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Agenda's last Greek poetry special issue, guest-edited by Peter Levi, was published some thirty years ago (Winter 1969) when virtually none of the poets anthologised in this issue had even appeared on the Greek literary scene. In addition to the appearance of these new poets in the intervening thirty-year period, the fact should not be overlooked that many major poets from previous generations were still writing and indeed producing some of their finest and most mature work in the same period. Poets of the stature of Yánnis Rítsos (d. 1990), Nikifóros Vrettákos (d. 1991) and Odysseus Elýtis (d. 1996) from the 1930s generation, and Tákis Sinópoulos (d. 1981), Tássos Leivadítis (d. 1988) and Nikos Karoúzos (d. 1990) from the first post-war generation were all productive during a large part of this period, while other major poets from the second post-war generation such as Kikí Dimoulá (b. 1931) and Katerina Angheláki-Rooke (b. 1939) are still writing and are at the peak of their poetic craft. A representative map of the poetic landscape in Greece over the last thirty years would invariably have to include these and many other significant poets.

The present issue focuses exclusively, however, on new poetic voices in Greece; that is, poets born around or after the end of the Second World War and who published their first collection around or after 1970. Some 26 poets have been anthologised in an attempt to present a sample of the best, most interesting and varied of the new Greek poetic voices, with each poet represented by some 10-15 poems, mainly from his or her more recent works. It must be said that an entirely different 26 poets could have been anthologised. In their anthologies of poets from the generation of the '70s, Panayótou includes 47 poets and Zíras 40, while in anthologies of poets from the generation of the '80s, Stefanákis and Hourdákis include 43 and Garandoúdis 14. However, as poet and critic Nássos Vayenás has pointed out, 'a generation [of poets] does not comprise the total number of versifiers who appeared in the chronological limits set, but rather a number of poets (perhaps very few) who modify to a greater or lesser extent the traditional form of expression' (Diavazo, January 1987). My aim here was not to present every poet who has appeared since 1970, but rather a representative selection of these poets and a selection of poems by each poet large enough to be representative of that particular poet, so that the English reader will have as complete a picture as possible both of the new voices as a whole and of each voice individually. Subjective criteria for the inclusion of poets cannot be wholly avoided, of course, nor is there any reason why they should be, though I have tried to off-set this by leaving some choice to the translators. Originally a much longer list of poets was sent to the translators from which they made their own choice of poets to translate. I should also add that the six women poets included among the 26 poets anthologised is an accurate reflection of actuality if one is to judge by the anthologies published in Greece: Panayótou includes 9 out of 47, Zíras 6 out of 40, Stefanákis-Hourdákis 18 out of 43 and Garandoúdis none out of 14.

I realise that in the space of the first two paragraphs I have referred already to five generations of Greek poets in the fifty-year period between 1930 and 1980, and that the English reader may find this somewhat bewildering. The idea of the literary generation is particularly strong in Greece and has been since the beginning of the century, though it has become entrenched in the critical conscience mainly since the appearance of a number of poets in the 1930s who subsequently came to be known as the `generation of the '30s'. There is a case to be made for referring to this group of poets (which included Greece's two Nobel Laureates George Seféris and Odysseus Elýtis) as a 'generation', in the sense of a 'school', as their appearance marked a distinct break in the Greek poetic tradition and an introduction of new techniques. By assimilating the influences from the Anglo-Saxon modernists and French Surrealists, these poets endowed subsequent Greek poetry with certain characteristics which still define it today: the use of free verse, the eschewing of a logical sequence of thought, imagery, punctuation and syntax, and an often elliptical form of expression fostered even more by the political situation in Greece since the Second World War and by the stringent censorship imposed during the seven-year military dictatorship. An almost complete disregard for punctuation and syntax was very much the norm by the time of the poets anthologised here (though, admittedly, Greek is more flexible than English in this respect and deviation from the norms of punctuation and syntax in Greek is less problematical than it often appears in English translation).

Following the generation of the '30s, the subsequent generations of Greek poets rapidly succeeded one another in the eyes of the critics. So we now refer to the first post-war generation, the second post-war generation, the generation of the '70s and the generation of the '80s. Basing this form of classification on the criterion of the decade in which a number of poets began publishing or on that of their year of birth, most critics then go on to base their critical analysis of the poets' work on the socio-historico-political conditions of the period in which these poets reached poetic maturity and attempt to link the social phenomena of a specific period with the artistic products of the same or subsequent period. This may not sound unreasonable given Greece's tempestuous social and political history since 1940 (war, occupation, resistance, civil war, exile, political persecution, emigration, dictatorship). No doubt a knowledge of Greece's recent history is essential for an understanding of post-war poetry in Greece, but it is simplistic to explain poetry production solely in terms of the poets' reaction to the social and political circumstances of the time. Nevertheless, on this criterion, the first post-war generation is generally characterised as the generation of 'resistance and defeat'; the second post-war generation as the generation of `anxiety' or 'the lost generation'; the generation of the '70s as the generation of 'contention or anti-conformism', and the generation of the '80s as that of 'the private vision'.

