Aspazija was the pen name of Elza Pliekšāne (born Elza Rozenberga; March 16, 1865 – November 5, 1943), a Latvian poet and playwright. Aspazija is the Latvian transliteration of Aspasia. A pen name or nom de plume is a pseudonym adopted by an author. ... March 16 is the 75th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (76th in leap years). ... 1865 (MDCCCLXV) is a common year starting on Sunday. ... November 5 is the 309th day of the year (310th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar, with 56 days remaining. ... 1943 (MCMXLIII) was a common year starting on Friday (the link is to a full 1943 calendar). ... The poor poet A poet is a person who writes poetry. ... Template:Unsourced A playwright, also known as a dramatist, is someone who writes dramatic literature or drama. ... Marble herm in the Vatican Museums inscribed with Aspasias name at the base. ...

Biography

Aspazija was born near Jelgava in 1865, where she studied and was active in youth organizations. In later years she became interested in literature. While participating in New Current (Jaunā strāva) activities, she met one of its leaders, Jānis Pliekšāns (better known as Rainis), a newspaper editor, poet, and lawyer at that time. The couple married in 1897. For a short while they lived in Panevėžys, Lithuania. They were exiled to Russia from 1897–1903, and lived in exile in Switzerland from 1905–1920. When they returned to independent Latvia after World War I, she was active in the feminist movement. Aspazija also joined the Latvian Social Democratic Workers' Party. Jelgava (German: Mitau; Russian: Елгава / Митава; Polish: Mitawa) is a town in central Latvia about 41 km southwest of Riga with approximately 66,000 inhabitants. ... In the history of Latvia, the New Current (in Latvian, Jaunā strāva; participants in the movement are called jaunstrāvnieki) was a broad leftist social and political movement that followed the First Latvian National Awakening (led by the Young Latvians from the 1850s to the 1880s) and culminated in... Rainis (sometimes referred to as Jānis Rainis) was the pseudonym of Jānis Pliekšāns (b. ... Location Ethnographic region AukÅ¡taitija County Panevėžys County Municipality Panevėžys city municipality Elderate Number of elderates Coordinates General information Capital of Panevėžys County Panevėžys city municipality Panevėžys district municipality Panevėžys rural elderate Population (rank) 115,604 in 2005 (5th) First mentioned 1503 Granted city... This article is becoming very long. ... Feminism is a collection of social theories, political movements, and moral philosophies largely motivated by or concerned with the social, political and economic equality of the sexes. ... The Latvian Social Democratic Workers Party (Latvian: Latvijas Sociāldemokrātiskā Strādnieku Partija, abbreviated as LSDSP) is a political party in Latvia. ...

Aspazija died near Riga in 1943. Coordinates: Founded 1201 Government  - Mayor Jānis Birks Area  - City 307. ...

Literary works

Aspazija's first works are realistic, but most of her work is neo-romantic. Some are a nostalgic look to the past. For example, the play Vaidelote (a female servant to gods in Lithuanian mythology), written in 1894, takes place in the 14th century Grand Duchy of Lithuania. The plays Simple Rights and Unattained Goals provoked many discussions because of their protest against the patriarchal society. The play Silver Veil (Sidraba šķidrauts) is considered to be her best work. In 1923 she wrote a play titled Aspazija. Literary realism most often refers to the trend, in early 19th century French literature, towards depictions of contemporary life and society as it is, in the spirit of general Realism, instead of a romanticized or similarly stylized presentation. ... The term neo-romanticism is synonymous with post-Romanticism or late Romanticism. ... Lithuanian mythology is an example of pagan mythology containing archaic elements. ... The presumable banner of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania with the coat of arms, called Пагоня in Belarusian, Vytis in Lithuanian and PogoÅ„ in Polish Another version of the Lithuanian banner The Grand Duchy of Lithuania (Lithuanian: Lietuvos Didžioji KunigaikÅ¡tystÄ—, Belarusian: Вялі́кае Кня́ства Літо́ўскае (ВКЛ), Ukrainian: Велике Князівство Литовське (ВКЛ), Polish: Wielkie KsiÄ™stwo Litewskie) was an... Patriarchy For other uses, see Patriarchy (disambiguation). ...

In the poetry compilation Red Flowers, simple and ordinary things are viewed in a romantic light. At the same time, her poems are full of light, fantasy, and rebellious moods. In Soul's Twilight (1904), pessimistic moods take over.

While living abroad, Aspazija wrote the poetry compilations Sunny Corner and Spread Wings, which have fewer social aspects and more intimate text, less rebellion against society, and more personal feelings.

Literature

• Stahnke, Astrida B.: Aspazija : her life and her drama. Lanham, Md. : Univ. Press of America, 1984. ISBN 0-8191-3681-6 ; ISBN 0-8191-3682-4. (incl. bibliography)
• Meskova, Sandra: Two mothers of Latvian literature : Aspazija and Anna Brigadere. in: Journal of Baltic studies. ISSN 0162-9778 ; 2003(34):3, s. 276-297
• Nesaule, Agate: What happened to Aspazija? : in search of feminism in Latvia. in: Hecate. ISSN 0311-4198 ; 18(1992):2, s. 112-125