GUNTEKIN, RESAT NURI

born Nov. 25, 1889, Constantinople died Dec. 6, 1956, London prolific Turkish novelist, short-story writer, journalist, and playwright. His best known work is the novel Calikusu (1922, The Wren; Eng. trans. The Autobiography of a Turkish Girl, 1949). In Calikusu, a picaresque tale of a young schoolteacher, Gntekin combines romance with realistic description of Anatolia. Gntekin was educated at a French school in Smyrna and at Istanbul University. He became a teacher, an inspector of schools, and a member of parliament and was Turkish delegate to UNESCO. His literary career began in 1917 with the publication of short fiction and drama criticism. Calikusu, which was serialized in a newspaper before its publication in book form, made his name and won him great popularity. His novels include Dudaktan Kalbe (1923; From Lips to Heart), which depicts social decadence; Yesil Gece (1928; The Green Night), about the evils of fanaticism; and Miskinler Tekkesi (1946; The Poor of the Dervish Convent), the tale of a band of beggars. His plays include sentimental family dramas, such as Tas Parcasi (1923; A Piece of Stone) and Eski Sarki (1951; The Old Song), and social satires such as Hlleci (1935; The Hired Husband). He made numerous translations. Gntekin's works were collected and published in 24 volumes, the last appearing in 1961.