Alaska’da Bir Kayın (A Beech Tree in Alaska) is the debut poetry collection by Ayşe Nur Biçer. The poet, born in 1991 and a graduate of Istanbul University, has had her poems published in journals such as Dergâh, Varlık, and Buzdokuz. This work, published in October 2022 as part of Dergâh Yayınları's Turkish Literature series, consists of 56 pages of imagery-based poems.
Content and Themes
The book highlights the injured states of the individual, the relationship between nature and humanity, and the sense of transience.
- Damage and Traces: Attention is drawn to the spiritual wound that forms in the individual with phrases like "damage assessment."
- The Flow of Time: Thinking about the past by listing "the possibilities" in succession creates a tone of anxiety in the poetry.
- Nature Metaphors: The human condition narrated through metaphors from nature, such as a beech tree, rings, and age, is intertwined with the natural world.
- The Questioning of Life and Death: While the possibility of death is questioned, questions about life itself are asked.
Style and Poetic Qualities
Biçer’s poetry has a short, dense, and introspective rhythm. A bridge is built between the perception of space (Alaska is alluded to but not directly defined) and the individual's inner world with the verses. An intense atmosphere is created through the effects of repetition and silence between the short lines. An existential resonance is formed with clear language and minimalist images.
