PhD reading list

Il'ia Il'f and Evgenii Petrov

(1897-1937) and (1903-1942) Soviet prose authors who wrote together. Traveled to America and tooks pictures and published a humorous essay/photo collection about their experiences.

Я вас любил любовь еще, быть может

1829 I loved you and maybe I still do. But I don't want to trouble you. May God grant that you will be loved by another as I loved you.

Silentium

1830 Tiutchev • Imperfect trochees (4-foot) o Some lines are amphibrachs • Rhymed masculine couplets • Be silent, hide yourself, and conceal both your feelings and your dreams—let them rise and set in the soul's depths, silently, like the stars of night—admire them—and be silent. How is the heart to express itself? How is another to understand you? Will he understand what you live by? A thought uttered is a lie; exploding, you will stir up/muddy the spring/fount—nourish yourself with them—and be silent. Be able to live only in your own self—there is an entire world in your soul—(a world) full of mysterious-magical thoughts; the external noise will deafen them, the rays of daylight will disperse them—listen to their singing—and be silent. • Very romantic conceit—exceptional individual, or perhaps even an exceptional time. • Thoughts only accessible in the nighttime—the daylight scatters them. • Symbolists embraced this as their slogan. • Lines 4 and 5 are amphibrachs—perhaps to emphasize the welling up of thoughts • Мысль изреченная есть ложь—also metrically abnormal. Could potentially be iambic. • First and last word of the poem is молчи, as is the last word of every stanza. • Next to last line in every stanza has a nature image in it—stars, spring, daylight rays • If an uttered thought is a lie, is the whole thing a lie? "Vnimai ikh pen'iu i molchi"

«Осень (Отрывок)»

1833 "What doesn't enter then my drowsy mind?" -Derzhavin 1. October has come. Leaves fall, the road is becoming frozen, ice has formed on my pond 2. This is my season. I don't like spring/thaw; I like winter better than spring 3. Winter is fun, but eventually even bears get tired of it. 4. Oh, fair summer! I would be fond of you were it not for the heat, the mosquitoes, the dust, the flies! 5. The days of late autumn are his favorite, even though no one really loves her. 6. Autumn pleases him as a consumptive girl may please you. She's here today, but tomorrow she's gone. 7. Your beauty with its message of farewell delights me! 8. Every autumn I blossom anew; the Russian cold is good for my health. 9. They bring me the horse, it carries me through the frozen valley. The short day fades away. I read in front of the fireplace. 10. I forget the world, and poetry awakens within me, and an invisible throng of guests comes toward me. 11. Thoughts seethe in my mind, fingers cry our for a pen, the pen--for paper; so a ship slumbers motionless, hands leap forward, the sails are filled, she moves and cleaves the waves 12. It sails. Where then should we sail? . . .

«Пора, мой друг, пора»

1834 It's time, my friend, it's time! The heart begs for peace; The days fly past and every hour carries off A fragment of life, but you and I together Make plans together to live, yet suddenly we shall die. There's no happiness in the world, only peace and free will I have long been dreaming of an enviable fate Long have I, a weary slave, planned to flee To a distant home of work and pure delight.

Памятник

1836

Иннокентий Анненский

1855-1909 Symbolist (2) influential but not really symbolist - he was his own sort influenced by Greek and Latin works worldview: world is decaying and pale in comparison to some other greater world •born in Omsk, moved to St. Petersburg •taught Greek and Latin

Николай Минский

1855-1937 Forerunner, rejected poetry as journalism; poets should develop a perfect world for people to follow; Mystic theories and worldview; thought everything we do will be wiped away

Федор Сологуб

1863-1927 Decadent his signature: simplicity in poems and dark view of the world pessimist people chained but want to be creators Most famous as a poet, but also wrote some novels.

Maksim Gorky

1868-1936 Real name--Alexei Peshkov Know one work from him out of: Мать, На дне, Детство, Двадцать шесть и одна

Зинайда Гиппиус

1869-1945 Symbolist (2) Considered the most intellectual poet of the time, used philosophical ideas Leaned toward lyricism and abstractism Poetry shows longing for miracles but with power and allure of death Always has a hint of anxiety

Александр Куприн

1870-1938 Russian Kipling--stories about pathetic adventure-seekers

Иван Вунин

1870-1953 He claimed no affiliation with any literary school, but in class we talked about how he is closest to the decadents, even though he hated them; simple poetic language; first Russian writer to win the Nobel Prize (1933); emigre writer in France; sheltered Jews from the Nazis during WWII The first Russian writer to receive a Nobel prize for literature. The texture of his poems and stories, sometimes referred to as "Bunin brocade", is one of the richest in the language. His last book of fiction, The Dark Alleys (1943), is arguably the most widely read 20th-century collection of short stories in Russia. He came from a line of noblemen, but his grandfather had squandered the family's estate. He first published poems in 1887, which Nabokov loved but criticized his stories, and then moved with his brother to Kharkov in 1889. There, as a clerk, he became close friends with Chekov. His first short story was published in 1891, "Country Sketch," and he then switched to writing prose. "The Gentleman from San Francisco" is considered his most representative piece and was even translated into English by D.H. Lawrence. After he left Moscow in 1917, he was lionized abroad for his work. During the Nazi occupation in Germany he was forced to drink castor oil for his criticism of them and died in Paris of a heart attack. His works were allowed for publication in the Soviet Union only several years later.

Леонид Андреев

1871-1919

Михаил Кузмин

1872-1936 Symbolist → Acmeist Sort of a symbolist, but then helped to create Acmeism; believed in clarity in writing and economy in words; wrote the first openly "out" novel (in Eastern Europe?), Wings.

Валерий Брюсов

1873-1924 Decadent First symbolist! Organized poems into cycles Introduced urban themes Took on taboo subjects Used precise and controlled lines Used dreams as insight

Александр Блок

1880-1921 Influenced by Belyi Pre-marriage period held ideas of прекрасная дама and divine feminism - religion, dawn, light 1905/1906 became disquiet with expectation of betrayal Прекрасная дама becomes Незнакомка, gypsy, or prostitute Later female turns to Russia with historical destiny and apocalyptic strains First believed, then was disenchanted by Revolution Considering the most gifted of Russia's poets after Pushkin. He was born in St. Petersburg to a rich and intellectual family and grew famous through his mystical writings. His idealized images came to him naturally and the whole Silver Age of Russian poetry is sometimes called the "Age of Blok." He was influenced, as other Symbolists, by the writings of Soloviev, and was the most important figure of the movement. He used colors in a mystical fashion and his earlier work featured the frequent appearance of the "Beautiful Lady," a vague, ideal that eventually becomes a ***** to urban life. His most controversial and famous work, The Twelve led him to be outcasted by his contemporaries and also the Bolsheviks, the latter who viewed him as aesthetical and overly mystical. His death remains a mystery, but many believe it was simply due to famine during the Russian Civil War. Blok believed the poetry of Pushkin could unite the Whites and the Reds and save Russia, but it never did.

Andrei Belyi (Nikolai Bugaev)

1880-1934

Fedor Gladkov

1882-1958 Social realist writer--classic one. Received the Stalin prize.

Evgenii Zamiatin

1884-1937 The first writer to be banned by the censorship board as well as being permitted to leave the country by Stalin. Born in the provincial area of Lebedyan and eventually settling in Petersburg, Zamyatin was frequently finding himself in situations where he never belonged, considered a heretic most of his life. Disenchanted by the Bolsheviks and eventually the Writers' Union, he refused to comply with politics and thus his works were suppressed and removed from various areas in Russian life, including theatre. Though he was not officially permitted to be published, he was very influential and gave numerous lectures during his life. We was his most famous work, though it was not even published in Russian until 1927. in Russia in 1988. After leaving Russia, he lived with his wife in Paris, where he eventually died of a heart attack in poverty.

Vladimir Khlebnikov

1885-1922 Futurist

Nikolai Gumilev

1886-1921 Acmeist. Co-founder of the Acmeist movement; arrested and executed by ChK. Married to Akhmatova for a while. Writes with lots of colors and striking imagery. Later becomes a bit mystical.

Vladislav Khodasevich

1886-1939 Khodasevich was originally associated with the symbolists. He left Russia in 1922 and settled in Paris, where he worked as a literary critic. Wrote about Derzhavin, Pushkin, necropolis (series of reminisces about famous Russian writers). When he settled in Paris, a great debate about the future of Russian poetry arose. He said we've got Pushkin, true standard, need precision, structure and form in our poetry. Others (like Ivanov) wanted to go with Lermontov, more passionate and romantic, not as controlled. Was married to Nina Berberova, another famous Russian emigre writer, who wrote The Italics are Mine about emigre life. (She moved to the US and taught at Princeton for a while after he died.) Khodasevich wrote about the mundane world and the here and now, but there's a sense of something beyond. He could be quite cynical and sharp-tongued.

Aleksei Kruchenykh

1886-1968 Futurist

Igor Severianin

1887-1941 Futurist was born in St. Petersburg. He was very into himself; he thought he was a genius. He had quite a following. He didn't embrace the Revolution, and left Russia for Estonia, where he married and stayed until he died.

Anna Akhmatova (Gorenko)

1889-1966 Acmeist 1934 when purges start, her son and husband got on the list because they heard Mandelstam's Stalin Epigram. Arrested in 1935. Husband Gumilev arrested and shot. Son arrested. They were released but then arrested again. Punin and Lev Gumilev. Punin would die in the Gulag in 1953. Son Gumilev was released but arrested again in 1949. She has a straightforward manner of writing, uses restrained emotion, and focuses on details without a lot of symbolism.

Boris Pasternak

1890-1960 Pasternak studied music and philosophy. He was loosely connected with the Futurists, especially Khlebnikov. Wrote dense, eliptical poems that were metaphoric. Began writing prose around 1925. In the 1930s, he ran into problems with the regime: he was accused of individualism and formalism and anti-socialism. He received a phone call from Stalin, who was asking him about Mandel'shtam. Pasternak didn't say much, and Stalin yelled, "What's wrong with you? Why don't you stand up for your friend?!" at him. He also did translations from German to Russian. Wrote Doctor Zhivago, which he wasn't allowed to publish in the USSR until 1988, but was published outside of the USSR, in 1957 in Italian and in 1959 in Russian and English. In 1958 he won the Nobel Prize for Literature, but he was forced to renounce the award. Pasternak may have had the most dramatic transformation as a poet of all the poets we read. Multiple times, Stalin stops Pasternak from being executed. Born to a father who was a painter and a mother who was a pianist, Pasternak was in a cosmopolitan environment for most of his early life, with famous figures such as Rachmaninoff coming and going all of the time. His father's conversion to Orthodox Christianity had a profound impact on his life, later finding root in many of his poems. Originally trying to be a composer, Pasternak went on to Neo-Kantian philosophy and eventually published a collection of poems influenced by the Futurists. During the first World War he worked in a chemical plant that was much of the background behind his most famous work. Unlike many other citizens, he stayed in Russia after the Revolution, hopeful and interested in the new thoughts and ideas beginning to grow.

Vasilisk (Vasilii) Gnedov

1890-1978 Futurist

Dmitrii Furmanov

1891-1926

Osip Mandel'shtam

1891-1938 Mandelstam died in one of the camps in Vladivostok on his way to Kolyma. Acmeist; (different topics than Akhmatova, but still very much focused on realism); defined acmeism as a yearning for world culture; Jewish parents; baptized into Methodist church; Gippius was his teacher; arrested and then died in a transit camp; opposed to self-celebration Evolution of Mandelstam as a poet Early poetry (around 1905) was symbolistic 1911 joined a group that became the Acmeist; Mandelstam in 1913 wrote a manifesto for this movement First period of writing (1908--1920s) 1913 Камень 1922 Тристия Second period of writing (after a period of literary silence) Focus on joy to despair Regarded as one of Russia's greatest poets. He was born in Warsaw but grew up in St. Petersburg, joining Gumilyov's Guild of Poets in 1911 and becoming an active member of the Acmeists. Acmeism believed that aesthetic rather than philosophic or religious values were most important, urging writers to return to classicism and humanism, stressing man and the things of this world. During the 1920s he found it increasingly difficult to write since his views opposed the regime and he was arrested in 1930, dying in a labor camp eight years later. Most of his poems before his arrest display an anguish over what he saw as a culture disintegrating.

Mikhail Bulgakov

1891-1940 Stalin at one point prevents Bulgakov from execution.

Konstantin Fedin

1892-1927

Vladimir Maiakovskii

1892-1930 Maiakovskii is the most famous futurist. He was a highly polarizing figure, considered a hooligan and the most talented poet of the soviet epoch. He embraced the shocking behavior of the futurists. He'd wear a yellow blazer with black stripes and a top hat and shout his poetry through a megaphone. He was very egocentric. He presented "Vlad Maiakovskii" and played the central role. He wanted revolutionary change. He wrote Voina I mir = war and the world, which ends with a vision of Christ playing checkers with Cain. It was controversial in subject matter, but not necessarily in form. Maiakovskii calls his rhyme a keg of dynamite. In 1930, he shot himself and wrote a suicide note: "Don't blame anyone for my death and don't talk about it. I don't recommend this end for others. If you could provide a decent life for sister and mom, please do so. Best of luck! PS - Comrades of the Proletariat - Don't think me a coward; it couldn't be helped. Use the rubles in the drawer to pay my taxes." Probably one of the most famous representatives of the Russian Futurist movement. His family had a background of Cossack heritage and after his father died suddenly in 1906 he moved to Moscow. During this time he became interested in Marxist literature and joined what eventually became the Bolshevik party (at the time it was called the Russian Social Democratic Labour Party). After being dismissed from Grammar school due to his mother's lack of funds, he went on to various political activities, for which he was imprisoned, and became acquainted with David Buryluk, who he considered his mentor. At this time he also joined the Moscow Art School (1911) and was first introduced to futurism. Writing poems mainly, he eventually fell in love with Lilya Brik, his publisher's wife, wrote more poems (sometimes reading them publicly to soldiers) and moved back to Moscow, where he became a part of the Russian State Telegraph Agency, where he started to produce some of his famous agitprop posters. He then went on to have a secret affair with an American, who had his child, and then another woman in Russia. As his popularity continued, Mayakovsky found himself sometimes criticized for his misunderstood political views, and he became increasingly disillusioned by the path of Russian politics and the country. During a period of poor health, he shot himself in the heart. Stalin considered it a crime to disregard his works, responding to criticisms that Mayakovsky was a formalist and not a proletarian poet. His work had a huge impact on Russian poetry due to his new usages of rhyme, varied rhyme schemes and especially his usage of neologisms and street language.

Marina Tsvetaeva

1892-1941 Tsvetaeva is known for her elliptical poetry. Her father was a professor. She had a difficult relationship with her mother, who preferred her sister. She was a student of the pianist Rubenstein. She began writing poetry at an early age. She had an active love life, married multiple times, affairs, etc. She had a daughter, Ariadne. And a second child in 1917, this one she put in an orphanage and it died there in 1920. Her husband fought for the whites and then left Russia. She and her daughter joined him in 1922. When her daughter decided to go back to Russia in 1939, Tsvetaeva followed her. 2 months later, her daughter was arrested and sent to the camps for 15 years. Her husband was arrested and shot. She had a difficult relationship with her son, and was treated poorly by the Soviet Writers Union. When she killed herself in 1941, her son didn't come to the funeral. Mid 1910s her voice becomes stronger: interested in gypsies and old Russia Female poetic persona = wife, mother, gypsy, harlot, etc. Long poems = seem like dialogues with invisible other Energetic, poet of action, not contemplation Soul striving for fulfillment, also talks of her disappointments Plays with sounds and rhythms Likes enjambment

Boris Pil'niak

1894-1937 In favor of the revolution, but not Orthodox communism. Didn't think very highly of the US.

Isaak Babel'

1894-1941 Babel is picked up because of his involvement with the ЧК. Yezhov realizes that Stalin now sees Yezhov as a liability. He pressures his wife to take all the blame, and persuades her to commit suicide. When he is arrested, he incriminates all the lovers of his wife, one of whom was Babel. Born in Odessa, his frequent contact with a bustling harbor life made him interested in direct physical and emotional experiences. During his early life the Jewish world in Russia was filled with turmoil. His father was a Jewish bookkeeper who insisted he learn Hebrew and study the Bible and Talmud. At the same time he was introduced by a teacher to the works of Flaubert and Maupassant. Because of this, he began writing schoolboy stories in French, beginning a dedication to style early on. Later in his life, perhaps due to this early instillment, he was constantly reediting his work and never seemed to really feel he had properly articulated what he wanted to say. In 1915 he settled in Petersburg and became acquainted with Gorky, who insisted he travel to get more experiences. In 1924, after serving with the Red Army, he wrote some of his most famous works, including Red Cavalry. However, due to his strong individual style, he was brought under scrutiny by the Communist Party and was in constant conflict with their ideas on literature. He eventually was shot to death in the Gulag in 1940 after disappearing and being presumed murdered or missing for several years.

Georgii Ivanov

1894-1958 Ivanov joined a group of poets in 1913. He was married to Odoevtseva and left Russia in 1923. He wrote poetry, memoirs, and prose. His final poetry collection was published in 1958, the year of his death. He has a distinctive poetic voice, talks a lot about pre-war Petersburg, fate of Russia, emigration. He relates all of these themes to the theme of life itself. He said, "we are all emigres on earth. We can hope for re-birth but nothing is actually reborn." He was a bit of a nasty character; and although there was a group of poets around him, he had a falling out with Khodasevich and Nabokov. He believed poetry should be modelled after Lermontov because of his passion. (Story: Nabokov wrote bad review about Ivanov's wife. Ivanov wrote bad review about Nabokov as "imposter." Nabokov wrote "Lips to Lips" about a poor old émigré, wants to be a writer, isn't very creative, people publish his novel in little excerpts as long as he agrees to subsidize their journal. Which depicted Ivanov)

Sergei Esenin

1895-1925 Esenin was born in Riazan'. Moved to Moscow and published his first poem in 1914. Moved to St. Petes, became protégé of peasant poets. In 1916, he was drafted into the army untilafter the February Rev. Then he deserted, came home, and got married. Saw revolution as fulfillment of national, social, messianic movement, cosmic rebirth. He talks about a futuristic world and puts himself in poetry as a prophet. He joined the imaginisty, who stressed the importance of striking metaphors and images. He drank too much, went to crazy parties, and wrote Ispoved' hooligana. He met and married Isadora Duncan (famous dancer, died tragically, was strangled by her own long scarf when it was caught in a car and the car drove away. But I digress.) They travelled together until he divorced her in 1924. Married one of Tolstoy's granddaughters in 1925. On Dec. 27, 1925, he hung himself. The night before he killed himself he cut a vein in his wrist and wrote a poem = do svidanie. There was no ink in the room, so he used blood. Major Trends and Themes in his Work: Early work = nature Later work = more complex Links world of humans to animals, plants, stars They resonate with human suffering Animals come from God, hates animal abuse Country boy uprooted from province and corrupted Wildly popular for some people, they identified with a person who came from provinces and was corrupted by city

Mikhail Zoshchenko

1895-1958 The foremost Russian satirist of the Soviet period. Zoschenko's father was a mosaicist responsible for the exterior decoration of the Suvorov Museum in Saint Petersburg. The future writer attended the Faculty of Law at the Saint Petersburg University, joined the army during World War I, then shared the views of the Serapion Brothers. He attained particular popularity in the 1920s, but lived in poverty after his denunciation in the Zhdanov decree of 1946. He developed a simplified deadpan style of writing which simultaneously made him accessible to "the people" and mocked official demands for accessibility: "I write very compactly. My sentences are short. Accessible to the poor." (quoted in Volkov, p.40). Volkov compares this style to the nakedness of the Russian holy fool or yurodivy. This style was much admired by the composer Dmitri Shostakovich, who adopted it as a part of his own persona.

Константин Бальмонт

1897-1942 Decadent he tried to commit suicide and failed, so he became tragic and symbolist Was romantic, turned to symbolism mainly translated works but often added his own ideas wrote over 7,000 poems

Andrei Platonov

1899-1951

Vladimir Nabokov

1899-1951 (Know his poetry and one of the following prose works: «Соглядатай» «Приглашение на казнь» «Дар») Became a millionaire at the age of 17 but then lost everything in the Revolution; escaped to Crimea and then later worked for a newspaper in Berlin; his early work has a conventional style--religious, romantic trappings--and he never entirely changed from this. Fluent in English. Word play, metaphors.

Iurii Olesha

1899-1960

Aleksandr Fadeev

1901-1956 One of the co-founders of the Union of Soviet Writers, Fadeev took part in guerilla activites against the Japanese and the White Army during the Russian Civil War. He used his experiences to write his work The Rout. Strong supporter of Stalin and actively took part in zhdanovism. When Stalin was gone and during the Thaw, he was slowly stripped of his power over the Union and became an alocholic, increasingly depressed due to what he viewed as the end of a great reign. He eventually took his own life at his dacha in Peredelkino, where he left a suicide note which was a harsh condemnation of the Party, opening with: "It is impossible for me to live any further since the art to which I have given my life has been destroyed by the self-confident, ignorant leadership of the Party and can no longer be corrected."

Daniil Kharms (Daniil Ivanovich Iuvachev)

1905-1942

«Облако в штанах»

1914-1915 Mayakovsky's first major poem of appreciable length and it depicted the heated subjects of love, revolution, religion, and art written from the vantage point of a spurned lover. The language of the work was the language of the streets, and Mayakovsky went to considerable lengths to debunk idealistic and romanticised notions of poetry and poets. The poem speaks about the destruction of old ways as the movement of futurism moves forward. He glorifies the "hum of factory and laboratory" as well as commenting that the lower are more pure than "those from Venice." He goes to to state that no poets are "pockmarked by soot" and only those that are are truly speaking the language of the people. The poem also contains an element of comedy towards love, based upon events that happened in his life. He described it as a "scream in four parts;" namely, down with your love, down with your art, down with your society and down with your religion.

Aleksandr Sozhenitsyn

1918-2008 Nobel Prize 1970 Historian and writer

Bulat Okudzhava

1924-1997 One of the founders of the "author's song" movement. He was born in Moscow and died in Paris. He was the author of about 200 songs, set to his own poetry. His songs are a mixture of Russian poetic and folksong traditions and the French chansonnier (lyrical, cabaret) style represented by such contemporaries of Okudzhava as Georges Brassens. Though his songs were never overtly political (in contrast to those of some of his fellow "bards"), the freshness and independence of Okudzhava's artistic voice presented a subtle challenge to Soviet cultural authorities, who were thus hesitant for many years to give official sanction to Okudzhava as a singer-songwriter.

Andrei Siniavskii (pseud.Abram Tertz)

1925-1997 Wrote under extreme censorship; lots of samizdat. He and Pasternak were buddies. They both pleaded innocent, which was unheard of at the time. They were sentenced anyway.

Evgenii Evtushenko

1933-2017 He was born in Moscow and attended the Maxim Gorky Literature Institute, publishing his first poem in 1956. The bulk of his work is highly anti-Soviet, finding the Russian bureaucracy a legacy of Stalin. He was very active during the Krushchev Thaw, writing a poem called Babi Yar, which criticized the regime for ignoring Hitler's massacre of the Jews in Kiev in 1941. For this, Shostakovich defended him. In the post-Soviet era, Yevtushenko has been active promoting the works of former dissident poets, environmental causes, and the memory of victims of the Soviet Gulags.

Valentin Rasputin

1937-2015 Writes about characters in urban settings who want to preserve more rural traditions.

Liudmila Petrushevskaia

1938-- Born just before World War II, she was trained as a journalist and worked as a radio reporter and editor. She started writing fiction in the 1960s, but eventually made her family her priority. When her husband was paralyzed for six years, it gave her the ability to be able to listen to people intently, which would become key in her work. She was a full-time writer by the 1970s, living through her reviews and screenplays. Her style is considered "translated prose," which essentially functions as though one were writing down thoughts and conversations as they actually occur in reality. Most of her stories were rejected before 1982, likely because her work is considered to suffer from "chernukha," which is literature that emphasizes the dark and unpleasant side of life with highly negative connotation.

Venedikt Erofeev

1938-1990 Expelled from various universities because of amoral behavior/freethinking. Started writing at age 17.

Iosef Brodskii

1940-1996 Brodsky kind of acts as if he thinks he lives in a free country and can do whatever he wants. He gets in trouble for this. Goes on trial in 1964. Brodsky was extremely arrogant. He goes to the labor colony in the north. This causes reactions from the people who were normally considered Soviet allies. Born to a Jewish family, he survived the Siege of Leningrad. After moving around in various forms of work, he began to self-educate himself and took on a literary career, starting to write poetry in 1957. Most of his work was apolitical, and for this he was eventually put on trial for "parasitism" and told the judge his sense of poetry was given to him by God. His sentence was lifted in 1965 after arguments by people such as Jean-Paul Sartre. He was eventually exiled and became a US citizen in 1980, where he continued to write and won the Nobel prize for literature in 1987. He was also Poet Laureate from 1990-1992.

Dmitrii Prigov

1940-2007

Liudmila Ulitskaia

1943-- Post-modernist writer

Tat'iana Tolstaia

1951-- Postmodern writer lives Part-time in US and part-time in Russia start here

Viktor Pelevin

1962- One of the most successful of the post-Soviet writers, his style often utilizes science fiction elements merged with postmodernist prose and esoteric philosophy. He received a degree in electromagnetic engineering and works as the editor of "Science and Religion" magazine, frequently writing on Easter mysticism. His first story was published in 1989, but in spite of his growing popularity he shuns the public eye and rarely gives interviews. When he does he tends to only talk about philosophies of the mind instead of his writing. He tends to write without explaining anything to the reader, making them infuse their own meaning to the stories. One of his novels even has on the cover: "Any thought that occurs in the process of reading this book is subject to copyright. Unauthorized thinking of it is prohibited".

«Суд идёт»

A short novel with characters reacting in different ways to their roles in a totalitarian society, told with elements of the fantastic.

«Не с теми я, кто бросил землю...»

Akhmatova 4-foot iamb She will remain true to Russia despite everything. She will not abandon her homeland.

«Прогулка»

Akhmatova 4-foot iamb (with some extra syllables) Feather touched top of carriage. I looked into his eyes. The heart grieves without knowing the reason of sorrow. Again he touched my knees with an almost not-trembling hand. Excellent use of negation that makes the reader think about why those details were given and what they could mean.

«Молитва»

Akhmatova Anapest The time Russia is going through right now is dark and she wants Russia to return to its former glory. Self-sacrifice in behalf of her country. Devotion to country.

«Уединение»

Akhmatova Iambic So many stones have been thrown at me that they are no longer frightening. Entrapment became a slender tower. From here I see the dawn. The dark-skinned hand of the muse finishes writing the pages I hadn't finished. She is grateful for the tower in which she is trapped--image of the poetic gift as bondage and something associated with Pushkin

«Вечером»

Akhmatova companion to «Прогулка» Iambic Music ringing in the garden; oysters in the garden; he touched my dress in a manner very like an embrace but like how you pet an animal. First time alone with the beloved. Leaves the statement of emotions to others (shrieking of violins etc.); doesn't seem to be emotionally invested herself Use of negation

«Песня последней встречи»

Akhmatova 1911 Reflections as she looks up at the house that is dark except for the bedroom light (which glows indifferently). Glove is on the wrong hand. They had promised each other to die together. But since this is apparently the last meeting, that will not be the case. Distinct and meaningful imagery--such as the indifferent light, or the implied reasons that the glove could be on the wrong hand. Так беспомощно грудь холодела, Но шаги мои были легки. Я на правую руку надела Перчатку с левой руки. Показалось, что много ступеней, А я знала — их только три! Между клёнов шёпот осенний Попросил: «Со мною умри! Я обманут моей унылой, Переменчивой, злой судьбой». Я ответила: «Милый, милый! И я тоже. Умру с тобой...» Это песня последней встречи. Я взглянула на тёмный дом. Только в спальне горели свечи Равнодушно-жёлтым огнём.

«Муза ушла по дороге...»

Akhmatova 3-foot dactyls Muse appears and Akhmatova begs her to stay, but the muse leaves anyway through the gate of the sunrise. Yearning for the poetic gift.

«Мы не умеем прощаться...»

Akhmatova Dol'nik A couple is having a difficult time saying goodbye and is wandering around in silence shoulder to shoulder. He draws a palace in the snow with his cane where they will always be together. Subdued emotions even though it seems that both of them are feeling deeply

«Есть в близости людей заветная черта...»

Akhmatova Iambic 5 and 6 feet She is above love and passion and thus her heart does not beat under some unknown hand Emotional detachment

«Высоты»

Aleksei Kruchenykh Heights (Universal/Oecumenical Language) е у ю, etc. First attempt at writing poetry in vowels only Interpretation: Zaumnii iazik = transrational Go beyond what the word means to access it He was a painter, words on a canvas of sounds This poem is an example of transrational language = zaum Full of cries and primal screams, deconstructing art, Secret to this poem = broadly corresponds to the vowels of an important prayer and mostly uses those

Смычок и струны

Annenskii 1908 The bow and the string. They want to be together. They love each other. They make music all night and only in the morning are they found on the black velvet without strength.

Петербург

Belyi 1913 (shorter version 1922) His second novel; written in just a few weeks. Symbolism and modernism. Takes place in Petersburg during the 1905 revolution. Apollon Apollonovich Ableukov--Old senator. Thinks in geometry. Has a poor relationship with his son. His wife left two and a half years ago, and she comes home at the end. He feels like his life is falling apart a little bit and he retires from the service. Nikolai Apollonovich--senator's son. Frolics around in a red domino costume. Loves Sofia Petrovna, the wife of his friend. He apparently a while ago made a "promise" that he would kill his father, and one of his friends shows up with a bomb for him. He goes through a crisis and doesn't quite know what to do, but the bomb ends up going off by itself. Anna Petrovna--Apollon's wife. She comes home at the end of the novel. She and Nikolai have an emotional reunion. Serge Sergeyevich Likhutin--Sofia Petrovna's husband. Nikolai's childhood friend. He tries to commit suicide after his wife goes to the masquerade ball, but he fails. Then he is able to find Nikolai and he tries to persuade him to not kill his father, but Nikolai claims that he never intended to kill his father. Lippanchenko--nobody likes him. He is in charge of the assassination plan. Dudkin kills him at the end. Dudkin--friend of Nikolai's. Terrorist. Religious. Centers around NIkolai's sort of accidental acquisition of the bomb from terrorists. He is supposed to kill his own father, but he cannot. The bomb goes off harmlessly near the end. Nikolai goes abroad and never sees his father again.

«Голый год»

Boris Pil'niak 1922 Considered Pilnyak's most important work, it helped him to achieve wide recognition in Russia. It was lauded by the Bolsheviks and contains sharp comparisons between human instincts and Revolutionary ideals. In the novel Pilnyak also displays the opposition of the peasants concerning the Communists and the Bolsheviks, the latter considered real Russians and the former considered foreign to Russian life. For him, the Bolshevik revolution was rural, while the Communist revolution was urban. The book is an allegory of the Russian Civil War during a year of great famine, 1921. The Russian people stand against the famine, while comparisons are made between the Bolsheviks, Communists and Anarchists. Hunger was so severe that grain was eaten instead of sown. The famine was the direct cause of six years of war and reckless administration, starting with World War I.

Творчество

Briusov 1895 4 ft trochee; feminine and masculine alternating rhyme Looking at reflections on the wall to see what is real -> Plato He is describing a dream Purple hands are creating sounds play with sound crucial here: в звонко-звучной тишине, звуки реют полусонно, звуки ластятся interesting imagery of purple hands, a naked moon, transparent kiosks, secrets of created creatures 1895 "The darkness of the uncreated creations sways in a dream" Depictions of nature and colors; moon. On the enamel wall. Soft sounds in his words.

Сонет к форме

Briusov 1895 Sonnet 5 ft. iamb Riddled with contrasts describing images of changing imagination they live eternally in carefully crafted lines compared to gems - diamonds hopes that his dreams find the perfect characteristics and find light "И я хочу, чтоб все мои мечты, Дошедшие до слова и до света, Нашли себе желанные черты. Пускай мой друг, разрезав том поэта, Упьется в нем и стройностью сонета, И буквами спокойной красоты!" In the form of a soтnet. Connection between contour and scent of the flower, like how the diamond is not visible to us with uncut edges.

Я

Briusov 1899 6 and 5ft iamb; alternating feminine and masculine rhyme main point: blasphemy to church as he has all the gods and dedicates his verse to all of them He says he has fallen in love with contradictions Poem itself filled with contrasts, especially light and dark My spirit has not become weakened in the mist of contradictions; my mind has not become powerless in the fateful clutches. I love all dreams and speeches and I dedicate this verse to all gods. He visited different gods and praised love, but he only loved to put together words. He loves the mist of contradictions and passionately sought the fateful clutches. First and last stanzas have similar final lines. " И странно полюбил я мглу противоречий И жадно стал искать сплетений роковых. Мне сладки все мечты, мне дороги все речи, И всем богам я посвящаю стих..."

«Голубой шарик»

Bulat Okudzhava

«Полночный троллейбус»

Bulat Okudzhava

Nobel Prize Winners

Bunin (1933) Pasternak (1958) Sholokhov (1965) Solzhenitsyn (1970) Brodsky (1987)

Postmodernism

Chaos Parody--reworking old themes. Always referencing and quoting previous works. Latecomer--everything has already been said before. Not trying to say anything new or find meaning. Reader-friendly--low themes. Supposed to be accessible to the reader. Looking at the past in the light of the present. Often political. Not looking for an answer. Writer seeks to undermine power.

Чайка

Chekhov 1895 Boris Trigorin--story writer; he is Arkadina's lover Nina--daughter of a rich landowner Irina Arkadina--declining actress Konstantin Treplev--symbolist playwright; Irina's son; attempts suicide. Takes place on the estate of a wealthy civil servant. Konstantin has written a play, and the characters watch it being performed. It is very dense and symbolist. Arkadina laughs and Konstantin runs away hurt. Everyone except the doctor Dorn ridicule the play. Lots of love triangles (is it the fault of the lake?) Konstantin gives Nina a seagull he has shot. Nina maybe likes Trigorin and gives him a medallion proclaiming her love with a line from his book. Konstantin tried to kill himself between acts, but only injured his skull. Nina and Trigorin kiss. Act 4 happens two years later. Nina and Trigorin had been together until he left her to go back to Arkadina. Konstantin had limited success and is depressed. Nina's child by Trigorin died and she was a second-rate actress. She shows up and talks with Konstantin but he can't persuade her to stay. She leave and he shoots himself. Play was initially received very poorly.

Три сестры

Chekhov 1900 Olga Prozorova: oldest; teaches high school; 28-year old spinster; kind and motherly; wants to keep the old servant Anfisa. Masha Kulygina: middle sister; 23; married at 18 just out of school; disappointed in marriage and loves Vershinin; short temper; direct and witty Irina Prozorova: 20 years; play begins on her name day; she wants to go back to Moscow to find true love, but she gives up on that and plans on marrying the Baron not for love, but he is shot in a duel. Andre Prozorov: brother of the three sisters; married to Natasha; has a baby; lots of debt Natasha: marries Andrei; becomes bossy and domineering; has an affair Kulygin: Masha's husband; loves her despite her infidelity Nothing really works out for the sisters. They wish they could see the purpose of life and the end to suffering. Andrei apologizes for Natasha. They don't make it back to Moscow. Irina and Olga's compassion is seen when there is a fire in town.

Человек в футляре

Chekov 1898 Short story about a man who lives in a case. But do we all actually live in cases? Framed narrative, so the entire story is in a case... Ivan Ivanych--an old vet; lives near town; is on a hunting trip to be close to nature; is married to Marva, who is an introvert who has never left her village. Burkin--teacher; tells the story about Belikov Belikov--Greek teacher who is afraid of the world and who tries to wrap himself up in as many boxes and containers as possible. He is also an introvert and human interaction is a burden to him. Varvara--Ukrainian woman; came to town with her brother who is a history and geography teacher; likes Belikov Mikhail Kovalenko--Varvara's brother; they live together; he doesn't like Burkin and gets in an argument with him and kicks him out Ivan and Burkin are spending the night in the barn on their hunting trip. Ivan comments on how his wife has never left their village and is somewhat of an introvert. Burkin says there are lots of people like that and proceeds to tell the story of Belikov. Belikov was a Greek teacher who was afraid of the world and always had lots of cases. He wasn't very social. He started to like Varvara and all their coworkers conspire to get them married. Belikov starts to believe them and he wants to get married. But then he is afraid. Kovalenko is not nice to him. Someone draws a caricature of the two and Belikov is hurt. He talks to Kovalenko (because he thought it was awful he and Varvara were riding bikes), who is rude and throws him out of the house. Varvara sees him at the bottom of the stairs and he is humiliated. He goes home and goes to bed and never gets out. He dies a month later. They bury him and somehow everybody feels happy--as if they are now free. But then life goes back to normal and Burkin worries ad wonders how many more people there are like that--just living inside cases. Ivan gets mad and says that everybody is living inside a case--focused on paperwork and ranks and everything.

Дама с собачкой

Chekov 1899 Couple meets in Yalta and has an affair. Gurov--banker; returns to Moscow after the affair; visits Anna Anna: woman with the dog; lives in a provincial town with her husband Story ends without resolving.

Вишнёвый сад

Chekov 1903 Chekhov's last play; written when he was ill. Takes place in the historical context of the recent abolition of serfdom and the declining aristocracy. Lyubov Andreievna Ranevskaya--The female landowner that returns to her estate at the beginning of the play. She married a poor man. Her son died. She had an affair with a man who then robbed her. Her sorrows brought her back from Paris to Russia. She is constantly giving away money. She isn't the brightest person, but she does love deeply. Pyotor Trofimov--Student. Son's former tutor. He and Anya like each other but will not admit it. Political--in favor of strong reforms in Russia. Boris Borisovich Simeonov-Pishchik--landowner always asking Liubov for loans. Ironic character--financially ruined aristocrat, but he is always wasting time. Anya--Liubov's daughter; she goes to Paris to rescue her mother. She is awesome. She loves Trofimov. Varya--Adopted daughter. Holds the family and the estate together. She wants to become a nun. Lopakhin should have proposed to her. Leonid Gayev--comic character who loves the bookshelf and billiards. Symbol of decadency in the aristocracy. Dunyasha--housemaid. Charlotta Ivanova--governess; melancholy; does card tricks. Yepikhodov--clerk; calamity guy; proposed to Dunyasha Firs--manservant; eccentric; thought the emancipation of the serfs was terrible. Lyubov returns from living with her lover in Paris. She had tried to kill herself, and so Anya went with Charlotta to go get her. The estate goes to auction. Lopakhin offers to make part of it into summer houses, but they refuse since it is such a renowned estate. Eventually Lopakhin himself buys it--the place where his family were serfs.

Что Делать?

Chernishevsky 1863 Progressive and revolutionary novel. Written in response to Fathers and Sons. Influenced Lenin and the October revolution. His theory: changing a person's environment, changes their actions Plot: Man commits suicide on bridge and Vera Pavlovna receives a suicide note from him and separates from her lover. Preface: Chern. criticizes himself (not great writer) and reader (only wants action to start a story) tells the end of the novel and says the book is for a select few, (intelligentsia) Vera Pavlovna gets out of an arranged marriage and pursues economic independence. Promotes social communes and industrial production. Rakhmatov: a revolutionary who governs his life on the principle of self governance and education. He does not have any leisure time, but instead switches between the multiple projects that have interested him over the years. He is of the noble class but refuses to live like it, living like a peasant would depending on the region he is in (eating what peasants eat, sleeping on straw, and so on). He reads constantly and is very disciplined. He does not waste his time with society and when it is of no use to see people he does not call upon them or simply dismisses himself. He is Lenin's favorite character in the book and will become the model for the Bolshevik (to Lenin he is the main character.) Crystal palace. Influenced Lenin and the October revolution. Dostoevsky engages with it through the underground man.

"Fadeev, Kaldeev i Pepermaldeev"

Daniil Kharms

"Kasirsha"

Daniil Kharms

"Sluchai na zheleznoi doroge"

Daniil Kharms

«Чапаев»

Dmitrii Fumanov

«А вот Москва эпохи моей жизни»

Dmitrii Prigov

«Прекрасная моя древняя Москва»

Dmitrii Prigov

«Он любил... »

Dol'nik Husband loves three things and doesn't like crying children, tea with raspberry, or female hysterics. Portrays the wife as victimized even though the focus is on the husband. Gives simple details and leaves it to the reader to piece the story together

Записки из подполья

Dostoevsky 1864 Underground man is bitter and is retired living in St. Petersburg. Two parts. First part is a response to Chernyshevsky's "What is to be done?" and is very existential. Pain is freedom. Two times two is five. Second part describes various events that happen to the underground man--"revenge" against the policeman; dinner party; prostitute. Challenges nihilism and rational egoism. rejects socialist utopianism Part 1: the undergournd man desires pain (constant toothache) and paranoia (incapable of looking coworkers in the eye); war proves that people do things without purpose; he's in a state of inactivity and spitefulness; harshly criticizes determinism (2x2=4); humanity won't create Chern.'s Crystal Palace bc anyone at any time can act against what's good in order to state his/her existence Part 2: 1. officer moves him out of his position, UM decides to bump into him to get revenge, officer doesn't notice 2. goodbye party for Zverkov changed from 5 to 6 o'clock, no one tells UG, he arrives early, gets in argument, declares he hates society; they go to brothel without him, UM goes there to confront Z and sleeps with Lisa 3. wakes up and tells Lisa her position in society, gives her his address and leaves; fears she will actually come to his dilapidated apartment; she comes and he curses her then cries saying he was seeking power over her and desired to humiliate her; he's poor and embarrassed, they embrace; but he "can't be good" and throws her out with a five ruble note; tries to catch her but never hears from her again; his spite for society and inability to act makes unable to act better than society.

Преступление и наказание

Dostoevsky 1866 Raskolnikov subscribes to the superman philosophy, thinking that he is as powerful as Napoleon. Traditional laws do not apply to him. He kills an elderly pawnbroker, just to prove that he can get away with it. He can't, as he undergoes intense psychological punishment and turns himself in. Sonya Marmeladova helps in his redemption process. He is exiled to Siberia and Sonya goes with him. Raskolnikov has a friend Razumikhin who is a good guy and tries to help him out. Dunya is Raskolnikov's sister. Mother and sister come near the end of the book. Svidrigailov and Luzhin love Dunya but R and R help thwart them. 1. Death and resurrection 2. Isolated individual and community 3. Contrition and expiation Motifs: • Cross • Dreams (5 significant ones in the novel; what is the connection between these dreams? What do the dreams say about the dreamer? Utilitarianism. What is the worth of a life? Why does Raskolnikov act in the brash way he does? • Raskolnikov seems to want to turn himself in (showing up at the house and inviting people to the police station with him; talking at the café and saying what he would do). Maybe like Marmeladov wanted to be beaten by his wife, but on his own terms, Raskolnikov might want to be caught on his own terms. • Testing fate—returning to the scene of the crime, "confessing" but for different things, wanting to meet Razumikhin's uncle who is a special investigator. And it seems that every time he is about to confess, something else gets in the way and happens to prevent him. • Pride "It is widely regarded that Raskolnikov's article, paraphrased by Profiry. . . represents the philosophical underpinnings of Crime and Punishment. . . Complicating the question of motive, however, is the timing of the discussion between the novel's killer and chief investigator: if these ideas are so important to the formation of Raskolnikov's thinking, why have we not heard them before? Why are they related now, indirectly?" 1. Perpetuation of crime is always either the cause of illness, or causes the criminal to become ill (258) 2. Ordinary vs. extraordinary individuals. 3. Ordinary people submit to the law. The extraordinary have the right to step over the law—it doesn't apply to them. 4. Extraordinary people have the obligation to remove those individuals who stand in their way. 5. Extraordinary people put in a "new word." Kind of like scientific discoveries. 6. Punishment can distinguish between the ordinary and the extraordinary. Punishment indicates that you are bound to the same law as everyone else. And even if you do step over the law and don't get caught, you will punish yourself. Porfiry is the special investigator. Sonia appeals to Raskolnikov's soul and Porfiry appeals to his intellect—and both of them tell him to embrace suffering by confession. Perhaps this is the way to close the gap.

