Poetry and the Production of Solidarity: Nazım Hikmet in Beijing, “Asiafrica,” and World Literature

Abstract From multilingual peace conferences to mistranslated poetry stanzas, internationalist anthologies to the creation of a literary “Asiafrica,” the relationship between China and the iconic Turkish poet Nazım Hikmet allows readers to explore some of the concrete ways in which transnational solidarity was produced and circulated among new and emerging nations in the 1950s. Through the lens of Hikmet’s engagement with China, this article argues that poetry was a particularly potent and influential force in the production and circulation of solidarity during this period. It also explores Hikmet’s reception in China in the context of yafei wenxue, or “Asiafrican literature,” and its significance for literary history (particularly South-South relations) and the role of translation in world literature.