No poet, no artist of any art, has his complete meaning alone. His
significance, his appreciation is the appreciation of his relation to the dead
poets and artists. You cannot value him
alone; you must set him for contrast and comparison among the dead.” We would
like to know your views in details on Eliot’s comments.
DANIJELA ĆUK: I believe
that Eliot was right because it is very important to appreciate dead as well as
living poets, that is love. I believe that Eliot wanted to say that it is not
only living poets that we should appreciate, nor living paintings, but also
those poets who are no longer alive but live through their poetry. So, I definitely agree with him because even
what is no longer there or who is no longer there is still alive, we just all
need to understand that. Because poetry
is an art that lives in verses, painting is an art that lives in pictures, and
artists are people who know their words and thoughts and can turn them into
poetry or pictures through life. Art is
life!
NilavroNill: Would you consider, it should be
the goal of a poet to enlightens the readers towards much greater apprehensions
as well as appreciations of life and eternity in general? Or is it better to
write poems only to console the poet’s soul?
DANIJELA ĆUK:
The goal of the poet should be precisely to enlighten the
reader towards much greater fears. I believe that a poet should illuminate the
path of other people with his verses, not just keep them for himself and his
soul, because not much is achieved that way.
If we want our poetry to live, I believe that this can only be done if
we share it with others, if we achieve the goal of entering someone’s soul with
our verses, opening someone’s heart and helping to create a poet even in a
person who is not a poet.
NILAVRONILL: We are almost at the end of the interview.
I remain obliged to you for your participation. Now, personally I would like to
know your honest opinion about Our Poetry Archive. Since April 2015 we are
publishing and archiving contemporary world poetry each and every month. Thank
you for sharing your views and spending much time with us.
DANIJELA ĆUK: Your archive of poetry is wonderful because it enriches poetry and
makes it the life of this world. The
strength of your poetry archive is so great that every poet can easily find
himself in it and strengthen himself.
DANIJELA ĆUK, she was born on
May 25, 1989 in Vukovar with residence in Čavli (Croatia). The poet has so far published two
independent collections of poetry: “Positive for Life” and “Strength of Love”
and a third collection is being prepared: “Lionesse Women”. Her poems participated in over 20 joint
collections of poetry and were published in many foreign magazines and awarded
diplomas.
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