Кроткая (A Gentle Creature)

Dostoevsky 1876 The story of a pawnbroker who marries a desperate young girl--only to discover that he's as isolated in marriage as he was in bachelorhood. The 41-year-old pawnbroker gradually becomes interested in an impoverished, vulnerable 16-year-old girl who frequents his pawnshop, selling items he pays more for than they are worth because he is aware she is in a difficult situation. She is about to be married to a repulsive shopkeeper. The pawnbroker is fascinated by the girl's principles and her stubbornness, and decides to propose to her. She agrees to marry the pawnbroker, but he plays psychological games with his young wife, and finally drives her to despair. She first starts to fall in love with a soldier and the pawnbroker is able to find where they meet, waits in another room and then comes out after they are speaking to one another. The girl walks home with him in shock and then tries to kill him one night, mainly because she feels he is a coward for not agreeing to a duel when he was in the military. He sees her come up to his bed and closes his eyes. After she puts his gun to his temple, he quickly opens his eyes and looks at her, then closes them again, unafraid of death. This thought torments the girl and she becomes more submissive and withdrawn. Eventually, in a fit of passion he thought previously impossible, he tries to get his wife to make love to him, but she is horrified. Shortly after this event, she commits suicide by throwing herself outside of the window holding an icon she pawned to him earlier in the story. The pawnbroker narrates the tale of his relationship with his wife starting from her corpse in his flat, and since he fails to understand his own twisted motives, the tale becomes a revealing insight into the actions of a man who has long lost touch with his own desires. Dostoevsky supposedly wrote this story after hearing about a real incident where a girl threw herself from a window clutching an icon.

Братья Карамазовы

Dostoevsky 1879-1880 Three brothers--Dmitri, Ivan, and Alyosha. Fyodor is the father and he is depraved and sensual. Son Dmitri is the most like him. Ivan is the atheist intellectual and his Grand Inquisitor provides the philosophical framework Dostoevsky seeks to disprove in the entire novel. Alyosha is the young novice who is kind and compassionate and sees the good in everyone. Themes: God, free-will, morality, patricide Prominent narrator who seems to be an omniscient townsman. Smedyakov is the one who actually committed the murder: he is suspected to be the illegitimate son of Fyodor. Father Zosima is an important character and philosophical presence. Father and Dmitri are both in love with Grushenka. Ivan and Alyosha are full-brothers; Dmitri is from a different wife. Katerina Ivanova was Dmitri's fiancee, but she starts to fall in love with Ivan, but refuses to go with him. Ilysha--young schoolboy who dies. Everyone is responsible to everyone else for all.

Письмо матери

Esenin 1924 Poem to his mother. He is still alive and hopes that she is, too. He tells her not to go out on the street waiting for him so often. He will come back; he isn't just going to stay away until she dies. But when he does return, she needs to not teach him how to pray or get after him about anything like she used to. Villagers coming into the city and this is what they feel Old woman walking alone in the road in an old coat waiting for her son to come home I'm not that much of a bitter drunk Memories and longing and things that can't be anymore Nostalgia for the past, don't awaken that which has already been Trochaic pentameter = semantics of travel but going nowhere Ты жива еще, моя старушка? Жив и я. Привет тебе, привет! Пусть струится над твоей избушкой Тот вечерний несказанный свет. Пишут мне, что ты, тая тревогу, Загрустила шибко обо мне, Что ты часто ходишь на дорогу В старомодном ветхом шушуне. ..... Так забудь же про свою тревогу, Не грусти так шибко обо мне. Не ходи так часто на дорогу В старомодном ветхом шушуне.

До свиданья, друг мой, до свиданья

Esenin 1925 Trochaic pentameter Goodbye, my friend, goodbye My dear, you are with me in my heart Predetermined parting promises a meeting in the future Goodbye my friend without a hand, without words Don't be sad and don't grieve In this life dying is nothing new But to live, of course, is not any newer. Interpretation: Written by Esenin in his own blood in a hotel room, the night before he committed suicide Maiakovskii chided him for taking the easy way out, but took his own life 7 years later Reminiscent of Pushkin's "pora, moi drug, pora" (it's time to go or to die)

«Хотят ли русские войны?»

Evgenii Evtushenko 1961 Iambic tetrameter Do Russians want war? Ask in the silence over the field and the birch and poplars. Ask those soldiers that lie under the birches and let their sons tell you if the Russians want war. Not only for their own country did soldiers die in that war, but so that people of all lands could dream in peace. Under the rustle of leaves and playbills you sleep, New York, you sleep Paris. Let your dreams answer you, if the Russians want war. Yes, we are able to fight, but we don't want our soldiers to fall again in battle to their sad earth. Ask the mothers, as my wife, and then you must understand if the Russians want war.

«Бабий яр»

Evtushenko 1961 Written during the Thaw period about the massacre that occurred there. There is no monument above Babi Yar. It is frightful to me. I am as old today as the Jewish nation. It seems to me now that I am a Jew. I am suffering in ancient Egypt. I am crucified on the cross, dying. It seems that I am Dreyfus. I am behind bars. I ended up in the circle. Hunted, spat upon, slandered. It seems I am Anne Frank. We cannot have leaves or heave, but we can hug in this dark room. I am every slaughtered old man here. I am every shot child. Nothing in me will forget this. I have no Jewish blood in me, but to all the anti-Semites I am as a Jew and thus I am a real Russian!

Наследники Сталина

Evtushenko 1962 Although Stalin was dead, Stalinism and its legacy still dominated Russia; in the poem he also directly addressed the Soviet government, imploring them to make sure that Stalin would "never rise again". Published originally in Pravda, the poem was not republished until a quarter of a century later, in the times of the comparatively liberal party leader Mikhail Gorbachev. The author believes that even lying in his coffin, Stalin has not died, but simply passed the torch of his evil on to the next generation of Stalin's. Words such as 'pretending' or 'scheming' and images of 'wisps of smoke' give off a sense of mystery or stealthiness and lurking. Stalin's influence extends beyond the grave. Double, triple the guards here so that Stalin doesn't rise again. It seems like there is a telephone in the grave and someone is communicating with Stalin again. We have removed Stalin from the mausoleum (opening scene of the poem depicts this) but how do we remove Stalin from the inheritors of Stalin? I cannot be at peace. As long as there are heirs of Stalin living on the earth, it will seem to me that Stalin is still in the mausoleum.

Modernism

Experimentation Artistic synthesism Individuality Fighting against traditional values Clowes--emphasis on the senses Futurism--also includes zaum Allows the reader to duel with chaos, but still have an orderly work in the end. (Post-modernism doesn't try to have an orderly end.)

«Цемент»

Fedor Gladkov 1924 Gleb Chumalov, a demobilized Red Army soldier, returns to his home town after the civil war. The cement factory where he used to work is a crumbling mess. His wife, Dasha, is a Communist Party worker and too busy for him. Their daughter, Nurka is living in a children's home, and eventually dies. Gleb goes to the District Party Committee headquarters and tries to get them to restart the factory right away. They tell him he's a dreamer. The leader of the party's women's section Polya Mekhova, is attracted to Gleb, but he rebuffs her. He loves Dasha. Gleb takes command of the factory party committee and starts whipping it into shape for an eventual restart. He learns that in his absence Dasha was somehow involved with Engineer Kleist, a bourgeoise engineer from the pre-revolution days, who was responsible for handing Gleb over to the Whites for torture. (He eventually escaped the Whites and joined the Red Army.) Gleb ponders killing Kleist. Dasha and head of the local Soviet Executive Council Badin ride out to a nearby village where the people are resisting forced grain requisitions. During the ride, Badin tries to force himself on Dasha, who rebuffs him. Dasha is captured by Cossacks and threatened with death, but they let her go. Badin excuses the peasants from grain requisitions, and Dasha agrees to sleep with him. Dasha finally tells Gleb of what happened during his absence. After Gleb had fled to join the Reds, Dasha was seized by the Whites, interrogated, then let go. Dasha then began to work for the Red partisans, delivering messages, getting them supplies, etc. Dasha is again arrested and raped. She would have been killed but Kleist, feeling guilty for what he did to Gleb, intercedes. Communists go through the town, expropriating the property of the ex-bourgeoise and relocating them out to the villages. One Communist, Sergei, is troubled by this action, particularly because his father is one of those to be shipped out. His father, however, is happy to go. The Cossacks attack the factory. Gleb and others fight back. They arrest and execute a leader of the Cossacks, Dmitri, the brother of Sergei. As the New Economic Policy (NEP) takes root, traders return to town; shops and cafes open up. Mekhova is opposed to the NEP, considering it a capitulation. Badin, Shramm, and others abuse the privileges of their office, getting extra food and vodka supplies for themselves and having parties. Badin rapes Mekhova. Shramm tries to stop the restart of the factory, but Gleb denounces it as sabotage gets authorization from the Bureau of Industry to continue. A Party commission shows up and purges many members from the factory committee, including Mekhova, who opposed the New Economic Policy, and Sergei, who is a former Menshevik. The commission, however, is gushing in its approval of Dasha. Badin receives a promotion. Work to restart the factory continues at a feverish pace. Mekhova is sent away for rest. Dasha takes over leadership of the women's section. She leaves Gleb, not for another man, but for her work. Shramm is arrested. The factory finally reopens, and thousands cheer Gleb.

Недоросль

Fonvizin • First staged 1782. Of all 18th century productions, this is the only one still being performed and studied. • Satire on education • Skotinin loves pigs. Wants to marry Sofia so that he can be in the country and hunt. o Mitrofan also loves pigs. • Education is important, but you must also have a heart. • It's funny on several different levels. • Addresses the issue that things change with time. • Characters—archetypes, but they are also developed o Prostakov—simple-minded o Prostakova—his wife; hilarious. Cannot read. o Skotinin—pigs. Wants to marry Sofia because she has lots of pigs in her village. o Pravdin— o Starodum—old thinking; common sense; defense of conventional morals. Wise old uncle. He does have old-fashioned wisdom. o Sofia—wisdom. She can read (positive comparison with Kristina in the other play who had purposely been kept from reading). Educated in the new ways. o Milon—милый with a hint of foreignness. He and Sofia are in love. Faithful to each other after a long separation. o Kuteykin—кутья (a sweet funeral food); seminarian; trying to teach Mitrofan the foundations of the Bible. o Tsyferkin—numbers. Teaches Mitrofan math. o Vral'man—врать; caricature of foreign tutors. German Tutor. Used to be Starodum's carriage driver person. Nobody wanted that profession anymore, so he went to go teach. In the end he asks Starodum to come back as his carriage man. He says that being among noblemen has been a good substitute for horses. o Mitrofan—at the time was a name, but now it has connotations with this character. • Education is introduced in a humorous, irreverent way on the example of how to make a good kaftan. Prostakova argues that you don't need training in order to do it. • Why are they going to such efforts to educate Mitrofan? o Under Peter the Great, if you were of the nobility you had to serve. o 1762 Peter III (Catherine's husband) repeals the mandatory nobility service. So Mitrofan does not need or want to serve. o In the end, Mitrofan goes to the army as punishment. o He's just getting educated because it is the age of enlightenment and everybody is supposed to be educated. • Mitrofan doesn't acquire any knowledge even though he is being educated. o «Не хочу учиться, хочу жениться»

Bakhtin

Formalist

Tynianov

Formalist

«Я люблю безнадежный покой...»

Georgii Ivanov 3 feet Anapests, all rhymes are masculine I love the hopeless peace in October The chrysanthemums are in bloom And the poverty of the twilight burning down The hush of nameless graves All of the banalities of songs without words And that which Annensky greedily loved And that which Gumilev couldn't stand Interpretation: Poem about aesthetics and what he loves Images Hopeless peace Twilight Fires beyond the river Songs without words References to other poets, he likes Annensky He's aestheticizing simple things too, nothing grand, nothing heroic

«А люди? Ну на что мне люди?..»

Georgii Ivanov 4 foot iambs And people. Well what do I need people for? A man walks and leads a bull A tradeswoman sits, feet, breasts, a handkerchief, round sides And this is nature, rain and cold and heat And despair at any time of the year Like the rasp of a mosquito Of course there is also entertainment The fear of poverty the torments of love And suicide finally Interpretation Circular phenomenon and everything is horrible in the end Gallows humor = not just I'm depressed, but able to joke about it He looked to Lermontov as a model at the time Its boring and it's sad and there's no one I can give my hand to Cynical despair

«Россия счастие. Россия свет...»

Georgii Ivanov All rhymed couplets with masculine rhyme Russia is happiness and light but maybe there is no Russia at all There's no Petersburg, no kremlin There's just snows, snows, snows; And the night is long and the snows never melt Snows, snows, snows; And it will never end Russia is silence and Russia is ash Icy darkness and music driving one insane A rope, a bullet, the dawn at the camp Over that which doesn't have a name in the world Interpretation: first line is happy and then a sharp decline all of this snow and the image of GULAG and being killed all of Russia is a katorga the country, Russia is gone, doesn't have a name beyond naming, unthinkable space goes from light to darkness

«Теперь тебя не уничтожат...»

Georgii Ivanov Already beat hitler, he can't destroy you But the Russian man is tired Of suffering and of being proud = possibly in answer to Akhmatova's call to be proud

«В награду за мои грехи...»

Georgii Ivanov As a reward for my sins My shame and my triumph Suddenly verses appear And behold from nothing Everything is any old way somehow Magically as if by chance Like roses that fall onto a chest And throw a rose to me No better to throw it beyond the clouds There rhyme will shine It will touch a perishable flower And will turn it into something eternal. Interpretation: Don't squander the rose here and now. Rose = image of beauty Do something with it. Turn it into the eternal. Wonder whose voice it is = 'ty' Voice of the bystander

«Хорошо что нет царя...»

Georgii Ivanov Four foot trochees It's good there is no tsar, no Russia, no god Only the yellow dawn, the icy stars, the millions of years It's good there is nothing, no one, so dark and so dead Nothing can be more dead and nothing can be more dark No one can help us and there is no need to help Interpretation: Nihilistic Increasing escalation of nothingness Nature = scary, negative, black So black and so dead, that nothing could be more dead, nothing could be blacker

«Еще я нахожу очарованье...»

Georgii Ivanov I also find charm in random trifles and nonsense I found a rose, The silver raindrop undulates I found it on the sidewalk, And I will throw it away in a trash can Interpretation: Look at beauty and then it's gone, okay to throw it away Things don't last First stanza = like Kuzmin, charms and trifles and rose swiveling in a hand Throws it in the slop bucket

«Старосветские помещики»

Gogol (Mirgorod 1835) This story represents the mature Gogol and hints at his later works. Gogol opens by providing a very romantic description of landowners in the countryside, with particular attention given to minute details turned into fantasy using extremely descriptive terms. The two landowners, Afanasy Ivanovich Pulkheria and Ivanovna Tovstogub live peacefully together in a remote village. The descriptions of them fit into the Slavophile tradition, comparing them strikingly against urban Russians (particularly in Petersburg), referred to as "paltry, contemptible creatures." The two old landowners live in peace, with a mutual love that brings a sense of sympathy. The bulk of the opening focuses on their day-to-day lives, eating jelly, making jokes and so forth. Eventually, Gogol introduces into the story Pulkheria's grey cat, which Afanasy jokes about, wondering why anyone would waste time with such a creature. The cat is introduced with a sense of foreboding; Gogol commenting that little things can affect the stability of the most strong of realities (a melancholy incident that transformed forever the life of that peaceful nook). Her cat gets away at one point and she finds it shortly thereafter in a feral state. Though it comes back and goes inside the house to be fed, the cat seems strangely different and eventually flees. Pulkheria then sinks into thought, believing that death will soon come from her. She grows ill, weary and dies, leaving Afanasy alone. He progressively breaks down, disturbed by the smallest things for they remind him of Pulkheria, and dies after he believes he hears her calling to him outside, the entire area he had control over slowly becoming more degraded as his condition worsens. A distant kinsman from an unknown location takes over control of the estate, who was a lieutenant, and soon everything grows into ruin. He puts everything under the care of a board of trustees, bringing things like a fine English sickle to clear the area, and the huts on the property soon fall down, leaving some peasants drunken and hopeless and others to run away to find better lives. The new owner rarely visits the estate, and the story ends commenting on his visits to local markets to buy nothing over a ruble in price.

Taras Bulba

Gogol (Mirgorod, 1835) Gogol's longest short story. Very classical in nature with characters that are not grotesque at all, though his characterizations of Cossacks are said to be a bit exaggerated by some scholars. The story has rich battle scenes as well as Gogol's characteristic humor, but is also rampant with anti-semitism and gore. Most scholars find the love affair in the story unconvincing and believe this to be one of the major reasons why the tale has not remained as popular in recent years, as well as many characters seeming highly contrived and artificial. In the story, Taras Bulba's two sons, Ostap and Andrei, return home from the Kiev seminary and they go off to battle with the Poles almost immediately when Taras goes into a rage after finding there no ready battles for the Cossacks. Ostap is the adventurous son, true to the Cossack spirit, whereas Andrei has deeply romantic feelings stirring within him. While in Kiev, he falls in love with a young Polish girl, but soon sees her no longer. Taras and his sons reach a Cossack camp where there is much merrymaking and he helps to rouse the Cossacks to go into battle. They go to Dubno and besiege the town, surrounding it and not letting anyone out so that the inhabitants starve to death. One night, while restless, a Tartar woman comes to Andrei and rouses him, he seems to remember her face and then recalls it is the servant of the Polish girl he was in love with from his youth. She takes him through a secret passage in the bottom of the marsh that goes into the monastery, bringing loaves of bread with him for the starving girl and her mother. He is horrified by what he sees and in a fury of love forsakes his past for the Polish girl. Meanwhile, a large group of Polish soldiers march into the village while a regiment of Cossacks are too drunk to stop them. A number of battles ensue and Taras learns of his son's forsaking of the Cossack life from Yankel the Jew, who he saved from Cossacks earlier in the story. During one of the final battles, he sees Andrei riding in Polish garb from the castle and has his men draw him to the woods, where he takes him off of his horse. Taras shoots him and he and Ostap continue fighting and the latter is captured while the former is knocked out. Taras awakens to a state of delirium and when he regains his composure learns that Ostap was captured and is in the hands of the Poles. Yankel agrees to take him to the city where he is held captive, hiding him in a cart of bricks, which he knows no one will tamper with on their journey. When there a group of Jews help him and Yankel to dress Taras as a Jew, and they attempt to go into the prison to see his son (this was not an uncommon curiosity amongst Polish nobility during this time). They almost make it, but a guard recognizes Taras as a Cossack, though they convince him otherwise. Still, he does not let them through and only after being paid 100 gold pieces does he allow them to leave, instructing them to go to the execution the following day if they wish to see the Cossacks. During the execution, Ostap, in fine Cossack form, does not make a single sound, even while being broken on the wheel, and only near the end calls out to his father, asking if he "can see this." Taras calls out that he can, and Yankel turns to him, terrified, to see that the Cossack has disappeared. Taras returns home to find all of his old Cossack friends dead and only newer ones in their place and goes to war again. The new leader wishes to make peace with the Poles, which Taras is firmly against, and he takes a regiment away with him to continue battle. As he stated, the Poles betray the Cossacks and kill them. Taras and his men continue to fight and are finally caught in a ruined fortress, where they battle with everything they can. Taras is nailed and tied to a tree struck by lighting to be set aflame, but even in his state, in true Cossack spirit, calls out to his men to continue the fight as the story ends with descriptions of the Dniester river.

The Tale of How Ivan Ivanovich Quarreled with Ivan Nikiforovich

Gogol (Mirgorod, 1835) This story takes place in Mirgorod, written in the style mentioned above featuring grotesque, realistic portrayals of the characters. The two Ivans are great friends, each one almost being the opposite image of the other. Ivan Ivanovich is tall, thin, and well-spoken, for example, while Ivan Nikiforovich is short, fat, and cuts to the point with a biting honesty. The story opens with discussions about how they live next to each other in perfect harmony and are known throughout the village as the best of friends. One day, Ivan Ivanovich notices his friend's servant hanging some clothes out to dry as well as some military implements, especially a gun that interests him. He goes over to Nikiforovich's house in hopes of acquiring the gun, finding there no use for him to own it, and enters the house to find his friend lying naked on the floor, relaxing because it's too hot outside. He inquires about the gun and offers to trade it for a grey sow and two sacks of oats, but his friend is unwilling to part with it and calls Ivan Ivanovich a gander, which terribly offends him. After this, they begin to hate each other. Nikiforovich erects a goose coop with two posts resting somewhat on Ivanovich's property, which the latter saws the legs off of in the night and then reasons that his old friend is going to burn his house down, so has his servant keep a watch out for any strange placements of straw around his home. Eventually, Ivanovich goes to the courts with a petition to have Nikiforovich arrested for his slander. The court cannot believe what is occurring and tries to convince him to make amends, but he disregards their suggestions and leaves the courthouse. Shortly after this, Nikiforovich comes into the court with his own petition, to the amazement of those gathered there, but it is taken off by the pig offered as trade for the gun earlier in the story. Because of this, the chief of police is required to go to Ivanovich's house since it is illegal to tamper with court documents and it was his pig. They have an argument over the pig and the police chief attempts to convince him to reconcile with his friend, but he still refuses. Because of the sow a new petition is filed, which is quickly duplicated and filed within a day, but sits in storage for a few years, never completed. Eventually, the chief of police has a party that Ivan Ivanovich is attending, but his old friend does not, because neither will go anywhere where the other is present. The party gets Anton Prokofievich to go to Ivan Nikiforovich's house to convince him to come, unknown to the other Ivan. When he convinces him, he sits down to dinner and both Ivans notice the each other sitting across the table and the party grows silent. However, they continue eating with nothing occurring. At the end of dinner both try to leave without the other noticing, and some of the party members push them towards each other so they make up. They begin to, but Nikiforovich calls Ivanovich a gander again and he storms out of the house. The narrator returns to Mirgorod after some time and sees the two Ivans again, completely worn out and different than he remembers them. Both are convinced their case will be finished the following day, and the narrator shakes his head in pity and leaves, stating "It is a dreary world, gentlemen."

«Вий»

Gogol (Mirgorod, 1835) [parts from wikipedia] Gogol opens the story asserting that he is retelling it exactly as he heard it, indicating it is perhaps folklore. However, thus far no one has discovered any folklore source of the tale so it is more likely he made it up. The story concerns three students from the Bratsky Monastery at Kiev. At the seminary, there are four types of students; the grammarians (freshmen), rhetoricians (sophomores), philosophers (juniors) and theologians (seniors). Every summer after classes have ended, there is usually a large procession of students moving around the area as they travel home, getting progressively smaller as each student arrives at his home. When the group has lessened, three students, the theologian Khaliava, the philosopher Khoma Brut and the rhetorician Tibery Gorobets, are trying to find a village off the main round where they can find some food. Most students would go to villages off the main road to find the wealthiest looking house and sing outside of the window so the owner would give them food to leave. As they try to find a village, they become lost in the wilderness, eventually coming upon two small houses and a farm. An old woman there tells them she has little room and cannot accommodate any more travelers, but eventually agrees to let them stay. The rhetorician is put in the hut, the theologian in an empty closet and the philosopher in an empty sheep's pen. At night, the old woman comes to him and he thinks she is trying to force him to have sexual relations with her, but then she draws closer and leaps on his back, and he finds himself galloping with her all over the countryside with a strength he previously never knew. He eventually slows her down by chanting exorcisms out loud, and then rides on her back as punishment. She eventually collapses and he finds she has turned into a beautiful girl. Khoma runs away and begins to live life in Little Russia, when a rumor reaches his area that a Cossack's daughter was found crawling home near death, her last wish being for the philosopher to come and read psalms over her corpse for three days after her death. He's uncertain why this is, and even when he goes to the Cossack's house he cannot explain why the girl requested him specifically. When he goes to view the corpse, however, he finds it is the witch he overcame earlier in the story. Rumors among the Cossacks are that the daughter was in league with the devil as they tell various stories about her, and Khoma is reluctant to say prayers over her body. On the first night, when the Cossacks take her body to a ruined church, he is somewhat frightened but calms himself a bit when he lights up more candles in the church to eliminate most of the darkness. As he begins to say prayers, he imagines to himself that the corpse is getting up, but it never does. Suddenly, however, he looks up and finds that the witch is sitting up in her coffin. She begins to walk around, reaching out for someone, and starts to draw closer to Khoma, but he draws a circle of protection around himself that she cannot cross. She gnashes her teeth at him as he begins to exorcise her, and then she goes into her coffin and flies about the church, trying to frighten him out of the circle. Dawn arrives, and he has survived the first night. The next night similar events occur, but more horrible than before, and the witch calls upon unseen, winged demons and monsters to fly about the church. When the Cossacks find the philosopher in the morning, he is near death, pale and leaning against a wall. He tries to escape the next day but is captured. On the third night the witch's corpse is even more terrifying and she calls the demons around her to bring the gnome Viy into the church, who can see everything. Khoma realizes that he cannot look at the creature when they draw his eyelids up from the floor so he can see, but he does anyway and sees a horrible, iron face staring at him. Viy points in his direction and the monsters leap upon him. However, they miss the first crowing of the cock and are unable to escape the church when day breaks. The priest arrives the next day to find the monsters locked up inside and the church is forsaken forever, eventually overgrown by weeds and trees, lost forever. The story ends with Khoma's other two friends commenting on his parting and how it was his lot in life to die in such a way, agreeing that he only came to his end because he showed fear.

Mirgorod

Gogol 1835 This is a collection of short stories, which, unlike Dikanka, has no given narrator. Though grouped together the stories could be separated with no way to tell they were meant to be bulked in the same collection. Regardless, the collection was published in two volumes with two stories each as listed below. Numbers one and three represent his Shponka tradition, after the name of the story above, where his realistic stories become almost unreal because their reality is so intense. These stories carry a sense of the Gothic, with grotesque, horrifying scenes as well as idyllic situations, lacking the folkloric elements found in his earlier works and the influence from Ukraine. The other two stories follow more along his earlier, more Romantic tradition.

Diary of a Madman

Gogol 1835 This story is believed by some to be a satirical picture of Russia as a political entity during the time of Nicholas I. Gogol provides a picture of a man who grows progressively insane and gives such incredible detail that one wonders if he wasn't insane himself or had direct contact with someone who was. The delusions and physical symptoms (though few of the latter are mentioned) are exactly what is displayed of someone with schizophrenia or general psychosis. Gogol gives the reader the journal of a lowly civil servant. It starts out with him describing his day and Sophia, the daughter of the director, who he is in love with. In the first part, there are hints of madness, as he refers to his boss as "his Excellency" and mentions that he heard Sophia's dog, Madgie, talking to another dog. In spite of his love, as the story progresses he grows more and more insane. At first he discusses her in his journal as well as issues of the particular day, but then he recalls the dog's conversation and decides to follow the two women who had the other dog, Fido, earlier in the story so he can find out more from it. When he goes to where the dog lives he scares a young girl there who he remarks "must have thought [him] mad" and then finds some letters under Fido's bed that are written to Madgie, and then another written to Fido from Madgie that discusses Sophia being married to someone of importance. There is mention in the letters of the servant, which angers him, but he continues to read to find out about Sophia. After this, he reads in the papers that there is no king of Spain and a woman may take the throne. This consumes him for an entire day and someone named Marva, apparently his servant, notices he has become more absent-minded. Right after this the dates of the journal begin to change and become ridiculous. The next day is dated 2000 A.D. April 43. The servant awakens to believe he is the King of Spain, and all of his efforts start to revolve around this. He horrifies Marva when he tells her who he is, finally goes back to the office after being gone three weeks but acts as if he is important, sees the Czar coming along the street and remarking he is "currently incognito" until his delegates arrive, which he inquires about at the post office after finishing his "mantle." Then the story continues and he states he has "finally arrived in Spain," though he does notice that the trip seems to have not taken as long as it should, remarking that it must have something to do with modern transportation. He is, in fact, brought to an asylum, where shaved patients are soldiers and the head doctor is the Head Chancellor. He starts to remark that everyone's noses are on the moon and that's why you can't see it with your eyes and runs out to implore to his people that they save the moon so the Earth doesn't sit upon it. He is amazed when the Chancellor strikes him with a stick and puts him back in his room, commenting on the national power of Spain. Then the servant becomes increasingly insane, the reader learns his name is Aksenty Ivanov when an orderly comes into his room calling his name, eventually settling with Ferdinand VIII, King of Spain. He doesn't come out even then, suspecting the "Grand Inquisitor" was going to pour cold water on his head again. He is chased from under his chair with a stick and gets beaten. The journal ends with an even more ridiculous journal entry with letters upside down and nonsensical numbers as Ivanov sinks further, remarking that his head is "burning" and he can't take it anymore, wondering why these people continue to torture him.

Нос

Gogol 1835-1836 Collegiate Assessor wakes up one morning (25 March) to find that his nose is missing. This humiliates him, but it becomes even worse when his nose begins to upstage him and attains a higher rank than he has. The police refuse to help Major Kovalyov find his nose. Ivan Yakovlevich (barber) finds Major Kovalyov's nose in the loaf of bread his wife baked. He recognizes it. He tries throw it in the river, but the police catch him. The police officer who got the nose returns it to Kovalyov, but the nose cannot be reattached. Not even the doctor can help. Kovalyov blames the mother of the girl he had been dating; when she interprets his letter as a proposal, he realizes she didn't steal it. On 7 April he wakes up with his nose back in place. The barber shaves him and life continues as normal. Satire of the rank system in Russia and a social commentary on how people should not be overly obsessed with their employment. Gogol himself thought the nose was the most important body part. He had a prominent nose. Early magical realism? Laurence Sterne "Tristram Shandy", 1807; talks a lot about noses; absurd.

Невский проспект

Gogol 1835? Sentimentalism, with some realism. Chatty narrator. Characters: Nevsky Prospekt is almost living, Piskariov (artist), and Pirogov (officer) Plot: Piskariov (romantic) notices dark-haired woman, who works in a brothel, he sleeps to dream about her, takes opium, he finally decides to win her over, she is drunk and laughs at him; he goes home and commits suicide. Pirogov = superfluous man, (more realistic?) infatuated by blonde, she is married, he tries to kiss her and husband throws him out; he forgets the event entirely Gogol ends by saying Nevsky is worst at night "when the devil himself is abroad...kindling street lamps to show everything in a false light." Nevsky Prospekt (1835, written from 1831-1834) Short story in which Gogol gives descriptions of Nevsky Prospekt in St. Petersburg and then tells the stories of two acquaintances and their adventures in relation to the street. It opens with various descriptions of the people and daily events on Nevsky, almost making it a living being and creating a sense of escape. After a few pages describing the marvels of the street, two characters come into play; the artist Piskariov and the officer Pirogov. The two meet up on Nevsky while passing and both notice women. Piskariov notices a dark-haired woman he finds absolutely beautiful, while Pirogov follows a blonde. The bulk of the story focuses on Piskariov. When he follows the woman, he finds that, to his horror, she works in a brothel, and runs from the scene terrified that such beauty is wasted on such vice. He then has a dream that she is actually a woman of virtue and that she invites him to a party where they flirt with each other, but at the end he is hiding from her and wakes up to discover he was dreaming. From then on he only lives to dream since he becomes so enraptured by the woman. He eventually develops insomnia and in desperation, goes to a Persian who gives him opium to sleep. Later in the tale, in desperation, he decides on a plan to win the woman over and save her from the terrible conditions. He goes to her and tells her how much he loves her and his plans, horrified again when she says she had just waken up and was drunk (the phrase draws an understanding of her entire history into his head). She scoffs at him and another prostitute says "marry me" while mocking Piskariov. In agony he goes home, locks himself in his room and four days later he is found to have committed suicide by slicing his own throat with a razor, but almost didn't completely succeed and likely died a painful death. No one comes to his funeral and Gogol ends the part here saying he doesn't care for funerals and that no one comes to such kinds as this except an old beggar woman who has nothing better to do. He then describes Pirogov, giving him the classic characteristics of the superfluous man, and then follows his adventures with the blonde woman. He follows her back to a workman's shop, suddenly barging in to a German named Schiller, who is drunk and the owner of the shop. He becomes angry at Pirogov and shoves him out even though he tells him he is an officer. He goes to the tinsmith's shop the next day to find the blonde at the counter, flirts with her and then she says she's going to get her husband to speak with him. Schiller, somewhat embarrassed from the previous night, discusses selling spurs with the officer to get rid of him, finding it surprising that he agrees to his ridiculous price. Pirogov comes back after asking for a dagger sheath, when he knows his wife will be alone. He asks her to dance and then tries to kiss her as she screams, and Schiller comes in and throws the officer out with the help of his friends. Though Pirogov could have gotten the tinsmith into great trouble by appealing to his superiors, he forgets the event after an evening of eating two cream puffs, reading The Northern Bee (a magazine at the time written by two of Gogol's mediocre contemporaries) and going to a party. The story ends with Gogol talking about Nevsky as "[deceiving] at all hours of the day, but the worst time of all is at night... when the devil himself is abroad, kindling the street-lamps with one purpose only: to show everything in a false light."

Derzhavin

Greatest poet before Pushkin. Most remembered. Lomonosov did a lot with the technical aspect, but Derzhavin had a lot more of a poetic gift.

Фузий в блюдечке...

Iamb Sees Mt. Fuji through the steam; perhaps looking at a tea set and having this very profound experience "Sometimes a line of love poetry will shine through philosophy's prose pages" Love poetry written in the margin of a book? Lyrical thoughts in the midst of philosophical writing

«Юг на севере»

Igor Severianin Iambic tendencies I stopped a pinto-colored deer at an eskimo yurt and he looked smartly And I got fruit and I started to drink wine. And I'm in the tundra. Do you understand? And I pearly began to laugh, putting my eyeglass on the eskimo. Interpretation Bakhtin's word carnavilization Not a serious poem, but fun, light-hearted Laurenette = eyeglass that you use in the opera

«Шампанский полонез»

Igor Severianin More amphibrachic than anything else Feminine masculine alternating rhyme scheme Pour some champagne into the lily. Champagne into the lily! It is made holy by the means of her chastity Mignon = French opera, sweet girl with Escamillio = from Carmen, a dashing touriodoir Champagne in the lily is more babbling, sparkling I ecstatically praise Christ and the antichrist The dove and the hawk, the Reichstag and the bastille The prostitute and the monk, impulsiveness and sleep Put the lily in the champagne! Put the champagne in the lily! In the seas of disharmony is the lighthouse of unison! Interpretation champagne is holy, wine brings ecstasy Juxtaposition Dove vs. hawk German vs. French Etc. In the seas of disharmony there's the lighthouse of unison Maybe drunkenness allows you to understand and find unison Sense of rising intoxication and growing more and more extravagant Wanted people to have fun, to be slightly shocked, but to enjoy themselves

«Двенадцать стульев»

Il'ia Il'f and Evgenii Petrov In the novel, a con man Ostap Bender meets dispossessed nobleman Ippolit Matveyevich Vorobianinov. Vorobianinov has just discovered, during the deathbed confession of his relative, that a set of jewels had been hidden from the Bolsheviks in one of the twelve chairs from the family's dining room set. Those chairs, along with all other personal property, had been expropriated by the government after the Russian Revolution. Bender forces Kisa (Vorobianinov's childhood funny nickname preferred by Bender) to partner with him, which ultimately helps Kisa who lacks Bender's charm and street-smarts. Kisa and Bender set off together to locate the chairs and recover the fortune, but are stymied by a series of false leads and other trying yet humorous events. Early on, they find that the chairs have been split up and sold individually and so after lots of travel, meeting comrades from every walk of life in Soviet Russia, and perpetrating plenty of cons to pay for the enterprise, the duo eventually discovers the last, 12th chair, that must - through process of elimination - contain the treasure. Vorobianinov attempts to murder Bender to avoid splitting the loot. He then discovers that the jewels have already been found, and their proceeds spent on building a new, grand public building.

«Улика»

Khodasevich Four foot iambs Alternating feminine and masc. rhyme Translation: She was misty and obscure and shimmered in the moonlit heights But embodied and bodily now she appeared before me Lo! Talking among the sedated, suddenly with a confused face, I remove the hair, long forgotten on my shoulder And I look and I understand softly tinkling my spoon Blessed is he who was lured by a dream into a hopeless, dense sleep and suddenly there is caught by himself in unearthly happiness Interpretation: Evidence: hair forgotten on his shoulder Guest - masc. noun, squinting at him after he takes a long hair off his shoulder (implies he's been with a woman) Who is she? Starts off as misty and obscure But becomes incarnate Could be the muse Main point: Happy is he who gets drawn in a dream and finds himself implicated in unearthly happiness Similar to pushkin's muse For others like Blok the muse is probably a tormentor, now we're back to pushkin's view of the muse more Turgenev Prizraki = phantoms The more earthly or corporeal he becomes and she starts to appear Foreshadows Nabokov The Gift - the female character who asks like a muse = Zina Merts (Mertsala = figure who appears out of the moonlight) same aura comes out of the moonlight

«Перешагни, перескочи...»

Khodasevich Iambic tetrameter Step over, jump over, fly over, go over however you want But break free like a sling from a slingshot, like a star ripping through the night God knows what you mumble to yourself when you're searching for your glasses or your keys Interpretation: List of commands, someone is probably in a bad situation Last two lines = have to do something big, but where are your keys, distracted by the mundane Maybe mumbling those things to himself in a poetic way as he looks for his keys Even doing something mundane and frustrating, you may have a creative spirit of work Something desperate about this Combines frustration of having lost something and verbal play Keys = unlock things, glasses = allow you to look for things Get a new perspective Looking for things that embrace the idea of escaping

«Города и годы»

Konstantin Fedin

Герой нашего времени

Lermontov 1839-1841 Pechorin as a superfluous man. The different sections of the book bring the reader increasingly close to Pechorin, and it ends with his journals. Pechorin leads on Princess Mary. Is not a good friend. Characters: nameless narrator, Pechorin, Maksim Maksimych (served with Pechorin in Caucasus), Bela, Grushnitsky (Pechorin kills him), Princess Mary, Vera (former love of Pechorin; affair with her) 1. Preface: Pechorin as symbol of Russia's ill 2. Bela: Pechorin meets Bela at wedding, saves her from Kazbich who wanted her and her brother Azamat; she and Pechorin and Maksim Maksimych live in forest, Kazbich rides off with Bela, Pechorin shoots him Mary at a health spa and decides to make her fall in love with him by first getting her to hate him, despite the fact that Grushnitsky likes her; finally asks her to dance "saving" her from a drunk officer; an old love Vera comes along and is still in love with him and mad at him for toying with Mary; Pechorin challenges Grushnitsky to a duel, he doesn't load his gun the first time and kills Grushnitsky the second time. Vera maybe told her husband she loves Pechorin and he leaves her, so she tells Pechorin to marry Mary for her. He tries to catch up to her, but fails and cries. 7. The Fatalist: Pechorin and Lieutenant Vulich bet on if fate is predetermined. Vulich fires a gun that wasn't loaded, but the second shot was loaded (killed a pig). Pechorin loses the bet. Vulich is killed by Cossacks for shooting their pig; the Cossacks bullet misses Pechorin, who thinks about fate and says he's not keen on metaphysical discussions.

Demon

Lermontov 1841 Lermontov's most famous narrative poem, it encapsulates nearly his entire life. He first started work on it at the age of fifteen, frequently returning to the poem to revise it until the year of his death. Though it seems he never truly finished the work, it is certain he would have continued had he lived longer. Some find it to be an allergoric representation of his tragic love for Varenka Luphkina, other find it a representation of Lermontov himself, who was one of the many 'superfluous' men stifled by the harsh political goals of the era of Nicholas I. Free speech was almost completely hindered, and thus men like Lermontov were both the heroes and victims of the time period. This concept seems to be a major theme of this poem and the Demon may have perhaps been an earlier prototype of Pechorin. The poem is mainly five-foot iambic throughout, except for a section in the first part where it turns trochaic for a few lines. A lyric poem by Lermontov called "Tamara" was written shortly before this piece, and certainly influenced the 1841 version of it. In the poem, a demon who has become bored with evil, and thus a neutral character neither bad nor good, is flying over the Caucuses, when he sees a Georgian noble girl named Tamara, who has just been engaged to a prince. He is troubled by her beauty and at once becomes consumed with a love for her, reawakening the creative impulsive in himself that was stifled by his boredom. Tamara's bridegroom is murdered by bandits as he goes to the wedding, and it is suggested that this is somewhat the fault of the Demon because he convinces the prince to not speak the necessary prayers while on his journey. The prince is shot as he rides away and his horse carries his dead body to Tamara. The Demon whispers to her "do not mourn him," and begins to appear to her in her dreams. In Part II Tamara retires to a convent. The demon is now completely in love with her and continues to appear in her thoughts and dreams, eventually manifesting before her. An angel tries to intervene but fails and the demon explains its love to Tamara, telling her it can provide her with all the wishes in the world if she chooses him. He leans to kiss her, but she dies in the fire of his evil. When an angel comes and takes her soul to heaven the demon attempts to intervene again, but is cast away because her soul is for God. The demon is again left proud and alone, Lermontov ending with "alone, as before, in the universe, without hope or love."