This form of genealogical classification of poets and socio-political analysis of their work has become virtually the sole concern of critics and literary historians to the detriment of any critical appraisal of the poetry itself on aesthetic criteria. The poets anthologised here would usually be classified as belonging to the generations of the '70s and '80s. Critics include in the '70s generation those poets born between 1940-55 and who published their first work between 1967-74. In the '80s generation, they include those poets born between 1956-1967 and who published their first work after 1980. On these rather arbitrary criteria, the demarcation line for the poets in the present issue would come between Yánnis Varvéris and Dimítris Houliarákis. In other words, the two years separating their births is sufficient for many critics to place them in two different and rigidly defined poetic generations.

The term 'generation of the '70s' was first used by Vassílis Steriádis in 1970 and was based on no other criterion than that of these poets' first appearance in Greek Letters at that time. The other characterisation of these poets as the 'generation of content¬ion' (the word in Greek is ‘amphisvitisi’, which includes the idea of dispute, doubt and questioning) was first used by Vássos Varíkas in 1971 to describe the early poetry of a small number of poets who had appeared in those years. Critics sought the socio-political dimension in the poets' work in terms of their experiences of the Greek military dictatorship (1967-74) when many of them first began publishing. There is no doubt that the early works of the first poets to appear in this period showed signs of collective thematic and stylistic elements. The most striking of these is their contentious tone and their questioning of and disdain for accepted values and institutions, coupled with the stark realism of their language and their deeply ironic form of expression. In this respect, the influence of American popular culture and particularly of the 'Beat' poets has been noted by numerous critics.

One of main problems with the labelling of the poets appearing in the '70s stems from the fact that the labels were attached prematurely before a clear picture had become possible. The term `contention' was used as early as 1971 to describe the work of only six poets who had first published between 1969-71, and perhaps reveals more their common starting point than their subsequent development. By the end of the '70s, many more poets had appeared who were summarily labelled as belonging to the `generation of the '70s' or the generation of 'contention' simply by virtue of their chronological appearance. Of these two terms, the `generation of the '70s' prevailed, but by the end of the decade, it was applied to such a wide and disparate range of poets that it was brought into question by both critics and poets alike and came to be qualified by the adjective 'so-called' (which is now applied almost invariably to this and other generations).

These poets are, of course, still writing and it would be difficult today on the basis of their poetic production to speak of them collectively in terms of common thematic or stylistic characteristics. What we find in their works today is less the angry cry of social protest and more the personal mythology of erotic relationships, a metaphysical discourse with death, an existential anguish, together with reflections on life's absurdities, on the technological world and the consumer society. It will become obvious to the reader of these poets that their personal poetic mythology does not eschew its Greek roots, but regularly makes reference to the myths of the Greek tradition in images that merge the real with the imaginary, the rational with the absurd. In this respect, their often mundane themes are invariably found to have been purified in the waters of the Castalian Spring.

Much of what was said above on the question of the poetic ‘generation of the '70s’ could equally well be applied to those poets usually classified as belonging to the 'generation of the '80s'. Other than their first appearance in Greek Letters in the '80s, they have few common characteristics. The thematic content of their poetry, centred as it is on the universal themes of love, death, existence, memory and dream, is often highly personal, verging at times on the hermetic, and their work displays a wide variety of styles. If one is looking for contrasts with the poets first appearing in the '70s, it could be said that their language is perhaps more self-consciously poeticising. Some critics have noted, for example, that formally, if not thematically, poets of this 'generation' have tended towards a more classical form of expression. Others have identified pronounced metaphysical, romantic and lyrical trends in their work.

Despite the lack of collective thematic and stylistic features, however, the characteristic label was not long in appearing. The term 'generation of the private vision' (seen by some as an oxymoron) was first used by Ilías Kefálas in 1987 to characterise these poets first appearing in the '80s. This term too is in keeping with the prevailing type of criticism which relates artistic production more or less exclusively to the socio-historical circumstances in each period. The term was coined in contrast to the 'social vision' of the '70s poets and simply emphasises the absence of any such collective social vision among these poets. If many poets themselves accept this characterisation, it is probably out of a desire to assert their individuality and to reject their characterisation as the ‘descendants of the '70s generation’, a term which has also been used. The relationship between these poets (if any exists) is most aptly described in my view by one of these same poets (Thanassis Hatzopoulos) as being characterised by the existence of parallel monologues rather than by any actual dialogue.

Even if certain differences can be traced between the poets of the '70s and '80s, there is certainly no clear line of demarcation today between these poets. The characteristics of the earlier poets merge into the later ones and vice-versa, cutting across attempts at compartmentalisation. There are no collective thematic or formal characteristics in their work that might lead us to characterise certain groups of poets since 1970 as constituting a literary school or movement. I have made no attempt in this anthology to present these poets as 'generations' and my use of the term is purely on chronological criteria to describe the new poets who have appeared since around 1970. The year of birth of each poet and of his or her first published work appears besides the poet's name for anyone wishing the play 'the generation game'.

