Mats Traat

Traat in 2011

Mats Traat (23 November 1936 – 27 June 2022) was an Estonian poet, poetry translator, and author.

Career

Traat was born in Arula, Otepää Parish. He debuted in 1962 with a collection of poetry. He published over 20 anthologies of poetry. His poetry frequently dealt with social commentary and society's adoration for science. His lyrics praised nature and his native country. He also translated poetry from Slavic languages (Polish, Macedonian, Czech).

Traat wrote about the indigenous Estonian population. His central topics were the changes and the developments of Estonian rural life in the course of centuries, with an emphasis on people's ethical choices. In Trees Were, Trees Were Tender Brothers (1979), a young protagonist wages a struggle to keep a farm running, something he never desired to do.

Pasqueflower, Antidote for Sadness (1982/uncensored version 1990) covered the fate of ancient Livonians, conquered and formally aligning with the Christian invaders, while maintaining pagan convictions, and the problems of rural life during the stagnation era Estonian SSR.

Dance around the Steam Boiler (1971; originally a film script, that was finally accomplished in 1988) illustrated with five 'dances' with the portable engine the changes of rural life in half a century. In the movie, filmed during the perestroika era, a sixth 'dance' was added, showing the old age of the main characters on the background of the typical rural scenes of 1980s: industrial and technological developments combined with a reckless destruction of the environment.

Traat's short story, The Cross of Power, won the Friedebert Tuglas Award for Short Prose.

Sources

• Estonian Literature Information Center

External Links

• Mats Traat at IMDb
• Mats Traat discography at Discogs