«Второго марта того же года»

Liudmila Ulitskaia

«Москва-Подрезково. 1992»

Liudmila Ulitskaia

«А все-таки»

Maiakovskii "And Yet" Four foot dol'nik (some two foot dol'nik) Couple dactylic rhymes and some feminine rhymes Last 2 Stanzas: You last judgment terrifies me like a saloon! I alone will be carried through the burning commune by whores like a holy thing of adoration they will show to God as their vindication. And over my little book God will cry! Not words, it is shudders that gooseflesh portends. He will fun with my poems in His hands through the sky and, all-out-of-breath, read them to his friends. Interpretation: Similar to zvuk ostorozhnyi Now the word isn't god's, he's created something that god runs around with and shows people how great it is Very grotesque Wants to shock, the prostitutes will like me The imagery is very striking and strange Gardens lounging about in june obscenely having thrown off their underwear = gardens, after all the blossoms have fallen off and only the green leaves are left, threw off their white underwear Puts city block on his head like a hat = showing his relationship to his environment, making buildings and people around just an accessory of his Image of himself as a poet or prophet, common theme in Russian poetry

«Приказ No. 2 армии искусств»

Maiakovskii "Order No. 2 To the Army of the Arts" No meter A call to rid ourselves of the old and create something new He's giving the order to you Talks about the art and the poets Makes fun of the poets = mystics who've covered themselves with fig leaves Futuristiki Acmeistiki Proletkultsi Etc. All who are foolishly trying to keep pushkin alive Genius I or not? There are no fools today, people who used to follow the old poets were fools, now we're better than than Last line: Give us new art that will pull the republic out of the mud! Would probably be much more powerful to actually hear him speak

«Американка»

Mandel'shtam Iambic American goes to Egypt and forgets the counsel of the Titanic that is sleeping on the bottom of the ocean. This girl isn't very smart and doesn't appreciate the culture and history of the places she is seeing. Cliche of the dumb American tourist. Ominous tone--this person has no regard for either the Titanic or Faust and thus is likely to repeat previous mistakes of humanity.

«Поговорим о Риме—дивный град!..»

Mandel'shtam Rome is a wonderful city, so we should talk about it. It was created by the victory of the cupola. Let's listen to the apostolic credo. On the eves of twelve holidays and strict canonical moons they cannot change the calendar. Above the forum, the huge moon is throwing red/brown ash on the world below. Debate between east and west--can't change the calendar. Architecture Remembering culture and history

Tristia

Mandel'shtam 1922 Considering his most important work published while he was alive (though in Berlin), it was his second collection of poems written after he wrote a Manifesto for Acmeism called TheMorning of Acmeism. It contains various images of human life, including one where man is fated into endless battle and women are left to "tell fortunes." This is connected to the symbols of wax and bronze.

«Возьми на радость из моих ладоней...»

Mandel'shtam Take sun and honey from my hands. Bees, honey, kisses, Classical references

«Магдалина»

Mandelstam

«Клоп»

Mandelstam 1929 Play in which the main character Prysipkin is engaged. He is a proletariat and is marrying into a rich family. He plays both cards, using their money, but telling them they need him so that they can be politically correct. His former girlfriend finds out he is engaged and gets upset. At the wedding, a fire breaks out and the guests all die. Prysipkin's body is frozen in the cellar and they bring it back to life. He is treated as a bedbug/animal and is put on display at the zoo. Zoya is an elderly professor at this point and she is part of the group of professors who revive him. Both the insect bedbug and the human bedbug (Prysipkin) live in the dusty mattresses of time.

«Попытка ревности»

Mandelstam What's your life like with another? Interpretation: Mt. Sinai; moses; zeus; adam and eve; Lilith = all these religious images According to non-canonical books, God made a woman before eve, Lilith = she was a problem, not created from adam's rib, had a mind of her own, but made a much more docile help meet Lilith = seductive, powerful woman Bunch of put downs followed by a change at the end Is it as difficult for you as it is for me with another? Presumably he's saying "enough of convulsions and interruptions! I'll rent myself a house!" Written about a man named Rosaevich; She liked him because she didn't treat him as a poet but as a woman. He left her and married.

«Аристократка»

Mikhail Zoshchenko

«Дар»

Nabokov

«Соглядатай»

Nabokov

«Приглашение на казнь»

Nabokov Cincinatus What is real or fake?

«В раю»

Nabokov Hello, death--and the winged companion leads me away into heaven. Sees the forest below and then his childhood home. I will be an earthly poet again. Open notebook on the table. If you talk to God about it, he will not reproach me. Memory of childhood is paradise Lure of memory and the desire to return

«Вершина»

Nabokov I love the mountain in the black fur coat of the spruce trees because in the darkness of the forest land I'm closer to my home. Isn't it just this way we will go up the slopes of paradise and will meet all that loves us and that in this life exalted us? Bridge time and space (Germany reminds him of home) Future world.

«Нет, бытие - не зыбкая загадка...»

Nabokov No, existence is not a shifting riddle. We are caterpillars of angels; and it is sweet to bit into the tender leaf from the edge. The greedier your green movement, the more magnificent the tails of your free wings will be. The world is a benign place. It's not all a mystery in life, but there is purpose. We may not look like much on earth, but after we die we will be glorious.

«Как объясню? Есть в памяти лучи...»

Nabokov Poem about wandering the streets and seeing a house that reminds him of something. A transcendent, artistic moment that he wishes he could capture, but the moment is lost and something darkens and twists his thoughts. Sense of the otherworldly. Glimpses of something that can't quite be attained. The poems repeats itself--small details, a big thought, more small details and the thought is lost. Everyday events produce remarkable thoughts that are then forgotten.

Поэт и гражданин

Nekrasov Conversation between a poet and a member of the public. Th ordinary person doesn't seem to entirely understand the poet's craft. But perhaps the poet is proud, and he asks the man if he is a greater poet than Pushkin. The man tells the poet his work is lackluster and no good. "Нет, ты не Пушкин. Но покуда, Не видно солнца ниоткуда, С твоим талантом стыдно спать;"

«Заблюдившийся трамвай»

Nikolai Gumilev Free verse or dol'nik Wandering around the city in grief and interpreting everything through the lens of his sorrow Allusive and illusive--referring to lots of other works, and it's difficult to understand what is going on. Vivid (albeit strange) imagery

«Капитаны»

Nikolai Gumilev 3-foot anapest Descriptions of the sailors seem to be pirates; image of manly courage Luxurious image

«Рабочий»

Nikolai Gumilev Trochaic pentameter Imagining the worker making the bullet as the one who is going to kill him in the battlefield. Doesn't see the enemy as a monster, but as a craftsman who works hard. Devalorizes battles--fighting is not as romantic as it has been in the past.

«Звук осторожный и глухой...»

Osip Mandel'shtam Iambic tetrameter The careful and deafening noise, fruit picked from the tree. Deep silence. Forest. Lots of oppositions--silence but deafening sound. Biblical allusions

Notre-Dame

Osip Mandelshtam 1912 6-foot iamb Magnificent edifice that is a juxtaposition of different cultures and inspires Mandelstam that he can also create something wonderful. Wonderful architecture. Tension and contrast. Architecture. Desire to create something so beautiful and marvelous. Где римский судия судил чужой народ — Стоит базилика, и — радостный и первый — Как некогда Адам, распластывая нервы, Играет мышцами крестовый легкий свод. Но выдает себя снаружи тайный план, Здесь позаботилась подпружных арок сила, Чтоб масса грузная стены не сокрушила, И свода дерзкого бездействует таран. Стихийный лабиринт, непостижимый лес, Души готической рассудочная пропасть, Египетская мощь и христианства робость, С тростинкой рядом — дуб, и всюду царь — отвес. Но чем внимательней, твердыня Notre Dame, Я изучал твои чудовищные ребра,— Тем чаще думал я: из тяжести недоброй И я когда-нибудь прекрасное создам...

Айя-София

Osip Mandelshtam 1912 In praise of the religious edifice in Constantinople. Beautiful architecture. Goes back to the idea of the word as stone. Mosque in Istanbul Iambic pentameter Describing the surpassing beauty of the Haggai Sophia. Building will outlast peoples, religions, and centuries. Beautiful architecture. Айя-София — здесь остановиться Судил Господь народам и царям! Ведь купол твой, по слову очевидца, Как на цепи, подвешен к небесам. И всем векам — пример Юстиниана, Когда похитить для чужих богов Позволила Эфесская Диана Сто семь зеленых мраморных столбов. Но что же думал твой строитель щедрый, Когда, душой и помыслом высок, Расположил апсиды и экседры, Им указав на запад и восток? Прекрасен храм, купающийся в мире, И сорок окон — света торжество; На парусах, под куполом, четыре Архангела прекраснее всего. И мудрое сферическое зданье Народы и века переживет, И серафимов гулкое рыданье Не покоробит темных позолот.

Утро акмеизма

Osip Mandelshtam 1913 "yearning for world culture" "neo-classical form of modernism" Для акмеистов сознательный смысл слова, Логос, такая же прекрасная форма, как музыка для символистов. Word is the fundamental unit. Architecture and building metaphors. Любите существование вещи больше самой вещи и свое бытие больше самих себя — вот высшая заповедь акмеизма.

Бессоница. Гомер

Osip Mandelshtam 1915 Classical imagery. Battle of Troy. Everything is moved by love. Бессоница, Гомер, тугие паруса. Я список кораблей прочел до середины: Сей длинный выводок, сей поезд журавлиный, Что над Элладою когда-то поднялся. Как журавлиный клин в чужие рубежи - На головаx царей божественная пена - Куда плывете вы? Когда бы не Елена, Что Троя вам одна, аxейские мужи? И море, и Гомер — все движимо любовью. Кого же слушать мне? И вот, Гомер молчит, И море черное, витийствуя, шумит И с тяжким грохотом подxодит к изголовью.

В Петербурге мы сойдемся снова

Osip Mandelshtam 1920 Longing for Petersburg and the associations of the past even though things weren't always peaceful there. В Петербурге мы сойдёмся снова, Словно солнце мы похоронили в нём, И блаженное, безсмысленное слово В первый раз произнесём. В чёрном бархате советской ночи, В бархате всемирной пустоты, Всё поют блаженных жён родные очи, Всё цветут безсмертные цветы. We will meet again in Petersburg, where it's as if we buried the sun. The city is like a hunched cat and there are police cars ready to pounce, but I am not afraid. Clockwork officer looks down on the world. It's okay if our candles go out. You'll never notice the night's sun. Petersburg (as a metaphor for all of Russia, perhaps) is not in a good state, but the speaker is okay dealing with that.

Мы живем, под собою не чуя страны

Osip Mandelshtam 1933 3-foot anapest Also known as the Stalin Epigram. He didn't write it down, but said it from memory in his home. At least one person went and reported the poem. He couldn't remember exactly what the poem was, but that it was disrespectful of Stalin. Mandelstam is brought in. There is no physical copy of the poem, but Mandelstam recites it in the interrogation—that is the first written copy of the poem, and it is put in his file. The first time he was arrested, he was exiled to Veronezh. Stalin had a fondness for artists. The second time he was sent to Kalumna where he died very soon. Poem making fun of Stalin and depicting him in a negative light. Our words are not audible ten steps away. Political commentary. Мы живем, под собою не чуя страны, Наши речи за десять шагов не слышны, А где хватит на полразговорца, Там припомнят кремлёвского горца. Его толстые пальцы, как черви, жирны, А слова, как пудовые гири, верны, Тараканьи смеются усища, И сияют его голенища. А вокруг него сброд тонкошеих вождей, Он играет услугами полулюдей. Кто свистит, кто мяучит, кто хнычет, Он один лишь бабачит и тычет, Как подкову, кует за указом указ: Кому в пах, кому в лоб, кому в бровь, кому в глаз. Что ни казнь у него - то малина И широкая грудь осетина.

«Сложа весла»

Pasternak Four foot dactyls Masculine and feminine alternating rhyme scheme Title: Back the Oars (resting and now you're stopping) A boat pounds in sleepy breast, willows hang down kissing my collarbones, o wait this could happen with anyone It is this way it's all triviality, this means with my timid hand to fluff up the petals of the daisy to touch with my lips the dying lilac This means to squander the circumstance on the nightingales Interpretation: Image of a skiff Begins with a sleeping, quiet, peaceful image All is trivial, in vain, squandered squander your fortune and spend it on something that's beautiful and that represents love (young lovers do this) Natural sequel to "swaying with wet, fragrant branches" Effect of being in love = the world is changed The drops of moisture come together and can't be separated They are in nature and nature is participating willow trees kiss them they play with the petals of a flower they embrace the sky spend all their money on nightingales Transformation of the world when you are in love

«Так начинает. Года в два...»

Pasternak Iambs This is how they start, two years from their wet nurse, they tear into the darkness of melodies and they chirp and they whistle and the words appear around the third year And this is how they begin to understand in the noise of the unleashed turbines and it seems that mother is not mother and you are not you, and the house is a foreign place How can he allow the star to exceed his grasp when he is Faust? When he's a dreamer. And this is how gypsies begin. And this is how iambs begin. This is how summer nights facedown fallen into the oats with a prayer: are fulfilled, they threaten the dawn by means of your pupil and this is how arguments start with the sun And this is how they begin to live by means of verse. Interpretation: Describing the maturation of a child's consciousness Bely and Joyce both discuss, mimicking the child's understanding of language as a child grows How words and sounds begin Developmental psychology Gets older and he's a Faust, fantasizer, dreamer Then seas open up, the poem takes off Last stanza = most mysterious, the stage where the poet becomes the true creator in his own right, transform the cosmos and begin to live in verse

«Душистою веткою машучи...»

Pasternak 1917 (swaying with wet, fragrant branches) amphibrach odd lines have dactylic, inexact rhymes a drop of water ran from calyx to calyx (the cup of one leaf to the cup of another) the droplet hangs there like a large agate drop let the wind, which is wafting along the meadow grass torment and flatten that droplet it's whole, it doesn't split up two of them are kissing and drinking they laugh and try to burst away to straighten up as before but this drop cannot pour out of the spout and they won't be separated even if you cut them with a knife Interpretation: one big metaphor for love kissing each other and holding on no matter what happens

«Смерть поэта»

Pasternak Four foot iambs Poem about reactions to Mayakovsky's suicide They didn't believe they thought it was They found out from two, three, all The houses of officials and merchants wives, courtyards, trees, lined themselves up in lines in the stopped dates Rooks in a daze from the heat of the sun, the male rooks excited with the female rooks shouted that fools henceforth shouldn't have butt into sinfulness, even if it's enticing It was a day, a harmless day, more harmless than your ten previous days, lining up in the lobby as if the bullet had blinded them You were asleep having made the bed on gossip You were asleep and having finished travelling were quite, Handsome, 20 year old teptractic (four-part artwork) predicted You were asleep, pillow pressed to your cheek, deeply asleep crashing again and again into a ranks of young legions you reached them in one leap, your shot was similar to Mt. Etna in the foothills of male and female cowards Interpretation: 1930 = Mayakovsky killed himself = and the shock of that news, the first people didn't believe it, thought it was gossip, or a joke Died on april 13, old style date april 1 (some thought it was a joke) Description of the poet sleeping = powerful, still doesn't fully believe that he's dead Tetraptic = obloka v shtanax = refers to himself as handsome 22 year old = beautiful man frozen in time, by your action leapt into legends of old people Your shot was like mt. etna = Reactions to the death of the poet Echoes lermontov's poem about pushkin Also called smert' poeta Upset at courtiers who didn't prevent pushkin's death The end of this seems to mirror that poem

«Весна, я с улицы, где тополь удивлен...»

Pasternak Going from dreariness, dreariness, dreariness, and BANG it's spring! Spring is a shock when it comes Dr. Zhivago = spring scene in the movie, does a good job of describing this Stunned like a man coming out of the hospital and can handly stand Evening is as an interrupted story, shocked and stunned, but presumably something will follow Nature is animate, poet doesn't have to say anything about his own expressions Tree and far expanse have emotions Synesthesia = noisy eyes, suggestive, abstract and you have to imagine

«Рояль дрожащий пену с губ оближет...»

Pasternak Iambic pentameter Imperfect feminine rhyme, circling rhyme in last stanza The shaking piano licks up the foam from the lips This nonsense will pluck you and cut you down You will say "dear or sweetheart no" I will yell "no" With music in the background - but is it possible to be closer in the half darkness O, wondrous understanding, beckon, beckon and be amazed "You are free. I will not hold you back. Go and do your charity elsewhere" Werther is already written In our days even the air smells of death To open a window is the same as to unlock your veins (commit suicide) Interpretation: Ends with death everywhere Argument between two people Imagine a couple that is at a concert and she's trying to tell him something No! then he says it's okay get out of here He cuts her off but then says its closer to be here in the darkness Presumably they are breaking up, he's wounded, his way of coping is to dismiss her = sarcasm = go do your good deeds somewhere else Werther = The sorrows of Young Werther Tragic hero, in love with someone, can't have her, so he goes and kills himself Werther has already been written, I'm not going to go down that path, The world outside is so dark (our problems don't matter in the scope of things) I don't need to commit suicide because the world is full of wretched things anyway, opening windows is like cutting open a vein Some of these things feel like plot lines in Zhivago

«Уроки английского»

Pasternak Iambic, mixed 4 & 5 foot iambs When it was Desdemona's time to sing, so little life was left to her, she cried not for love or stars but for willows When it was Ophelia's time to sing, the bitterness of reveries bored her, with what kind of trophy did she sink with? With a bunch of willows and selandine. Interpretation: Characters in Shakespeare: Othello's DESDEMONA = Iago convinces her husband, Othello, that she was unfaithful to him, even though she wasn't and he strangled her; Before she dies, she recalls a song sung by her maid and sings that song "Sing willow, willow, willow" OPHELIA = in Hamlet, commits suicide; She too was betrayed by the man she loved, Hamlet's abusive to her, angry at her because he's angry at his mother who became the wife of his father's murderer, says "get thee to a nunnery" she goes mad and commits suicide and floats away, clutching willows BOTH WOMEN ASSOCIATED WITH DEATH, WATER, AND WILLOWS Pasternak has an empathy for these women that loved deeply and died for that love Pasternak translated Shakespeare into Russian (something he did when he wasn't in favor with the authorities)

«Зимняя ночь»

Pasternak Zhivago poem 1946 Iambic Sweeping up across the whole world in every direction, a candle was burning on the table, a candle was burning And like in the summer a swarm flies to the flame, flakes from outside have swarmed together into the windowpane The snowstorm had pasted onto the glass, circles and arrows, and the candle burned on the table, the candle burned On the lit ceiling, shadows laid down, and the crossing of hands the crossing of legs the crossing of fate Two slippers fell onto the floor and the wax like tears dripped onto the dress from the night light Grey and white the candle burned Into the fire of temptation blew from the fire onto the candle and it furled into wings like an angel in the image of a cross And swept up a whole month into February and now and then the candle burned on the table, the candle burned Interpretation: Zhivago drives by and sees a candle in the window and there's a scene with Laura and Strel'nikov, he sees this and doesn't know what's going on but ends up writing this poem Really resonates with tension of the scene and what's happening in the room Consistently the candle is burning on table, despite storm outside Snow = unknown, cold, chaotic, almost penetrates room, freezes window, Candle = never quite makes it into the room, it's an island of heat and warmth Objects: slippers, dress, both are discarded items Fragments that you put together to make a picture Simplicity makes things stand out = crossed arms, crossed legs, fates are crossed = last part emphasized because it's reversed word order Two wings in the shape of a cross (root of crossed, appears again here) Lovers are not just physical beings in physical activity, but something sacred, martyrdom and connected with a cross February = revolution Мело, мело по всей земле Во все пределы. Свеча горела на столе, Свеча горела.

«Во всем мне хочется дойти...»

Pasternak Zhivago poem 1956 Alternating iambs 4 foot and 2 foot Masc. feminine alternating rhyme I would like to reach: the very essence in work, in search of the path, in the heart's disturbance The essence of past days, their reason, the foundation, the core All the while grasping the thread, fate's events, to live, to feel, to love, to make discoveries Even if only partially I could I would write 8 lines about the properties of passion about illegalities about sins, about flights and pursuits, rushed surprises, elbows, and palms I would deduce passion's law; its beginning; and I would repeat the initials of its name I'd lay out my verse like a garden; with trembling veins, lime trees would blossom in a row single-file In poems I would introduce a breath of roses, a breath of mint to the meadows, to hayfields, the appeals of a thunderstorm As Chopan introduced the living miracle of farms, oaks, etc. into his etudes (short piece of music) The game and torment of achieved triumph , the taut string of a light bow Interpretation: How he thinks poetry should be written, what it should be Associations with beauty and nature Wants all of his poems to be as exquisite and tense as a taut bow string (all this tension and ready to go = wants his poems to be like that = reader as receiving the impact or shot from the arrow) Pasternak's poems get more simple - took his whole life to achieve simplicity as in the Zhivago poems

«Бог Посейдон»

Petrushevskaia

«Новый Гулливер»

Petrushevskaia

«Свой круг»

Petrushevskaia 1988 This short story deals with the narrator, who has developed control over their circle of friends even though they love them. The main character's gender is in fact unknown at first and the entire story is simply a prelude to the ending. Many descriptions of bodily functions occur which was very against Soviet social norms at the time, including vomit, flatulence and what is called in the story "simple incest."

Zenkovsky, Medieval Russian Epics, Chronicles and Tales

Pouchenia Vladimir Monomakha (1053-1125) • One of the first examples of autobiographical writing. o Autobiographical writings of Avakuum come later. • Less a prescription of how to rule than a prescription of how to live one's life. • Combination of piety and violence in his narrative. • Over 60 accounts of his various battles; presented in a dry fashion. • He's very into hunting. Boris and Gleb: Lots of versions of it. The most wide-spread one is from about the same time period as the Chronicle, but the text is a lot richer. • This text is not too far removed time-wise from the Chronicle, but the text is much richer. o Psychology—more developed characters o More dialogue o Narrator gives the whole genealogy to set the stage—it's not just a dry recollection of facts. Focusing in on one thing. o More emotion—Boris and Gleb weep and pray a lot. • What is it about the story that makes it so popular? How is it different than the Chronicle. o More psychology of the characters. o More relationships between servants/masters/community as a whole. Larger cast of characters. o This text is more religious—the characters are always praying. Christianity had only been in Russian for 27 years by this point (1015). Religious references have become more the fabric of daily life. o Like the Chronicle, it makes comparisons between the Bible (Cain and Sviatipolk). o Boris and Gleb were so submissive—holiness in suffering. o Comparison of Boris and Gleb with Christ—voluntary acceptance of suffering and death. Sacrificing themselves for the good of the people. This is a wonderful act in that it imitates the suffering of Christ. • Boris and Gleb view Sviatipolk almost as a father—he was the eldest brother. • Boris says that if Sviatipolk tries to kill him, he will be the martyr for God. • Literary features o Dialogue o Fuller characters o Similes (unstable like cobwebs). o Metaphors (don't cut off the grape vine which hasn't bloomed yet) o Gleb comes across as very human when he is pleading for his life. Human weakness in this pleading—makes him real and takes him down from the pedestal of martyr. • Humanity is what distinguishes Boris and Gleb from other saints. This makes them uniquely Russian. The importance of suffering--suffering (especially innocent suffering) for its own sake is redemptive. The Lay of Igor's Campaign (written 12th century) • Prince Igor against Kumans 1185 • Zenkovsky 167 this tale "is unanimously acclaimed as the highest achievement in Russian literature of the Kievan era." • We don't really know anything about the writer of this work. • Boyan is mentioned often (a bard), but there is virtually nothing known about him. • It begins with the assurance that this is an event that really occurred and that it is not just some bard. • Literary characteristics o Imagery, symbolism, poetic address, lyric lamentation, assonance, alliteration o Symbol of falcon; gray wolf o Metaphors o Similes • Lament over feudal discord • Somewhat didactic—calling people to stop fighting • Poetic—lots of description • Psychology—a dream; some thinking/dialogue Nabokov said, "The Igor Tale stands alone." What does he mean? • It is poetry in prose form. The very form itself is different from what has gone before. • It is difficult to read, even in the modern Russian. • It doesn't necessarily glorify him as a saint, but it portrays him as a person. It doesn't try to overtly persuade you to like the characters. o The whole text is about a defeat. o Here the weaker/bad guy is the hero. • There are a lot of literary devices—metaphors and descriptions and rich imagery. Repetition (particularly of the phrase "Russian land! You are already behind the hills." • It is didactic, but beautiful. It writes about a dream, and there is some recorded thoughts of some people. • Palpably literary. • The text conveys meaning through the literary devices—something we associate with more contemporary writings. • More fragmented structure—you jump around in time and place and there is so much imagery that it is difficult to find the plot. o Maybe they are assuming that everybody knows the background, and so the fragmentation was not intentional. o Perhaps it could have been somewhat intentional—representing the chaos of war. But that might be too forward-thinking for a writer of that time. o The author is not interested in chronology, or even in historical veracity even though the event described is a historical one. • There are a lot of names in a short piece of writing. • Addresses the reader as brothers. Breaks down the wall between narrator and reader. o Invites the reader to participate in the text. o There is almost an excess of authorial presence, which is unusual for that time. • Nature plays a role as a separate character. o There are so many birds in the text. • Almost seems like an oral fable. How would this text be passed down? Perhaps orally? • Discusses the creative process. Discovery and translation, etc. of the text • Written in the 12th century. 1185. Written shortly after Prince Igor's campaign. Part of the immediacy that the text conveys comes from very fresh impressions that the narrator conveys. • It was discovered in the 18th century, and this was burned in the Moscow fires during the Napoleonic war. It was a 15th century copy—portfolio compilation. We don't have any copies from the three centuries between its original writing and the 15th century. • Aside from the original that burned, there were other texts that were circulating. • Alexei Musin Pushkin—collector of old manuscripts; owned the 15th century copy. It was his home that burned in Moscow. o 1800 He was encouraged to publish Igor. o There were seven other documents that were part of the book that was burned. We don't have records of them. o In addition to the published copy of Igor, there was a copy made for Catherine the Great. Prepared in 1793. That copy still exists. o There were also fragments copied by Milanowsky who participated in the 1800 publication. o The fact that there are multiple copies helps support the claim to authenticity of the text. The debate on authenticity • It stands alone so much that we even doubt if it is an original. It seems too good. • Introduction to 1800 text o Says the text was in the spirit of Ossian. The Scottish bard who was a year later discovered to be a hoax. The writers of the introduction didn't know that it was a hoax. Kind of ironic. • A.A. Zaliznyak "The Problem of the Authenticity of The Tale of Igor's Campaign" • There have been some claims that the Lay originated in the 18th century, since the original copy burned during the Napoleonic invasion. o It's either authentic or not. Highly unlikely that it is a forgery, since the person writing it would have had to know an incredible amount about linguistics—ahead of his day, and keep it all straight. Such a genius could not have existed in the late 18th century. o Dostoevsky couldn't even keep two linguistic traits correctly aligned, and the forger would have had to juggle hundreds. • Jose Dobrovsky o Harvard professor (Keenan) comes up with the theory that Dobrovsky (the Czech scholar) was the mad genius who fabricated Igor's Tale. This isn't considered the last word. • We are going to treat it not as a fake, but as a text with very unique origins. • Some rhetoric is shared between the different accounts of Igor's tale (Letopis, different chronicles). Задонщина—story of the battle that took place beyond the Don • Battle of Kulyukovo—Dmitri Donskoy's victory over Mamai. o Happens 160 years after the first attack of the Mongols on the Russian land at the river Kulka. o 1380—Zadonshina written just a few years after. (1383) • Related to the Igor Tale—similarities; these similarities support the idea that the Igor tale is authentic. (Although critics can claim that Zadonshina was written first. . .) o Boyan appears Clairvoyant in both of them. This one is singing about bygone times, so how is he still seeing the future. In Igor there is a feeling of distance from the Boyan, since Boyan wasn't as good or direct as the Igor tale. • Failure is not a proper tale for Boyan. In Zadonshina, there is a desire to remember Boyan; he is good and straightforward. o Lots of birds—falcons in particular Zadonshina—Russians are compared to falcons, and Tatars are swans and geese Див • Zadonshina—issues a screech; twice • Igor—also screeches; four times • We don't really know what this mythical creature is. o Poetic/lyrical o Apostrophe—direct address o Quotes from Igor Tale o Scenes with wives far away and lamenting for their husbands. Both tales depict the weeping women as birds mourning for their husbands. Address mourning to the river. • Differences from Igor Tale o Victory in Zadonshina, whereas defeat in Igor. More coherent presentation. o More grammatically familiar. Much more accessible. Хождение Богородицы по мукам •Translation from Greek text. Mary observing the torments of the sinners. • Conflict between justice and mercy. • Resolved with justice ruling supreme, but the sinners getting a reprieve from their sufferings from Good Thursday until Pentacost. Referred to in Brothers Karamazov in Ivan's Grand Inquisitor Слово Данила заточника • 17th century version, but that's not when it was composed. o Two texts—моление и слово. Some people think that моление was the 13th century while слово was the 12th. o Perhaps the quotations were later interpolations. • Danil—we don't know exactly who he was; some scholars suggest he was somebody close to the princess but fell out of favor; perhaps he was a fictional character used to frame the text • There are a lot of direct Biblical quotations. • Citations from The Bee, which was a collection of Latin and Greek aphorisms • Lots of similes • He likens the prince to God and asks for mercy using Biblical language. • Switch partway through from the Biblical quotes to witticisms and things about evil wives. :P o Злая жена—a wife who speaks up and stands up to her husband. According to the church, the wife is only supposed to obey. Maybe he raises this point because he wants to encourage the prince to listen to him and not other people; perhaps the prince's wife was the one who kicked Danil out of favor. • Discussion of divine and secular mercy; evil wives; himself. • Likens himself to a bee—just as they gather nectar from different flowers, so too he gathers from various books knowledge and puts them all together in one vessel as if they were waters from the sea. • Buffoonery. Maybe this was intended to be entertaining. Maybe the narrator realizes he has been taking himself too seriously and he wants to make his reader laugh. The Battle on the River Kulka • 1224 Shortly after invasion of the Mongols in 1223 at the River Kulka. o The invasion was not strategic, but more accidental. • Chronicler represents these events with lots of context. • It's framed with the acknowledgment that the Tatars came as an instrument of God's punishment for their sins. o A way of making sense for the way that bad things happen to them. • The Russians had just defeated the Kumans. The text depicts them as evil and Godless. The text blames the Kumans for inciting the Russians against the Tatars. • The Tatars sent envoys to persuade the Russians not to attack, but the Russians killed the envoys. o Weird that the Tatars were speaking in very Christian terms. Слово о погибели русской земли • 1248-1256 o After Battle on Kulka o In the years where Tatars sweep the Russian lands and conquer lots of it. o Perhaps the fall of Kyiv (1240) is considered the biggest defeat. o This fragment could have preceded the text Alexander Nevsky, but not all scholars agree with that. • Introductory text that is just a fragment—we don't know the end of the story. o Probably refers to the Mongol yoke and Mongol raids. • Land is depicted as beautiful and bountiful. It is all here for the Christian reader. Lots of superlatives. Everything is attractive. • Could be a lament over a defeat, but also a call to action—perhaps patriotism or to come fight. • Rare original from this time period—it's not a translation from the Greek. o Yet is doesn't seem authentically Russian—Biblical (garden of Eden); things associated with Greece. Life of Alekcander Nevsky • First vita written about a prince. (Prince of Vladimir and all of Russia.) o Defended his holy nation. • Defeats the Swedes in the Battle of the Neva. • A warrior is the narrator; People that he fought with are depicted. • Begins with the author describing himself—thin and sinful man. • Description of Aleksander Nevsky—wonderful and good and backed by God as the prince. Linked to Biblical prophets and other great rulers and kings. o Always defeats but is never defeated. o Even foreign kings respect and admire him. • Vision. • They win the war. • Pope sends envoys to see Nevsky after he defended Russia from the Mongols. Nevsky tells them that they don't need Catholicism because they know the Bible. • Nevsky becomes a monk. Miracle at his death—Nevsky extended his hand for the candle as he lies in his coffin. • 16th century—Velikiy chetia menyia o Canonincal compilation of lives of saints. 12 volumes. o This was probably the most popular book among the reading population. o Lots of quotations from the Bible; life of the saint presented in stages; parents and birthplace mentioned; education or lack thereof. Typical saint would shun play as a child; wanted to be alone and read. Following the death, there were accounts of miracles. Narrator telling the story is characterized by humility; frequent references to asking for forgiveness and forbearance. Focus on virtue and piety and godliness and martyrdom

Вольность. Ода

Pushkin 1817 Herzen published it after Pushkin's death. It reached the government in 1820 and was one reason for Pushkin's exile, and it also influenced the revolution of 1917. Written to the "слабая царица". Censures the monarch. He hates the monarch. Freedom and peace will be the eternal guards of the throne. Concluding stanza: "И днесь учитесь, о цари: Ни наказанья, ни награды, Ни кров темниц, ни алтари Не верные для вас ограды. Склонитесь первые главой Под сень надежную Закона, И станут вечной стражей трона Народов вольность и покой."

Евгений Онегин

Pushkin 1823-1831 Tatiana is seen as a strong female hero. Onegin is selfish. Lensky dies in the duel. iambic tetrameter Characters: narrator (comments on upper-class, art, society), Onegin (first superfluous man), Lensky, Tatiana, Olga Plot: 1. Eugene inherits uncle's estate, 2. Tatiana (who gets her ideas from French novels) falls in love with Eugene and writes him a love letter, 3. he denies her when she approaches him directly, 4. Eugene attends Tatiana's nameday celebration but flirts with her sister Olga, 5. Lensky challenges him to a duel and dies in the duel, Eugene flees, 6. Tatiana visits his empty mansion and finds that he is just a compilation of famous figures in books: there is no real Onegin, 7. later Eugene and Tatiana meet in Moscow and she's married, role reversal: he writes her a love letter, she doesn't respond, he approaches her and she rejects him as he once rejected her Themes: superfluous man, books (Tatiana reads, Lensky writes poetry, Onegin knows a little bit from lots of different books)

Поэт

Pushkin 1827 Apollo summons the poet to the holy sacrifice. Before he was immersed in worldly cares (his lyre is silent; his soul is sleeping; he is insignificant_. But when the divine word touches his hearing, his soul starts like a roused eagle. He forsakes the world and flees to deserted seas and spacious forests.

Пророк

Pushkin 1828 His calling as a prophet. Biblical imagery (Isaiah). Romantic view of a poet prophet.

Повести Белкина

Pushkin 1829-1830 Series of short stories that Pushkin wrote. Intro is a letter from a man in the village describing Ivan Belking and how this orphan grew up in the village and died there at age 30. Выстрел--Silvio is an older man who befriends the regiment but then loses their trust because he will not challenge someone to a duel. He goes and takes the shot from a previous duel because he wanted to see fear in the eyes of his opponent. Snowstorm--young love; try to elope, but a snowstorm prevents them. He joins the army and is killed. She pines for him. years later she falls in love with a young man and it turns out that the two of them were married that night in the snowstorm.

Поэту

Pushkin 1830 Romantic call for the poet to leave the people and write what is in his heart. Pay no heed to the others. The crowd playfully shakes his tripod at the end.

Пиковая дама

Pushkin 1834 German is initially a very controlled person who does not engage in card games, but the story of the old woman's secret entices him to start gambling. 3, 7, ace. He kills the old woman somewhat unintentionally; deceives the young woman who thought he loved her. He is deceived by the trick and loses all his money gambling and goes crazy.

«Для берегов отчизны дальной»

Pushkin Bound for the shores of your distant home you were leaving an alien land. My hands and my moans tried to hold you back. But you tore away your lips from our bitter kiss. You called me to another land. You said, "when we meet again, in the shade of olive trees, we shall once more be joined in a kiss of love." But there-where the olive trees lie warm on the waters, you have fallen asleep forever You have vanished in the grave. I wait for the sweet kiss of our meeting; you owe it to me.

Медный всадник

Pushkin 1833 Evgenii is chased by the bronze statue of Peter. Flood. His fiancee is killed in the flood. Somewhat ambiguous--is it praising Peter or censuring him? It is his fault that the city has been built there, but Peter is seen as a high and powerful figure. Referring to the historical flood of 1824. Foundational in the Petersburg myth.

Symbolism

Real world isn't important. We focus on the world beyond objects. Spiritual world is more important.

«Да! Теперь решено. Без возврата...»

Sergei Esenin 3 foot dol'nik; anapestic at the beginning Cyclical nature of the poem Can't tell where it ends Melancholy Drinking with prostitutes and bandits = taken him as low as he can go, can't leave the situation Others in taverns or with prostitutes, similar themes in similar settings but with a different focus One of Esenin's classic poems

«Не жалею, не зову, не плачу...»

Sergei Esenin We all in this world are given to decay Interpretation Another poem about nature, melancholy feel Lamenting how time passes and remarking upon the beauty of nature Bloom doom theme (named by Nabokov) wondering where your youth has gone Pushkin mocks when Lenskii writes at 18 about how his youth is lost Interesting way of evoking the loss of the past and the loss of his youth Suggests that it's worthwhile having lived

«Песнь о собаке»

Sergei Esenin 3 foot dol'nik inexact feminine rhymes This mother dog is sad for her children, this frowning man took them away and put them into the bag The pond still trembles = throws them into the river to drown them She runs back is saddened and depressed Last line suggests that she is crying Does a good job of evoking that scene, very palpable

«Тихий Дон» (part I required)

Sholokhov 1928-1940 Took Sholokhov 15 years to write. (There were claims that he plagiarized this work, since he was not able to show original manuscripts, etc. but these claims have since been laid to rest.) Takes place in the Don river valley just prior to WWI. Melekhov family of Tatarsk are the main characters. (Their ancestor was a soldier who took a female Turkish captive for his wife.) Second oldest son is Gregor Melekhov--young soldier who lives Aksinia. They elope and husband's family is unhappy. Plot focuses on both this romance and the approaching war.

Звезда Маир

Sologub 1898 5ft and 2ft iamb; feminine and masculine alternating rhyme Everyone worships a star in another world - we worship nothing in this one The perfect world is out of reach and unattainable it is filled with love and peace

Когда я в бурном море плавал...

Sologub 1902 4ft iamb; feminine and masculine rhyme Ode to the Devil Prayed to the devil when he was floating in the sea, the devil helped him and now he wants to spread the word Poetically shows the darkness of the world and dark days of his time world so terrible only devil can help him

Околдвал я всю природу

Sologub 1904 4ft iamb; feminine and masculine alternating ego plays key role - he created all of nature (the stars told him he did) he charmed nature and stopped time, but when he asked heavens to reverse his charm they told him he is the creator of nature К main sound in the beginning, but then с, з, в dominate (plays with sounds)

Мы -пленненые звери

Sologub 1905 2ft and 3ft anapests; all feminine rhymes We are all captured animals in captivity we can never leave We have forgotten that captivity is a bad thing We haven't longed for freedom in a long time Poet the only one who has a problem with our captivity

Змий, парящий над вселенною

Sologub 1908 trocheic tetrameter; feminine and masculine alternating rhyme Biblical reference to the snake devouring the world Poet praises the flaming snake you take on the heavy task of destroying everything But snake also causes winds and clouds to prevent from things burning too fast slow destruction

В круге первом

Solzhenitsyn

Gulag Archipelago

Solzhenitsyn 1958-- 227 informants Took 10 years to write Less self-censorship than Ivan Denisovich. Each person is cut through the heart between good and evil; it depends on how much of each you have that determines what the camp will do to you. The capacity to commit evil is in the ideology. The ideology works to justify evil as good, and that releases the capacity in people to commit evil at an unprecedented scale. The communist idea comes to Russia from the west. Is it the ideology born in the west that is to blame, or the place in which it was implemented with its own history and dynamics? Solzhenitsyn argues the first position—it is the fault of communism. He compares Russia before and after Bolshevism. He needs to convince the reader of this. Polemic discussion with Shalamov—is man good or evil? Is a human morally equipped to withstand the pressures of the camp and remain a human being, or is humanity a limited resource that is extinguished under certain circumstances? Book contains lots of facts, as well as Solzhenitsyn's own personal experiences and reflections.

Раковый корпус

Solzhenitsyn 1968 Takes place in Uzbekistan in 1950s. Characters are cancer patients at the hospital. Novel focuses on political themes as well as the effect that camps have on people.

Jakobson

Structuralist

Shklovsky

Structuralist

Tomashevsky

Structuralist

«На золотом крыльце сидели»

Tatiana Tolstaia (know one story)

Mammoth Hunt

Tatiana Tolstaia 1989 Short story where a predatory woman who is desperate to marry stalks a successful engineer who is oblivious to her designs.

«Кысь»

Tatiana Tolstaia 2000 Post-modern novel. Takes place in the future where people have forgotten about Russia and culture. The main character is the son of a woman who had lived in the previous, cultured world, but she has since died. Everybody has some sort of mutation. They eat mice. The higher powers are trying to confiscate all the books. The main character marries the daughter of one of the leaders (whole family has claw feet) and he reads books and eats well. He begins also snatching books so that he can read them. Grim picture of an authoritarian world. • Book begins in winter • Benedict—has a great tail that's beautiful (kind of like a slynx) • Mother—Oldener; died at 230 years • Style is skaz o Skaz—simple speech; used in folklore; like spoken speech; unusual forms of speaking; стил повествования (narrative); this is how this narrator is speaking; non-standard; uneducated speech; lots of diminutives; repeated sounds (as would be used in speaking—звук something . ..) o What feeling does that create? Possibly awkward. Not comfortable. Maybe like something is going to happen. • Feodor-Kuzmichsk. Their city was once Moscow. Street signs. Mom saying it. Seven hills. o People live in избы or терем (more than one level—word from the middle ages; the part where the women would live) • These people fear everybody around them. They are afraid of going to the south. They only hear everything by rumors—their fear is spread by stories. o The west is a beautiful place. Peaceful. The west isn't a place, but a direction—a movement. o The south is a forbidden place. o In the north there is the кысь (рысь и кошка) • The legend of the slynx scares people from emigrating. • Новый яз—new speak o But this new speak is a step backwards • Орешка—nut (on the pinecone) [светличок—firefly] o Maybe the firelings are a hybrid between fruit and firefly. Pushkin statue carved by Benedict • They eventually put Pushkin in between the fences. • Six fingers because he thought something might get messed up. • Lev (a dissident) didn't like it o Futurist manifesto—Пощечина общественному вкусу—slap in the face of public taste o This manifesto said that they need to move forward quickly and forget the past. Which is funny because these people have completely forgotten the past, and their "future" is bad. • Lots of references to Pushkin's poem Я памякник себе воздвиг Fyodor Kuzmich—Sologyub; seems like a Krushcev figure (there is a type of thaw and loosening of what had preceded) Sergei-Sergeich was more strict (could only meet in groups of two or three) Teterya—kind of like Sologyub's birth name; also a character in Pushkin something Kudeyar Kudeyarich—Character in Silver Dove Olenka and her mother (overweight) are references to former Russian merchants (pictures of them as wide as a house) Fevronia—reference to old tale about Petr and Fevronia; there is a day dedicated to them in Russia; late 16th century; first love story Atavism in the book—people have moved backward—more cruel and violent as well as are physically deformed and have traits that are commonly associated with animals. What is personhood in this novel? • Russian nationalism—in Slynx, Russians are left alone to themselves like Russian nationalism wants to do. • The Chechens aren't described as having Consequences. Was the whole world hit by the nuclear holocaust, or was just Moscow hit? • Loss of self. No personhood anywhere in the novel. • Nobody in this novel becomes anyone. • Benedict is the fulcrum around which the whole satire works. • This is an anti-Putin book. Tolstaya is fearless about showing Russian pathologies and obsessions. • Moral—you can't leave the book on the table; you have to let literature and culture affect you as a person or it is not worth anything. • Culture is something that must be worked on. • Varvara is the only one who can see further than the other people. Ultimately she can't do anything to help, but all of the other modern people are stuck in the time and can't see anything. • List of books—everything all juxtaposed together and it doesn't make any sense.