My aim in this introduction is not to predispose the unsuspecting reader through a review of the issues surrounding the work of these poets, as usually discussed by the critics and literary historians. This anthology is not intended as a textbook for students of Greek literature (if it were, it would necessitate charting each poet's development and including 'landmark' poems often discussed for reasons other than aesthetic) and I feel under no obligation to impose any critical framework on this wide range of poets and poetic modes simply for the sake of classification and critical analysis, which, in any case, is the territory of Hellenists - great and small   on both sides of the Atlantic. My wish is to let the poets speak for themselves and to leave it to the reader to judge whether these poets can stand beside their counterparts on the international stage.

This anthology will, hopefully, bring the English reader into contact with new and hitherto unknown Greek poetic voices and present a picture of Greek poetry somewhat different to that presented by Caváfy, Seféris, Elýtis and Rítsos, who remain, for most foreign readers, the four Evangelists of Greek poetry. It is the first time that so many of these poets have been presented in English in such a systematic and comprehensive way and it is significant that they are being presented in such a reputable and influential English poetry magazine as Agenda. Regrettably, the fate of modern Greek literature is often sealed by slim volumes of translations which never reach the bookshops, let alone the reader. Similarly, the publication of translations of two or three poems in academic journals read only by Greek scholars or, again, the kind of potpourri of translations occasionally published in special issues of literary magazines, but without any introduction or systematic and representative presentation of any particular poet or group of poets, simply leave the non-initiated reader bewildered and do little to help Greek literature break out of its isolation. In the present issue, bibliographical information is provided to facilitate the reader with knowledge of Greek who wishes to make a deeper study of a particular poet that interests him or her. For the non-Greek-speaking reader, a bibliographical note at the end lists sources for other English translations of many of the poets anthologised.

The English translations in this anthology are all hitherto unpublished and the translations of the new Greek voices were specifically commissioned for this issue. With few exceptions, I sought the help of trained and professional translators, rather than of poet-translators or scholar-translators and I make no apologies for this. It was a conscious attempt on my part to involve a new generation of trained, professional and committed translators, ready and more than able to continue the pioneering work of the previous generation of translators of Greek literature. As guest-editor, I took the initiative to intervene on occasion in a translator's renderings where there were obvious problems as I consider my duty to be to the poets and to presenting them as accurately as possible rather than to the translators. However, I have had to do little or no editing of the work of most translators and each translator must be judged on his or her merits. My own approach to translation, which I am obliged to state, is to attempt ‘close translations’ which respect the poet's voice as opposed to ‘freer’ translations, often culminating in re-writings ‘in the style of’, which tell us more about the translator's voice than the poet's and which under the guise of being supposedly more 'poetic' often conceal a plethora of inaccuracies.

Approximately one-fifth of this issue is devoted to ancient Greek poetry. This reflects Agenda's long-established concern with presenting new translations of the classics. New translations of ancient poets are always of interest, but it will have become clear by now that this was not the main aim of this special issue. However, the anthology of ancient Greek poetry is far from being simply an appendage; it is a reminder to the English reader that poetry has enjoyed an unbroken and living tradition in Greece for over three thousand years. Constantine Trypanis, in his anthology of Greek poetry from Homer to Elytis, writes: 'Poetry written in Greek constitutes the longest uninterrupted tradition in the Western world. From Homer to the present day not a single generation of Greeks has lived without expressing its joys and sorrows in verse, and frequently in verse of outstanding originality and beauty. [...] It is a happy augury that in the last hundred years better poetry has been written in Greek that in all the fourteen preceding centuries; and that in the last fifty years, by the surrender of its political or purely national aspirations, Greek poetry has again achieved universal validity and significance.' (The Penguin Book of Greek Verse 1971, p. lxv). In the thirty years that have elapsed since this appraisal, two whole generations of new poets have appeared, whose poetry, even more so that that of preceding generations, is characterised by this 'universal validity and significance', and who with their own concerns and modes of expression continue the unbroken Greek poetic tradition. Writing poetry always was and still is a national preoccupation in Greece, even if in recent years its privileged position in the preferences of the reading public has been lost to the novel, largely due, it must be said, to the marketing policies of the Greek commercial publishers. It remains, nevertheless, deeply and passionately rooted in the Greek psyche and the poets presented here represent only some of the peaks which appear above the surface of a deep sea of collective poetic conscience.

It remains for me to express my thanks to William Cookson for being brave enough to devote a double issue of Agenda to a group of Greek poetic voices largely unknown in the English-speaking world; to Anita Money for her assistance, support and enthusiasm for the project; to the organisations which provided funding: the Arts Council, the Hellenic Foundation, the Foundation for Hellenic Culture, the Greek Ministry of Culture and the advertisers. I am indebted to the translators who responded readily to the project and to the poets who were most helpful and encouraging. I am also grateful to those who will search out whatever inaccuracy or infelicity is be found in the issue; their ever watchful eye has done much to keep me alert throughout the long weeks of work that went into its preparation.