Charles Bukowski's Poetry in Conversation with the Translator; We Are All Unfortunate

Alongside Jack Kerouac, Richard Brautigan, and others, Charles Bukowski is one of the most renowned American poets of the Beat Generation, a group that emerged in the mid-1950s as a movement generally protesting the social norms following World War II. Bukowski's works are generally deemed unpublishable in Iran unless heavily censored. Now, four collections of Bukowski's poetry have been translated with a clean and faithful language by Mostafa Razei and published for free in the electronic publication of Shahrgan: 'Play the piano drunk like a percussion instrument until a little blood drips from your fingertips', 'Burning in water, drowning in flame', 'The Good Prayer of the Mimic Hen', and 'Love Poems from Rental Rooms'. In a conversation with Mehrdad Qasemfar, Mostafa Razei discusses Bukowski's poetry. Razei explains that after being denied permission to publish the books in Iran, this was the last remaining solution. The books are accessible to everyone, allowing them to be downloaded, read, and shared. He notes that Bukowski's language is very free and unbound by traditional moral constraints. Razei had submitted five collections for approval to the Ministry of Culture, but four were verbally confiscated, and only one received a permit with about 12 pages removed, which still could not be published due to an article in Kayhan newspaper that highlighted the censorship. Currently, these four collections are available without any censorship. Razei emphasizes the challenges of translating Bukowski's poetry, particularly regarding line breaks and the use of shocking language that may be unfamiliar to Persian readers. He aimed to choose a simple Persian language to convey Bukowski's straightforward style, which often resembles reading a newspaper article. Razei reflects on Bukowski's connection to the impoverished people of North America, capturing their experiences in his writing, and concludes that while life may be filled with misfortune, it also holds its good moments.