Умом Россию не понять

Tiutchev 1866 Умом Россию не понять, Аршином общим не измерить: У ней особенная стать - В Россию можно только верить. Patriotic verse. Iambic tetrameter.

Война и мир

Tolstoy 1865-1869 Realism Takes place during the war of 1812 with Napoleon. (Tolstoy refers to about 160 real persons in this novel.) Belkonsky family Rostov family Pierre Natasha He goes on rants about how history books don't know anything. He wants to blur the line between history and fiction to depict the truth better.

Анна Каренина

Tolstoy 1873-1877 (published serially in "The Russian Messenger") realism Anna Arkadyevna Karenina--Stepan Oblonsky's sister; Karenin's wife; Vronsky's lover Prince Stepan (Stiva) Oblonsky--Anna's brother; Dolly's husband; 34; civil servant; cheats on his wife Princess Darya (Dolly) Oblonskaya--Stepan's wife, 33 Count Alexei Alexandrovich Karenin--statesman; Anna's husband; 20 years older than Anna Konstantin Levin--Kitty's suitor; Stiva's friend; landowner; 32 Princess Ekaterina (Kitty) Shcherbatskaya--Dolly's younger sister; 18 Princess Elizaveta (Betsy)--Anna's immoral friend; Vronsky's cousin Countess Lidia Ivanova--leader of society circle; Orthodox; shuns Betsy; self-righteous Sergei Alexeyich Karenin--Anna and Karenin's son Anna--Anna and Vronsky's daughter Anna goes to visit her brother Stiva to try to reconcile Dolly and Stiva after Stiva has been unfaithful. While there she meets Vronsky who then follows her back and pursues her for a year before the two have an affair. She eventually leaves her husband and son. She and Vronsky have a daughter Anna. Childbirth is difficult, and Karenin forgives her at her deathbed. Vronsky attempts suicide. Anna recovers and decides she can't stay with Karenin, and she and goes to Italy with Vronsky. They are bored there and return to Russia, but she is shunned by society. (He is able to move about freely, however.) Her son lives with Karenin, and he tells him that his mother is dead. Attempts to get a divorce, but it is dropped. She eventually goes crazy under all the stress and pressures and throws herself under a train. Karenin takes custody of baby Anna. Vronsky goes off to fight in the war. Levin courts Kitty, and the two eventually end up getting married. (Kitty turned down the first proposal since she had expected Vronsky to propose, but he shunned her at the ball. Kitty is heartbroken and her health fails. She goes abroad to the spa and learns a lot about taking care of sick people.) He is very protective. He undergoes a spiritual conversion. They go to Moscow for Kitty to have the baby. He there meets Anna. Story ends with their first child, Dmitri. Symbols/motifs: trains and train tracks (Anna meets Vronsky's mother on the train; when she arrives, a train worker falls in front of the train and is killed); the horse Fru-Fru as a symbol of Anna Familial happiness and faithfulness contrasted with unfaithfulness and deterioration of happiness. "Vengeance is mine, I will repay" "Happy families are all alike; every unhappy family is unhappy in its own way"

Смерть Ивана Ильича

Tolstoy 1886 Novella written after his religious conversion. Ivan is dying but nobody will acknowledge it. A story about living and dying correctly. His wife doesn't seem to care about him or his death. Gerasim is the butler and he is really the only one who comforts Ivan or openly acknowledges that he is dying. Son also somewhat acknowledges Ivan's death. Ivan's daughter has a fiance. He had focused too much on work before his illness and had not paid enough attention to his family life. Black bag. Terror of death disappears. A hollow life is worse than death. You must live right so you can honestly face death.

Крейцерова соната

Tolstoy 1889 Argues for sexual abstinence. Pozdnyshev--main character who kills his wife. Love and fighting are mixed in their marriage. She bears five children. She finds a lover and they play the Kreutzer Sonata together. Pozdnyshev kills his wife in anger when he returns from a trip to find his wife and her lover together. He is acquitted of the murder because of his wife's unfaithfulness. The book was banned in Russia, and the US also restricted access to the book. Tolstoy later published an epilogue talking about how the point of the novel is abstinence and chastity and how these should be the guiding principles of society.

Хаджи Мурат

Tolstoy 1896-1904; published 1912 He wrote this near the end of his life, and it is possible that it is what gave him strength to carry on living and thinking. Based on actual people and events. War in the Caucusus. Hadji Murat is a Turkish Caucasian warrior rebel who is seeking revenge and tries to become friends with the Russians who were once his enemies. Themes: resistance; determinism Crushed but alive thistle at the beginning is a symbol for the main character. The Chechens have kidnapped Hadji's family and he sides with the Russians to save them and avenge other deaths. Shamil is the enemy who is holding Murat's family captive. Condemns the aristocracy and royal family. Murat is decapitated by the Russians.

Исповедь

Tolstoy His conversion story. Non-fiction. A lot of his experiences correspond with Levin and his spiritual experiences.

«Стихи о Москве»

Tsvetaeva Series of poems about Moscow. Dedicated to Mandel'shtam--giving her beloved city to the Petersburg poet. o Sometimes writes in iambs or trochees, but often it is syncopated or tonic. o 1. I will lift up Moscow. I will rejoice in Moscow even when I'm dead. o 2. Accept from my hands this city not created by human hands, my strange, my wonderful brother. Guiding through Salvation gates (into Kremlin). The mother of God will drop her cloak on you, and you will not repent that you loved me. Lots of vv, zz—buzzing. o 3. The squares rush us past the nightly towers. The roar of the young soldiers is scary. Love. Kisses. My mouth is hot; in vain that the look is holy. Light a candle, so that today it won't be like I want it to be. o 4. They say that the sad day will come. They will finish governing, mourning, and weeping. My eyes have grown cold with someone else's coins. We are all groping to find that ideal, iconic face. People are coming to kiss her. The wrapped me from head to heel in the divine nun's clothing. I'm not going to be embarrassed now because today is my holy Easter. I will go along the streets of Moscow, and you will all follow behind. The lonely, self-loving dream will be resolved. Nothing will be necessary from now until the newly deceased suffering court member Marina. She is assuming the role of Christ. Talking after she was dead. Being resurrected. o 5. The bell thunder rolls above the city rejected by Peter. The thundering surf broke over the woman who was rejected by you. Praise to you and the King Peter. But higher than you, kings, are the bells. While they thunder out of the blue—the firstplaceness of Moscow. And all forty forty churches laugh at the proud king! Enlivening bells. o 8. Moscow is kind of an orphanage. Russians are generally homeless, but we can come to you and be healed. o Place matters to her. The spiritual references are more cultural and physical—all about Moscow and its heritage. o The separate poems are written on various holidays. Last one written on the day of Mary's ascendance into heaven. (And Marina is saying that's the day she was born.)

«Четвертый год...»

Tsvetaeva Today for the first time you observe floating eyes, and blocks of eyes and cupolas, and golden ring and silver ring and hands are crossed and mouth is closed And you contemplate: Mom where is the ice going? Forward a little swan crossing the palaces the church and the gates, forward little swan Blue gaze (preoccupied, concerned) you love me marina, very. Forever, yes? The sun sets, soon it will be backward and me I will read the impudent letters But ice and all will pass. Interpretation: 4 year old daughter = Ariadne, she called her Alia Napoleon took Moscow but it was empty at that point = daughter looks like little napoleon herself Daughter says "Do you love me, Marina?" "will you love me forever" Strange way to address mom Husband is in the army Mother goes off to read audacious, impudent letters Some other males propositioning her? The image of the ice still flowing = second line = her eyes are like ice, which goes forward in the end Wistful feeling Very vivid image Ice breaking up = spring is coming

«Зверю-берлога...»

Tsvetaeva Not a consistent meter; Dactyls, trochees, only consistent thing is first syllable is stressed AAABCCCB To a beast there is a den To a wanderer there is a road To dead person = Herse To each is their own (thing) To a woman there is to be cunning To a tsar = there is to rule To me to glorify your name Interpretation: Her role is to glorify the name of this person Asking us to think about herself in light of these other things Why mention a dead person? Unless to her to be in this relationship is simple Her relationship to this guy = she needs to be tricky in this relationship because he's the king Connolly thinks that this poem is directed toward Blok = he's the tvoe Indicative of her style = likes sounds and repetitions

«Все великолепье...»

Tsvetaeva Trochaic More modernist than traditional poetic meter All of the greatness of the trumpet is only the grass in front of you All of the greatness of the storms is only the twitter of the birds before you All of the greatness of the wings is only the quiver of the eyelids in front of You Interpretation: Capitalized T = usually indicative of God Nature, greatness, capital t in toboj Enjambment lines = noun greatness followed by genitive plural in the next line And one more time, noun at the end of the second line, carries over and is followed by another genitive plural

Отцы и дети

Turgenev 1862 Arkady Kirsanov goes home after graduating from University of Petersburg and brings his friend Bazarov with him. Bazarov is a nihilist. Conflict between the generations. Nikolai was at first really excited to have Arkady come home, but becomes increasingly concerned with his son's professed nihilism and the growing difference between the two of them. Nikolai has a French mistress and has a son with her, but Arkady rejoices in this. After a few weeks at Nikolai's place, they go to visit Bazarov's relations. They meet Madame Anna Sergevna Odintsova. Arkady loves her, and she is interested in Bazarov. But Bazarov also falls in love, which bothers him since it is contrary to nihilism. But he tells her he loves her, and she does not reply in kind, which also bothers him. Relationship between Bazarov and Arkady begins to change--Arkady is no longer such a blind follower. They visit Bazarov's parents. Arkady proposes to Katya, Odintsova's younger sister. They get married at the end and move into Nikolai's estate. Bazarov dies of an infection he got while dissecting a body. Madame Odintsova comes to his deathbed at his request and he tells her she is beautiful. He dies the next day.

«Прощание с Матёрой»

Valentin Rasputin 1976 The story is about the destruction of a village to make way for a Soviet hydroelectric dam project. The dynamics between the older and younger members of the village and their feelings about their imminent departure from a place that has been home to them their whole lives forms the central conflict and interest of the novel. At the same time, the author reveals some of the deep-seated values about the relationship between man and nature that are key to Russian culture. Famous quote from the novel: And once again, spring had come, to its place in the endless row, but for Matyora, the island and village of the same name, it was to be the last.

«Поэма конца»

Vasilii Gnedov This poem is literally a blank piece of paper with the title at the top When performed = an arm moved dropped and swiftly came back, the second gesture cancelling the first, a poem of nothingness The poems leading up to this one became less and less until we get to this... Gnedov published a book: Smert' isskustva (Death to Art!) 9 poems had only 1 line each 2 had 1 word The last was poema kontsa way ahead of its time Gnedov was an Ego Futurist Ego Futurists: More eclectic and possibly less significant than Cubo Futurists Combined exoticism of symbolism with futurism

Three dictionaries

Vladimir Dal' (1863-1866) Dmitry Ushakov (1935-1940) Dmitry Ozhegov (1940)

«Варияция»

Vladislav Khodasevich 4 foot iambs; Feminine and masculine alternating rhyme Very traditional structure I went out on the balcony to warm these shoulders, these hands again I sit, but all the earthly sounds are as if in a dream or through a dream And suddenly full of exhaustion I swim: whither I do not know myself But my world is spreading like the waves in circles that run in all directions Linger, caressing miracle! I step into the second circle and hear from there the measured knocking of my rocking chair Interpretation: Describing a moment of disassociation or transcendence And here's the sound from his earthly self

«Гостю»

Vladislav Khodasevich Four foot iambs aaBaB; last quatrain is encircling rhyme Traditional meter until Last line: trochee Rhythmic Italics = one line that varies the meter from all the others (equivalent in prose or putting a line in italics) meant to slow us down and have us focus Approaching me bring a dream or a devilish beauty or god if you yourself are divine A small kindness as a hat, leave it Here on this dot of earth be either an angel or a demon And a person—and doesn't he exist in order to be forgotten? Interpretation: Doesn't care about small favors He only exists in extreme ends of the scale A person, isn't he a person in order that we might forget him = aren't we mortal/human in order to transcend that status and become something else, either an angel or a demon

«Без слов»

Vladislav Khodasevich Four-foot iamb; Masculine and feminine rhyme Without words you showed me how well and clearly turned out the hem of a white fabric And I thought my life was a thread that runs after God's fingers And smiling I turned over your handkerchief, my dear Interpretation: Finding something powerful and deep in the simple things of life, in the mundane Idea that God is in a sense weaving our lives, may have depths in terms of its poetical allusions Sewing = greek fates would knit some one's life and when they cut it that was the end of a person's life This is much more domesticated Life as seam or pattern woven into fabric

The life of Sergius

Written by Epiphany Premudry (a monk from Rostov who died about 1420. He was famous for o Плетение словес) Sergey Rodonezhsky ("The Life, acts and miracles of our blessed and holy father Sergius of Radonezh" o Monk prophesies that Bartholomew will learn to read and be a great person; name changes to Sergey when he becomes a monk. o Buddy of bears. o Ascetic lifestyle. Only ate moldy bread. o Brought a child back from the dead. o Sergey blesses Dmitri Donskoy o Dies in 1393 at the age of 78; sees a vision of the mother of God.

«Мамай»

Zamiatin'

«Приключения обезьяны»

Zoshchenko

Елеазар

Андреев

Стена

Андреев 1901 Ostensibly on the other side of the wall there is a new world. The people beat against it, but it will not budge. Many people lose their lives. People court, but then fight against each other. People are fighting against the wall: asking for release of son, brother, self. Man at the end proposes that if everybody sacrifices themselves and dies, at least one person will be able to stand on all the corpses and see over the wall. People seem addicted to their service of the wall, including one man who wants to marry a woman so they can sacrifice their children to the wall.

В тумане

Андреев 1902 Coming-of-age story. Young man obsessed with women. Kills the girl at the end with a bread knife. Yellow fog is a prominent motif.

Я—изысканность русской медлительной речи...

Анненский 1893? "I am the sophistication of the Russian language and everybody else is a forerunner." He is the best and eternally young and wonderful and understands everything. 5 and 3ft anapest; feminine 5ft stanzas and 3ft masculine couplets He gives the poem power - the poem in the narrator He is refinement of russian speech and splashing and crashing sea mostly nature images of description Poem is egocentric and powerful, it is the reason for everything

Будем как солнце! Забудем о том...

Анненский 1902 3ft dactyls; strange rhyme scheme, he repeats the same few sounds his testament to beauty we will be eternal like the sun we will pray to the unearthly and strive for the golden sun we are constantly tempted by eternity (death?) and this is where our journeys will lead nature again plays key role

Я в этот мир пришел, чтоб видеть солнце...

Анненский 1903 5ft, then 3ft, then 2ft iamb; feminine and masculine rhyme alternating super egocentric, focus on self and his purpose in life he is here to see the sun and beauty of nature here to "sing" nobody better at "singing" than him connection to nature is crucial in this poem, here to see and experience it

О нет, не стан

Анненский 1906 5ft iamb; feminine rhymes Narrator bored with life and this world Prefers suffering over worldly beauty Doesn't want heaven, everyone dreams of it (it's too mainstream for him) When he is in a "banal-variegated hall" with music and fun he summons Percival (the one who fetched Holy Grail for Round Table) shadow, and death О нет, не стан, пусть он так нежно-зыбок, Я из твоих соблазнов затаю Не влажный блеск малиновых улыбок — Страдания холодную змею. Так иногда в банально-пестрой зале, Где вальс звенит, волнуя и моля, Зову мечтой я звуки Парсифаля[1], И Тень, и Смерть над маской короля... .............. Оставь меня. Мне ложе стелет Скука. Зачем мне рай, которым грезят все? А если грязь и низость — только мука По где-то там сияющей красе?..

Маки

Анненский 1909 6ft iamb with masculine and feminine alternating rhyme Describes a beautiful day with bright poppies, turns out poppies are decaying and the garden is empty A chalice shines from the heavens - implies there is a better world elsewhere Thought might also be resurrection - death now, chalice later

Сероглазный король

Ахматова 1910 Dactylic tetrameter Woman's husband comes home from hunting and calmly tells wife that the gray-eyed king is dead. She wakes up her daughter and looks into her gray eyes. Straightforward retelling of events Personal pain conveyed in a neutral, distanced manner

Музе

Ахматова 1911 3- and 4-foot dactyl Something happened overnight and the godly gift is lost. Again, there are simple details given with part of the story left out. Implication that normal people (non-poets) are happy. Is there is a relationship between poetry and love? The more tormented she is, the better her poetry is. To her muse. The muse is tormenting, and yet is somewhat of a lover. She will be distressed in the morning when the muse has taken away the godly gift. "Муза-сестра заглянула в лицо, Взгляд ее ясен и ярок. И отняла золотое кольцо, Первый весенний подарок. Муза! ты видишь, как счастливы все — Девушки, женщины, вдовы... Лучше погибну на колесе, Только не эти оковы. Знаю: гадая, и мне обрывать Нежный цветок маргаритку. Должен на этой земле испытать Каждый любовную пытку. Жгу до зари на окошке свечу И ни о ком не тоскую, Но не хочу, не хочу, не хочу Знать, как целуют другую. Завтра мне скажут, смеясь, зеркала: «Взор твой не ясен, не ярок...» Тихо отвечу: «Она отняла Божий подарок»."

Все мы бражники здесь, блюдницы

Ахматова 1913 Dol'nik We are all revelers here and harlots. I wore a tight skirt to appear thinner. Windows are forever shut tight. Your eyes are similar to the eyes of a cautious cat. How my heart yearns! Am I not awaiting a deathly hour? She that now dances will certainly be in hell. Speaker doesn't seem excited--this is not fun for us She seems to be more spirited here than in some of her other poems Dark poem bemoaning the ostensibly frivolous and sinful lives of the poet and her associates. Fear of impending death and damnation. "Все мы бражники здесь, блудницы, Как невесело вместе нам! На стенах цветы и птицы Томятся по облакам. Ты куришь черную трубку, Так странен дымок над ней. Я надела узкую юбку, Чтоб казаться еще стройней. Навсегда забиты окошки: Что там, изморозь или гроза? На глаза осторожной кошки Похожи твои глаза. О, как сердце мое тоскует! Не смертного ль часа жду? А та, что сейчас танцует, Непременно будет в аду."

Причитание

Ахматова 1922 Lamentation Господеви поклонитеся Во святем дворе Его. Спит юродивый на паперти На него глядит звезда. И, крылом задетый ангельским, Колокол заговорил, Не набатным, грозным голосом, А прощаясь навсегда. И выходят из обители, Ризы древние отдав, Чудотворцы и святители, Опираясь на клюки. Серафим - в леса Саровские Стадо сельское пасти, Анна - в Кашин, уж не княжити, Лен колючий теребить. Провожает Богородица, Сына кутает в платок, Старой нищенкой оброненный У Господнего крыльца.

Лотова Жена

Ахматова 1924 Reworking of the Biblical story of Lot's wife. Akhmatova shows compassion to this woman who gave her life for a single glance back at her native city. While society usually looks down on this woman for being disobedient or making a bad decision, Akhmatova expresses solidarity and promises to remember this woman. Connection and solidarity between women and their love for hearth and home. И праведник шел за посланником Бога, Огромный и светлый, по черной горе. Но громко жене говорила тревога: Не поздно, ты можешь еще посмотреть На красные башни родного Содома, На площадь, где пела, на двор, где пряла, На окна пустые высокого дома, Где милому мужу детей родила. Взглянула - и, скованы смертною болью, Глаза ее больше смотреть не могли; И сделалось тело прозрачною солью, И быстрые ноги к земле приросли. Кто женщину эту оплакивать будет? Не меньшей ли мнится она из утрат? Лишь сердце мое никогда не забудет Отдавшую жизнь за единственный взгляд.

Муза

Ахматова 1924 Akhmatova's muse is the same as Dante's. Implication of darkness and suffering, but also exalted poetic inspiration. Creative process and inspiration. Когда я ночью жду ее прихода, Жизнь, кажется, висит на волоске. Что почести, что юность, что свобода Пред милой гостьей с дудочкой в руке. И вот вошла. Откинув покрывало, Внимательно взглянула на меня. Ей говорю: "Ты ль Данту диктовала Страницы Ада?" Отвечает: "Я".

Реквием

Ахматова 1935-1961 Poetry cycle Akhmatova wrote during the years that her son was incarcerated in the cross prison in St. Petersburg. She stood for hundreds of hours in the line waiting either for news of him or to deliver mail. Initially published secretly. She didn't put the cycle together the way we see it until 1961. A requiem is a musical part of a religious service honoring the deceased. Theme of loss and lamentation. Not in Russian Orthodox tradition. Musical tradition of requiem, including Mozart's requiem—he had struggled for so long to write it and felt obliged to write it for his father. She likewise felt this obligation to continue writing this work. It took a while and she wrote it in bits and pieces. It is a composition with overarching themes. 1. Epigraph—she was present and involved with her people while all these atrocities were going on. She had not deserted her country. Emphasis on the narod. 2. Вместо предисловия—prose. Someone in the crowd approaches her. Akhmatova was famous as a personal poet—focused on the individual; very specific. Not speaking on behalf of anyone else, but on her own behalf. A poet of personal impressions and feelings. Unique personal insights. She is being summoned by an unknown member of the narod to this romantic vocation. 3. Посвящение (March 1940) «каторжные норы» is a quote from Pushkin. Invoking his poetic authority. She speaks in "we"—it's not just about her. 4. Вступление (1935) «звезды смерти»--fate; Kremlin stars, epaulette stars. Things against which humans feel defenseless. Bringing back the figure of Peter as a tyrant. This also makes a point to Stalin as another murderer who doesn't listen to the cries of wives. Some are trochaic, some iambic Cycle of ten central poems with framing texts. Written when her son was arrested and she stood in the prison lines in St. Petersburg for 17 months. Biblical allusions. Suffering described in a detached way Loyalty to Russia Details and straightforward language Dehumanization Monument to herself 1935-1961

Конармия

Бабель 1925 Collection of short stories about the 1st Cavalry Army. During POlish-Soviet war. Babel had been a war correspondent during the time and this book is based on his observances. Emphasizes the brutality and violence of the Red Cavalry. Мой первый гусь--guy with glasses has to prove himself to the others by murdering a goose and telling the cook to prepare it. Письмо--young man writes to his mother Гедалий--which is the revolution and which is the counter-revolution. Jew. The widow: Husband dies and woman has to go back to being a prostitute among the soldiers.

Камыши

Бальмонт 1895 4ft amphibrach; rhyming couplets describes a swamp at midnight - both of which are demonic in folklore nature is dark and quiet Ш sounds abundant, cattails whispering to each other image of dying souls sparks of hope pop up, but everyone ignores them possible interpretation: cattails are hopeless humans in desolate existence

Скорпион

Бальмонт 1895 Sonnet with iambic pentameter; dactylic and masculine rhyme Describes himself as a scorpion in a ring of fire with people who hate him watching Scorpion takes matters into his own hands and kills himself he is free and proud in his death perhaps mirroring his own suicide attempt

Я--изысканность русской медлительной речи

Бальмонт 1903 "I am the sophistication of the Russian language and everybody else is a forerunner." He is the best and eternally young and wonderful and understands everything.

Признание

Баратынский 1824 Essentially a break-up poem. He begs her not to require tenderness from him. His heart, as she said, no longer has the wonderful fire of his first love. I gave vows, but gave them of higher powers. He confesses that he is not currently with someone else, but that someday he will get with another girl, and this former love will hear of it, but she need not be jealous, for they are only casting their lots together. He asks her to forgive and forget him. He has chosen a new path. We are not powerful in ourselves and we are too flighty in our young years and give immodest vows that are, perhaps, comical to the all-seeing fate.

Болящий дух врачует песнопенье

Баратынский 1834 • Iambic pentameter o The next to last ictus (the fourth) is always unfilled except for one line. o Caressing, soothing meter • Poetry/song-singing heals the ailing spirit. The mysterious power of harmony redeems the heavy transgression/going astray and calms the rebellious passion. The soul of the singer, pouring out harmoniously, is released from all of its sorrows; and the holy poetry gives purity and peace to its communicant. • Poetry has religious power. • Abstract nouns and overall feeling. Detached.

Недоносок

Баратынский 1835 Trochaic tetrameter Depressing poem about how the narrator is small and sad and cast about by the fates. He plays in the joy of the sunshine, but the storm comes and blows him down. He hears the warring nations; the cry of a sick baby...tears flow from his eye: sorrow for the inhabitant of the earth. With a languishing melancholy I dream in the heavenly fields above me and under me--boundless sorrows! I see the world as if in darkness; I weakly hear the harps of heaven. I am yours, pointless eternity!

Последний поэт

Баратынский 1835 • Five-foot iambs; four-foot trochees—alternating stanzas. • Alternating MF rhymes. • The century marches along its iron path. Courage in hearts. Obsessed with everything vital and useful. In the light of enlightenment, all childish dreams of poetry dissolve. They worry about industrial concerns to which they are devoted. Ancient Greece is awake once more. The Pont carries weight of trade (Black Sea). The winter of the decrepit world shines. • Comparing two worlds—iron century and the world of muse and poetry. The poet is very unhappy and he wants to kill himself because nobody likes him. He can't find a place of seclusion. World changes. Poet stands against the crowd and new civilization. • Says that poetry is becoming less popular in Russia now. • Mercantile world damaging poetry. • Alternating meters seem to be juxtaposition of two worlds. Iambic is mercantile world and trochaic is poetic and happy.

На что вы, дни! Юдольный мир

Баратынский 1840 3- and 5-foot iambs Basically, life is pointless. What are you for, days! The world will not change its manifestations! The future promises that everything is led and is only repeated. Not in vain you tossed and boiled leisurely by development, your victory you accomplished before the body, crazy soul! In the darkness of night, the fruitless evening sinks, the crown of the empty day.

На посев леса

Баратынский 1842 Iambic pentameter Seems to be written from the perspective of some higher being such as an angel? Starts out happy, talking about how it's spring again and everything is happy and hopeful. But just when you think Baratynsky is being an optimist, he exclaims, "But there is already no spring or hope in my heart" and we're back to his melancholy. There is winter in my soul. Great is the Lord! He is merciful, yet just: there is not on earth an insignificant moment; he forgives the madness of fun, but never the feats of evil-thinking. He who crumpled my soul can call me to the bloody battle, but under me, he crowned his horns with fallen glory! I flew in my soul to new tribes, loved, caressed their ear/spike: I exterminated the days, knocking on the human heart, I gave them voice of all good feelings. No answer! I rejected the string, another will bear fruit! And to him my hand carries the embryos of first, oaks, and pines. And fine! Parting with my lyre I believe: powerful and gloomy children will replace it (lyre) with these poems of mysterious sorrows will replace it.

Вакханка

Батюшков 1815 o Trochaic tetrameter o Encircling rhyme, and then alternating. o All the holy priestesses come for Erogon's holiday. Young nymph fell behind. I followed her and she ran. o Dionysus. Intoxication and frivolity. o Greek motifs mixed with French erotic poetry.

Жуковский, время все проглотит

Батюшков 1821 iambic tetrameter AbbA cDcD Zhukovsky, time will swallow everything, you, me and the smoke of glory, but what we retain in the heart will not be drowned in the river of forgetting! There is no death to the heart, not it! While it (heart) breathes for good! And by what your fulfilled (things?), not even Pletaev will describe.

Ты знаешь, что изрек

Батюшков 1821(?) Iambic tetrameter (with some shorter lines) abaaccdd Do you know what the gray Melchizedek said as he was parting with life? Man is born as a slave, as a slave he lies in the grave, and death to him will hardly tell why he walked through the valley of miraculous tears, suffered, wept, endured, disappeared.

Подражания древним

Батюшков sort of iambic Without death, life is not life, and what is it? A vessel where a drop of honey amid the wormwood, this majestic pont. Sun is the king of the sky and is majestic. There is a lot that is wonderful on the earth, but it's either corrupt or gold. Weep, mortal, weep! Your good is in the hand of the stern Nemesis. Some girl is sad about a corpse; she had in vain lavished love on him. Now she is pale and there is not joy. Oh mortal! Do you want to without sorrow cross the sea of anxious life? Don't be proud: and into the passing wind lower your sail, haughty with happiness. Do not leave the helm, no matter how ardently the wind whistles. Be in happiness Scipio, in trouble, Peter. You want honey, son? then do not fear the sting. A crown of victory? Bravery to battle! You crave gems? Then come down to the bottom where the crocodile gapes under the water. Fear not! God will decide. Only he (will be?) the brave father, only brave the pearls, honey, death, or the crown.

Тень друга

Батюшков o 6-foot iamb with fixed caesura after 3rd foot o Seeing a vision of a dead friend and then the vision leaves. o I left the misty shores of Albion. Evening breeze; waves. It all bewitched me. o Written in a higher style—глас, images such as Albion, Roman goddess o "comrade of my better days," "Dear friend", "dear brother" o Friend was killed in Napoleonic wars.

Мои пенаты

Батюшков Послание к Ж<уковскому> и В<яземскому> 1811-1812 Three-foot iambs Penates--"household gods worshiped in conjunction with Vesta and the lares by the ancient Romans" (dictionary.com) Lots of Classical imagery, as is typical of Batiushkov. Prayer. Woman, Lila. Invokes his friends to come. И путник угадает Без надписей златых, 315 Что прах тут почивает Счастливцев молодых!

Предчувствую Тебя. Года проходят мимо

Блок 1901 Прекрасная дама phase. I anticipate You. The years are passing and all in one appearance/countenance I anticipate you. The horizon is in fire. I am silently waiting, longing and loving. I am scared--you will change your countenance. I will fall woefully and low, not beating the dying dream. The radiance is near, but it frightens me: you change your countenance. fluctuating 5 and 6 ft iambs; alternating feminine and masculine rhyme Narrator terrified that woman will change and betray him fluctuating iambs mimic the change he fears has prophetic element, as she does change and leave him Ты is capitalizes, making the reader question if it is religious or about a woman 1901

Вхожу я в темные храмы...

Блок 1902 3ft дольник with feminine and masculine alternating rhyme the meter gives it a hymn or chant-like quality Goes into dark cathedrals for spiritual hallucinations of "прекрасная дама" or "вечная жена" He doesn't actually see or hear her, but he believes in her existence He could possibly be in a real church but sees beyond it

Religio 1: Любил я нежные слова...

Блок 1902 4ft iamb with feminine and masculine alternating rhyme invokes religious she is Virgin-Guardian nobody has seen such a vow as the one he gives when he worships her

Я, отрок, зажигаю свечи...

Блок 1902 4ft iamb; feminine rhymes Mystical environment - in a white church on a black river bank, she is laughing at him from the opposite bank; the twilight is murky-blue He admires her from the church grounds and throws white flowers to her Religious imagery, especially that of innocence he worships her but doesn't dare touch

Девушка пела в церковном хоре...

Блок 1905 4ft дольник; feminine rhymes marks transitional year for Blok Everyone is happy and enraptured with image of hope in a church but only a single voice speaks the truth a child cries because he knows nobody will return invokes loss of Russo-Japanese War both a real and symbolic war child could be real or he could be the icon of Jesus, since the ray of sun shines on it

Незнакомка

Блок 1906 4ft iamb; feminine and masculine alternating quintessential transition poem narrator drunk in an unsavory bar with other drunks everything he says is in a cloud of vagueness and hazy images sees the truth in everyone through his inebriation waits for незнакомка - image of woman changes from innocent religious one she smells of perfume and fog he begins by describing her realistically, but it takes on hallucinatory tone he sees a beautiful mystical world through her veil state of sobriety allows him to reach a higher being alcohol way to achieve truth Part of this second phase of his. He is in a pub waiting for a woman and she comes and sits at the window. She comes at the appointed hour (or is it just a dream to him?). Believe in wine. Truth is in wine. Deaf secrets are entrusted to him. Tart wine pierces him. Enchanted and far distance.

Балаганчик

Блок 1906 Put on by Meyerhold who did the stage direction for Blok. Pierott Kolumbina Harlequin Futurist play. Kolumbina comes in dressed in white and they think of her as death. He tries to run away with her, but she's taken away by Harlequin. Lots of masks and scenery. Two lovers are talking and Harlequin hears. He tries to jump out the window to a better world, but it turns out that it is only paper, and he's gone. Harlequin is dying and bleeding cranberry juice--absurd. The narrator cannot actually control his characters. He wants them to get married at the end, but it turns out that Kolumbina is actually only paper. Looks at the ideas of puppets, control, agency, creative process, reality, illusion.

О доблестях, о подвигах, о славе...

Блок 1908 5ft iamb; feminine and masculine alternating He looks at a picture of her on the table and remembers how she left him after she left he buried himself in alcohol and carnal passion He called and cried for her, but she didn't return He mostly focuses on the image of her blue coat as she left him In the end he swipes her photo off the table no religious silly images of her, just reality of life

«На поле Куликовом» I-V

Блок 1908 About battle in 1380 to defeat the Mongols 5ft and 3ft iambs with feminine rhymes heavy element of being noble and sacrificing everything for Rus' Rus' is wife, not mother (amorous tendency toward Russia) glimpses of religious imagery trocheic pentameter; feminine and masculine rhymes journey and preparation for battle lots of folkloric imagery Russia is "светлая жена" 5ft and 3ft trochees; feminine and masculine alternating boosting of morale and strengthening resolve before battle riddled with images of swans and eagles lots of enjambment to break the lines 3ft amphibrach with feminine and masculine alternating rhyme Brief pause in the middle of battle intense longing for Moscow and Rus' he is riding a white horse grief and longing central; his light thoughts are burned by the dark ones iambic tetrameter with feminine and masculine rhymes epigraph of Solov'ev on an upcoming apocalypse main idea: the battle fought in 1380 is about to be fought again i can recognize those dark days ahead as the ones from the past

В ресторане

Блок 1910 4ft and 3ft alternating anapest; feminine rhymes gypsies common image for Blok at this time Describes a night (he can't remember if it was real) when he saw a girl, he describes his night of wooing her violins sing in the background, a gypsy sings of love till dawn

Голос из хора

Блок 1910-1914 4ft iamb; changing masculine and feminine rhymes Be happy with what you have, because it will get worse Haunting and eerie everything is dark but it will only get worse there will be anguish in a black abyss of nothingness you will wait for a spring that will never come one of his prophetic poems, holds dark view on life Changes lines from вы to ты, perhaps addressing multiple people voice probably from Greek tragedy, one that always has a hint of foreshadowing If only you knew the cold and darkness of the future days. The previous century was the worst so far, but the future will be even worse. The spring will deceive us.

Ночь, улица, фонарь, аптека

Блок 1912 "Ночь, улица, фонарь, аптека, Бессмысленный и тусклый свет. Живи еще хоть четверть века — Все будет так. Исхода нет. Умрешь — начнешь опять сначала И повторится все, как встарь: Ночь, ледяная рябь канала, Аптека, улица, фонарь." Purpose of life. Suicide? Everyday objects are made surreal by suggesting they will remain even after one dies, everything repeating as the icy ripples of the canals.

К музе

Блок 1912 3ft anapest; feminine and masculine rhymes Muse was the reason angels fell from heaven He gave in to her seduction, their love was short, inebriating, and foul He used to see her as holy, now he knows the truth includes a pre-wedding image: why did you give me something so pleasant when loving you is terrible muse as negative image

Рождённые в годы глухие

Блок 1914 Iambic tetrameter Dedicated to Gippius. Born in the deaf years; can't remember our own paths; we are the children of the terrible years of Russia; we are not able to forget anything. Is there any hope? In the hearts that were once exalted, there is a fateful emptiness. Let the crow's cry sound--let those who are worthy enter God's kingdom. Рождённые в года глухие Пути не помнят своего. Мы — дети страшных лет России — Забыть не в силах ничего.

Я - Гамлет. Холодеет кровь...

Блок 1914 iambic tetrameter with masculine and feminine rhymes overt reference to Hamlet remembers the dead Ophelia as he dies Reminiscent of his own wife dying in your own homeland alludes to betrayal

Двенадцать

Блок 1918 Poem in several stanzas. Revolution. 12 Bolshevik soldiers march through Petersburg. Love triangle involving Peter. He kills the woman. Comforted by his comrades telling him personal feelings shouldn't matter. It ends with Christ leading the soldiers through a snowstorm. about October Revolution narrator is an omniscient presence without corporeality features a love triangle Blok ambivalent about revolution vision at the end is key opening scene predominantly trocheic but has anapests; rhyme all over the place snatches of conversation to show people starving and naked in the face of a harsh winter pro-government poster blows in the breeze but people wonder how many it could clothe marks people's hatred for writers and priests image of snowdrifts repeated (rhymes with casket) snowstorm often means apocalypse 12 marching on mostly iambic with amphibrachs, dactyls and rhyming couplets emphasis on soldiers without religion mocks the political slogan introduction of Van'ka and Kat'ka war preparation predominantly trochees with different types of feminine rhymes and couplets serve the red guard in rags and Austrian rifles want to set the world on fire ask for blessing from God Seduction of Kat'ka trocheic with all kinds of rhymes seduction shown in fragmented images chaotic images Kat'ka sinning Kat'ka is scarred from a knife being held at her throat she continues to dance and sin narrator asks her if she remembers the soldier that got killed because of her Fight and Death 4ft iambs and rhyming couplets Van'ka and Petrukha get into a fight, Van'ka escapes but Kat'ka gets killed fragmented actions and exclamations paint the picture, chaos continues Petrukha's guilt 4ft trochees and inexact rhymes they continue to march - don't look back, only forward Petrukha goes through stages of grief, then gets over it images of darkness and intoxication repeated Bored Soldiers trocheic, alternating rhymes Speaker unclear but expresses immense boredom speaker says he will drink blood, then utters a religious phrase Calm Before the Storm 4ft iambs; feminine and masculine alternating rhyme focused switched to a bourgeois man who stands in the snow like a hungry dog hungry dog is behind him Snowstorm Rages 4ft and 3ft trochees; rhyming couplets forces getting ready for battle they can't see each other in the storm; funnels twisted out of intense snow they continue to march on, ignoring the raging nature around them narrator quotes revolutionary song Storm continues mostly iambic; F and M rhymes but also couplets pointing guns at unseen enemies waiting for enemies to wake up getting stuck in the snowdrifts - nature is winning Fight nonexistent enemy mostly trochees with mostly feminine rhymes before them is a cold snowdrift (death awaits?) shooting at no-one don't care, they will continue until they find enemies we will tear the old world to pieces In front of them is the image of Jesus is he leading them or are they fighting him?

«Грешить бесстыдно , непробудно...»

Блок 4ft iamb; feminine and masculine alternating rhyme The entire thing is everything that is wrong with Russia and the Russian people but ends with the idea that he will love Russia no matter what place full of hypocrites, drunks, and filth

«Художник»

Блок 1913 4ft dactyl with dactylic rhyme Image of inspiration as free bird wanting to save someone, one whose wings he clips after he captures it He is waiting with new inspiration, he is bored with what he has waits for a long time Continues Pushkin's idea that a poet is not like others, he is special

Две доли

Боратынский 1823 Providence gave two portions for the choice of human wisdom: either hope and agitation, or hopelessness and peace. Let him that is cheerful of an inexperienced mind believe seducing hope, only according to rumor with the fate of the mocking sign. Hope, seething youths! Fly: the wings are given you; for you both the brilliant designs and the fiery dreams of the heart! But you having tested fate, the vanity of joy, the power of sorrow, you having accepted the knowledge of being, to yourself the painful part! Drive away their hive; So! Live life in silent and retain the saving coldness of your actionless soul.

Еврейское кладбище

Бродский 1958 The Jewish cemetery by Leningrad. Crooked fence from rotten plywood. Behind the curved fence lie together lawyers, merchants, musicians, revolutionaries. For themselves they sang. For themselves they saved up. For others they died. But first they paid taxes, respected the police, and in this world, hopelessly material, interpreted the Talmud, remaining idealists. Perhaps they saw more. And perhaps they believed blindly. But they taught children to be tolerant and became tenacious. They did not sow grain. Never sowed grain. Simply themselves laid down in the cold earth as grain. And fell asleep forever. And then--their land was filled, candles lit, and in the day of Remembrance the hungry old people with loud voices, gasping from hunder, crying for peace. And they obtained it. In the form of they decay of matter. Remembering nothing. Forgetting nothing. Beyond the curved fence of rotten plywood, four kilometers from the tram ring. It expresses succinctly his ethnic roots and transcendent humanity. Brodsky was acutely aware of his Jewishness (which, in his view, did not conflict with his Russian identity and Christian leanings), but he treated Jewish topics only in his early work, in poems such as "Evreiskoe kladbishche" (A Jewish Cemetery; 1958)

А.А. Ахматовой

Бродский 1962 Beyond the churches, gardens, theaters, bushes in the cold courtyards, in the darkness beyond the ceremony doors, beyond the homeless in these yards. Beyond . . .lots of things . . .you live now from me. For love, for duty, for courage, or more--for your face, beyond the river. Beyond Leningrad in the glimpse of paradise. Separation is not life nor time nor space with a screaming crowd; separation is not pain, not burden, and although strange, still not fate. I bring you my long love, realizing the uselessness of it. Eternal loneliness of the soul. On the outskirts, there beyond the fence, over all the earth beyond the salute of her cranes, beyond Russia, as if not watered with tears or my blood. There somewhere. Here I walk. I don't ask for love or recognition nor worry. Long life to you, distance! But I again ask for myself the good, indifferent tenderness and in a meeting, the same life. I bring you my long love, realizing the uselessness of it.

Я памятник себе воздвиг иной

Бродский 1962 Continuing in the rich tradition of monument poetry. Horace, Pushkin, Akhmatova, Evtushenko. I will erect to myself a different kind of monument! To the shameful century--back. To love of my lost--face. And chest--with a bike tire. No matter what landscape I'm surrounded by, whatever happened to make me apologize, I will not change my countenance. You, Muse, don't accuse me for that. My judgment is like a sieve and the vessel is not filled with gods. Let them cast me down and demolish, let them accuse, let them destroy, dismember, in the large country for the joy of children from the plaster bust in the yard amid the white blind eyes, a jet of water will strike to heaven. Я памятник воздвиг себе иной! К постыдному столетию -- спиной. К любви своей потерянной -- лицом. И грудь -- велосипедным колесом. А ягодицы -- к морю полуправд. Какой ни окружай меня ландшафт, чего бы ни пришлось мне извинять, -- я облик свой не стану изменять. Мне высота и поза та мила. Меня туда усталость вознесла. Ты, Муза, не вини меня за то. Рассудок мой теперь, как решето, а не богами налитый сосуд. Пускай меня низвергнут и снесут, пускай в самоуправстве обвинят, пускай меня разрушат, расчленят, -- в стране большой, на радость детворе из гипсового бюста во дворе сквозь белые незрячие глаза струей воды ударю в небеса.

О, закрой

Брюсев 1894 Iambic pentameter О, закрой свои бледные ноги. The end. He was a symbolist, so maybe that explains it. He himself gave a couple different explanations. 1) When people talk about why they like a certain play or something, they always quote just one line they like. 2) It's simply a reference to the crucifixion.

