Nikos Kazantzakis, Heraklion’s Literary Genius

Holidaymakers recently arrived in Crete and preparing to board their transfers from Heraklion airport might never stop to think about the airport’s ‘true’ name: the ‘Nikos Kazantzakis International Airport’. Those who do, however, may wonder where the denomination comes from. They will no doubt be interested in learning about the island’s number one literary name and the airport's namesake.

Perhaps Heraklion’s most famous ‘export’, alongside Renaissance painter and sculptor El Greco, Nikos Kazantzakis is best known for his masterpiece, Zorba The Greek – a novel some of the tourists coming into the island may even have selected as their choice of reading for their transfers from Heraklion airport. A larger number of those travelling to the island might know this work best from having watched its film adaptation, released in 1964. Kazantzakis’ links to cinema were further expanded when Martin Scorcese adapted his book The Last Temptation Of Christ to the big screen in 1988.

Early life

Kazantzakis was born during the period when the city (then known as Kandiye) was under Ottoman rule, a decade before the city was included in the Cretan State and about fifty years before its eventual merging into the Kingdom of Greece. The author’s early life was uneventful: he went to the Greek mainland in 1902, to study Law at the University of Athens, then moved to Paris in 1907 to study Philosophy. At the end of his course he returned to Greece and found work as a translator, then eventually took a two-year period off to travel to the main hotbeds of Greek Orthodox Christianity with a friend.

It was also during this period that the author published his first two literary works: a novel in 1906, under a pseudonym, then a theatrical comedy (simply named Comedy) in 1909. In 1910, he wrote another theatrical play - this time a tragedy.

Fame

It was not until 1924, however, that he published what he considered to be his most important work, a 33.333 word poem that took no less than 14 years to complete and perfect. As its name indicates (The Odyssey – A Modern Sequel) this epic ode aimed to be a modern sequel to Homer’s Odyssey, and it was largely considered successful in this endeavour.

Kazantzakis’ career as a novelist began in earnest in the 1940s, with the publishing of Zorba The Greek. The 1946 title would catapult the author to fame within literary circles and launch a series of world-renowned novels by the Cretan, culminating with 1956’s Saint Francis. During this 10-year period, Kazantzakis published no less than five novels, establishing himself as a prolific author particularly fond of religious themes. In 1957, only months before his death, he lost the Nobel Prize For Literature to Albert Camus by a single vote.

Also during this period, the Cretan became involved with politics, assuming leadership of a small left-wing party in 1945 and entering the Greek government as Minister, a position in which he lasted only a year before resigning. His vocation was for literature, and it is in this capacity that most tourists arriving on the transfers from Heraklion airport will know of him. He excelled in this field, as proven by his Nobel Prize nomination; visitors to the city wanting to get in the right frame of mind could do worse than peruse one of his novels during their transfers from Heraklion airport to their hotel!

Lukas Johannes is a driver for Shuttle Direct. If you’re looking for transfers from Heraklion airport, Shuttle Direct provide pre-booked shuttles to major destinations all over Europe. Wherever you travel, Shuttle Direct can make sure that you don’t miss your car on your holiday abroad.