В вертепе

Брюсев 4ft iamb; Sonnet; changing masculine and feminine rhyme traditional symbolist imagery: he falls asleep and sees himself in a black crypt around him is fog, he is in chains and wounded, through the window he sees the steppe (prisoner) he cries himself awake, feeling absolute anguish for the person in his dream

Мучительный дар

Брюсев 1895 4ft amphibrach; all feminine rhymes Was gifted by gods, a tormented gift Due to the gift he feels alien to this realm and can't reach the heavenly one* He lives in this world but hears sounds (like prophecies of witches) from another wall between the two realms he belongs to neither

Юному поэту

Брюсев 1896 4ft dactyl; all feminine rhymes address to younger generations of poets poet should: never live in the present, don't sympathize with anyone and love yourself, completely worship only art If a poet does all three, he will be defeated and concede to the new generation egocentric, he is true poet

В Дамаск

Брюсев 1903 3ft dactyl and iamb; feminine and masculine alternating rhyme main idea: physical erotic experience leads him to a religious epiphany one compared to St. Paul's vision on the road to Damascus The night is an altar, nature becomes place of worship sensual experience similar to religious worship

В застенке

Брюсев 1904 4ft trochee; feminine and masculine alternating two prisoners in jail two are condemned together even though were on previous paths before renounced each other before the "Judge" for a long time mixes images of sex and death not sure what will happen next two possibilities of the female: either a real person or probably a muse - his relationship might be tormenting him, and they will be judged and die together

В склепе

Брюсев 1905 7ft trochee, rhyming couplets necrophilia proof of him tackling taboo a lot of ideas dedicated to darkness and the moon, it cannot happen in the day night means secret and probably forbidden Constant focus on her eternal sleep invokes other works like "Демон" and "Вий"

Голос луны

Брюсов 1915 palindrome play with words and letters (Палиндром буквенный) Я — око покоя, Я — дали ладья, И чуть узорю розу тучи, Я, радугу лугу даря! Я — алая, Я — и лилия, Веду, Сильвана, в лесу дев, Я, еле лелея Небес эбен.

Собачье сердце

Булгаков 1925 (published in USSR in 1987) Distopian, futuristic novel in which mad scientist/doctor (Philip Philippovich Preobrazhensky) implants a human pituitary gland into a dog. The dog (Sharik) develops the ability to think and reason. Narration switches from Sharik the dog's to Bormenthal and then to third-person. He is messy and obnoxious and essentially is the New Soviet Man. He gets a job with the government strangling cats. But then the doctor's reverse the surgery. Satire of New Soviet man. Allegory of communist revolution. Criticism of eugenics.

Мастер и Маргарита

Булгаков 1928-1940 published 1967 Devil visits atheistic Soviet Union. Satire. Modernism. Bulgakov burned the first manuscript in 1930. Two alternating plots/settings: 1930s Moscow and Jerusalem where Pontius Pilate is persuaded by the devil to kill Christ. Woland--Satan; foreign professor Koroviev--devil's valet Behemoth--cat-like comrade of the devil Berlioz--chief of writer's society; meets devil in the park by Patriarch Ponds, and dies shortly thereafter just as the devil predicted. Ivan Ponyrev (Bezdomny)--young poet who sees Berlioz killed and then goes crazy; meets Master in the insane asylum Master--in the insane asylum; he was sent into despair because his novel about Pilate was rejected Satan puts on a variety show. People start disappearing. Huge uproar. Master and Margarita are together, although she is still married and living with her husband. Master is writing a book about Pontius Pilate that Margarita loves but the Master is afraid that it won't be published (or that it will be). He is taken away in the night to an insane asylum where he meets other interesting characters. Margarita goes with the devil to his ball because she would do anything to be with the master again. She can now fly and she destroys a lot in the lit buro. Margarita is given two wishes by the devil. First she liberates a woman, then she asks to be with the Master. Wish is granted. She and the Master die together, but it's depicted as riding away to a new life. They will be in limbo for forever. Pilate is also released to go to Yeshua, and it is implied that he has another chance or will also be in limbo or something. Free-Mason symbols/rituals

Суходол

Бунин 1911 Written two years after his divorce in 1907, this story, roughly translated as "Dry Valley," is a lament on the passing life of the gentry and a veiled description of his own family history. The tale mainly concerns Natalia, the wet nurse of the narrator's father, who never provides his name and only refers to himself and his sister. Natalia is strangely attached to the estate at Sukhodol in spite of all of the problems and horrors that occurred there. The narrator recalls hearing about the dark, gloomy house, the murder of his grandfather and other stories, finding it more of a romantic memorial for Natalia than anything. Other former residents are equally fond of the area for some reason, such as Aunt Tonya, who remains insane after a lost love. Even the narrator's father talks about the estate up until his death. We then learn the narrator's last name is Khrushchov and he and his sister travel to the estate, which is ruined, dark with age and overgrown with various plants. After tea with Aunt Tonya and a walk at night, Natalia begins to tell them the history of Sukhodol. The only happy times she remembers are when a group of French citizens would stay in the house. She mentions how their grandfather was eventually killed by the servant Gervaska and how she was disfigured, had her hair cropped and was forced to stand on a cart of manure in front of the peasants after stealing her master's silver mirror. The thing she possessed over someone who was going to be executed was the ability to hang herself. After grandfather is killed accidentally by Gervaska during an argument, he threatens Natalia to tell no one until he leaves and then Pyotr Petrovitch takes control of the estate. Natalia moves to live with two Ukrainians in Soshki and finally feels the pangs of lost love when they are singing a song. She then has two horrible dreams, one involving a hideous dwarf who asks her is there is a fire, the second about a goat that jumps from behind a stove and says he is her mate. She awakens in terror and tries to pray to a saint, but can only remember the headless portrait of St. Mercury in the home and becomes more frightened. She fears the dreams will come true. Eventually, after trying a sorcerer to help Tonya's hysteria, a monk named Yushka comes to the family in their religious obsessions. Natalia feels strange around him and one night, while walking in the corridors, he silently throws her down and rapes her. Every night after he comes into her room and she submits to his forced intercourse. Natalia becomes pregnant, but loses the child when she becomes terrified during a fire in the home, both of her dreams now being fulfilled. Two of the brothers try to revive the estate by taking out a mortgage and buying horses to resell after feeding them, but they all die. The only thing that stops them from killing each other is when Pyotr is kicked in the face by a horse. Natalia holds his battered head and weeps and laughs uncontrollably. The narrator then laments about the decline of the estate and the progressive loss of the "nests" (peasant huts) in the area. He finds his ancestral heritage gone, full of suicide, drunkeness and insanity, like other estates in Russia. A few of the family members remain, such as Aunt Tonya and Natasha, living out their memories until they die. Eventually everyone is dead and the narrator feels as though they never lived at all. He can't find his grandparents graves in the cemetery due to worn markers and realizes the connection with his past only exists now in the timelessness of nature.

Господин из Сан Франциско

Бунин 1915 Man dies on the big cruise ship. He was going for a two-year cruise with his wife and daughter simply for entertainment. He had never really lived, even though he was 58; he had worked unceasingly for his whole life. Ship is called Atlantid. The gentleman never has a name. At his death, he loses all the privileges of a wealthy person. Nobody knows what to do with the body and it is carried back to America in the hull of the ship. He is buried. Themes: power and wealthy are nothing compared to death. They arrive at Capri and the gentleman recognizes the hotel manager from a dream and the daughter feels a fear of foreboding. The man ends up dying in the Capri hotel, suffocating from his clothing. After his death, the family is treated rather coldly by the staff. They are asked to leave and instead of giving the corpse a coffin, they lay him in an empty English soda water box. Themes/Motifs/Symbols: Sheltered--The entire story is filled with the family's extravagant lives and how sheltered they are from the rest of the world: the boat has a couple who pretends to be in love to create atmosphere, the entire day is filled with the rich dressing for different occasions, their trip is ruined because Naples is suffering from a lot of rain (an event that the locals claim is completely new even though it is not). When the gentleman dies, his body is needed to be rushed out so that the other rich people do not get too upset by the idea of mortality. Expressionist language--everything is very harsh and rough language and imagery. There is a lot of black and a lot of red in this short story. Class--the rich is nameless and the servants are named (Luigi ex). The servants are the only one who know what is up. The juxtaposition of the rich and the poor is a constant throughout the story. Literary Connections: Reminiscence of Chekhov's "The Man in the Case"-- the gentleman willingly places himself in a world of privilege, not allowing for anything to compromise his happiness and state of being to ruin his world: when he reads the newspaper he only glazes over various headlines and flips through it in the appropriate manner, not allowing the outside world to penetrate his self. His clothing is so tight it literally kills him and he is placed in an English soda box for a coffin. It begins with him wishing to live and not simply exist (the man in the case existed and didn't live). Every rich person is also covered in this case of appearance (clothing and makeup) as well as a sheltered world around them. However, in this story the ones encased lived pleasantly and their lifestyle is encouraged by those around him.

Митина любовь

Бунин 1924 A story of the corruption of youth and the agony of young love. Mitya is walking along Tverskoy Boulevard with Katya at the start of the story. He loves her but despises her love for art and thus her attachment to high-class society. He realizes there are in fact two Katyas, the one he wishes exsited and the one that really exists. Mitya's first problem begins when he realizes that the drama school director where Katya studies finds her attractive and he feels her growing distant, his love then turning to jealous love. After her exam she becomes even more of a society lady. In the Spring, Mitya goes to his home village, leaving Katya by train, which is described as "demanding its right of way" as they depart. The village brings back boyhood memories and he slowly realizes Katya's command over him, which makes him feel pleasant. He feels she embodies all of his boyhood happiness and is even more enraptured when he receives a letter from her. Soon, however, the letters cease and after wasting time talking to peasant girls he realizes something happened back in Moscow. Mitya slowly grows depressed and decides he'll shoot himself if Katya stops writing altogether. He eventually stops going to the post office and stops writing letters himself, some of which contained lies about him being ill in an effort to get her to write. Soon after, he agrees to let the bailiff arrange an affair with a young, married peasant girl named Alyonka. Mitya is struck by the fact that she resembles Katya and one day, without thinking about it, goes to see her walking near church. He then goes with the bailiff to arrange the meeting and she agrees to come the following night. Mitya thinks about suicide again but gets excited more and more as night approaches. Alyonka arrives and they go in the shed, where he pays her for sex. Afterwards, she nonchalantly gathers herself and asks him about pigs that are supposedly for sale somewhere nearby. Mitya is then disenchanted and in tears, walking dirty through the rain the following day. He finally receives a letter from Katya that states he must forget about their love and forgive her for her love of art. He has a nightmare and thinks about the unnaturalness of copulation and in a fit of horror shoots himself in the head "with delight."

Солнечный удар

Бунин 1925 Short story. Sunstroke as a metaphor for a brief but passionate love exchange. Sadness after the two are separated. In this story, a mysterious woman and a young lieutenant have an affair while they are sailing the Volga. They stop off at a town in the their journey for a night. Afterwards the woman is not ashamed but insists that they do not travel together because he doesn't know a thing about her ("I give my honest word that I'm nothing life the person you might imagine me to be") and she leaves. The lieutenant spends the rest of the short story lamenting and missing her. He is sure that he had fallen in love with her, but, knowing nothing about her except for the town that she lives in and that she has a husband and a three-year-old daughter, he has no way of contacting her. He walks around the town in the blistering heat, utterly disenchanted by the same people and things that seemed beautiful when he was with her. At the end of the story the lieutenant realizes that he has aged 10 years over the course of a day. Themes/Motifs/Symbols: Expressionist language--a lot of red and blacks, harsh heat. Overall severe language. Locals--they make up the scenery of this tourist town and without her, they take on this pointless light Love and lust Reversal of gender roles--typically the woman would be regretful or long for her lover after he had abandoned her, but here we have the exact opposite. Namelessness--like "the Gentleman from San Francisco," the main characters are nameless (***trait of expressionist writing: see Kafka***) Literary Connections: Response to Chekhov's "Дама с собакой:" It is a very similar plotline (vacation love affair) but the roles are reversed as well as the colors. Chekhov's story is full of Renoir-esque colors (light, pale blues, violets, and other colors) while, here, we have harsh bright and vivid colors.

«Два венка»

Бунин 3- and 4-foot iambs There was a festivity held in my honor; cold crown placed on my forehead; waiting for a new crown to be placed on my brow for eternity in the grave. Laurel crown could be a reference to winning the Nobel Prize

«Могла в скале»

Бунин Iambic pentameter; possibly a sonnet A traveler along the Nile finds a footprint in the sand and is momentarily transported by it into the life of the person who left that footprint centuries ago. The experience leaves him seeing his own life in a new light. He was resurrected by that experience to live another thousand years because of his experiences traveling. Parallel to the resurrection of Christ.

«Одиночество»

Бунини 3-foot amphibrach Discussion of how his woman left him and now he is all alone for the winter. "Хорошо бы собаку купить" Simple, straightforward language explaining things how they are.

«Люцифер»

Бунини 5-foot iambic sonnet Description of various religions and how they are all seemingly in shambles. Yet at the end of the poem, it alludes to the fact that even Lucifer's power is waning--this is a world which is losing not only its gods but also its devils. Sense of coming to the end of an era. Lucifer is also another name for Venus, but Bunin is probably playing off the designation of the Christian devil as Lucifer.

«Настанет день—исчезну я...»

Бунини Iambic tetrameter I will disappear one day, but everything in this room will still remain; butterfly flying along the blue ceiling (some element of constraint); the bottom of heaven will look through an open window Perhaps his soul is trapped, or perhaps the repetition of emptiness are actually a reflection of something good to Bunin.

Красный цветок

Всеволод Гаршин

Жизнь наша в старости--изношенный халат

Вяземский Between 1874 and 1877. Iambic hexameter Life in old age is like a worn-out bathrobe--your embarrassed to wear it, but sorry to let it go. These rags are tattered and stained, but these spots are dearer to us than all patterns. I still love my old life with is damage and sad turns and as a soldier, my cloak covered in batter, I groom my robe with love and honor.

Еще тройка

Вяземский Trochaic tetrameter Tells the story of a troika driving past and the narrator wonders where the troika is going--to happiness or sadness. But it is impossible to know where it is going or who the driver is. It is already far away. Как узнать? Уж он далеко! Месяц в облако нырнул, И в пустой дали глубоко Колокольчик уж заснул.

Что есть грех?

Гиппиус 1902 In some parts dactylic, other times iambic дольник; dactylic rhyme throughout Defines sin with incomplete binaries partial attention and partial oblivion; half-mischievous and half-agitation, to renounce or pray to god Main idea: worst sin is not committing to something - not taking a stand

Пьявки

Гиппиус 1902 dol'nik? There, where the quiet backwater, where the river is silent, cling black leeches to the root of the reed. In the terrible hour of enlightenment, at the sunset of days, I see the leeches, clinging to my soul. But my soul is tired and deathly quiet. Black leeches, leeches of the greedy sin. This seems pretty in-line with what we expect from Gippius. Dark and kind of creepy. Troubled soul.

Пауки

Гиппиус 1903 She is sitting in the center of the room and there is a big gross spider in each corner of the room. Dark atmosphere to the poem: fear and worry. 4ft iamb; feminine and masculine alternating rhyme Tierre's presentation of circles and lines as spiders create a web around her Stuck in a circle of web in a cell Appeal to senses of smell, touch, sight Monotonous rhyme and stanzas Cell is allegory for world and web is fate - we are all stuck

Она

Гиппиус 1905 Poem about how Gippius doesn't even really like herself. Dust of the earth. She is dying from her closeness and her inability to be separated from her. She is cold and a snake and is deaf. It is dead, black, terrible--her soul. 5ft iamb with extra syllable; dactylic and feminine rhyme alternating Masculine narrator describing a female entity assume it is a woman until last line reveals it's a soul Dark, terrifying, repulsive, prickly, cold, heavy, deaf soul (она) Narrator is dying from his nearness to the soul (it's suffocating) but he can never part from it

Ревизор

Гоголь 1836 Realist, satirical play. A provincial town is expecting an inspector to come and visit them. They somehow get the incorrect notion that the inspector is a certain civil servant named Khlestakov. Khlestakov has been charging his hotel bill to the government, so everybody assumes he must be the incognito inspector. All the townspeople go to him with their problems and commentary. Some merchants even complain to him about the mayor (in whose house he is now staying), who is corrupt and takes bribes. He swindles them all, promises to marry the mayor's daughter, and quits town. The next day, the townspeople discover that he was not the real inspector and that the actual one is waiting to meet with the mayor. Awkward, especially for the corrupt mayor. The latest and most real of Gogol's works. It had one moment where it potentially breaks from reality, when in the end the fourth wall is somewhat broken. The actors all freeze and someone asks the audience what they are all laughing about. Social commentary. Satire of greed, corruption, incompetence.

Шинель

Гоголь 1842 Akaky Akakyavich focuses his life entirely on his work. He is a copyist and won't even change a conjugation. He goes to patch up his old overcoat but the tailor tells him he must get a new one. He saves up for about a year and is finally able to get his new overcoat. But on his first night of wearing it, it is stolen. There are lots of hagiographic references--Akaky seems to be some messed-up parody of a saint. Themes: coat as necessary for warmth or fashionable coat as protection from coworkers; mal'enkii chelovek → microscopic being (not even considered a person) Dostoevsky's "We all came out from Gogol's overcoat."

Мертвые души

Гоголь 1842 Chichikov is traveling around trying to collect the "dead souls" of landowners. These serfs still appear on the census and so their owners still have to pay for them even though they have died. Chichikov meets lots of different people who each exemplify some trait that the narrator himself has. Sobokeivich is sturdy and harsh. Manilov is overly kind and looking for a friend. Pliushkin is a miser and a terrible master--he is the only one whose backstory we get; he lost his family and then became depressed and a miser. Korobochka is a suspicious widow. Nozdryov is a liar and cheat (game of checkers). "poema" or epic poem in prose Highlights the flaws of society and character flaws of landowners. He is essentially run out of town when the rumor spreads that he has bought dead souls and is planning to elope with the governor's daughter.

Evenings on a farm near Dikanka

Гоголь, 1831 «Сорочинская ярмарка» A collection of short stories based heavily on Ukrainian customs and folklore. There is no overt meaning, just a collection of simple, elegant passages with coarse, earthly humor. This is typical of an early work by him, drawing much from folklore. There are two volumes in this series, this is the first, told by the narrator, a peasant beekeeper called Rudy Panko. These stories were recently made into a video game in Russia. 1. Preface: In this section, Rudy begins to introduce his task of informing the reader of a set of wondrous tales he has heard. He speaks very matter-of-factly and personally to the reader, as though they were sitting in front of him at his dinner table or outside in his village. He talks about the pleasant serenity of peasant life and mentions lavish parties. He talks about the storytelling at these nightly parties and then comments that no one can tell stories like Rudy Panko. His name means "red" in Ukrainian and is a nickname, again making it seem informal and personal since the narrator is using a personal name. He eventually gets caught up in talking about mundane events, and stops himself so he can get on with his storytelling. 2. The Fair at Sorochintsy: Rudy opens this story describing the beauty of "Little Russia" (Ukraine) and puts the date in August, 1800. The main characters of the story, Solopy Cherevik, his wife Khavronya Nikiforovna, and his daughter Paraska, are traveling to the fair to sell some things, including their old mare. A young man, called the "young man in the white jacket," finds his daughter beautiful and starts to flirt with her. When Cherevik becomes agitated, the young man makes it known that he is the son of his friend and wants to marry Paraska. Cherevik declines and the young man decides to figure out a way to get her, agreeing to give up his oxen for twenty rubles to Grytsko, a gypsy, if he helps him. While Khavronya is having a tryst with Afanasy Ivanovich, a priest's son, they hear a group of people coming to the house, so she quickly has the young man hide up in the rafters. The group comes in and Tsibulya, a friend of Cherevik, begins to tell the tale of the "red jacket," a jacket worn by a demon that was kicked out of hell. The jacket was put into the hands of a Jew, to be returned later, but the Jew sold the jacket and the demon got angry and tormented him by having a number of pig heads appear at his windows. The group gets frightened because the boy in the rafters grunts for a moment, but the story continues. The jacket was eventually found to be cursed, and anyone who possessed it would not be able to sell anything, so it is pawned off to different peasants. Eventually, one is given it and determines he cannot sell his wares because of it and chops it with an axe. It reforms, however, so he crosses himself and does it again, and the demon eventually had to come and collect the pieces of his jacket, and is down to the last fragment. At the end, a pig's head appears at the window and the group becomes so frightened that Cherevik, with a basket on his head, runs out of the house while someone is screaming "devil" behind him. His wife jumps on him and they're found in this state to the amusement of everyone. In the morning, after recovering from the embarrassment, Cherevik takes their mare to be sold at market. When he gets there someone asks him what he's selling and he wonders why they're asking this. Pulling on the harness, which causes him to strike himself in the face, he finds the horse is gone and a bit of a red jacket is left in place. He is accused of stealing his own horse and is bound up in a shed with his friend Tsibulya. The young man in the white jacket finds him there and agrees to release him if he can marry his daughter, to which Cherevik agrees. The story concludes with their marriage and the completion of the scheme. «Иван Федорович Шпонка и его тетушка» 4. Ivan Fiodorovich and His Aunt: This story is actually unfinished, and Gogol makes it seem as though Rudy's friend wrote the story down and gave it to him, but his wife, who cannot read, accidentally used some of the book to bake a pie and only a fragment remains. His friend meant to get the story again when he went through Gadyach, where the man lives, but he forgot and only remembered six miles past the village. In the story, Ivan Shponka is a young man who is not very bright but attends to his affairs better than anyone. He was made as the monitor in his class when young though there were some much better than he, and won the affection of one of the most feared teachers at school. He finally finishes the second class at fifteen, and goes on to the military after two more years of school, retiring as a lieutenant. He gets a letter from his aunt that he needs to come home to become master of his farm and sets off for Gadyach. On the way, at an inn, he meets the fat landowner Grigory Grigoriviech, who says he lives near Ivan's farm and asks him to come visit when he gets there. The man is pushy and frequently orders around his Cossack servant boy. When Ivan arrives there he finds his aunt in incredible health, almost so man-like that she is hardly a woman. He begins to take over some of the duties of the farm. Gogol's descriptions of the scenery here are very rich and beautiful and the mowing segment seems to have likely influenced Tolstoy while writing Anna Karenina. Ivan learns from his aunt that sixty acres nearby are rightfully his, being held by Grigory. He goes to visit him but the man denies the existence of a will written by his father detailing the matter, so they have dinner and Ivan meets his daughters. When he tells his aunt of the one daughter, she begins to become obsessed about him getting married to her and he chores begin to decline somewhat. They visit there together but Ivan says little to her when alone other than mentioning the flies during the time of year. When he goes home, that night, he has a terrible nightmare about marriage and Gogol gives the reader some truly modern scenes. A shopkeeper, for example, is selling wives as fabric and cuts one off for Ivan to wear. The story ends here mentioning a "next chapter" that does not exist.

Обломов

Гончарев 1859 Narrator is at first relatively neutral and invisible, but becomes more prominent as the story progresses, criticizing Oblomov's family or commenting on other characters. Oblomov seeks to reccreate and live inside his childhood. Ilya Ilych Oblomov (superfluous man) lacks motivation and essentially leads a very stagnant life. His friend Stolz (they had gone to school together; while Oblomov had been coddled by his parents and allowed to slack off, Stolz came from a German family that was very strict and he learned to work hard) tries to encourage him to do things like move and travel, but Oblomov always refuses and eventually the two friends have a falling-out. Oblomov is engaged to Olga for a while, but then becomes too passive again and she breaks up with him. Stolz ends up marrying Olga and Oblomov marries Agasia. They have a son Andrei who is raised by the Stolz family after Oblomov's death. Oblomov dies of "обломовщина". (For more detail, see the study guide) Dobrolyubov wrote a seminal article entitled "What is Oblomovism?"--Goncharov endorsed this article. Olga and Stoltz were progressive social ideals while Oblomov was much too focused on the past.

Мать

Горкий

Двадцать шесть и одна

Горкий 1899 One of Gorky's most well-known stories, likely influenced by his own experiences in a dark bakery and subsequent suicide attempt at age 19. In it, twenty-six workers slave away their days in a monotonous bakery where they make pretzels. They work in a dark hole with only one window that looks out into a hole with green slime in it. Their meals consist of tripe and bars are on the window so they can't give any food to beggars. On the first floor of the building where they work is a seamstress shop where works the housemaid Tanya, who is sixteen years old. She comes once a day to the bakery to get free pretzels and is treated almost like a god by the men. The bun makers on the other side of their wall are better off than they and soon a soldier takes the place of one of the workers who is fired in the bun section. The soldier constantly talks of himself as a womanizer, and the baker of the pretzel workers bets that he can't win over Tanya. He does however, and the workers see him meet Tanya in a cellar and come out smiling as though she is in love. They confront her and chastise her and she leaves calling them "miserable," never to visit their pretzel shop again.

На дне

Горкий 1902 The Lower Depths is Maxim Gorki's best known play, widely considered both a masterpiece and an extremely problematic work. Subtitled Scenes from Russian Life, the play was a huge success from its first performance. The idea for the play was conceived in 1900, and it was written during the winter of 1901 and the spring of 1902. It was produced by the Moscow Arts Theatre on December 18, 1902. Konstantin Stanislavsky directed the play and starred in it as Sahtin, and as it was one of his earliest successes, it became a hallmark of his work, the Moscow Arts Theatre, and Russian socialist realism. The play is a portrait, without much overriding plot, of a destitute, lower-class group in a lodging house in Volga. Realistic depiction of this segment of Russian society was new and avant-garde at the turn of the century, in contrast to the age-old trend towards romanticizing the underclasses. Some critics at the time took issue with Gorky's subject matter, and his pessimistic, unredemptive presentation of the lower depths. Others disliked the ambiguity of the moral message about the human condition, and the unconventional structure of conversation around this. Most agreed, however, that the play's character sketches were powerful and moving, and the subject matter, at the very least, provocative. Debate over its chief theme, the merits of the ''truth'' versus the ''consoling lie,'' continues to engage audiences and scholars today, and it continues to be produced worldwide a century after its inception. The play opens with the main scene, the basement where the lodgings are kept. The majority of the characters are introduced in the first act aside from the final two, and all of them live in the same dilapidated hole. They talk about various things like ordinary people and we learn that Anna is dying (assumed to be tuberculosis). It also comes to light that Vassilisa is having an affair with Peppel. Act two occurs in the same place at night. Anna questions her poverty and wonders what necessity it plays in the world while Bubnov and Screwy sing a song about being chained in a prison. Luka, the man to whom Anna was speaking, tells her that honesty in their type of life only leads to starvation and only thievery can equal sustenance. They further talk about death and God, Anna being convinced by Luka that she will achieve eternal rest after she dies. Soon after their conversation she does die and Peppel gets in a fight with Kostylev over his wife. The actor comes into the basement, not seeing the corpse at first, and recites a poem when Natasha arrives and they notice Anna's body. Natasha wonders why people have to live in the first place. The actor is overjoyed in this act when he hears from Luka that a hospital exists that can cure alcoholism (likened to Anna's discussion with him about God and death). Act three occurs in the yard amongst garbage and weeds. Nastya is recalling a moment in her life of true love, which Bubnov reveals is a lie and merely a story she's reciting from the book she's reading entitled Fatal Love. Her story changes from day to day and she becomes upset when he doesn't believe her. We learn that Luka is a gentle character and he relates a story of his honesty. Once, two burglers came to his home looking for food and move to kill him with an axe when he pulls up a gun. They cry and plead for mercy and he asks them why they simply didn't request the food. They end up living with him until Spring and then go on their way. He then tells another story about a man he knew who believed in the "Land of Truth," a country he believes exists where people are all honest and there is no suffering. A scholar comes and the man looks for the land on his maps. Not finding it, he hangs himself the next day in despair when he realizes such a place never existed. Luka and Kostylev have a conversation that hints at determinism, the latter stating that only in fertile soil can such things grow. Satin relates how his life was ruined by prison. At the end of the act, Vassilisa tries to kill Natasha, who wants to marry Peppel. Kostylev in the chaos tries to get Peppel arrested and he punches him, killing the old man. In the final act Peppel's partition is removed from the basement and it is learned he escaped captured. The Tartar talks and states that every age has its own laws and no law is eternal. Satin states that the weak need to justify inhumanity through lies while the strong don't require anything. He makes fun of Luka for believing that there is a bright future for mankind. Luka tries to convince him otherwise with an analogy about carpentry, where he says that suppose there are many poor carpenters in the world and one suddenly appears who revolutionizes the industry, thereby providing all of the rest with happiness. Nastya gets back at Bubnov when she says she doesn't believe he comes from a line of noblemen. At the end of the act, the actor, who leaves earlier in the act to go to the hospital Luka told him about and which Satin denounced earlier in the play, is found in the yard having hung himself. Satin says nothing other than he ruined their song.

Детство

Горкий 1913 One of the author's greatest works; a chronicle of his early life interspersed with with occasional cliché's and rhetoric. Regardless of these minor faults, it stands as a striking example in comparison to Tolstoy's work of the same name. Tolstoy shows clear European influence but Gorky's work can truly be called Russian. He doesn't face the horror of life with the abstract issues of Dostoevsky, but instead focuses on the here and now and gives more accurate portrayals of real people living in Russia at that time. Gorky describes the horror and and cruelty of humanity, but also that life can continue anew from such experiences towards a more peaceful future. At the opening, Gorky's father dies in their home lying in bed and his mother a few minutes later, from the stress, gives birth to his brother. After his father's funeral, where he watches the gravediggers throw dirt on top of frogs in the hole, his brother dies and he goes with his mother on a steamboat to Nizhny. Here he meets his new family with aunts, uncles and most importantly his grandmother and grandfather, who had the most influence in his life. He is struck by the filth and unpleasantness of the home when he arrives. As his new life begins, he finds the home filled with hostility, constant arguing and fighting. Gorky refers to this time as the pain and suffering of the ordinary Russian man. As the story progresses, the reader learns to like Gorky's grandmother best of all, as she frequently is kind to him and tells him stories that he believes eventually influenced his own work. She talks to him about God, angels and devils but is strangely afraid of cockroaches. As the story continues, Gorky realizes, in various conversations, that his grandfather and grandmother believe in two different Gods. Grandfather's god is wrathful and frequently punishes sinners. The saints he believes in all died matyrs. Grandmother's god is benevolent and pities humanity for its terrible plight. The saints she believes in spent their lives helping others. Gorky notices in church that there seem to be two different groups of people that worship each of these gods. Mother remarries but stepfather is abusive. Grandmother and grandfather start to separate. After mother's death, Gorky's grandfather tells him he needs to get out into the world, and Gorky ends by saying that He did.

Горе от ума

Грибоедов 1825 Classicism with some romanticism and realism Comedy in verse. Satirical work mocking the aristocracy. Софья Павловна Famusova and Чацсктий Dialogue and characters are more important than plot. Sofia is 17 and she loves reading French novels. Chatsky has been away traveling for years and didn't really say goodbye to Sofia. She doesn't want to receive him. Sofia is in love with Molchalin, but Chatsky doesn't think he is a good person: he thinks Chatsky cannot love purely or selflessly; Chatsky tries to please everybody in order to seek a good station. Chatsky is then disappointed in his beloved, that she could love such a man. Chatsky gives a speech about how Moscow society is at fault. But then people start rumors about Chatsky being crazy. Chatsky decides to leave Moscow. The entire comedy takes place in one day in the Famusov home. Molchalin actually loves Liza, not Sophia. Chatsky overhears Molchalin tell Liza he loves her; Sophia overhears and gets mad at Molchalin (who had just been trying to win his mater's favor, who was Sophia's dad). Chatsky confronts them and gets mad. Famusov (dad) comes in and accuses Chatsky and Sophia; Chatsky leaves Moscow. Her dad promises to send Sophia away from Moscow as punishment.

Бог

Державин 1784 o High style ode in praise of God's grandeur. o Derzhavin's most famous ode. o Slavonicism Живый (fall of the ers—final er would be lost, and the prior ones would become full vowels) God is great and mysterious and nobody can know Him. He is the creator of everything. He is the light and source of light. Created everything with a word. You were you are you will be forever. You are the chain of being. You grant life with death and combine the beginning and end. What am I before You? I am nothing. Nothing! But you shine in me with your goodness. I exist--of course you exist! Я царь — я раб — я червь — я бог! It's impossible for weak mortals to adequately praise you, but only the weep grateful tears.

Фелица

Державин o Catherine the Great wrote a fable called Сказка About Khor (son of the king) Son is abducted by a Khan and he must find the rose without thorns (symbol of virtue) Daughter of the Khan (named Felitsa) gives her son to him (Rassudok) to help him find it Derzhavin wrote this poem in response and Catherine gave him a prize for this so he wrote three sequels to it. o Not a typical panegyric ode (ode praising somebody) o Iambic tetrameter (Stress on one syllable doesn't have the weight on a multi-phonemic word—word with more syllables; it can sometimes be morphophonemic—stress that changes the meaning of the word) First line has only two words—metric italics o God-like empress of the order of Kirgiz-Kaisatskia! Whose incomparable wisdom opened faithful tracks to the young prince Khlor to go on the high mountaing where the rose without throns grows, where virtue dwells—it (virtue) seizes my mind and let's find her for counsel. Give, Felitsa instructions: how to live right and how to be happy. Your voice calls me, your son goes with me, but I am weak to obey them. Today I rule but tomorrow I'm a slave. You don't follow your teacher; you walk barefoot, you eat the simplest foods. You pour out from your pen good things to the mortals. You don't play cards from morning to morning like I do. You don't love masquerades too much [dig at her predecessor Elizaveta Petrovna], and you don't go to the club, and you're not Quixotic. You don't go off with the Masons. I wake up at noon and smoke and drink coffee and I'm caught up in fantasies. I shoot arrows at the Turks. I hop off to the tailor. I forget everything on earth in the midst of the aromas. He's foolish and plays games with his wife and searches her head for lice. He reads simple books and falls asleep over the Bible. This is how depraved I am, Felitsa, but the whole world is like me. Every person is a lie. We run after dreams of depravity. We go between laziness and grouchiness. Between all these different things how would you find the path of virtue other than by chance. Truncated forms; Slavonicisms o Flattering her by saying how bad he is and saying she is different than the mortals. o Parnasian horse is symbolic of writing poetry. o Different aristocrats were associated with the different activities that he mentions, such as hunting and boxing. o Is this a recognizable ode? Combines satire with ode. Making fun of noble people, including himself. Adds a personal element to the traditionally detached genre of ode. Elements of everyday life. Makes her look more human than Lomonosov. Lighter than previous ones. Not high style. Interest in the human being—enlightenment trend—not looking at things abstractly, but looking at the real, living human being. Catherine appears as a human being and not just an empress. o Felitsa is Catherine the Great. It is an ode to her. Felitsa=goddess of bliss. o He addresses Felitsa and asks her for guidance, and then he enumerates his faults. o But everybody is bad, and few are the people who have found the direct path to virtue. o Light. Not incriminating. Not grand. Not harsh. Poetic persona includes himself in the list of those who are morally below Catherine.

Памятник

Державин 1795 o He first entitled this "From the Muse to Horace" Previous Horace's poem had been a direct translation, but Derzhavin did a transposition—making it his own. o Six-foot iambs o Alternating rhyme o Caesura (obligatory word boundary) after the third foot. Not always a syntactic boundary, but sometimes. o I will build a monument to myself that is miraculous and eternal; stronger than metals and higher than the pyramids; Neither whirlwind nor fleeting thunder can break it, nor the flight of time crush it. So I shall not entirely die, but a big part of myself, having escaped decay will live after death. And my glory with grow not fading, as long as the universe will honor the race of Slavs. People will remember that I became famous from obscurity as the first one who dared to praise the virtue of Felitsa, to talk about God and to speak the truth to tsars with a smile. O muse, be proud of the just merit and despise those who despise you; With your calm and unrushing hand, crown your brow with the dawn of immortality. o Very different from the Horace original. He really praises the muse.

Похвала сельской жизни

Державин 1798 Depictions of various scenes of country life and how wonderful it is. Livestock. The table is full of the man's hunting. Good family. Wine.

Лебедь

Державин 1804 Iambic When I die, my soul will rise up like a swan. I am the favorite of the muses. Even death will prefer me. I will not be confined by the grave, but my voice will ring from the heavens. I see that I look like a swan, and I fly. Nature listens to my hymn to God. Everybody from history will look and point at him and praise him. Tells his wife not to mourn what seems to be a corpse.

Цыганская пляска

Державин 1805 Iambic-ish Addressed to an Egyptian woman. Take a guitar and sing. Burn the souls and throw fire in the hearts and to the tender singer.

Река времен

Державин 1816 Iambic tetrameter The river of time in its desires bears all the doings of people and drowns in the abyss of forgetfulness people, kingdoms, and kinds. And if lyre or pipe remains through the sounds, then it will be devoured by the mouth of eternity and not escape the general fate.

Записки из мертвого дома

Достоевский

Сон смешного человека

Достоевский

Бедные Люди

Достоевский 1846 Dostoevsky's first novel, which led to Nekrasov and the feared critic Belinsky calling him the new Gogol. Belinsky even said that this work was the first Russian novel. It was written over a span of nine months and was heavily influenced by Gogol's "The Overcoat." Elements of this story and hints at it appear all throughout the story, typically in the descriptions of the main character's coat when it's mentioned, as well as other characters' coats. However, their way of life is also of interest, and the main character in fact seems to be living the same life as Акакий Акакиевич. The main theme of the work surrounds the power of money and the power of poverty. The story is ingeniously put together in the form of a set of letters written between two people, Makur Devushkin and Varvara Dobruselova. Makur and Varvara are second cousins twice-removed and live across from each other on the same street in terrible apartments. Markur's, for example, is merely a portioned-off section of the kitchen, and he lives with several other tenants, such as the Gorhkovs, whose son dies and who groan in agonizing hunger almost the entire story, gently crying at night. Makur and Varvara exchange letters back in forth attesting to their terrible living conditions and the former frequently squanders his money on gifts for the latter. You progressively learn about their history throughout the story. Varvara used to live in the country until her father lost his job, and then she moved into St. Petersburg, which she hates. Her father loses his job and her mother became severely depressed. He dies and they move in with Anna Fyodorovna, a landlady who was previously cruel to them but feels badly for their situation. There she is tutored by a poor student named Pokrovsky, whose drunken father occasionally visits. She eventually falls in love with him, and she and his father, who struggled to save a measly amount of money, purchase him the complete works of Pushkin at the market for his birthday present. He dies soon after, and his last dying wish is to see the sun and the world outside, which Varvara obliges by opening the blinds to grey clouds and dirty rain. His father runs after the coffin during the procession, with some of his son's books falling in the mud as he goes along alone in the rain. He only shakes his head and then passes away. Her mother dies soon after and she is left in the care of Anna for a time, but eventually goes out on her own because of the abuse to live with Fedora across the street. Makur works as a lowly copyist, frequently belittled at his job. His clothing is worn and dirty, and his living conditions are perhaps worse than Varvara's. He considers himself a rat in society. As he and Varvara exchange letters (and occasional visits that are never detailed), they begin to exchange books. Makur becomes offended when she sends him a copy of "The Overcoat," because he finds the main character to be living the life he now lives. He's frustrated at how Akaky is treated and wonders why his overcoat was not found in the end and why Gogol chose to end it so horribly. They continue to suffer, Varvara considers leaving to another part of the city where she can work as a governess, but in a spot of luck, when Makur is completely out of money and may possibly be thrown out by his landlady, he comes upon 100 rubles. It happens that he miscopies a document and is brought to the head at his office, who tells him he can still copy it again and after looking at his terrible condition gives him the money so he can buy himself new clothes. He pays off his debts and sends some to Varvara, who sends him about 20 rubles back because she doesn't need all of it, and the future looks bright for the both of them because he can now start to save up money and they can possibly move in together. Suddenly, all of the rumors about Varvara marrying a drunk become meaningless in the face of money. Makur finds himself liked by even the writer Ratazyayev, who was using him as a figure in one of his stories because of his sad condition. Even the Gorhkovs come across money because the father's case is won in court. With the considerable sum they seem perfectly happy, but he dies soon after anyway, leaving his family in shambles despite the money. Soon after this Varvara announces that a Mr. Bykov, who had dealings with Pokrovsky's father, has proposed to her. She decides to leave with him and the last few letters attest to her slowly becoming used to her new money. She has Makur find linen for her and begins to talk about various luxuries, leaving him alone in the end despite the fact that he was coming on to better times. The story ends with a final letter from him written in a desperate plea for her to come back to him or at least write from her new life.

Двойник: Петербургская поэма

Достоевский 1846 Reworking of Gogol's Nose. Golyadkin becomes convinced that he has a double who is excelling at everything and pushing him out of his rightful place. Schizophrenia? Free indirect discourse Golyadkin proposes to the women he has for some reason been banned from seeing. Taken to an insane asylum at the end.

Идиот

Достоевский 1868-69 Prince Myshkin (Dostoevsky was trying to create an entirely beautiful man.) He loves Nastassya Filippovna. Rogozhin Lebedyev Ganya--ostensibly going to marry Nastasya Russia is present, but setting isn't super important. This novel is possibly auto-biographical, and more awkward than Dostoevsky's others. Dostoevsky's motives for this novel stem from his desire to depict the "positively good man." This is, of course, likened to Christ in many ways. Dostoevsky uses Myshkin's introduction to Petersburg society as a way to contrast the nature of Russian society at the time and the isolation and innocence of him. This is highlighted by his conflicts and relationship with Rogozhin. Indeed, Myshkin and Rogozhin are contrasted from the outset. Myshkin is associated with light, Rogozhin with dark. For example, in their initial descriptions on the train, Myshkin is described with light hair and blue eyes, Rogozhin with dark features. Rogozhin's house is dark, with iron bars on the windows. He is not only an embodyment of darkness, but surrounded by it. The two are utterly antithetical. If Myshkin is seen as Christ, Rogozhin would be the devil. Indeed, 'rog', in Russian, means horn, which adds credence to such an assertion. However, they are both after Nastasya Fillipovna - good and bad strive for the same thing. But Rogozhin kills Nastasya. The materialistic society of Russia was one that praised the values Myshkin represents; however, Rogozhin, though he loves Nastasya, commits murder in the end. This parallels society; while it professes to be good, it cannot accommodate Prince Myshkin. Nastasya herself has been corrupted by a depraved society. Her beauty has led to Totsky, perhaps the most repugnant of characters in the novel, keeping her as a concubine and she falls into a quasi-madness. Love itself is shown in various manifestations. While Ganya wishes to marry Nastasya in order that he might, through acquisition of a large dowry, spark some of the individuality, which he, rightly, feels he lacks, back into his life, Rogozhin loves Nastasya with a deep passion- a passion which drives him to kill her. Myshkin, however, loves her out of pity. But his love for her supersedes the romantic love he has had for Aglaya.

Бесы

Достоевский 1871

Москва-Петушки

Ерофеев 1960, Erofeev A pseudo-autobiographical postmodernist prose poem. The story follows an alcoholic intellectual, Venya (or Venichka), as he travels by train on a 125 km journey from Moscow to visit his beautiful beloved and child in Petushki, a city that is described by the narrator in almost utopian terms. At the open of the story, he has just been fired from his job as foreman of a telephone cable-laying crew for drawing charts of the amount of alcohol he and his colleagues were consuming over time. These graphs showed clear correlation with personal characters. For example, for a Komsomol member (since 1936), the graph is like the Kremlin Wall, that of a "shagged-out old creep" is like "a breeze on the river Kama," and Venya's chart simply shows his inability to draw a straight line because of the amount he has drunk. Venichka spends the last of his money on liquor and food for the road. While on the train, he engages in lengthy monologues about history, philosophy, and politics. He also befriends many of his fellow travelers and discusses life in the USSR with them over multiple bottles of alcohol. The book is often seen as a critique on Soviet Russia and the restrictive lifestyles most Russians were forced to lead in Stalinist and post-Stalinist Russia. Erofeev saw this as symbolic of the state of the Soviet Union during the 1960's and 1970's. • Baroque work with many allusion to various things • He speaks in a mixture of high and low language—refined sometimes but other times crude. • Train of thought—stream of consciousness writing • Asks himself questions and always gives three answers to them—these answers contradict each other • Воображение—imagination; the story is taking place in his imagined world • Ему мерешится • Сюжет—travel; seeking • His son can write the letter ю—why is that important? o Maybe it's just nonsense • Angels encourage him to drink • One goal; always talks to himself • Difficultly mixed with how funny and weird it is—he is talking about how it's so difficult between the sunrise and the opening of the stores. • Biblical allusions—40 steps (40 days and nights); telling himself to go (like Christ telling people to stand and arise); ascension before the crucifixion o Dichotomy of him as a Christ-figure; he sees himself as both divine and fallen; perhaps he is seeking redemption through weakness o 66 (roughly) Reference to Christ's commandment to be perfect; allusion to 23rd Psalm. • Venichka talks about his people as an image of social realism o Big, empty eyes o They are peaceful and "powerful", patient o These people don't trade; no relationship to money o He makes a distinction between his people and those who live "there" and sell and buy everything and who are predatory and frightening o Reference to Othello—black hero; чужой; with these words, Venichka is trying to say that he himself is completely different; as if he were alone playing all of the roles of the play; abject • He seems to dream up his own circus characters—тупой тупой, умный умный o These characters come in pairs often o Does Venichka have his own pair? • He is grieving all the time—what is he grieving about? o Perhaps he sees himself as a type of Christ and who is bearing the weight of the world o Jill wrote her thesis about this o Is it about morals and redemption? • There is no real meta-narrative • Lots of Dostoevsky allusions (3's) • Lots of allusions • He is a type of holy fool, speaking both nonsense and very wise things. A fool can also speak truth. • The Biblical themes in this book are incredibly important, but a fool makes fun of everything. • Soviet references/ideology o Graphs of their drinking habits at work o Description of the people, but uneasiness about whether or not they are watching—they don't have an economic or other activity, but they might be watching o Sleeping in a stairwell Place where people get murdered o Charting hiccups and trying to put logic to them Things can't always actually be ordered and comprehensible o Making fun of Soviet writers Maxim Gorky o Head of the brigade being responsible for political education—reading Blok to get the people to be more politically conscious o Mocking the singing • Kenosis and asceticism—cleaning yourself out; self-denial o His throwing up is a very crass manifestation of this tradition • Could be a parody of "Dead Souls"—everybody on the train is a dead soul • The most famous trip in Russian literature is Petersburg to Moscow—here we have the flipped journey (both Petersburg and Petushki have the same sound) • According to Dante, constant mourning is a sin, and Vinyechka can't get over that • He is killed by four men—are these the angels or a manifestation of his alcoholism? Was he actually stabbed? His death seems to underline his position as a Christ figure. • Does he get out on the platform at the station where the conductor got off? • It's not utopia, but there is a great deal about taking apart utopias; it all comes back to alcohol o Meta-utopia (utopia about utopias)

«Лесной царь»

Жуковский Poem: Who's galloping, who's rushing under the cool darkness? A rider with him a young son, the boy all chilled presses to his father, having hugged him, the old man holds and warms him. "Child why have you pressed so lovingly to me?" "Kin, the forest king, flashed before my eyes, he's in a dark crown with a thick beard." "No, that's just fog above the water." "Child, turn around and look at me, there's a lot that is jolly in my lands, flowers, streams of pearls, and my castles are cast in gold." "The forest king is speaking with me;." "Oh no! My lad you misheard, that's the wind having awoken, shaking the leaves." "Come to me my lad in my leafy grove, you'll meet my beautiful daughters under moonlight. You will play and fly, playing and flying they will lull you to sleep. "The kinsman, the forest king, called his daughters, they're beckoning me to the dark branches." "Child I am captivated by your beauty, by your will or not, you will be mine." "Kinsman, the forest king wants to catch us. Here he is. Its stuffy, it's hard for me to breathe." The rider timid doesn't ride he flies, the lad cries out, the driver drives on, the rider goes on to his destination. In his arms the dead lad lays. Four-foot amphibrachs. Characters: lad, kinsman, forest king, forest king's daughters The father's perspective is more mature, suspicious, rationalist, matter of fact. The father is unable to protect the child. We don't know what happened to the boy. Reworking of Goethe's German original

Светлана

Жуковский Ballads often occur at night and frequently include dialogue with the importance placed on the end. Ballad derived from «Lenore»—which is a transposition of German author Gottfried August Buerger's Lenore—but plays with the expectations of those who knew Zhukovsky's prior ballad «Liudmila.» Liudmila ends tragically. Svetlana ends happily. There's a twist in Svetlana: it was all a dream. It includes the Russian folk element of women's divination games. Trusts in providence, unlike Liudmila which doesn't believe in fate. The most famous line from Liudmila is «edem, edem, put' dalek.» It's trochaic meter makes the feel of a journey, rushing to save your betrothed's life, come to life.

«Песня (Минувших дней очарованье)»

Жуковский Poem: Enchantment of bygone days, Why have you come to life again? For a minute it became visible to her, what was invisible before. O dear guest, sacred past, why are you invading my chest? Can I say keep living to hope, I'll say that which once was will be again; Will I see in a new shimmer the beauty of a new dream; Can I put the cover back on the nakedness of familiar life? Why does the soul strive for that realm of days passed? There's one occupant there without a voice, a witness of olden days, there all the beautiful days are laid in a single coffin with him. Iambic Tetrameter It has the quintessential beginning of an elegaic poem: time has passed and those days are brought back, which conflicts with the end where there's death again. It's a poem about nostalgia. He's talking to an unspecified "ty" presumably a girlfriend who has died. Happiness is behind him, not in front of him.

«Я музу юную, бывало»

Жуковский Poem: I used to meet a young muse and inspiration unsummoned flew from heaven to me, and in those days life and poetry for me were one. But the song-giver has not visited me for a long time, The voice of the harp has become silent. When will I finally wait it out or will the harp forever make no sound? But I saved things from that time when things were accessible to me, everything from the wonderful past days. The best flowers of life, I place on your holy altar oh genius of pure beauty. I don't know when the light inspiration will turn, but you are known to me. The enchantment has not died, the past will come again. Iambic tetrameter. Loss of the poetic gift. Used to have consistent visits from muse. Holds onto that and now awaits the return. It's questioning and fearing, yet ends wiht hope. It's also ironic because Zhukovsky was obviously inspired when he wrote this poem. Uses the epithet «genii chistoi krasoty» which Pushkin uses later in «ya pomniu chudnoe mgnovenie.» In the first line, ya is nominative, but from there on it's in oblique cases meaning he's not doing the action himself, but being acted upon.

«19 марта 1823»

Жуковский Poem: You stood before me in silence. Your despondent look was full of feeling. It reminded me of the beloved past. It was the last one in this world. You departed like a silent angel. Your grave is as peaceful as heaven. All earthly memories, all holy thoughts of heaven are there. Stars of the heavens, silent night! Two-foot iambs. He wrote this on the day he found out that Maria Protasova (his niece) had died.

Пещера

Замятин 1920 • Takes place in what used to be Petersburg. • Kind of like the ice age. Everything is cold. Everything is encircled in ice. • Martin Martinovich o Loves music—maybe he once was a musician. They still have a piano. o Married to Masha • Obertishev o Yellow, stone teeth. o Beard. Red hair. o Family is described as animals. o Uncultured—he says that books burn great. • Everybody defends his own cave/home and family. • The stone age replaced the culture of Petersburg. • Plato's cave • Остранение • Lots of metaphors. • Realism fits into our world, but this story doesn't. Because we have to guess what is happening, it is reminiscent of Belyi. Takes place in an ice-age-Petersburg setting. They essentially worship the stove. Main character steals wood for his wife's name day. They are discovered. He gives her the poison so she can die quickly. He goes outside to die. Similar to Crime and Punishment; focuses on the commission of a crime.

Мы

Замятин 1921 Modernism. Utopian novel. One State is a world where everything is strictly controlled and managed. Math plays a prominent role, and everything must be mathematical and completely logical. Main character is D-503, chief engineer of the Integral, which will conquer other planets. D-503 keeps a journal. He is friends with O and R. He becomes intrigued by the rebel I-330 and falls in love with her. D develops imagination, feelings, and a soul throughout the novel, but this ends when (after the mini-revolution) he undergoes the operation to remove imagination. He denounces his friends in the rebellion, but I will not buckle. He concludes that reason must prevail, but I's logic hangs in the air--there can be no highest number and no final revolution. Biblical illusions. Free will.

Нервные люди

Зощенко 1925 Fight in the community kitchen. A woman is trying to light the stove, but it won't light, so she grabs a scourer to try to clean it. But the owner of the scourer(and her husband) don't like that plan, so they get upset. An invalid is hurt. Someone threatens to shoot. The case goes to court. The judge is also a nervous person, and he sentenced everyone. Themes/Motifs/Symbols: Nervousness/aggression--everyone, even the judge is just looking for a reason to fight Ownership--all began because someone borrowed a scourer Size--the kitchen is incredibly small to fit an incredible amount of people

Баня

Зощенко 1925 Humorous anecdote about the shortcomings of Russian spas. American spas are better. Russian spas give you paper numbers for your clothes, and you can't get the clothes back without the papers, but you have not pockets when you're in the spa. Luckily they gave the narrator back his coat even though he'd lost his number. They washed the clothes, but did a poor job and they would need to be washed again. This was just at your average, cheap Russian spa. Themes/Motifs/Symbols: Nakedness? Theater--when talking to the coat check, both parties multiple times remark that "this isn't a theater" America vs. Soviet Union Possession in relaxation?

Бедная Лиза

Карамзин 1792 Seen as the beginning of 18th century. Sentimentalism Erast is a wealthy noble who deceives and seduces the young peasant Liza. Liza cannot read. Erast leaves for the army, but returns and marries a noble woman in order to get money. Liza is heartbroken and throws herself into the lake.

Квартет

Крылов A monkey, donkey, goat, and bear decided to play a quartet. They begin to play, but the monkey stops them and tells them to rearrange the way they are sitting and their music will sound better. They try it and still sound bad. The donkey tells them all to sit in a row, but they still sound bad. A nightingale flies by. They tell him they have the music and the instruments and ask him to help choose their seats so that they sound good. The nightingale tells them that to be a musician you have to know how to play. He continues, «My friends, no matter how you seat yourselves, you will still be useless as musicians.»

Гуси

Крылов A peasant drives his geese to town holding a long switch, hoping to sell them. Driven by the thought of profit, he treated the geese poorly, and they complained to a passerby saying that the man treats them like common geese, not realizing that they are the descendants of the high geese which once saved Rome. The passerby asks them what they personally have done. They say nothing. He tells them to leave their ancestors in peace. The basnia ends with the words «one could make this fable clearer still: but let's not provoke the geese.»

Лебедь, щука и рак

Крылов It begins with a separate three lines that say, «When partners can't agree their dealings come to naught; and only torment comes from their work.» A swan, pike, and crawfish tried to move a cart. The load seemed manageable, yet it didn't budge. The crawfish scrambled backwards, the pike toward the sea, and the swan upwards. The basnia ends «who's guilty and who's right is not for us to say, but anyway the cart is still there today.»

Когда мне говорят 'Александрия'...

Кузмин Free verse (Kuzmin was the first one to practice free verse in Russian); it still has a meter, but it doesn't fall neatly into one classification The city reminds him of someone he loves very much and he is always thinking about Alexandria and this person Alexandria has a sensual, decadent connotation

Где слог найду, чтоб описать прогулку...

Кузмин Iambic There is no way to describe this wonderful walk with this wonderful person

Поединок

Куприн 1905 Known for fueling the expressionist movement in Russia, he started out in law and gave up his legal career to pursue literature. After writing some minor stories in a daily Moscow paper, he was recognized by Gorky and then his literary career skyrocketed. His first collection of short stories sold countless copies in record time and he quickly became a new star, writing countless works up until his death. His earlier works show the eccentricity that drove him even further to fame as time went on. His reputation quickly faded after his death, mainly fueled by despair over the plight of Russia following the Revolution, which did not end in the aspirations he so strove towards.

Гранатовый браслет

Куприн 1910/11 Novella Zheltkov loves Princess Sheina and gives her presents. Her husband and brother come to ask him to leave her alone after she gets a very expensive birthday present. He commits suicide. Asks her to listen to Beethoven's Second Piano Sonata. She feels she has been brushed by true love, something so rare it only happens every thousand years.

Ангел

Лермонтов 1831 An angel flew through the sky and he sang and praised God. He carried a young soul to earth who was alive but encircled in the boring song of the earth. "По небу полуночи ангел летел И тихую песню он пел; И месяц, и звезды, и тучи толпой Внимали той песне святой. Он пел о блаженстве безгрешных духов Под кущами райских садов; О боге великом он пел, и хвала Его непритворна была. Он душу младую в объятиях нес Для мира печали и слез, И звук его песни в душе молодой Остался — без слов, но живой И долго на свете томилась она, Желанием чудным полна; И звуков небес заменить не могли Ей скучные песни земли."

Когда волнуется желтеющая нива

Лермонтов 1837 One long sentence. Find happiness in life and in the heavens see God. "Тогда смиряется души моей тревога, Тогда расходятся морщины на челе, — И счастье я могу постигнуть на земле, И в небесах я вижу Бога..."

Смерть поэта

Лермонтов 1837 Written after the death of Pushkin. He essentially accuses the government of bringing about Pushkin's death. The last 16 lines of his poem were considered seditious, and he was arrested and exiled to the Caucasus. Published after Lermontov's death. First stanza: "Погиб поэт! — невольник чести — Пал, оклеветанный молвой, С свинцом в груди и жаждой мести, Поникнув гордой головой!." Last lines: "И вы не смоете всей вашей черной кровью Поэта праведную кровь!"

«Мцыри»

Лермонтов 1839 iambic tetrameter Really long, romantic poem. Poem focuses on the battle of a young monk (novice) with a panther/leopard. Set in Georgia. Based on a true story that a Georgian monk had told Lermontov in Georgia--the boy had been captured by Russians, but became sick and the monks took him in to nurse him back to health. He wasn't conscripted, but always misses the freedom of his previous life, as well as his home and family. Written in an addressed confession to a monk. Lots of passion and longing in the poem. Longing for home and native land. Surety that death is coming soon.

Дума (Печально я гляжу)

Лермонтов 1839 So sad to look at our generation. Everything is by chance and gloomy. Sons betrayed by fathers' excesses. "Печально я гляжу на наше поколенье! Его грядущее - иль пусто, иль темно, Меж тем, под бременем познанья и сомненья, В бездействии состарится оно."

Как часто, пестрою толпою окружен

Лермонтов 1840 Iambic hexameter (with a couple tetrameter lines in each stanza) Poet talks about being surrounded by a motley crowd of people. They are strangers and he holds them in contempt. They seem to be fake and empty. He finds himself caught up in his own reveries of a far-off time and place and a wonderful woman. He wishes he could destroy their feasting and blind them with his verses.

Казачья колыбельная песня

Лермонтов 1840 Trochaic (3 and 4-foot) Rocking, soothing rhythm. A relaxing lullaby about the baby's dad fighting off a Chechen and how someday the baby himself will have to take up arms. The dad will cry when he bids his soldier baby farewell and will then mourn all night and pray all day. He will give his son an icon. Remember your mother. Sweet dreams. Спи, младенец мой прекрасный, ‎Баюшки-баю. Тихо смотрит месяц ясный ‎В колыбель твою. Стану сказывать я сказки, ‎Песенку спою; Ты ж дремли, закрывши глазки, ‎Баюшки-баю.

И скучно и грустно

Лермонтов 1840 Life is an empty and foolish joke. There is nobody to love--it's impossible to love forever and it's not worth it to love only for a time. "И скучно и грустно И скучно и грустно! - и некому руку подать В минуту душевной невзгоды... Желанья... что пользы напрасно и вечно желать? А годы проходят - все лучшие годы! Любить - но кого же? - на время не стоит труда, А вечно любить невозможно... В себя ли заглянешь? - там прошлого нет и следа, И радость, и муки, и все там ничтожно. Что страсти? - ведь рано иль поздно их сладкий недуг Исчезнет при слове рассудка, И жизнь, как посмотришь с холодным вниманьем вокруг - Такая пустая и глупая шутка!"

Благодарность

Лермонтов 1841 Iambic pentameter • Alternating rhymes • For everything, for everything I thank you: for the secret torments of passions, for the bitterness of tears and the poison of a kiss, for the revenge of enemies and the slander of friends; for the ardor of the soul that was wasted in the abyss, for everything by which I was deceived in life . . . Make it only so that from now on I will thank you not much longer. • Originally written with a capital Тебя but the censor didn't like that. Cynical prayer of gratitude for all the pain and suffering of the life. But make it so that I'll never have anything to be grateful for again. За всё, за всё тебя благодарю я: За тайные мучения страстей, За горечь слез, отраву поцелуя, За месть врагов и клевету друзей; За жар души, растраченный в пустыне, За всё, чем я обманут в жизни был... Устрой лишь так, чтобы тебя отныне Недолго я еще благодарил.

Пророк

Лермонтов 1841 Ever since the eternal judge gave him the all-seeing power of a prophet, he has read the lines of malice and vice in the eyes of people. He preached love and pure doctrine and all his loved ones threw stones. He lives alone in the wilderness, like a bird, on God's grace. The stars listen to him. Parents tell their children that he is an example to them of what not to be--he is mocked, pale, sullen, and skinny. He did not get along with the others. Everyone mocks him. "С тех пор как вечный судия Мне дал всеведенье пророка, В очах людей читаю я Страницы злобы и порока. Провозглашать я стал любви И правды чистые ученья: В меня все ближние мои Бросали бешено каменья. Посыпал пеплом я главу, Из городов бежал я нищий, И вот в пустыне я живу, Как птицы, даром божьей пищи; Завет предвечного храня, Мне тварь покорна там земная; И звезды слушают меня, Лучами радостно играя. Когда же через шумный град Я пробираюсь торопливо, То старцы детям говорят С улыбкою самолюбивой: «Смотрите: вот пример для вас! Он горд был, не ужился с нами: Глупец, хотел уверить нас, Что бог гласит его устами! Смотрите ж, дети, на него: Как он угрюм, и худ, и бледен! Смотрите, как он наг и беден, Как презирают все его!»"

Листок

Лермонтов 1841 Five-foot amphibrachs An oak leaf left its tree and was blown all over, finally ending up at the Black Sea. At the Black Sea there was a young Chinara/plane tree. She and the wind sang together and he caressed her. The traveler (leaf) goes up to the trunk of the plane tree and asks for shelter. He is being cast about everywhere; take me among your own leaves; I know a lot of wise and wonderful stories. "What are you to me?" she answers. "You are dusty and yellow and not a pair for my young sons. You've seen a lot? What are fiction stories to me? I lost my hearing long ago. Get yourself away, traveler! I don't know you! I am beloved of the sun. I send my branches into heaven. And the cold sea washes my trunk." Poor oak leaf.

Тамара

Лермонтов 1841 Iambic tetrameter The beautiful princess Tamara lives in a tower, beautiful as an angel and sly as a demon. A traveler is lured in by her. They spend the night together. It was like a nightime wedding/funeral, but the morning brought silence and parting. Tender farewell and implied promise of meeting again.

Утёс

Лермонтов 1841 Short poem. Cloud rests on the breast of a cliff, but in the morning it leaves. The cliff weeps with nothing left of the cloud but a damp trace.

Выхожу один я на дорогу

Лермонтов 1841 Walking around outside by himself as the world is silent and the stars are talking to themselves. Why am I so pained? I'm not waiting for anything; I don't regret anything. I want to sleep forever in this manner, with a sweet voice singing about love. End of the poem, wishes to be put in a sleep where he's not dead but becomes a part of nature where day and night flows over him and rustling leaves bend down and comfort his soul. "Выхожу один я на дорогу; Сквозь туман кремнистый путь блестит; Ночь тиха. Пустыня внемлет богу, И звезда с звездою говорит. В небесах торжественно и чудно! Спит земля в сияньи голубом... Что же мне так больно и так трудно? Жду ль чего? жалею ли о чём? Уж не жду от жизни ничего я, И не жаль мне прошлого ничуть; Я ищу свободы и покоя! Я б хотел забыться и заснуть! Но не тем холодным сном могилы... Я б желал навеки так заснуть, Чтоб в груди дремали жизни силы, Чтоб дыша вздымалась тихо грудь; Чтоб всю ночь, весь день мой слух лелея, Про любовь мне сладкий голос пел, Надо мной чтоб вечно зеленея Тёмный дуб склонялся и шумел."

Сон

Лермонтов 1843 He is asleep and dreaming lying along on the sand of the valley. Dreamed of a big feast with happy people talking about him. There is one woman not participating in the conversation: she is dreaming of the man's corpse lying in the valley.

Родина

Лермонтов He loves his homeland with a strange and inexplicable love. He loves the steppe and the izbas. He doesn't love her for glory or peace, but for nature. "Люблю отчизну я, но странною любовью! Не победит ее рассудок мой. Ни слава, купленная кровью, Ни полный гордого доверия покой, Ни темной старины заветные преданья Не шевелят во мне отрадного мечтанья. Но я люблю - за что, не знаю сам - Ее степей холодное молчанье, Ее лесов безбрежных колыханье, Разливы рек ее, подобные морям; Проселочным путем люблю скакать в телеге И, взором медленным пронзая ночи тень, Встречать по сторонам, вздыхая о ночлеге, Дрожащие огни печальных деревень; Люблю дымок спаленной жнивы, В степи ночующий обоз И на холме средь желтой нивы Чету белеющих берез. С отрадой, многим незнакомой, Я вижу полное гумно, Избу, покрытую соломой, С резными ставнями окно; И в праздник, вечером росистым, Смотреть до полночи готов На пляску с топаньем и свистом Под говор пьяных мужичков. "

Парус

Лермонтов One lone sailboat goes out to sea even in the midst of the storm. "Белеет парус одинокой В тумане моря голубом!.. Что ищет он в стране далекой? Что кинул он в краю родном?... Играют волны — ветер свищет, И мачта гнется и скрыпит... Увы! Он счастия не ищет И не от счастия бежит! Под ним струя светлей лазури, Над ним луч солнца золотой... А он, мятежный, просит бури, Как будто в бурях есть покой!"

Очарованный странник

Лесков

Левша

Лесков 1881 Competition between English and Russian craftsmen. The Russians make a tiny set of shoes for the crumb-sized flea. The flea no longer dances, but at least it has shoes. Both Westernizers and Slavophiles appeal to this work.

Вечернее размышление

Ломоносов ВЕЧЕРНЕЕ РАЗМЫШЛЕНИЕ О БОЖИЕМ ВЕЛИЧЕСТВЕ ПРИ СЛУЧАЕ ВЕЛИКОГО СЕВЕРНОГО СИЯНИЯ 1743 Reflections on nature. Philosophical questions. Acknowledgment of God's greatness.

Ода на взятие Хотина

Ломоносов ОДА БЛАЖЕННЫЯ ПАМЯТИ ГОСУДАРЫНЕ ИМПЕРАТРИЦЕ АННЕ ИОАННОВНЕ НА ПОБЕДУ НАД ТУРКАМИ И ТАТАРАМИ И НА ВЗЯТИЕ ХОТИНА 1739 ГОДА This was essentially the beginning of Lomonosov's fame and of Russian poetry in general. He included a copy of his treatise on poetry with this ode. Only published later (1751). Lomonosov was abroad at the time of writing this poem, but he still portrays the current events accurately. High style. (Lomonosov is famous for his works in three styles--low, mid, and high) Iambic. Big switch from the heavy writing of Trediakovsky. Life is awesome now in Russia because of the victory over the Tatars. Rus' is powerful. Depiction of the mighty hero who saved the day in the battle. The Russians had been greatly outnumbered by the Turks, but the Russians won. The fortress of Khotin was surrendered to the victorious Russian.

Ода на день восшествия

Ломоносов ОДА НА ДЕНЬ ВОСШЕСТВИЯ НА ВСЕРОССИЙСКИЙ ПРЕСТОЛ ЕЕ ВЕЛИЧЕСТВА ГОСУДАРЫНИ ИМПЕРАТРИЦЫ ЕЛИСАВЕТЫ ПЕТРОВНЫ 1747 ГОДА Iambic High style. Dramatic praise of Elizabeth. Compares her taking the throne to the creation of the world. He recited it for the anniversary of her ascension to the throne. He started writing it after learning that the Empress had dramatically increased the Academy budget. 24 stanzas. Praises God, nature, Russia, Peter. Praises Elizabeth.

Я

Маяковский По мостовой моей души изъезженной шаги помешанных вьют жестких фраз пяты. Где города повешены и в петле облака застыли башен кривые выи - иду один рыдать, что перекрестком распяты городовые.

А вы могли бы?

Маяковский 1913 I am awesome. Could you play a sweet nocturne? Iambic Tetrameter I right away smeared the map of the everyday the paint from the glass having grown moldy I showed fish on a platter the slanting cheekbones of the ocean. On the scale of an aluminum fish I read the calls of new lips. But could you play a nocturne on the flute of drain pipes? Interpretation: Smearing over the everyday He finds food to have cheekbones of the ocean On the scales of tin fish, I read the calls of new lips (picture of a sardine can maybe?) He can turn the prosaic into a work of art And could we do the same? Implied = no! = only he can do this Image of water = medium of creation The final lines if put together create a regular four-foot iamb Я сразу смазал карту будня, плеснувши краску из стакана; я показал на блюде студня косые скулы океана. На чешуе жестяной рыбы прочел я зовы новых губ. А вы ноктюрн сыграть могли бы на флейте водосточных труб?

Бруклинский мост

Маяковский 1925 The Brooklyn Bridge is awesome. Mayakovsky goes to it like some people go to church. Era succeeding the steam age. Place of suicide. The bridge will outlive all. Written with the words forming kind of steps. Futurist work. Iambic tendencies Enjambment Changes the way we look at a line, what's emphasized Slov rhymes with of with tserkov' This appears like a descending staircase (strange form: entering lines and indenting, looks like many staircases) Ending = "Brooklyn Bridge. Yes. That's quite a thing." In love with the future, and the Brooklyn bridge symbolized modernity and the avant-garde Talks about people in bad circumstances, hungry without work, jumping off the bridge, etc. Издай, Кулидж, радостный клич! На хорошее и мне не жалко слов. От похвал красней, как флага нашего материйка, хоть вы и разъюнайтед стетс оф Америка. Как в церковь идет помешавшийся верующий, как в скит удаляется, строг и прост, - так я в вечерней сереющей мерещи вхожу, смиренный, на Бруклинский мост. Как в город в сломанный прет победитель на пушках - жерлом жирафу под рост - так, пьяный славой, так жить в аппетите, влезаю, гордый, на Бруклинский мост. Как глупый художник в мадонну музея вонзает глаз свой, влюблен и остр, так я, с поднебесья, в звезды усеян, смотрю на Нью-Йорк сквозь Бруклинский мост.

Господа Головлёвы

Михаил Салтыков-Щедерин

Забытая деревня

Некрасов

Родина

Некрасов

Кому жить на Руси хорошо?

Некрасов 1860-1877

Леди Макбет Мценского уезда

Николай Лесков 1865 1865, Leskov Themes: subordinate role of women in 19th-century society, adultery, provincial life, and the planning of murder by a woman Characters: The Ismailov family: Boris, the father of Zinovy, the husband of Katerina for the past five years. Boris and Zinovy are merchants. Katerina is bored. Plot: A dam bursts at a mill owned by Boris, and Zinovy leaves town to oversee its repair. Katerina flirts somewhat innocently with Sergei, a newly arrived farmhand and womanizer. Sergei comes into Katerina's room and moves to kiss her roughly. She protests, but then gives in; implied sexual encounter. After a week of the continued affair, Boris catches Sergei and accused him of adultery; Boris whips him and locks Sergei in a cellar. Boris threatens to beat Katerina when she asks for Sergei's release. Katerina poisons Boris, and he's buried without his son and without suspicion. She then takes charge of the estate. Katerina has a strange dream about a cat. Sergei worries over Zinovy's return and desires to marry her. Katerina again dreams of the cat, which this time has Boris' head. Zinovy returns and confronts Katerina about her affair. Finally she calls Sergei in, kisses him in front of her husband, some violence occurs, and the two of them strangle Zinovy, who dies, and Sergei buries him deep in the walls of the cellar where he was imprisoned. Zinovy's disappearance is a mystery, and no trouble comes to Sergei or Katerina. She gets pregnant. Boris' young nephew Fyodor shows up with his mother, preventing Katerina from inheriting the estate. Sergei complains about their misfortune. Fyodor falls ill, and Katerina and Sergei suffocate the boy, but a crowd returning from church storms the house, one of its members having spied the act through the shutters of Fyodor's room. Sergei, hearing the windows clattering from the crowd's fists, thinks the ghosts of his murder victims have come back to haunt him, and breaks down. Sergei admits to the crime publicly and tells of where Zinovy is buried. Katerina indifferently admits that she helped with the murders. The two are exiled to Siberia. During their journey there, Katerina gives birth in a prison hospital, and the child is sent to be raised by Fyodor's mother and becomes heir to the Ismailov estate. Katerina continues to be obsessed with Sergei, who increasingly wants nothing to do with her. Fiona and "little Sonya," two members of the prison convoy with Katerina and Sergei, are introduced, the former being known for being sexually prolific, the latter the opposite. Katerina catches Sergei being intimate with Fiona. Sergei then pursues little Sonya, who won't sleep with him unless he gives her a pair of stockings. Sergei then complains to Katerina about his ankle-cuffs. She readily gives him her last pair of new stockings to ease his pain, which he then gives to Sonya for sexual favors. Katerina sees Sonya wearing her stockings, and spits in Sergei's eyes, and shoves him. He promises revenge, and later breaks into her cell with another man, giving her fifty lashes with a rope, while Sonya giggles in the background. Katerina, broken, lets Fiona console her, and realizes that she is no better than Fiona, which is her last straw: after that she is emotionless. On the road in the prison convoy, Sergei and Sonya mock Katerina. Sonya offers her stockings to her for sale. Katerina tackles Sonya overboard after seeing the faces of Boris, Zinovy, and Fyodor in the water. The two women appear briefly at the surface, still alive, but Katerina grabs Sonya, and they both drown. Type of Work: short story, tragedy Characters: • Katerina Lvovna--uneducated wife of a merchant. She has no empathy it seems and murderers many. She is obsessively in love with Sergei and her personality seems to change because of him, growing harsher and more violent. Heartless Lady Macbeth. • Zinovey Borisych--her husband, older, no love in the marriage, no children • Boris Timofeich--father in law. He stands by his morals. • Sergei--He switches from woman to woman, seduces them but then lets his personality change because of them (is in turn seduced by them). • Fedia--Zinovey's cousin and the heir to his fortune. He is a child and is playful and reads the lives of saints. • Fiona--wife of an officer and a prisoner. She is kinda passed around by the men, she distinguishes love from sex. She is probably the only friend of Katerina. • Sonetka--new love interest of Sergei and a prisoner. She finds humor in unsympathetically taunting and toying with Katerina and manipulating Sergei like Katerina once did. Plot: • So Katerina marries Zinovey and quickly realizes that the marriage is loveless. Sergei seduces her and they start a passionate love affair while her husband is away. Her father in law, Boris, discovers them and she murders him (though we aren't shown the murder, it is just implied-- poison). After a while the husband returns and, kinda pressured by Sergei but planned by Katerina, they murder her husband together before anyone knows that he has returned (they suffocate him). Katerina grows pregnant and anticipates inheriting her late husbands estate when his cousin, a child named Fedia, comes into the picture as the next rightful heir. If Katerina has a child within the next 9 months then it will be her late husbands and all the money will be hers. This doesn't happen (or won't happen, the timeline is not very clear) and with the help of Sergei they suffocate him while the village and his grandmother is at Vespers. The village returns from Vespers to see the couple killing Fedia. Having already suspected them of the murder of Zinovey and Boris, they charged the house. Sergei gets charged for murder (he shows remorse for his crimes) and he rats out Katerina. She takes the blame as well and they both go to jail aka exile. She gives birth to the baby, has no love for it and gives it up. In exile, Katerina pays off the guards to see Sergei but he has cooled to her. He sleeps with Fiona and it destroys Katerina. Fiona explains to Katerina that it is only sex. Then Sergei starts an affair with Sonetka. He tricks Katerina into giving him her new wool socks, which he gives to Sonetka. One night, Sergei and another man, with Sonetka observing, attempt to suffocate Katerina (counting to 50, not killing her). After that she is completely broken and probably dying from sickness. The couple continues to taunt her in the most humiliating way. The story ends with them on a boat. Katerina grabs Sonetka by the legs and together they drown. Reflection: • Leskov wrote during the era of Tolstoy and the Tolstoian woman is present in this piece as well. Katerina's character changes completely throughout the 3 parts of the novel (1st before segei, 2nd love affair and murders, 3rd exile). Women are abused by their sexual desires and ruined by the men who exploit them. She used to get dreams of a cat, the murdered father in law, implying remorse, but after they are discovered, the remorse disappears. This character change is best exemplied by her emotions towards her unborn child, before she murders Fedia, it is implied that she feels some love for it (growing pale when she feels it turning in her stomach etc.) but when it is born she is indifferent to it (like any woman in a passionate affair, the love for the father does not transfer to the child). • We also have the theme of reappropriated western works--here we have a take on Shakespeare's Macbeth (a play on the idea of a Russian Macbeth???) • Leskov is also playing with the idea of seduction. Sergei, the seducer, is in turn, seduced by the women he is with. For this reason, this story reads almost like a realist work??? <--CHECK THIS it at least turns the trope on its head which doesn't make this piece feminist by any stretch of the imagination but stays consistent with the Tolstoyian way of thinking (see Kreutzer Sonata) • The entire story is shaped like a telling of a folklore tale. It begins by introducing Katerina as "the Lady Macbeth of the Mzinsk District," as she was coined by the people in the district (which is strange because the main observers in this novel are peasants and they definitely have no idea who Lady Macbeth is). The way the novel is shaped also suggests that what happens after they are sentenced the exile is a myth since there is no way for the people of the district, the carriers of this tale, to know what happened to either of these characters after they went to exile. This can justify, in some sense, the extreme character change after the characters go to exile.

Как сон, пройдут дела и помысли людей

Николай Минский 1887 iambic hexameter and tetrameter; AABCCB The rhyme scheme changes each stanza Main idea: Everything will be wiped away Our descendents will live differently, but will die the same way Light is reborn just to feed the dark No matter where or when a person is, they will never get rid of sadness The most imьortal people are those who want a new world so badly, they create a mirage for themselves

Песенька об Арбате

Окуджава Okudzhava's classic song about his childhood neighborhood, an old and crooked-lane section of Moscow that would soon fall victim to urban renewal. It now features a statue the bard who sang its praises. The tangled old district fell to builders in the 1960s and 1970s. O's example gave birth to the bard movement and a genre called "the author song." These singers of guitar poetry who would elude official control, and whose songs opened a space for free discourse in Soviet society. Ах Арбат мой Арбат ты мое призвание Ты и радость моя и моя беда Ah Arbat, my Arbat, you're my one fatherland One can never walk you through the very end

Зависть

Олеша 1927 Modernist work. Reflecting on the ending of an old era and the beginning of a new one. Nikolai Kavalerov--narrator and main character. He is a poor drunkard whom Andrei takes in. Nikolai is envious of both Andrei and Volodya (the young boy that Andrei essentially raise) and grows to hate his benefactor. He writes an angry letter and gets kicked out of the house. In Part II he joins Ivan Babichev and the two conspire. They have dreams, but nothing actually comes to fruition, even in the moment in which it seems like Ophelia killed Ivan. At the end, Ivan moves in with Nikolai. Andrei Babichev--fat business man and the developer of the two bits cafeterias. He created the best sausage. He is a big deal. Takes in Nikolai because he has pity as he thinks of Volodya. Ivan Babichev--Andrei's brother. He claims to be an inventor but is really good for nothing. He recruits Nikolai to help him. He wants there to be a glorious manifestation of the old emotions before the new age of history enters. He thinks that Nikolai is the embodiment of envy and will be the perfect man to help him with that job. Volodya--Soccer player; symbol of the new soviet man. He wants to become a robot and not have emotion. He wants to marry Valya. The two plan to kiss the day that the two bits cafeteria is opened. Valya--Ivan's daughter. Volodya and Andrei convinced her to leave home and go stay with a friend. She and Volodya plan to get married in four years. Themes: Emotions (they are supposedly part of the old generation and will be done away with, but at the end Ivan realizes and claims that you can't actually do away with emotions); pillows (symbol of old-fashioned home and domestic life; opposite of mass-produced state-sponsored life); food

Гроза

Островский 1859 Considered to be Ostrovsky's masterpiece. It is not as well known as some other Russian plays and certainly not as heard of as Chekhov. This is typically attributed to the fact that the characters and scenery in his plays are too far removed from the rest of the world and only those who are familiar with Russian life and the communities he uses as prototypes, it is usually difficult to understand. He wrote this play after a journey down the Volga, when he noticed strange marriage customs in the village of Torzhok. Young girls were allowed to go wherever they liked, but upon being married they became the bond-slave of their mother-in-law and lived in strict seclusion. The Storm consists of five acts in all. In the story, Tikhon Kabanov lives with his wife Catherine, sister Barbara and his mother Martha. His mother frequently bullies him around, forcing him to pretend he is demeaning to his wife. Catherine is actually in love with another man, Boris Dikoy, the nephew of the local merchant Saul. At the beginning of the story the main characters are all walking along a public park high along the Volga. Barbara guesses that Catherine is in love with Boris and the first act ends with an approaching thunderstorm, which frightens Catherine. The storm is used throughout the play as a symbol of human emotion and impending troubles. Tikhon is leaving the next day and Barbara convinces Catherine to wait in the garden for Boris, who she will tell to go there. Catherine tries to get Tikhon to make her swear to never meet with a single stranger while he's gone, which he finds odd. The two lovers do indeed meet and though she tries to stop herself at first, Catherine gives in to emotion and the two enjoy each other. In act four, Barbara tells Boris at an old, dilapidated archway that Tikhon has come home early and Catherine is in ruins, crying constantly and pacing around pale. Catherine comes into the scene after he leaves and Barbara tries to get her to calm down in spite of the situation. A storm is brewing on the horizon. Tikhon and his mother come into the scene and though he is doubtful anything is wrong, his mother can sense something and Catherine eventually gives way and admits to having an affair with Boris (upon saying his name there is the sound of thunder, she thought she was going to die because of the lightening storm when an old, insane local woman says she will burn in hell). Tikhon takes to drinking, his sister leaves with her lover Kudryash and Catherine is in complete ruin, crying constantly. Tikhon is talking with Kuligin (local townsman who appears earlier in the story trying to convince Boris' father to create a giant sundial and who also is trying to discover perpertual motion) when Glasha, his maid, comes up to announce that Catherine has disappeared. A few people from the village help to search for her. She goes to the spot where she first met Boris, speaking to herself phrases she said before. Boris happens to come to the same area (he is being sent away to Siberia forcefully by his uncle) and they exchange goodbyes. Catherine fears her shame and imprisonment, and in desperation, after thinking to herself of the peace in the grave, throws herself off the side into the Volga. The villagers find her body, which looks quite alive save a small, insignificant mark and only a spot of blood. The play ends with Tikhon falling upon her body in grief. In the end the two lovers have succumb to that which they tried to rebel against, the deeply ingrained conception of sin in their community.

Сестра моя жизнь и сегодня на разливе

Пастернак 1917 Love poem written for his lover. The world is beautiful and wonderful. Lots of strong imagery. Paternak's rise to fame. Terras: "In it luxurious and explosive imagery combines and sometimes contrasts with the disciplined quatrain form, occasional colloquial idiom and elliptical syntax." Four foot amphibrach Feminine masculine alternating, often inexact rhymes Interpretation: He's on the train contemplating big ideas of life and connection with Russia On his way to see his girlfriend, he's so excited, can't wait to get there Mundane objects often become holy Train schedule like scripture Reading train schedule more important than scripture Akhmatova called this poem "the apex of Russian literature" Lot of fragmentation = bits of things So intoxicated with love, sees the world transformed Things from his perspective = eyes and grass are violet excited about train schedule sun is sad gets wilder in the end = the sense of the steppe falling away and the heart splashing along the platform window reflections flash onto trees and moving from car to car and seeing this visual effect

Гамлет

Пастернак 1946 One of the Zhivago poems. Terras: "Zhivago's awareness of his own inescapable, divinely ordained sacrificial mission as an artistic witness to the tragedy of his age. This was also reinforced in 'Hamlet' and other items in the poetic appendix which closely identified the creative poet's predicament with that of the suffering Christ." References to Hamlet and the Bible. The speaker is simultaneously Hamlet, Christ, and an actor. The role is difficult to play, but he is submissive to his father and willing to play the role. Life is not easy to live. Trochaic Гул затих. Я вышел на подмостки. Прислонясь к дверному косяку, Я ловлю в далеком отголоске, Что случится на моем веку. На меня наставлен сумрак ночи Тысячью биноклей на оси. Если только можно, Aвва Oтче, Чашу эту мимо пронеси. Я люблю Твой замысел упрямый И играть согласен эту роль. Но сейчас идет другая драма, И на этот раз меня уволь. Но продуман распорядок действий, И неотвратим конец пути. Я один, все тонет в фарисействе. Жизнь прожить — не поле перейти. To live is a life is not to cross a field Interpretation: Inset into text to reflect the larger text (misan beam) Pasternak, Zhivago, Christ, Hamlet Hamlet = character in a play, speaker is an actor playing hamlet, so really 5 levels Actor acting out playwright Hamlet and Jesus acting out their father's demands Etc. Written in 1946; Just finished translating shakespeare's hamlet in 1941

Магдалина

Пастернак 1949 Trochaic Zhivago poem. About Mary mourning Christ's death but expressing hope in the resurrection. Two poems. It ties back into the Zhivago text, where there were lots of references to Mary Magdalene. Magdalene for Pasternak is more important than the mother of Jesus because Magdalene is the one who sins and finds forgiveness. Connection between Lara and Mary Magdalene. Для кого на свете столько шири, Столько муки и такая мощь? Есть ли столько душ и жизней в мире? Столько поселений, рек и рощ? Но пройдут такие трое суток И столкнут в такую пустоту, Что за этот страшный промежуток Я до воскресенья дорасту.

Гефсиманский сад

Пастернак 1949 Zhivago poem. Depicts Christ in the Garden of Gethsemane with his disciples. He bids them to wait because his soul is sorrowful. He says he will be delivered into the hands of sinners. Judas betrays him. Christ rebukes Peter for cutting off a guard's ear and tells him that the fight is not for swords and that Christ could have legions of angels if he wanted them. Петр дал мечом отпор головорезам И ухо одному из них отсек. Но слышит: «Спор нельзя решать железом, Вложи свой меч на место, человек. Неужто тьмы крылатых легионов Отец не снарядил бы мне сюда? И, волоска тогда на мне не тронув, Враги рассеялись бы без следа. Но книга жизни подошла к странице, Которая дороже всех святынь. Сейчас должно написанное сбыться, Пускай же сбудется оно. Аминь. Ты видишь, ход веков подобен притче И может загореться на ходу. Во имя страшного ее величья Я в добровольных муках в гроб сойду. Я в гроб сойду и в третий день восстану, И, как сплавляют по реке плоты, Ко мне на суд, как баржи каравана, Столетья поплывут из темноты».

Август

Пастернак 1953 Zhivago poem Farewell with life. The speaker, while contemplating his wet pillow, envisions the crowds of people coming to say goodbye. It's the day of Transfiguration, and usually there is a light from Mt. Tabor on this day. He bids farewell to Transfiguration and the Second Coming. Как обещало, не обманывая, Проникло солнце утром рано Косою полосой шафрановою От занавеси до дивана. Оно покрыло жаркой охрою Соседний лес, дома поселка, Мою постель, подушку мокрую, И край стены за книжной полкой. Я вспомнил, по какому поводу Слегка увлажнена подушка. Мне снилось, что ко мне на проводы Шли по лесу вы друг за дружкой. Вы шли толпою, врозь и парами, Вдруг кто-то вспомнил, что сегодня Шестое августа по старому, Преображение Господне. Обыкновенно свет без пламени Исходит в этот день с Фавора, И осень, ясная, как знаменье, К себе приковывает взоры.

Доктор Живаго

Пастернак 1955 (completed--but he had written fragments earlier) Published 1957 and acclaimed in West despite being rejected for publication in USSR Yurii Zhivago--Moscow doctor and poet; died 1929. He often speaks for Pasternak himself and reveals the author's philosophical and political views. Terras: "Doctor Zhivago owed much to the 19th-century social-historical novel, but countered the quasi-scientific determinism of that genre by the use of coincidence, subjective distortion of historical chronology and atmosphere, and by blurring the characterization of some central characters--features which some commentators have regarded as flaws in the novel."

Девятый сон Веры Павловны

Пелевин Vera Pavlovna's Ninth Dream (1991) Postmodern short story Characters: • Vera Pavlovna: an old, sexless woman who works as a cleaner for a public male toilet in Moscow. • Manyasha: Vera's friend who works for the women's toilet right next to the men's. She, for some reason, holds the answers to the mystery of life and, presumably, the meaning of life. Plot: • Vera is cleaning the men's toilet, wondering about life, like usually. She likes to philosophize but today she becomes interested in the mystery of life. After pondering this she realizes that the meaning of life is the mystery of life and though many claim to know the true meaning they never do because the mystery is the meaning. She shares her new discoveries with Manyasha, who, claims that they are ridiculous because there are people that know the meaning of life, they were just never asked. Vera asks Manyasha what the mystery of life is and she whispers it in her ear as loud noises commence outside. Vera suddenly understand the mystery of life. • With Perestroika at its height, Vera and her toilet join a "collective" as various businessmen buy up the toilet, making it prettier and more expensive. Eventually, the toilet is turned into a small store where Vera works as the cleaner. • The more that Vera cleans the store the more she experiences more and more hallucinations. Excrement covers the customers and the shelves of the store. With no one else to blame, Vera realizes that this is all Manyasha's fault and plans a little 'treat' for her. • Manyasha, who wasn't visiting Vera as often as before and just appeared in the past, appears again. Vera tells Manyasha about her hallucinations. Manyasha says that these hallucinations are to be expected since she knows the mystery of life and not the meaning and therefore cannot distinguish the difference between the metaphysical life and reality. In response, Vera pulls out an ax and professes her need to hit Manyasha with it across the crown of her head (like Dostoevsky). Manyasha warns her that if she does this she will never see her again. Vera, pleased with this consequence, kills Manyasha. • Vera wakes up after killing Manyasha on the floor in front of a broken mirror. Not understanding what had happened, Vera is picked up by a current and begins to float above the store, the city, and eventually the world. • To keep herself from drifting into space, Vera hangs on to the globe and sleeps above the outline of the USSR. Suddenly, Pot Mir Soup, a dignitary from an asian country and once a consumer at her toilet, appears and asks her if she knows who he is. She replies in the affirmative, stating that she read something about him: "I realized everything a long time ago, only there was a tunnel through what I read. There has to be some kind of tunnel." Pot Mir Soup then sends her into a tunnel by opening up the earth. The void attempts to suck her in but she hangs on the to bottom of the Soviet Union until 2 oars strike her hands. She begins to fall, or rather float, because "she wasn't really there." She falls asleep again and hears people talking about solipsism, a study that she likes. They talk about possible vacancies in socialist realist prose for one to live forever as a character. Unfortunately, there were no vacancies so "what is to be done?" one asks Vera. She hears the voices from within her stomach and, reverberating through her body she asks "what is to be done?" as well. She begins to be thrown onto a large object that was created by her question. Because of inertia, she continues to scream "what is to be done?" She falls asleep when she hits the earth. In her sleep she hears someone accepting the position of assistant manager. • The story ends with a quote from Chernevsky's What is to be Done: "When Vera Pavlovna emerged from her room the following day, her husband and Masha were already packing two suitcases." Themes/Motifs/Symbols/Images • Consumerism and capitalism in Perestroika--throughout this story, Vera's toilet is updated by odd looking men who all look similar to Vera. All the consumers of the store are caked in excrement. • Solipsism--The view of theory that the self is all that can be known to exist. Vera studies this theory and indeed we have no proof that anything other than Vera exists. Manyasha does not seem to be real, and there are many happenings and characters that seem too unrealistic to be real. Overall everything in the story seems metaphysical compared to Vera. • Foreign cultural influence: very much like Pelevin's Чапеев и Пустота. o West--In the toilet, Vera plays both Latin and German operas. o East--Pot Mir Soup is the only character to appear to Vera in both the physical world of Moscow and the metaphysical world of outerspace. • The meaning of life vs the mystery • Toilets and excrement--very crude subject matter, classic postmodern Literary Connections: • Chernevsky's What is to be Done: The entire thing is an illusion to Vera Pavlovna's 9th dream MORE INFO TO BE ADDED AFTER READING WHAT IS TO BE DONE AGAIN • Dostoevsky's Crime and Punishment: Vera wants to kill Manyasha like Dostoevsky's Raskolnikoff. • Chekhov's Three Sisters: when Vera is floating above Moscow, she sees a performance of this play.

Русский Бог

Петр Вяземский 1828 Trochaic tetrameter Satirical poem talking about how the Russian god is cold and snowy; the god of painful roads. Lots of negative depictions of the Russian god. The god of the foreigners, particularly of the Germans.

Новые Робинзоны--Хроника конца ХХ века

Петрушевская 1989 Type of narrative: Postmodern short story Characters: • 18 year old girl narrator • Mother--maternal • Father--always wished to escape from the world and an argument with his parents really set him off to going off the grid entirely. • Baba Anisya--the family's neighbor in their rural plot. She worked on a collective farm for 20 years and 5 in a health clinic run by Tanya. She is the goat whisperer and in the beginning is very self reliant and doesn't believe in helping anyone, later she becomes dependent on the family when the refugees from Tarutino take over her plot and her goat. • Tanya--A nurse and the neighbor of the family and of Anisya. She learned how to nurse when she was a prisoner in Kolyma. She opened a health clinic in the area and helps those who are in need of medical help (if she gets paid). She is not as manual of a worker as others and remains disconnected from the rest of the characters. • Marfutka--an old, semi-savage woman. She is 85 and has resigned herself to die. She locks herself up in her house, refusing to make a fire or to farm--she has decided to die from hunger. She is 85 and when we see her she is wrapped from head to toe in rags and looks feral even in the face (dark skin and sunken wet black eyes.) • Lena--Baby daughter of a dead sheperdess. She is half insane but is brought back by the mother. • Nayden--A baby boy that was dropped on the family's doorstep and whom the mother brought back to health. Plot: • This family goes out to live in the middle of nowhere to fend for themselves. They plot land and bargain with their neighbors for milk and medical advice for canned food from the city. Though their neighbors at first appear to be welcoming, they all have to be bought and get very upset when they are not paid. There is a great emphasis on the necessity of fending for yourself and your kin. This is best illustrated when the mother and the narrator plant potatoes in Marfutka's plot to give her food. Anisya is insulted that they gave away potatoes to Marfutka without paying her for the goat milk and Tanya threatens them, believing that they are trying to steal Marfutka's plot. • The mother and narrator keep the original house alive, tending to the plot and collecting window panes, doors, and wood, while the father creates another refuge further in the woods. There is no path there because the father does not take the same path twice. At this point the narrator realizes how disconnected they are from the rest of the world, noting how rarely they turn on the radio, even though they know that the only thing that they will hear from it is propaganda and lies. • The mother and the narrator buy a goat and with the help of Anisya, they raise it. • In the month of June, the hungriest month of the year, the mother and narrator are forced to eat grass, at first harvesting it in handfuls and then with a scyth. • The family hears of the suicide of a sheperdess that Tanya was treating for a chronic illness. Without the money to pay for the medicine, she killed herself, leaving a baby in the care of a drunken neglectful grandmother, who reminds the narrator of Marfutka. The family adopts the baby (Lena) and the grandmother goes off to die. • Just as the father begins to accept Lena, the family finds a newborn sick baby abandoned on their doorstep. Hurt and upset, they have no choice but to raise the baby for their own. When questioning where it came from, they realize that the refugees from Tarutino will be coming soon and their home is now under threat. • Just in the knick of time, the father moves the family to their new refuge in the woods. The refugees take their old home as well as Anisya's house, her plot, and her goat (they left Marfutka alone.) Anisya joins the family in the woods and becomes a caretaker for the young children and a grandmother to all (the grandmother is storage for stories and culture.) The family tries to listen to the radio. They get no signal and they all realize, to the delight of the father, that they have truly escaped. • The story ends in winter. Anisya has died and the family, fearing the refugees will take this place as well, do not dare to make any noise, going as far as chopping wood in heavy storms to disguise the sound of the axe. The narrator takes stock of what the family does have and with plans of moving on to the next refuge, implying that this family will continue to be escaped forever. Themes/Motifs/Symbols/Images: • Eldery/grandmother--there are many eldery women in the short story and most are portrayed as feral semi savage individuals who do not count as human. They live alone and have resigned themselves to die of starvation. On the other hand, Anisya becomes the grandmother of the family and the narrator states that a grandmother is the storage of ideas, culture, and history, showing the true importance of eldery women culturally, making Marfutka's and others' lives a tragedy. • Escape--the idea of escaping a society. Is it rational? Is it not? Does it begin irrationally and then does something happen? • Returning to peasant culture • Lack of community until it is us vs. them • Self reliance--every peasant is proud of their self reliance but they prize canned foods from the city. Literary Connections: • Robinson Crusoe

Котлован

Платонов 1930 (but not published in USSR until 1987) Social commentary arguing against collectivization. Dystopia. Main character is Voshchev. Worker who wants to contemplate the meaning of life because it will theoretically increase his productivity. The workers are supposed to dig a huge pit for the foundation of the enormous proletariat house. Nastia--little girl Anthropomorphic blacksmith bear. Because that's cool.

Когда здесь на посту стоит Милицанер

Пригов 1978 Апофеоз милицанера (цикл) 1978, but he worked on it for years • No punctuation—no boundaries • Simple words, but sometimes the meaning is difficult to understand • Political art • Very popular in certain circles • Apotheosis—raising a person to be like God; обожестевление o We see this when he talks to God; he sees everything; he seems greater than a mortal • Why a policeman? He's the lowest step on the hierarchy of power. Sarcastic; sense of humor. • Maybe the policeman is only in your mind • He "protects" people, but kills them; later he is killed, but it seems that he comes back • He plays with the idea of Moscow as the third Rome—but in an imperialistic sort of way o He seems to say that the policeman becomes the third Rome. • The metaphysical and the real are both present but are mixed together o Is on earth, but can ascend to heaven and descend to hell o Somehow his connection to the state gives him power and transcendence • Two levels—the concrete and the higher • The first circle of hell is mentioned o Refers also to Solzhenitsyn and his poem about the first circle of hell o Perhaps people aren't safe in hell from him—he can still find them; or perhaps he was condemned to hell • The demons seem to be a reference to Lermontov • Metaphysical moment during the interrogation—there is not just reverence for the policeman but there is also a distinction between just normal life and the Law. They seem to be in an icon. • Lifting something small (policeman) to the height of the extolled policeman—making fun of the bombastic nature of the praise that Stalin receives. • No political figures are mentioned, but writers are—Lermontov is referenced; Mandelstam, Terzhan, Dostoevsky and Pushkin are mentioned. Когда здесь на посту стоит Милицанер Ему до Внуково простор весь открывается На Запад и Восток глядит Милицанер И пустота за ними открывается И центр, где стоит Милицанер — Взляд на него отвсюду открывается Отвсюду виден Милиционер С Востока виден Милиционер И с Юга виден Милиционер И с моря виден Милиционер И с неба виден Милиционер И с-под земли... да он и не скрывается

В буфете Дома Литераторов

Пригов 1978 В буфете Дома Литераторов Пьет пиво Милиционер Пьет на обычный свой манер Не видя даже литераторов Они же смотрят на него Вокруг него светло и пусто И все их разные искусства При нем не значат ничего Он представляет собой Жизнь Явившуюся в форме Долга Жизнь кратка, а искусство долго И в схватке побеждает жизнь

«Угрюмых тройка есть певцов»

Пушкин 1815 Iambic tetrameter Never published during Pushkin's life. Epigram mocking members of the group "Conversations of lovers of the Russian word" Угрюмых тройка есть певцов — Шихматов, Шаховской, Шишков, Уму есть тройка супостатов — Шишков наш, Шаховской, Шихматов, Но кто глупей из тройки злой? Шишков, Шихматов, Шаховской!

Под небом голубым

Пушкин 1826 He hears about the death of one of his lovers, and he is surprised by the lack of emotion that he feels in response. • Iambic tetrameter and hexameter. • Under the blue sky of her home country, she languished and faded away. From indifferent lips I heard the news of her death, and I received it indifferently. The one I loved. For the sweet memories of irretrievable days, I find neither tears nor

Анчар

Пушкин Iambic tetrameter 1832 Exotic poem depicting a poisonous tree (anchar) in the desert. The ruler sends a servant to obtain part of this poisonous tree, and the servant does so, but then dies from the poison. The king then uses the poison on arrows to kill his enemies.

Маленькие трагедии Моцарт и Сальери The Stone Guest

Пушкин Моцарт и Сальери 1830 Iambic pentameter Salery loves art and is dedicated to it. He feels there is no justice on earth or in heaven, though because Mozart doesn't work nearly as hard but music comes so naturally to him without effort. Salery had never known jealousy before becoming acquainted with Mozart--none of the other artists ever bothered him the same way. Mozart comes and plays a composition for Salery, and Salery is amazed and praises Mozart. He invites Mozart to dine with him and Mozart accepts. Mozart talks about the Requeim he has been writing for three weeks and how the man in black gives him no peace. Salery puts poison in Mozart's drink. Mozart drinks and begins to play the requiem but doesn't finish. Gets sick and goes home. Гений и злодейство Две вещи несовместные.

К (....) Я помню чудное мгновенье

Пушкин • Probably written in 1825, after Pushkin and Kern had been reunited after a long absence. (He then was sent to go live on his mother's estate.) • Iambic tetrameter • Alternating masculine and feminine rhymes • I remember a miraculous moment: you appeared before me as a fleeting vision, as a spirit/genius of pure beauty. In the langours of hopeless sadness, in the anxieties of clamorous vanity, long did the tender voice sound, and the dear qualities appeared (to me) in dream. The years passed. The rebellious rush of storms scattered the former dreams, and I forgot your tender voice, your heavenly features. In the wilderness in the darkness of imprisonment, my quiet days stretched/dragged on without divinity, without inspiration, without tears, without life, without love. To my soul came awakening: and again you appeared, like a fleeting vision, as a spirit/genius of pure beauty. And my heart beats in ecstasy and for it (my heart) was again resurrected divinity, inspiration, life, tears, and love. • К Анне Керн—wife of Ermolay Kern, hero of 1812 war. • Theme of inspiration. She had been a sort of muse and vivifying force for Pushkin. Emphasis on fleeting. Both the time past and the current time are depicted as fleeting; illusions. Perhaps this is because Anna was unattainable. • Clear narrative arc—found what was lost. • First two and last two stanzas have two verbs; but the middle two stanzas (disruption and darkness) mess up that pattern. • Last two stanza combine elements from the preceding stanzas. Harmony and disharmony are reconciled. • All the masculine rhymes are y until the last stanza when they are -ov. Love—the unexpected rhyme. Я помню чудное мгновенье: Передо мной явилась ты, Как мимолетное виденье, Как гений чистой красоты. В томленьях грусти безнадежной В тревогах шумной суеты, Звучал мне долго голос нежный И снились милые черты. Шли годы. Бурь порыв мятежный Рассеял прежние мечты, И я забыл твой голос нежный, Твои небесные черты. В глуши, во мраке заточенья Тянулись тихо дни мои Без божества, без вдохновенья, Без слез, без жизни, без любви. Душе настало пробужденье: И вот опять явилась ты, Как мимолетное виденье, Как гений чистой красоты. И сердце бьется в упоенье, И для него воскресли вновь И божество, и вдохновенье, И жизнь, и слезы, и любовь.

К Чедаеву

Пушкин 1818 Iambic tetrameter The deceit of love, hope, quiet glory indulged us not for long, the young entertainments disappeared like a dream, like the morning fog; but in us still burns desire under the yoke of fateful power. We wait for the minute of holy freedom as a young lover waits for the minute of the sure meeting. As long as we burn with freedom, as long as the hearts are alive for honor, my friend, we will dedicate to the fatherland the wonderful impulses of the soul! Comrade, belief: it will com, the captivating star of happiness, Russia will spring from sleep and on the ruins of autocracy will write our names!

Нереида

Пушкин 1820 Iambic hexameter Poetic account of a sighting of Nereid. Среди зелёных волн, лобзающих Тавриду, На утренней заре я видел нереиду. Сокрытый меж дерев, едва я смел дохнуть: Над ясной влагою полубогиня грудь Младую, белую как лебедь, воздымала И пену из власов струёю выжимала.

Кавказский пленник

Пушкин 1820-1821 Pushkin's first real narrative poem, written under the influence of Lord Byron. Some critics find it weak because of vagueness in the characters and lack of significant events other than the main story, but the descriptions of the mountain soldiers and the impressive scenery of the area are considered beautifully rendered. One of the key starts in the Caucasian theme found in Russian literature that followed, Lermontov and Tolstoy both adapted the title to create stories similar to the one found in the poem. During the time the poem was written, Pushkin had been exiled to the Caucases and was beginning to translate Byron, thus the influence. The poem focuses on the story of a Russian soldier, captured and brought to a Circassian village. He is kept in a cave and frequently thinks about escaping. Eventually, a maiden from the village falls in love with him and visits him. He says she should not love him and considers the idea fruitless considering his imprisonment, but she remains in love with him. He says that she came too late--she should have entered his life when he still believed in hope and was not yet dead to happiness. He says he has grown cold and she should seek another youth who can appreciate her beauty and her love. This upset her and she weeps. Various descriptions of the soldiers occur, and eventually the young girl brings a saw and a knife. She cuts the soldier free, they kiss, and he swims across a river, looking back to see she has drown herself. He had invited her to escape with him, saying that he was hers forever, but she declines, saying that he had loved another and he needed to go find her. The poem ends with the soldier coming upon a Russian regiment about to engage some Circassians. Introduction, two parts, epilogue Iambic tetrameter Some encircling and some alternating rhyme

Христос воскрес

Пушкин 1821 Iambic tetrameter Christ is risen, my Rebbekah! Today following with my soul the law of God-man, I kiss you my angel. And tomorrow to the faith of Moses for a kiss I am not timid, ready, Jewess, to commence--and even entrust to you that by which a faithful Jew can be distinguished from the Orthodox. Христос воскрес, моя Реввека! Сегодня следуя душой Закону Бога-человека, С тобой цалуюсь, ангел мой. А завтра к вере Моисея За поцалуй я не робея Готов, еврейка, приступить — И даже то тебе вручить, Чем можно верного еврея От православных отличить.

В.Л. Давыдову

Пушкин 1821 Iambic tetrameter Poet and addressee are apparently both sinners. War comrades. Religious undertones. He remembers Davidov's guilt. He crosses himself and doesn't fear the devil. He believes God will forgive his sins. Ужель надежды луч исчез? Но нет! — мы счастьем насладимся, Кровавой чаши причастимся — И я скажу: Христос воскрес.

Подражания Корану 3

Пушкин 1824 • Cycle of 9 poems about the Koran • Most in iambic, and a couple in amphibrachs. • Dedicated to his neighbor Occipova—he would discuss religion with her 3rd poem Confused, the prophet frowned, having heard the blind approaching: he runs but does not dare to reveal the vice (confusion). From the heavenly book a list was given to you prophet, not for the obstinate; peacefully proclaim the Koran, not forcing the wicked! Why does man boast? Is it because he appears naked into the world, lives a short time, and dies weak, as he was born weak? Is it because God slays and raises him at His wil? Because from heaven He preserves his days in the joyful and bitter lot? Is it because (God) gave him fruits and bread and dates and olive, having blessed his works and vineyard and hill and field? But the angel will sound twice; the heavenly thunder will burst to earth: and brother will run from brother and son from mother will recoil. And all before God will flow, disfigured by fear and the wicked will fall, covered in flames and ashes. Continuation of the prophet theme established in the first poem. The prophet is called to preach the word, and yet the word is not for the unjust who are going to die anyway. It seems the prophet does not need to concern himself with the proud people. Man has nothing to be proud of.

Подражания Корану 9

Пушкин 1824 • Cycle of 9 poems about the Koran • Most in iambic, and a couple in amphibrachs. • Dedicated to his neighbor Occipova—he would discuss religion with her • 9th Poem o Amphibrach; tetrameter Amphibrachs are often associated with ballads, and this story is kind of balladic. o Rhymed couplets o The tired traveler muttered against God: he suffered with thirst and longed for shade. He wandered in the wilderness for three days and nights; is looking around with tired eyes and found a well under a palm tree. He runs to the palm tree. Lies down next to his faithful, female donkey. Sleeps. Many years passed by the will of the ruler of heaven and earth. He wakes up and hears a voice asking if he slept long. Went to sleep young and now is waking up an old man. The palm tree withered and the well dried up. And the donkey is dead with white bones. The momentary old man is now upset. Then a miracle occurs—everything comes back to life and he regains his life. Then he goes forward with God on his journey. o Similar story with the first one—finding shade. But from different perspectives—first one has God as the speaker; 9 has an omniscient narrator and God's voice is heard. But in 9 we don't know if the traveler is a prophet or just a traveler. Perhaps this widens the application of this—any man can have this relationship with God. Journey is still there. Both about spiritual renewal. Doubting or tired mortals who need to see a manifestation of divinity in order to keep moving. o Water in the desert. This is also Biblical. (And in the Koran?)

Зимний вечер

Пушкин 1825 Trochaic tetrameter Depiction of a winter storm. Looking out the window. Why are you sad, my old woman? (Possibly Pushkin's aunt.) Was it brought on by the storm, or are you dozing under the hum of your spindle? Let's drink, dear friend, to my poor youth; let us drink from sorrow; where is the mug? The heart will be merry. Sing me a song. (Repetition of opening lines and then the lines about let us drink.)

Арион

Пушкин 1827 • Iambic tetrameter • Encircling rhyme. Longer encircling. Couplet. • There were many of us in the little boat; some sailors stretched the sailor and others rested together, putting their mighty oars into the depth. Our great skipper was in silence directing the heavy boat. I full of carefree faith sang to the sailors. Big whirlwind came. Both the helmsman and the sailors perished. Only I, the mystical singer was thrown by the storm onto the shore. I sing old hymns and I dry my wet vestment in the sun under a cliff. • Promise to his Decembrist friends that he is still singing those songs. But he's still sort of happy to not be caught. • Ambivalence at the end—he doesn't seem super distressed that everybody died. Perhaps him being cast onto the shore is referring to his exile. • Greek myth Arion o Arion was on a ship. The sailors were going to kill him to get his money, and he jumped off and was saved by dolphins who liked his music and took him to shore.

«Дар напрасный, дар случайный»

Пушкин 1828 • Trochaic tetrameter • Vain gift, accidental gift, life, why were you given to me? Why called me from nothingness by the means of hostile authority? Who filled my soul with passion? Who filled my mind with doubt. There is no goal; my heart is empty and my mind is idle. I am tortured by longing and a monotonous clamor of life. • Life is a gift, but a terrible one. Questioning the giver of life. • Written on Pushkin's 29 birthday.

«Воспоминание» (Когда для смертного умолкнет шумный день

Пушкин 1828 • Alternating iambic tetrameter and hexameter lines. • When the loud day becomes quiet for the mortal and on the deaf squares of the city. Tears stream, but I do not wash away these sad lines. • Compulsion to write things that he doesn't want to. • Memories weigh on his conscience and keep him out all night. His past written on a scroll before him (perhaps his poetry). But for all he complains and hates the record, he still does not wash it away. • Evaluation of conscience. Choice to confront, remember, and accept the past. • Setting himself apart from the average person—average person gets to sleep, but he doesn't. • Fairly high style. Elegiac. Looking back at the past soberly. • Pushkin doesn't use a lot of metaphors in his mature poetry, but here he has the pangs of a serpent gnawing in the heart—it's firey.

Зима. Что делать нам в деревне?

Пушкин 1829 Iambic hexameter Not much to do in the village in the winter. Narrator talks about the weather with his servant. Tries to read but grows disinterested. Tries to write but can't. Goes to talk with some people. Then guests show up and everything is better. It's wonderful to have a girl--kisses; fresh Russian girl in the dust of snow.

Нет, я не дорожу мятежным наслаждением

Пушкин 1830 Iambic hexameter No, I don't care for the rebellious enjoyment, the ecstatic feeling, madness, frenzy, wailing, cries of Bacchus young woman, when in my arms (a snake?) she trembles in my arms with passionate caresses and kisses. O, how lovely you are, my humble one! Oh how tortuously happy I am with you why, bowing in a long prayer, you give yourself to me tenderly without intoxication, shamefully-cold, to my rapture, barely not present, not paying attention to anything and becoming alive later more and more--and finally sharing my flame involuntarily.

На перевод Илиады (Слышу умолкнувший)

Пушкин 1830 Written in honor of the publication of a translation of the Iliad. I hear the silenced sound of divine Hellenic speech; I sense the darkness of the confused soul of the great elder. Слышу умолкнувший звук божественной эллинской речи; Старца великого тень чую смущенной душой.

Царскосельская статуя

Пушкин 1830 Iambic hexameter Depiction of an actual statue (Молочница) at Tsarskoe Selo. Poor girl broke her urn and will now sadly sit there for eternity. Урну с водой уронив, об утёс ее дева разбила. Дева печально сидит, праздный держа черепок, Чудо! не сякнет вода, изливаясь из урны разбитой; Дева, над вечной струей, вечно печальна сидит.

Что в имени тебе моем

Пушкин 1830 Iambic tetrameter What is my name to you? It will die, as a sad noise of a wave touching a distant shore, as the night sound in the deaf forest. It will leave a dead trace on the memory, similar to the grave writing in an unknown language. What is in it? Forgotten long ago in the new and rebellious uprisings, it will not give to your soul pure and tender remembrances. But in the day of sorrow, in silence, say it longingly; say: there is a memory of me to the heart, there is in the world where I live . . .

Когда в объятия мои

Пушкин 1830 Iambic tetrameter When I encircle your well-built figure in my embraces and tender speeches of love, I lavish you with elation, silent from shy hands freeing your flexible figure, you answer me, dear friend, with an untrustworthy smile; the sad legend is changed. You without participating and attention sadly listen to me. I curse the insidious efforts of my transgressing youth and of my conditional meetings of expectation in gardens in the silence of the night. I curse the loving whisper of speeches, the mysterious singing of verses, and the caresses of gullible girls, and their tears and late complaint.

Бесы

Пушкин 1830 Trochaic tetrameter The clouds rush, the clouds hover; the unseen moon lights up the flying snow; the sky is murky, the night is murky. Dark, snowy night. Can't really see anything. Moonlight. A demon is leading us. What's that in the forest? There are lots of little demons dancing around. How many there are! Where are they being chased? Why are they singing so pitifully? Are they burying a domovoi? Are they giving a witch to be married? Feeling of rushed unease in the poem.

Чем чаще празднует лицей

Пушкин 1831 (Published 1841) Iambic tetrameter Nostalgic poem about his Litsei friends. Mourning the loss of some and calling the rest of them to come closer. The more often the litsei celebrates its holy anniversary, the more timid is our old circle of friends. The celebration is more gloomy and our songs are sadder. Six of our friends have died. [Actually seven, but Pushkin didn't know about the seventh death.] We mourned them all. And it seems I am to be next. [He called that one.] Come closer, oh dear friends, lets make our faithful circle closer. We congratulate the living with hope. Let's not fear new victims.

«Юношу, горько рыдая, ревнивая дева»

Пушкин 1835 The jealous girl scolded the young man, bitterly weeping; He bent to her should and suddenly fell asleep. The girl at that moment fell silent, cherishing his light sleep, and smiled at him, weeping quiet tears. Юношу, горько рыдая, ревнивая дева бранила; К ней на плечо преклонен, юноша вдруг задремал. Дева тотчас умолкла, сон его легкий лелея, И улыбалась ему, тихие слезы лия.

«...Вновь я посетил»

Пушкин 1835 Iambic pentameter Poem recalling a visit he made to the place where he lived in exile with his aunt for two years. I have changed a lot, but it seems that it was only yesterday I was here. Here's the little home where I lived with my poor aunt. She's already gone--behind the wall I already don't hear her heavy steps. Here's the hill where I often sat and looked at the lake, remembering sadly other shores, other waves. Three pine trees. Personification of the forest. New trees. Let my grandson come here and hear the welcoming noise (of the trees) when he walks past in thought and remember me.

«Подражание итальянскому (Как с древа)»

Пушкин 1836 Dramatization of Judas Iscariot's execution after he betrayed Christ with a kiss. Judas is taken to hell where the devil kisses him. As from the tree fell the disciple-traitor, the devil flew and clung to his face, breathed life into him, soared with his stinking prey and threw the living corpse into the throat of hell. There the demons, rejoicing and splashing, received on their horns with laughter the worldwide enemy and loudly carried (him) to the cursed lord, and Satan having rising, with rejoicing on his face, with his kiss burned through the lips in the treacherous night of Christ.

Капитанская дочка

Пушкин 1836 A historical novel focusing on the Pugachev uprising during the reign of Catherine the Great (1773), pretending to be the overthrown Peter III. His bureaucracy mimicked that of the empress, including titles given to his followers (dukes, courtiers, etc.). At first he was taken as a joke until he captured several forts in the Volga region. His own Cossacks delivered him to authorities in 1774 after a severe defeat, and he was publicly executed. Some view this novel as early Realism since it portrays an actual historical event. The novel is one of two by Pushkin dealing with Pugachev, the other being The History of Pugachev's Riot (1834). Main character is Pyotr Andreyvich Grinyov. He is put into the military by his father, stationed at Orenburg. He is followed by his servant, Pavelich, and they meet a tramp at an inn and Grinyov gives him his coat. At the Belogorsky fortress at Orenburg (which is just a village with a wooden fence), Grinyov meets Marya Ivanova, the captain's daughter, and eventually falls in love with her. Another character, Shvabrin, is angered at their affection, and forces a duel, which he nearly loses but wins when Grinyov moves his head when someone calls his name. Grinyov is injured, but recovers. Right as he regains his strength, the Pugachev uprising begins and he receives a letter from his father condemning his proposed marriage to Marya. When Pugachev takes the town, Shvabrin is spared because he swears allegiance, and Grinyov is spared because Pugachev is the tramp he gave his coat to at the inn. Grinyov moves to another fortress (Orinberg) but comes back because he receives a letter from Marya, who is ill and being held captive by Shvabrin who is threatening to marry her. Grinyov returns to the fortress and Pugachev helps him to get Marya back, condemning Shvabrin. Marya's parents had been killed by Pugachev by this time, and Grinyov sends his betrothed to live with his parents while he stays to finish fighting. After the uprising is quelled, Grinyov is captured for treason and is exiled to Siberia for life, but is found innocent when Marya goes to the empress for help, who pretends to be another woman in the gardens when she first talks with her. The court realizes that Grinyov was actually not a traitor and never served Pugachev. In the end, love triumphs. Proof that once in a while Russian literature can be happy.

«Мирская власть»

Пушкин 1836 Iambic hexameter When the great solemnity was carried out and God died on the cross, then along the side stood Mary the sinner and the Holy Virgin immersed in immeasurable sorrow. But at the foot of the glorious cross, as if at the wing of a wordly leader, we see set on the place the holy women in arms two of the terrible guards. Why, tell me, protective guards? Is the crucifixion a public load, or do you fear robbers or mice? Or do you think of the importance to betray the King Kings? Or with mighty protection do you save the Lord, crowned with prickly thorns, Christ, having obediently given his flesh to the whips of the torturers, to the nails? Or do you fear that the worm will not offend him Whose penalty redeemed the whole race of Adam, and in order to not press the passing people, it is not allowed for the common people to come here?

Свободы сеятель пустынный

Пушкин November 1823 Iambic tetrameter I went out early in the morning before the star with clean and innocent hands and threw the living seed to the enslaved reins--but I only lost time, good thoughts, and work. Graze, peaceful nations! The call of honor will not awaken you. Why give the gifts of freedom to the herds? They should be cut and sheared. Their inheritance from generation to generation is the yoke and whip. Seems to be a political, ironic poem about how the people are enslaved and treated as cattle. Those above them do not think that they are worthy of freedom or anything more than the yoke. Изыде сеятель сеяти семена своя Свободы сеятель пустынный, Я вышел рано, до звезды; Рукою чистой и безвинной В порабощенные бразды Бросал живительное семя — Но потерял я только время, Благие мысли и труды... Паситесь, мирные народы! Вас не разбудит чести клич. К чему стадам дары свободы? Их должно резать или стричь. Наследство их из рода в роды Ярмо с гремушками да бич.

Ненастный день потух

Пушкин • 1824 • Iambic hexameter (sometimes 4 feet). Possible influence of French romantic poetry • The rainy day extinguished. Hazy moon rose. Melancholy on soul. Air filled with warmth of evening. Sea moves under blue cloud. She walks on the mountain. She sits and cries alone. Nobody is there for her. Nobody is worthy of her heavenly love. Isn't it true, you are alone, you are crying, I am calm. But if ... • People think that perhaps he is remembering Vorontsova. Remembering southern period. • Creates a vision of longing for her, trying to persuade himself that she is alone and not with another man. But if that's not true . . . o Façade of detachment breaks down • Elegy • Repeated words—там, ни • Gloomy setting where he depicts the woman. Four and a half lines of ellipses.

Клеветникам России

Пушкин • 1831 • Polish Uprising in 1830-1 because the members of French parliament voted for to intervene against Russia and help the Polish side. Pushkin wrote this poem in response. • Telling the French not to come because they don't understand Slavic language or culture. Addressed to members of French parliament to show that Russia is still strong. France hates Russia because of 1812. Like a public speech—we, lots of questions, elevated in style. Some Slavonicisms. Very patriotic and pro-Russian. o Doesn't fit the idea of Pushkin being a supporter of freedom from the Russian monarch. It instigates a fight between Pushkin and Miescewiecz. o Pushkin's view of Napoleon went from negative to positive to negative. • The Kremlin and Prague are silent for you—this Prague is a suburb of Warsaw.

Во глубине сибирских руд

Пушкин • Iambic tetrameter • In the depths of the Siberian mines, keep your proud patience; your sad labor will not perish nor the lofty striving of your thoughts. The faithful sister of unhappiness is hope in the gloomy underground awakes courage and joy; the desired time will come. Love and friendship will reach you through gloomy gates as my free voice reaches your convicts' cells. The heavy chains will fall; freedom will greet you cheerfully at the entrance and brothers will give you your sword. • Writing to his Decembrist friends. Sent it to them through a woman who was on her way to see her husband.

Не дай мне Бог сойти с ума

Пушкин • Iambic tetrameter; 3 • Masculine rhymes throughout • Don't grant me God, to go crazy. It's not that I valued my reason so much and wouldn't be happy to part with it if they were to leave me alone. I would lose myself in these disharmonious, marvelous dreams and I would begin to hear/get lost in the waves. And I would be strong and free like a whirlwind. Here's the misfortune—if you were to go crazy you would become terrifying as the plague. They would lock you up and would tease you through the door like a beast. I would hear not the bright voice of the nightingale, not the deaf sound of the oaks—but the cry of my comrades, the strife of the nightwatchmen and shrieks and the sound of the shackles. • 1830-1835? • Possibly written in response to seeing his friend Batiushkov in the sanitorium.

Брожу ли я вдоль улиц шумных

Пушкин, 1829 • Iambic tetrameter • Whether I'm walking the noisy streets or going into the crowed temple or sitting among the insane youths, I give in to my dreams. The years have rushed by. All the people you see will descend below the crypts/arches. Somebody's hour is already close. If I look at the oak, I think about how the patriarch of the forest will outlive me as they outlived my fathers. Whenever I hold a newborn infant, I think "farewell!" it's time for me to decay and you to bloom. Everyday I am accustomed to look forward and guess the anniversary of my coming death. Where will I die? In battle, travel, sea, neighboring valley? The cold body doesn't care where it decays. But I'd rather have it be closer to my beloved land. Let a young life and eternal beauty be near his grave. • Depressing idea of death, yet idea of eternity and the circle of life. Nature is indifferent. • Self is diminished over the course of the poem.

Моя родословная

Пушкин, 1830 • Iambic tetrameter • Alternating feminine/masculine rhymes • All stanza (before post script) end with мещанин • Перевод o Cruelly laughing at their tradesbrother, the Russian scribblers/writers of the mob call me an aristocrat. Look, rather, what nonsense! I am neither an officer nor an assessor, I (by the cross) am not a nobleman, not an academic, not a professor, I am simply a Russian tradesman/petty bourgeois/commoner. o The reversal/vicissitude of the times is understandable to me, and it's true I don't rebuke/contradict it: For us the nobility by birth is new, and the newer the nobler. A fragment of the decrepit families/generations (and unfortunately, not just one), I am a descendent of the ancient boyars; I, brothers, am a petty petty bourgeois. He's not rich because there are lots of people in the line who want part of the inheritance. o My grandfather didn't sell blini, didn't shine the royal boots, didn't sing with the court deacons, didn't jump from the forelock (Kossack) to riches, and he wasn't a fugitive solder of the powdered Austrian brigade; And thus am I supposed to be an aristocrat? I, praise God, am a petty bourgeois. All real people who have been identified. Menshikov. Valet of Paul I (Kitaisov). Razomovsky. Bezborodko. o My ancestor Racha served the holy Nevsky with abusive muscle; (crowned anger?) Ivan the fourth spared his descendants. The Pushkins hobnobbed with the kings; more than one was glorified/honored when the Nizhny Novogorodian petty bourgeois competed with the Poles. o Having quelled sedition and treachery and the rage of the abusive weather, when the people, in their letter, called the Romanovs to the throne, we applied to this hand, the son of the sufferer favored us. It happened, they cherished us; it happened, but I am a petty bourgeois. o The spirit of stubbornness played a dirty trick on all of us: (In his family indomitable), My ancestor did not get along with Peter and was hanged by him because of that. Let his example be a science/lesson to us: a sovereign does not love arguments. Happy and wise is the prince Jakov Dolgorukoy—the humble petty bourgeois. Dolgorukoy was fortunate because he wasn't executed even after tearing up a decree of the tsars. o My grandfather (Lev Pushkin), as the rebellion rose among the Petergof court, as Minikh, remained faithful to the fall of the third Peter. The Orlovs/eagles then landed in glory and my grandfather (ended up in) the fortress, in quarantine and our sever clan humbled/became subdued. And I was born a petty bourgeois. Minin and Pozharsky—defeated Poles 1612-13. Minin was a peasant and Pozharsky was a prince. Fedor Pushkin was executed. o Under the stamp/coat of arms of my seal, I buried a stack of letters, and I don't consort with the new nobility and I pacified the hubris of blood. I am a scholar and a poet, I am simply Pushkin, not Musin. I am not a rich man nor a nobleman , I myself am great: I am a petty bourgeois. Musins were wealthy at that time. He had a copy of the Igor Tale. o Figliarin, sitting at home, decided that my black grandfather Hannibal was bought for a bottle of rumm and into the hands to the skipper. o This skipper was that glorious skipper, by whom our land moved, who mightily gave the sovereign/majestic run to the helm of the native ship. This skipper was available to grandfather and similarly the purchased Arap grew up diligent, incorruptible, confidant to the king, and not a slave. o And he was the father of Hannibal, before whom among all the Chesmensky depths, a host of ships flared up and Navarine's first fell. 1770 fought in the war and was a hero. Turkish port fell to the Russians. o The inspired Figliarin decided: I am a petty bourgeois in the court. What is he in his venerable family? He? He is a nobleman in the Meschansky district. Bulgarin=Figliarin. Publisher. He was using aristocrat to mean someone who was distanced from the people.

Что такое социалистический реализм

Синявский 1959, Siniavskii/Tertz This short work criticized the poor quality of the drearily positive-toned, conflict-free strictures in the style of the state-backed Socialist Realism, and called for a return to the fantastic in Soviet literature, the tradition, he said, of Gogol and Vladimir Mayakovsky. This work also drew connections between socialist realism and classicism. It asserted that greater similarities exist between Soviet literature and that predating the 19th century than exist between Soviet (socialist realist) literature and the intellectual skepticism plaguing the protagonists of 19th-century Russian novels.

Один день Ивана Денисовича

Солженицын 1959 It was published because according to Krushev (who was involved in the publication), it was the work that represented the new communist party line. This made it easier for people to accept this. To dismiss this would be to dismiss the official Kremlin line. Ivan Denisovich Shukhov: prisoner of the Gulag accused of being a Nazi spy. He has spent 8 years in the Gulag system with 2 years left. He is considered a veteran of the Gulag system and a highly skilled worker. He has been in 2 camps. He always takes his cap off when he eats. He has a lisp. Tzesar: intellectual who does office work instead of manual labor. He is a good man. He has a moustache. Tiurin: foreman of Gang 104. He is a good man and looks out for his gang before anything else. Plot: The story follows the average day in the life of Ivan Denisovich in the Gulags. The story informs the reader about the most intricate parts of the Gulag system. Motifs: Food Cold Lacking of .... Totalitarian control of time Gray of humanity humanity , importance, lack of?

Матрёнин двор

Солженицын 1959 is a story of return. Matyona's life may be simple and even slovenly, but she works hard, she selflessly serves others without expectation of reward, she knows no envy, and even as part of her home is torn apart and being carried away, she offers to assist. She is thus a force of moral reformation and restoration, but she is doomed to perish. She dies in part because of the blinding greed of a man who once loved her. She also dies as a symbolic representation of the potentially blind destructiveness of technology and industrialization as her body is destroyed by two coupled locomotives that are moving backwards and without any light or illumination. Nonetheless, she continues to serve as a reminder of the humanity and moral force of Mother Russia. For that reason, the narrator designates her as «тот самый праведник, без которого, по пословице, не стоит село. Ни город. Ни вся земля наша» (47). This story in some ways serves as Solzhenitsyn's indictment of what Soviet Russia was becoming and a call to return to the humble foundations that could make Russia a morally restorative force. 1959 Characters: • Ignatich (narrator): a released gulag prisoner who now wishes to be a teacher. He feels drawn to Matryona and her izba. He disapproves of the towns greedy nature and it is evident from how he treats his students to what he thinks about the village's attitude towards Matryona and her property. • Matryona: an old peasant woman. She worked on the collective farm until she became too sick to work. Her husband died in the war and, because of Soviet corrupt bureaucratic system, she cannot get a pension. She is completely self reliant and refuses help from anyone, including her tenant, Ignatich, who is given an unlimited supply of peat. She is religious but also superstitious, living by old slavic beliefs. She always helps whenever she is called upon. She had six children but all of them died and her husband died in war but it was never confirmed so we doubt whether that is true or if he left Russia entirely. • Faddei: Matryona's old love. When he went to war she married her brother thinking he was dead, when he returned he threatened her to kill her if she didn't marry her brother. He moved to another village and married another Matryona. Their life mirrors that of Matryona's but with more success, they have six children but all of them live. He is a violent and greedy man who beats his wife and children regularly. • Kira: Faddei's daughter and Matryona's adopted daughter. She is the only one who seems to mourn Matryona after her death. Plot: • The narrator, looking for a home to rent and a teaching position, moves in to Matryona's small, rural, bug and mice infested cottage. • Throughout the story, more and more people ask Matryona for help and offer her nothing in return. It becomes more and more obvious that Matryona has nothing and is suffering deeply but refuses to complain. • In the end of the story, Matryona dies while helping Faddei and Kira. Her tragic death is met with, instead of grief, but a fight over her property. Only Kira appears to be upset at her funeral. • The narrator moves in with one of Matryona's sisters who complains about Matryona because she never asked for anything from anyone and never accepted money for the favors she did around town. Ignatich ends the story concluding that Matryona was a better person than anyone else in the village and the heart of Russia. Themes/ Motifs/ Images/ Symbols: • Nature and humanity--Matryona lives side by side with nature and only takes what she needs. • Self reliance--Matryona refuses to get help from anyone while the lesser characters always ask for help from her. • Prison--Ignatich was just released from prison • Ineffective nature of the Soviet Bureaucracy--there is no money for Matryona even though she works harder and deserves money more from others who are taking advantage of the system. • Soviet hero?--Matryona, like Iva Denisovich, is self reliant, strong, and finds pleasure in work. Though she is not a classic Socialist realist hero, she fits the mold (??) Literary Connections: • Rasputin's Farewell to Matryona: This book is about how the peasant life is being destroyed in Russia. It focuses on a group of old women who share a lot in common with Matryona.

Три свидания

Соловев

В тумане утреннем неверными шагами

Соловев 1884 iambic hexameter and pentameter; ABAAB rhyme A is feminine and B is masculine main idea: on a journey to a sacred church but still has a long way to go image of mountain again, the church is at the top he is walking through fog and his soul is praying to unseen gods very religious ideas, reaching for an unknown ideal place

Зачем слова. В безбрежности лазурной

Соловев 1892 iambic pentameter; feminine and masculine alternating rhyme typical symbolist vagueness and description of another world talking to a female "ты" sounds like to a lover but also worshipping description of another world of ethereal waves says a heavenly road is right in front of him and if he takes it he will instantaneously be with her - death, perhaps? at the end she shakes off mundane sleep, longingly and lovingly

Смысл любви

Соловев 1892 • Sexual love is not always or exclusively for procreation. He comes up with his own theory to rejoin the two in a higher way. o Exploring the metaphysical and moral aspects of selfhood. • Uses lots of literary examples: Sorrows of young Werther (epistolary Sturm und Drang novel), Bible, Romeo and Juliet, Gogol, Ovid (old-age couples who are devoted and childless) • Humans aren't just robots in the historical progression of the world. • You realize your selfhood in a love relationship. You aren't your self just by yourself. You must acknowledge the full personhood of the other person. • "In humans and animals, sexual love is the highest flowering of humanity" (rough quote). • Chemical connection between two beings. And this goes from just physiological to the spiritual and metaphysical. • Important in sexual love is that the two partners must be other in every respect. • 95 "Love is more than rational consciousness, but without it love would not be able to act as an intrinsic redemptive force, ennobling, and not abolishing, individuality. Man can differentiate his own self (that is, his true individuality) from his egoism thanks only to rational consciousness (or consciousness of truth). And therefore, in sacrificing this egoism and giving himself over to love, he finds in it not only a living, but a vivifying force as well; and he does not lose together with his egoism his individual essence, but to the contrary, immortalizes it." • A lewd existence is incompatible with immortality. • Other accomplishments in life—career, war, etc.—aren't eternal and they don't have that same call to us. Only love needs eternity. • Dionysus and Hades are the same—life and death are the same. • 112 Illicit sexual relations "separate the body from the soul". • 115 "That which in truth should be in the last place—the physiological animal bond—appears in our reality in the first place. It is recognized as the foundation of the entire matter, whereas it should be only its utmost conclusion." Marriage is not a true union if it is only physical. • 117 "And the relation between husband and wife is the relation of two distinctly acting but identically imperfect potentials, achieving perfection only by a process of cooperation." • 118 "The matter of true love is first of all based on faith." • We love the ideal and the natural human. • People cannot exist as just male or female, but the ideal person is a combination of both of them. Individuality is only in the combination of masculine and feminine. • Личность in the ideal sense is this combination of masculine and feminine. • Взаимность—battle with the ego to be able to see someone else as you see yourself. • The body is essential for love. We love the whole person, not just the spirit. • Exclusively physical love is a distortion of true love. • Burns Tolstoy o Doesn't see in his works that striving for the higher ideal? o Absence of that striving for mutual understanding. • Man and women are alike imperfect and can only reach perfection through reciprocity. They complete each other. • Personhood is dependent on the relationship between a man and a woman. That striving to combine the masculine and feminine. • Against fetishism—he thinks we should see the whole and not the part. • Against sexual deviation. • Sygizy—lining things up (biology, planets); idea of alignment. • This can be applied to the whole community. Living for humanity. • Sobornost • Self that is with, in, and for others. Understanding the limits of your own ego and where you are turning away from the other. • Solov'ev is a middle place between the Slavophiles and Bakhtin. • New from Solov'ev o Idea of personhood that isn't ego-based but has a strong spiritual/mystical component to it. For Solov'ev, overcoming this complication (of seeing self more deeply than other) is extremely important. Living in love is how you do this—seeing the other person as yourself.

Мелкий бес

Сологуб 1907 Elements of realism/symbolism/modernism. Chronicles the misadventures of Peredonov who systematically loses his mind over the course of the novel. He is cruel, jealous and paranoid. He married Varvara who also isn't that great of a person. Parallel plot with Liudmila and Sasha, a young "couple" who are more innocent, but Liudmila starts to corrupt Sasha. The hero, Peredonov, is a nasty little man, an abusive schoolteacher whose ambition is to become inspector of schools, through the connections of his fiancee Varvara. Varvara, terrified of Peredonov dumping her, has been in league with the old spinster Grushina, who fabricates her connections, forging letters from a princess in St. Petersburg to Peredonov. Varvara keeps up the charade with increasingly unbelievable antics until Peredonov marries her, by which point he is quite paranoid, and partly with reason, since most of the people around him really do loathe him and gossip about his peccadilloes. By the end, he has become completely crazy, unwilling to believe what everyone else knows-that the letters are fakes-and instead chasing after fabricated plots, setting fire to ballrooms, and eventually turning on his dense friend Volodin and slitting his throat, spurred on by the "petty demon" of the title, which taunts him and eggs him on.

Ода вздорная 1

Сумароков 1759 First in a series of odes in which Sumarokov parodies Lomonosov's odes. Lighthearted and mocks the metaphors and imagery of Lomonosov, pointing out incongruities.

Кавказский пленник

Толстой

Много ли человеку земли нужно?

Толстой

Отец Сергий

Толстой

Детство

Толстой 1852 The artistic work of Leo Tolstoy has been described as "nothing less than one tremendous diary kept for over fifty years." This particular diary begins with Tolstoy's first published work, which was written when he was only 23. Semi-autobiographical, it recounts two days in the childhood of 10-year-old Nikolai Irtenev, recreating vivid impressions of people, place and events with the exuberant perspective of a child enriched by the ironic retrospective understandng of an adult. It is strange however, and some scholars believe Tolstoy may have imparted meaning in this work because there are many instances where stories present as fact are quite far from reality. For example, Tolstoy never knew his mother though in the story she plays a significant role and occupies the bulk of the plot. In Childhood, Tolstoy discusses his lessons with his tutor, the German Karl Ivanych. He then gives descriptions of his mother and father. The majority of the tales focus around typical events a child may have experienced at this time in a rich family, and then he adds another character, Grisha, a wandering ascetic who wears chains and constantly speaks as if prophesizing. He then details a hunt he goes on with his brother, father and Yakov, and then about how his father decides to fire Karl but decides against it after speaking with him. Tolstoy comes across a young boy named Seriozha, who he admires for his courage and apparent maturity. Tolstoy and his brother are, to the sadness of his mother, to be taken to Moscow for further studies. Tolstoy describes the feelings he has for his lost childhood in a chapter where he describes the love of his mother, possibly hinting that this time in life is almost like Eden. While in Moscow he becomes somewhat more mature, though he begins to realize this and somewhat hates the fact. His mother, however, soon dies and they travel back to the funeral. Tolstoy is horrified to see her beautiful face so yellow and decayed and the story ends. He seems to suggest at the end that the death of his mother was the coming of his boyhood, further maturity and eventually the suffering of human existence, again pointing back to the concept of Eden.

Севастопольские рассказы

Толстой 1855 A collection of three stories: Sevastopol in December, May, August. Based on Tolstoy's time in Crimea. Sevastopol in December • Intimacy • Point of view o Is there an ethical problem with fictionalizing a real event? • 193 "Where's 'our place?'" Mud that was terrible. • 201 Why people do what they do. Feeling deep in the soul—love of native land. Is Tolstoy adhering to this idea or mocking it? Sevastopol in May • Tolstoy's development as an artist. This is less idealized than Sevastopol in December. (He felt December was an example of bad art—confirm existing ideas; congratulate for thinking the right thing. Good art should trouble you. Sophocles—"don't come to the theater to be comforted.") • Vanity • Bad faith—actively taking • 254-255 Ability to utter the words aloud can lead to illumination. Process of maturity means you have to be able to face the negative in yourself. • How we respond to uncertainty: 196, indecision and cloud of oblivion. • 255 Hero of the story is truth.

Казаки

Толстой 1863 Tale of the year 1852. Olenin in the Caucasus. He falls in love with Marianka, but she is betrothed to Luka. At first Olenin and Luka are friends, but then Olenin becomes jealous and proposes to Marianka. She delays answering. Luka ends up dying in a battle with some abreks. Olenin renews his proposal to Marianka, but she refuses him and he realizes that he will always be Russian. He leaves.

Степной король Лир

Тургенев

Вешние воды

Тургенев 1873 Conversation between an aristocrat and landowner (Sanin) about something that happened 30 years ago. Sanin was in Frankfurt when he helps the fainting son of woman. He ends up spending a few days with them and falling in love with the daughter. She is engaged, but when he duels a German who insulted her while her fiance did nothing, she breaks up with her fiance. Sanin proposes to the girl. He goes to get money from the wife of a rich friend, but ends up becoming a lover of the friend. The girl follows, but she is rejected. Now, 30 years later, he finds a granite crest Jemmy had given him. She is now happily married in New York and has five children. Ha!

Записки Охотника

Тургенев 1847-1851 Various sketches of the narrator's experiences hunting in a province of Russia. Because he is a hunter, he is able to travel between landowners and peasants. He makes observations about the people he sees and it shows that peasants are actually human, too. "Хорь и Калиныч"

Ася

Тургенев 1858 Published in Sovremenik Povest' Anonymous narrator N.N. remembers his childhood. As a boy he heard a party across the river Rein and swam across to join. He meets a boy Gagin and his sister Asya. Turns out she is a half-sister--father and the servant's daughter. After father's death Gagin has to raise him on his own. Narrator falls in love with poor, unfortunate Asya. SHe loves him and tells her brother. Brother asks how narrator feels, and narrator is unsure of his own feelings and promises to reject her if they meet up. He does reject her after Asya confesses her love, but then realizes he loves her and wants to marry her. Unfortunately, brother and sister leave the next day and can never be found. Narrator laments that there had been other women in his life subsequently, but he had only loved Asya. Superfluous man.

Двоянское гнездо

Тургенев 1859 published in Sovremenik Main character is Fedor Ivanovich Lavretsky. Aristocrat who was raised by a harsh aunt. (Similar to Turgenev's biography) He meets Varvara at an opera, falls in love, proposes, and they get married and move to Paris. Varvara runs a salon in their home. She writes a novel with a lover. Fedor is crushed and cuts off contact and returns home. He visits his cousin. Falls in love with daughter Liza because she is serious and a good Orthodox girl in contrast with his flirtatious wife. They read in a journal that his wife has died. He and liza are in love and confess their love. But then he gets home only to find his wife alive. Liza goes to spend the rest of her life in a monastery. Novel ends with an epilogue eight years later: he is visiting Liza's family and remembering fondly his love of the girl. He visits her in the monastery and she tries not to look at him. Goncharov accused Turgenev of plagiarism in this work because he had several years ago told him that he was going to write a novel where the heroine goes to a monastery, and he thinks that Turgenev didn't have enough creativity to come up with that himself. Nothing came of this, but Goncharov stopped associating with Turgenev.

Первая любовь

Тургенев 1860 Part of the Objective Realism movement in Russia. The story is recounted at a table of friends by the main character. He is Vladimir, a 16-year-old boy, is staying in the country with his family, meets and falls in love with Zinaida, a beautiful girl staying with her mother Princess Zasekina. Her family is of minor nobility. Zinaida has many suitors and leads them on throughout the story, including Vladimir. By end Vladimir's father Pyotr dies of a stroke after receiving a letter that upset him and you learn Zinaida was in love with him when Vladimir follows her one night to see who she is seeing. After she dies his mother sends an amount of money to her family in Moscow. It is never explained why, however, leaving the reader to assume.

Рудин

Тургенев 1894 Turgenev's first novel. Published in Sovremennik. Superfluous man. "Turgenev maid"--young, intellectual, self-conscious. Rudin is a young intellectual guy who shows up and society is enthralled with him. Sergei Volyntsev is in love with Natasha. Natashe is smitten with Rudin and begins to spend lots of time with him in conversation.

Две силы есть

Тютчев 1869 Iambic pentameter. There are two fateful powers, and we are under their hand our whole lives. One is death and the other is the judgment of man. Neither answers for their deeds and they don't have mercy. But death is more honest, as it is no respecter of persons, it is not touched with anything nor confused. The world is not so: struggles, disagreements--the jealous leader won't tolerate. Woe to the youthful pride that tries to enter the uneven battle with this worldly judgment.

Сон на море

Тютчев • Amphibrach tetrameter. Not every line is a perfect amphibrach. • Masculine rhymed couplets • The sea and storm rocked our boats. Asleep, I was abandoned to the waves. Two infinities were inside me and they played with me. The waves called out and the winds sang. In the chaos I lay stunned but above the chaos my dream coursed. Ground greened. Ether shone. Palaces, pillar, hosts of silent crowd seethed. I recognized a lot of individuals who were unknown to me. I saw birds . . listened to the crashing depths of the sea. • Juxtaposition of cosmos and chaos. Storm, but transcending dreams. • Establishes the meter (and it seems to match the rocking nature of the boat), and then interrupts it—italicizing various words.

Пиковая дама

Улицкая 2001 Characters: • Mour: an eccentric old woman who lived out her youth glamorously with multiple lovers (including her second husband, a famous soviet author.) She is now a self centered, ungrateful, and overall unpleasant woman who keeps her family prisoner in order to take care of her, despite the emotion and personal cost of the family. She pushes away all extra family members (i.e. Marek.) She is of Polish descent and doesn't like the Jews. • Anna: Mour's daughter and an optometrist. She was married but gave up her own family in order to serve her mother, whom she hates that she loves. She wishes to live life completely differently from her mother, wishing to live purely without sex (this didn't work, however, but she has only been with one man--she was attracted to him because of his youth and innocence opposed to other men.) She resents her mother but has no problem appeasing her. She loves her daughter, Katya, very much but has an alienated relationship with her, even though they live together, because she doesn't tell her many things that she believes would upset her. • Katya: Granddaughter of Mour and daughter of Anna. She teaches English and she is a mother of Lenochka and Grisha. Like the generations before her, she is raising her children without their father. Though she continues to have secret rendez-vous with him, they are estranged and he lives completely separately from his family. She barely remembers her own father but, when he returns, she realizes that her love for him did not fade. She does not understand why her mother and her father got divorced in order to help Mour. • Lenochka: Eldest daughter of Katya. She is a terrible student and after Marek's visit decides to seriously study English, preparing for her trip abroad to England. • Grisha: The youngest son of Katya and the only male in the house. He is in grammar school and sees Marek as a replacement for his own father. He is excited to travel abroad, considering that all of his other schoolmates have travelled abroad. He is the first one in the story to rise up against Mour. • Marek: Doctor in South Africa, ex husband of Anna and father of Katya. Anna was his TA in college. He left when Anna moved in with Mour, who detested him. He has family all around the world: Israel, Greece, England, and America. He is a Polish Jew and is currently married. He loves his family and is excited to see them for the first time since the end of the soviet union. He works with the elderly in his clinic in South Africa. He is like a breath of fresh air for the family. Plot: • Marek calls and says that he wants to visit the family around Christmas. When he visits everyone loves him immediately, even Mour, except Anna. Anna feels more and more isolated from him and her family out of jealously and past bad experiences. • Marek offers to invite the children to Greece in the summer and, even though Mour disapproves (Grisha curses out his great grandmother,) Anna goes behind her back and organizes it anyway. The morning of the trip Anna goes out to get milk for Mour's coffee but falls and dies, muttering about milk and passports. Mour, at this point, figured out what is going on. Katya, who went after Anna to see why she was taking so long, returns and slaps Mour on the face. Then she pours milk into Mour's cold coffee, implying that the cycle of the Queen of Spades will continue. Themes/Motifs/Symbols/Images: • Chocolate • Abroad • Women and generations • Love (Mour's love vs. anna's love vs. Katya's love) • Youth and age • Artifical youth (Mour's plastic surgery, Anna's hair dye) Literary Connections: • Pushkin's "Queen of Spades"--Ulitskaia took Pushkin's old woman character (the Queen of Spades) and focused, not on the relationship between her and the young man, but between her and her ward. Through Ulitskaia's eyes, we see how the Queen of Spades imprisons women while the men escape. Overall, this literary illusion shows how women have suffered in silence for centuries while the eldery and society quietly abused them.

Разгром

Фадеев 1927 War story depicting young guerrilla fighters in the civil war. 1926 Characters: • Morozka: a gruff, uneducated miner. He is a bit of an antihero, being a thief and a villain for half of the novel but it turns into the hero (or at least as close to a hero that book allows. • Metchik: naive educated boy who decides to join the Maximalists and then Levinson's platoon. He starts out as a classic war hero but after his first battle with Levinson, his character completely changes and he becomes quite a pathetic person. He refuses to take care of his horse, deserts the army on two occasions and is generally considered a weak child. • Varya: Morozka's wife and also the local "*****." Everyone has had a turn with Varya to the point where sex means nothing. She is sterile but she often puts herself in a maternal position (to Metchik, the freezing puppy, and even to Morozka.) • Levinson: The comrade commandant of this part of the Red army. He tries desperately to be a good leader to his men, he never lets his weakness show and he tries to be fair to both his men and to the peasants. He has found the perfect balance between being friends with his men and leading them. He doesn't allow his personal life to interfere with his work even though his family at home is going through a crisis. However, all of this goes away when he and his men start to starve and lose the war, ending with him completely blacking out during a battle and crying in front of the survivors. • Baklanov: Levinson's second in command. He strives to be like Levinson and looks up to him. He even models his behavior after him to the point of mirroring his posture. At their very last battle, realizing the true exhaustion of Levinson, he takes over as the leader of the charge. He is uneducated but wishes that he was. • Goncharenko: Morozka's friend, really his only one. • Dubov: Morozka's commander. He is also a miner and often takes the role of representative on behalf of the mining community. He is very proud of his roots and his men. • Pika: an old man who is loved by old Metchik before he went to war. • Tchizh: a very rude member of Levinson's army. He is the only friend of Metchik after he joins the army and has a very rotten opinion of nearly everyone in the army, including Levinson and Baklanov. • Frolov: a sickly old man who refuses to die. Plot: This novel follows a section of the Red Army in Siberia, Levinson's men. While carrying a message, Morozka finds a wounded Metchik on a battlefield. He saves his life and, while he is in Levinson's hospital, Metchik and Varya fall in love. Morozka gets caught for stealing melons from the local farmers and Levinson makes the peasants and the partisans decide what to do with him. (Fadeyev plays a lot of attention to peasants and the relationship between peasants, miners, and partisans.) Meanwhile, the White Army (and the Japanese?) are threatening Levinson's position. Metchik gets better and joins the cavalry. They travel to fight and after the battle, Metchik is forever changed. He isn't the sweet, innocent, naive boy he was. Instead he is cold and pathetic to everyone. The White Army puts Levinson on the run and, together, they starve and suffer from extreme exhaustion. Still on the run, Levinson packs up his headquarters and, kills Frolov (since he refuses to die.) Varya and Metchik's relationship is pretty much over and Tchizh rapes her. In a last stitch effort, Levinson's men take a village but many die including Morozka's beloved horse, Mishka. Metchik "gets lost" (deserts) during the battle and everyone knows it. That night, in grief and in victory, Morozka and Metchik get drunk together. Varya makes up with Morozka. The same night the White Army ambushes them. They get out just in time. Metchik and Morozka are sent out as scouts to make sure that they are going in a safe direction. Metchik discovers the White Army is waiting for them but, instead of signally, he deserts without his horse. Morozka follows and, realizing that this means his death and that Metchik, his enemy, failed the army, he warns the rest of the men with 3 gunshots before he dies. Hearing the shots, Levinson pretty much blacks out, leaving Balkanov to lead the final battle. Metchik, far away from the battle, realizes what he had done. Filled with shame, he romanticizes his previous self, only causing himself more self disgust. Instead of killing himself, he decides to start a new life and heads back to the White village, leaving the Red Army forever, one assumes. Levinson wakes up after the battle still in his saddle. He realizes that there is only 19 men left, including Varya, Tchizh, and Goncharenko. Unable to maintain his strength, he cries in front of his company and they realize how old and tired Levinson has become. Picking himself up, he leads his men to a new village, a symbol of hope. Symbols/Motifs/Themes: • Brutish nature of the Red Army • Education/Class vs. no education/class • Horses vs. people--poor treatment of horses is a mortal sin • Peasants--the red army tries to understand them and respect them even though they are not affiliated with them and could honestly care less about them. • Lack of a hero--there is no real hero, all of the characters change incredibly and they all have faults. • Sexuality vs maternity • Vivid and paranoid language during the battles • Fragility of life • humanization/villainization of enemy Literary connections: • Socialist realism at least to some degree???? • 1927, Fadeev Partially based on the author's own experiences, The Rout follows a detachment of Red Army partisans in the Far East as they flee from pursuing Cossacks and Japanese interventionist forces during the Civil War. In the course of the novel's action, jealousy and lust threaten comradely relations, the essence of a true leader is examined, and the harmful effect of the Maximalist deviation is made apparent. In this novel, Fadeev strove to tell an exciting adventure story in the style of Robert Louis Stevenson while maintaining a proper political orientation. Most critics reacted positively to the work, but some of the far left saw it as a betrayal of the Revolutionary cause and of Bolshevism, accusing Fadeev of falling under the pernicious influence of Lev Tolstoy, of emphasizing the inner life of the characters, of presenting the positive hero with ambiguities, and, in fact, of failing to make an overt political statement. The main characters are Morozka, Levinson, Varya and Mekshin.

The life of Theodosius

Феодосий Печерский •Feodosy Pechersky lived around 1100. He reformed the monastery system. Communal monastic life. Abbot. One of the creators of the Kiev Crypt Monastery. Changed church practices that were later adopted everywhere. He got his ideas from Greek monks. • Two accounts of him—Chronicle, and hagiography (by Nestor) • Hagiography o Focuses a lot on his childhood. o People didn't understand him, including his mother. Self-harm, sacrifice, piety. o Runs away to the monastery three times; first two are unsuccessful. o God plays an important role in these events. o Mother tries to get him to come back, but he convinces her to become a nun and thus saves her soul. • Primary Chronicle o Most important part is his death. Died not long after Lent one year. Sviatislav and Gleb visited him as he was dying.

Я пришёл к тебе с приветом

Фет 1843 • Trochaic (missing first stress, so it initially feels anapestic) tetrameter • Alternating FM rhymes • I came to you will a hello, to say that the sun rose, that it was trembling on the leaves with its hot light; to tell you that the forest awoke, it all awoke, every branch, the forest started up with every bird and is full of springtime thirst; to tell you that with the same passion like yesterday I came again, that my soul is ready to serve happiness and you the same; to say that everywhere there is this wafting of happiness, that I don't myself know what I will sing—but the song is only ripening. • Cheerful. Everything is waking up. • Female figure is never active. All about his excitement about the world and eagerness to communicate to her. • Song ripening within him—about him as the poet. • Рассказать—repeated four times; emphasizes narration. • Lightness is emphasized by the trochaic meter—bounces along.

Шёпот, робкое дыхание

Фет 1850 Trochaic (3- and 4-feet) Alternating feminine and masculine rhymes A whisper, a timid breath, the trill of a nightingale, silver and swaying of the sleepy creek. Night light, night shades, shade without end, a row of magical changes of the sweet face, in the smoky clouds the purple roses the glow of amber, and kisses and tears and dawn, dawn! No verbs Nature picture representative of a morning parting.

Старуха

Хармс 1939 Post-modern novella about a guy going crazy. He doesn't like kids and wants to give them tetanus. He tries to write about a miracle worker who doesn't perform any miracles. Time passes. He gets distracted by all the things. The old woman he had asked the time from earlier in the day shows up unannounced at his door and comes in. She makes him lock the door and kneel down and then lie down. She dies in the armchair while he is on the floor. He falls asleep and the woman has moved. Lots of references to food and hunger. (Dreams he has knife and fork for hands; he has no food) While out buying food he meets a young girl whom he invites home to drink with him, but then remembers there's a corpse in his house, so he ditches her by jumping on a random tram. He visits his friend Sakerdon MIkhailovich and they eat and talk about immortality and how they hate children. He stuffs the corpse in a suitcase and gets on a train to take it away. The suitcase disappears while he is in the bathroom. He prays to/about a caterpillar as he waits for the train back.

Заклятие смехом

Хлебников 1908-1909 Laugh. Lots of words with the root of laughter. "О, рассмейтесь, смехачи! О, засмейтесь, смехачи! Что смеются смехами, что смеянствуют смеяльно, О, засмейтесь усмеяльно!" Experimentation with language. Futurist.

Молитва

Цветаева 1909 She had a wonderful childhood and now would like to die at 17. Wants to die while everything is still like a book. Thirst for everything--for life and death; the whole road. Iambic tetrameter, alternating feminine/masculine rhyme Prayer, Christ and God I thirst for a miracle: let me die while all of life is as a book for me I want everything with the soul of a gypsy to suffer for all under the song of a woman, like an amazon woman to rush to battle, to guess by the stars So that yesterday was a legend So that everyday was madness I love the cross and silk and helmets My soul is a trail of moments You gave me childhood better than a fairytale And give me death at 17 years Interpretation: Prayer in form = addresses God, thirsting for a miracle = death Faith in a god that won't make her endure Expresses other desires = wants to be amazon woman Competing loves Cross = symbol of faith, martyrdom Silk = luxury, like fine lady Helmet = war You gave childhood better than a fairy tale, still wants to die Classic 17-year-old, teenage angst, classic romantic prose Христос и Бог! Я жажду чуда Теперь, сейчас, в начале дня! О, дай мне умереть, покуда Вся жизнь как книга для меня. Люблю и крест, и шелк, и каски, Моя душа мгновений след... Ты дал мне детство - лучше сказки И дай мне смерть - в семнадцать лет!

Имя твоё--птица в руке

Цветаева 1916 Some sort of love and she is unable to say the name of her beloved. Имя твое — птица в руке, Имя твое — льдинка на языке. Одно-единственное движенье губ. Имя твое — пять букв. Мячик, пойманный на лету, Серебряный бубенец во рту. Камень, кинутый в тихий пруд, Всхлипнет так, как тебя зовут. В легком щелканье ночных копыт Громкое имя твое гремит. И назовет его нам в висок Звонко щелкающий курок. Имя твое — ах, нельзя! — Имя твое — поцелуй в глаза, В нежную стужу недвижных век. Имя твое — поцелуй в снег. Ключевой, ледяной, голубой глоток... С именем твоим — сон глубок.

Дом с мезонином

Чехов

Степь

Чехов

Палата № 6

Чехов 1892 Chekov spent eight months writing this story, which Lenin stated made him a revolutionary. In the story the doctor is likened to Diogenes, the Greek famous for living most of his life in a tub like a dog. In the story, the doctor stoically accepts his position as society misinterprets his actions, but realizes that his beliefs were not as he originally thought once he becomes one of the patients. The story takes place at a dilapted hospital with rotten steps and piles of tattered clothing. On a pile of clothes, a watchman watches over patients in the sixth ward, which smells like a cage of wild beasts and houses only lunatics. There are five patients in the ward; a hypochondriac who is paralyzed and cries in silence, Maseika, an old Jew whose cap factory was destroyed in a fire (he is the only patient permitted to wander outside and even in the streets), Ivan Dmitrich Gromov, a 33-yeard-old noble who is extremely paranoid, a fat peasant who acts like a total animal, and a postal sorter who constantly clutches and hides something out of shame. Ivan's history is given in detail. He was always shy when younger and eventually becomes suspiscious of everything and everyone around him and cannot even leave his home when he believes he will be captured by authorities. He eventually is taken to the ward. A new doctor comes to the ward, Andrei Yefimitch Ragin, a powerful man who frequently wears the same frock coat everywhere he goes and often ruminates on the frailty of life and immortality. Though his hospital is poor, he finds the treatment and the situation of the patients exactly the same, making both pointless in the end. Ragin eventually befriends Gromov and they start to have regular discussions together about life. Andrei comments to Ivan that the outside world is no different than the world of the ward; peace can only be found within. The doctor is fascinated by Gromov, finding him the only intelligent and caring man he knows. After one of their conversations, other workers at the hospital, Nikita, and Andrei's assistant Khobotov act differently towards him. The postmaster Mikhail Averyanitch convinces him to go on a trip to Moscow "for his health," and constantly annoys him on the journey. Upon their return the postmaster and Khobotov continue to treat Andrei as though he were ill and eventually he screams at them in disgust. He realizes he has been trapped in a 'magic circle' where no matter what he says and does society has already created a predetermined view of him. The next day, thinking he has a chance to apologize for his actions, Khobotov takes Andrei for a walk and tricks him into going into ward six, where Nikita undresses him and has him put on the clothing of the lunatics. He then realizes that everything is not the same here, he is unable to smoke or drink beer and is trapped. He soon after dies of a stroke.

Дядя Ваня

Чехов 1899 Essentially a new version of the play "The Wood Demon" which was from about a decade earlier. Characters Serebriakoff, Alexander Vladimirovitch - a retired professor. Helena Andreevna(or Yelena or sometimes Elena) - his young and beautiful second wife, 27 years old. Sofia Alexandrovna (Sonia) - his plain daughter by his first marriage. Voinitskaya, Maria Vasilievna - the widow of a privy councillor, mother of the first wife of the professor. Voinitsky, Ivan Petrovitch ("Uncle Vanya") - Sonia's uncle, and Maria Vasilievna's son. Astroff, Michail Lvovich - a doctor. Telegin, Ilya Ilyitch - an impoverished landowner. Marina - an old nurse. A Workman In the story, the retired professor has returned to his estate to live with his beautiful young wife, Yelena. The estate originally belonged to his first wife, now deceased; her mother and brother still live there and manage the farm. For many years the brother (Uncle Vanya) has sent the farm's proceeds to the professor, while receiving only a small salary himself. Sonya, the professor's daughter, who is about the same age as his new wife, also lives on the estate. The professor is pompous, vain, and irritable. He calls the doctor to treat his gout, only to send him away without seeing him. Astrov is an experienced physician who performs his job conscientiously, but has lost all idealism and spends much of his time drinking. The presence of Yelena introduces a bit of sexual tension into the household. Astrov and Uncle Vanya both fall in love with Yelena; she spurns them both. Meanwhile, Sonya is in love with Astrov, who fails even to notice her. Finally, when the professor announces he wants to sell the estate, Vanya, whose admiration for the man died with his sister, tries to kill him with a gun. But the professor survives because he misses and he and Yelena leave the estate. While Vanya is the protagonist of this play, Astrov plays a major supporting role. Like most of Chekhov's physicians, he has lost his idealism and much of his capacity for close human relationships. Unlike some of them, though, Astrov has not become narrow-minded, greedy, or pompous. He does his job conscientiously and still retains active curiosity about the world. As far as the emotional life is concerned, he seems to rely on alcohol. Yelena re-awakens in him the desire for intimacy, but this desire is doomed to fail. Uncle Vanya is thematically preoccupied with what might sentimentally be called the wasted life, and a survey of the characters and their respective miseries will make this clear. Admittedly, however, it remains somewhat difficult to organize these concepts into a coherent theme as they belong more to the play's nastroenie, its melancholic mood or atmosphere, than to a distinct program of ideas.

В овраге

Чехов 1900 One of Chekov's more depressing and horrifying stories, especially the end. It may be that his advanced state of tuberculosis was beginning to work on his moods at this point in his life. The story occurs in the village of Ukleevo, which is situated in a ravine. The village is dirty, most of its citizens are corrupt and a factory dumps pollution into the river. Grigory Zybukin owns a grocer's shop in Ukleevo, where he trades almost anything. He has two sons; Anisim, who works as a detective and Stepan, who is deaf and lives with his father with his wife Aksinia, who is good at business and helps Grigory. The grocer soon marries Varvara, who brings the household to life and works like a valve on a steam engine, as Chekov states. Anisim soon returns home unexpectedly and they decide to marry him to the peasant girl Lipa, who lives nearby in the village of Torguevo. The men in the village avoid her, even though she is beautiful, because of the abject poverty her family lives in. After the wedding and the party, Anisim, already dazed and uninterested, is pushed into the room where Lipa has been undressed. Five days later he speaks with Varvara about God and comments that the villagers don't really believe and merely go through the motions of belief. He thinks people are corrupt because they have no consciences due to the fact that they're uncertain if God really exists. Anisim soon leaves to go on business, which seems strange and talks as though something bad may happen. Lipa, previously depressed, becomes full of life when he leaves. Life goes on until Sashka the Smith tries to buy tobacco using a half-ruble Anisim gave to him at the wedding party, but it's fake. The police come to Grigory's home and he checks the rest of the money, to find out all of it is fake. Grigory tells Aksinia to throw it into the well but she gives it to the mowers instead. Anisim is soon captured and condemned to hard labor in Siberia. After coming home from the trial, Grigory's home changes forever. Aksinia, in a fit of rage over the girl, pours boiling water on Lipa's child, which then dies at the hospital. Lipa brings it home wrapped in cloth and is taken there on a cart by two men. While riding she asks them while so many children have to suffer in the world, to which a priest replies to her "such is the kingdom of heaven." Lipa soon goes home to her mother and Grigory's business is slowly taken over by Aksinia. Grigory becomes listless and Anisim is forgotten, writing only one letter where he begs for help.

The Russian Primary Chronicle

• Begins with the flood and Noah's three sons inheriting different regions of land. • Rurik had two brothers that also ruled various pieces of land, but they died in a couple years and Rurik ruled alone. • Oleg died because a snake came out of his horse's skull after it was prophesied he would die because of his horse. • Notes from class on these readings o Language—a version of OCS with some vernacular. Some OCS words are preferentially used. It was convention to use OCS in writing, and particularly in elevated writing—speaking and writing are different channels of communication. o Starting with the Bible story, it really grounds the history of the Slavic people and gives them a sense of prestige and claim to authority. Also, the Bible was really their only source of history. They were being put on the same level as other people who had inherited the land earlier. o The Apostle Andrei comes to visit. 66 o 70-72 Clear concern with law. Discussion of different habits and laws. This is a parallel with the book of Genesis—Old Testament preoccupation with law. o Discussion of Amazonki. Trying to purport ethnic superiority. o Authorial voice—it does have some literary elements o Creative adaptation of the Biblical story. o Casual, pleasant and inviting reading presenting in a colloquial and fairy tale type of voice. • Presence of legends. Legends are often included in the historical chronology. • They still enter the year in the chronicle, even if they didn't record any events occurring. • Magical background. • Appeals to the Old Testament. Reflection of the historical experience of the compilers of the Bible. • There is a lot of military culture present—this is understandable since there are so many wars and conflicts occurring at the time. • Episode that is rich in narrative techniques—death of Oleg. o Oleg is told by soothsayers that he will die from his horse. He tells them to send his horse away and he doesn't see it for four years; it dies; he goes to see its bones and he laughs. But then a snake comes from the skull and bites him and he dies. o 1822 Pushkin's «Вешем о Олеге» Pushkin took it not so much from Povest' but from Karamzin (who took it from the Povest') o Victor Vosnitsov illustrated this story and his work became famous. Fake folk quality to his illustrations. Vision of what old Russia was about. o This episode stands out because it has a very clear moral at the end. It sounds like a fairy tale. Problem is with listening to soothsayers. • Soothsayers are not Christian. One of the pagan elements we can identify. Dvoiveria culture. Possibly this is an effort to propagandize people into believing more in Christianity. Or maybe it's more complicated. It does show that soothsayers have power—it's not proven to be wrong, but it's discouraged. But it's unclear exactly what the goal or purpose is. • We don't really know for sure about strong authorial intent. o Symbolic elements (snake as evil); artistic representation of death. Rich visual imagery. Olga's revenge (104--) • Interesting because she is a woman, and most of this record has been about men and wars and power. • She is one of the first saints of the Orthodox church. o She stands for Russian land and country. She was loyal to her husband. o She was the first to be baptized. (This is what the church sees as her major accomplishment.) • She is very cunning. Feisty. Fierce. • The Drevlania killed Olga's husband (Igor) because he wasn't really a good guy. The people justify killing him because he was greedy—like a wolf among sheep and if they didn't kill him, he would kill them all. • The Povest' represents Olga as a hero, with all her cruelty and excessive revenge. Strong woman who accomplishes a notable task. If we stay with the text, we kind of like her, but if we step aside, we realize that she isn't really a hero. • «суть»--word that is repeated for emphasis • Quoted speech. They say that they killed her husband because he was greedy and a robber, but their kings are good and she should marry one of them. o They try to become the wolf, but they're not cunning enough. They try to deceive Olga, but she tricks them. o They say this proposal in a very straightforward and "logical" way. o Proposal does not provoke rage, as it would seem logical that it would. Lack of depth of story—this is only how the story is represented. We don't know exactly how it happened. • These Dervyani seem very simple. They believe Olga and fall for all her tricks. Baptism of Vladimir and Rus' • The service was so beautiful in Constantinople that they wanted that one. • Muslims didn't drink. Germans had no glory, but only a stench. • Vladimir's desire to wed the empress' unwedded sister Anna. o Ironic—conversation about how Christianity is so forgiving, but then they wage war against Constantinople. o We get a brief insight (pg. 69) into Anna's mentality. This is rare for the chronicle. More emotion than we saw in the story of Olga. • Moment where writer assumes voice of authority—claiming to know exactly where the baptism took place. • Tore down the idols—dragged Perun down to the river and threw him in. It was a violent overthrow of the previous religion. • "The devil lamented" o Primitive device, but it helps emphasize the victorious tone of the narrative.

Lomonosov

• Wrote his treatise on versification in 1738 (published in 1778). Disagreed with Trediakovsky. o Don't need caesura o Use all types of rhyme. Alternation between masculine and feminine rhyme. o All types of meters. o Pure meter—completely one meter. o Mixed meter—various types of feet. o Lots of German influence. (In fact parts of his letter were translated from German.) • Most of his works were iambic. • Pushkin used his ideas. • Son of a fisherman. Walked from his Siberian village to Moscow in order to gain an education. • Excelled in chemistry (and everything). Professors at the Russian academy of sciences/art were usually German. So it was a big deal that he was appointed as a chemistry professor. • Versification was a big deal between him, Trediakovsky, and Sumarokov. This was a big deal because it was new to have a unique Russian system of versification. • Founded Moscow University 1755. • Authored the first grammar of the Russian language. • Revived the ancient art of mosaics. Created about 40 mosaics; 20 still survive. o Incredibly detailed portrait/scene mosaics. • Really admired Peter the Great. • Almost sent to the monastery because of his poem about beards. • He wrote odes praising every monarch—maybe not because he loved them all, but the genre took over personal views and he had to praise them. o 18th century literature was for the most part state literature. Singing praises to the monarch was essentially praising God. (Paradise theology and Moscow as the Third Rome.) o Poet speaks for the entire nation and not just himself. • System of three levels of literary style o High—lots of church Slavonic words; understood by readers, but not normally used by Russian speakers. Heroic poems, odes, solemn public addresses. Welcoming the empress. o Middle—combination of vernacular with assimilated Church Slavonicisms. Suitable for theater, epistles, satires. Morning reflections on God's greatness o Low—words only in vernacular Russian and not in writing. Ode on Beards