PREFACE
Reading edition
Considerations of space compel me to give but a small selection of authors from the last two decades of the nineteenth century, while some of the writers, here omitted, of the beginning of this period have been previously treated in the first volume of the Anthology. For the intermediate time, the material here offered will be found sufficiently complete, while the essays of Byelínski, Dobrolyúbov, Písarev, and Merezhkóvski illustrate the evolution of Russian literature in the nineteenth century, as viewed by the Russian critics themselves.
The introductory sketch is not intended as a preliminary exposition of the Anthology, but as a résumé of all the matter contained there; it will, therefore, be best perused after the extracts and biographical sketches of the separate authors have become familiar to the reader. To avoid undue annotations, literary allusions have not been mentioned in the footnotes; they may readily be discovered by turning to the Index, where all cross references are given.
During the preparation of the second volume, the interesting discovery was made that not Sir John Bowring, but William D. Lewis, an American, was the first to render Russian poetry into English; thus, the Stanzas given on p. 394 of vol. i. originally appeared in the National Gazette and Literary Register of Philadelphia, on January 31, 1821, while other poems seem to have been translated by him much earlier.
I again wish to express my thanks to the authors and publishers by whose permission translations are here reproduced, and to my colleague, Prof. F. N. Robinson, who has patiently read through these pages and given me his advice.
CONTENTS
PAGE
Preface v
A Sketch of Russian Literature in the Nineteenth Century 3
The Nineteenth Century 27
Karamzín (1766-1826) 27
Letters of a Russian Traveller 28
Tver 28
On the French Tragedy 30
On Shakspere 31
London 32
The Churchyard 33
Poor Líza 34
History of the Russian Empire. Introduction 37
Krylóv (1768-1844) 41
The Ass and the Nightingale 41
The Quartette 43
Damian’s Fishsoup 44
The Swan, the Pike, and the Crab 45
The Lion and the Wolf 45
The Cloud 46
The Shipwrecked Sailor and the Sea 46
Izmáylov (1779-1831) 46
The Drunkard’s Vow 47
The Canary and the Nightingale 47
The Two Cats 48
Naryézhny (1780-1825) 49
The Two Iváns; or, The Passion for Litigation 49
Zhukóvski (1783-1852) 54
Svyetlána 55
The Minstrel in the Russian Camp 63
Kozlóv (1779-1840) 67
Solitude 68
Kíev 69
The Black Monk 70
Bátyushkov (1787-1855) 73
The Friend’s Shadow 73
The Dying Tasso 75
Glínka (1788-1880) 78
Moscow 79
The Search for God 80
Prince Vyázemski (1792-1878) 81
The Samovár 82
To My Three Absent Friends 84
Death Reaps the Harvest of Life 85
Rylyéev (1796-1826) 86
Voynaróvski 87
Iván Susánin 88
Griboyédov (1795-1829) 92
Intelligence Comes to Grief 93
Bestúzhev (Marlínski) (1797-1837) 102
Ammalát Bek 102
Lazhéchnikov (1794-1869) 111
The Heretic 112
Baron Délvig (1798-1831) 120
Gloomy Thoughts 120
Sang a little bird, and sang 121
Ah, you night, you little night 122
Púshkin (1799-1837) 122
The Captain’s Daughter 125
Evgéni Onyégin. Tatyána’s Letter 131
The Bakhchisaráy Fountain 133
The Poison-Tree 135
The Bird 136
The Prophet 137
The Talisman 138
The Lay of the Wise Olég 139
To the Slanderers of Russia 142
Borís Godunóv 143
Demons 147
Baratýnski (1800-1844) 149
Finland 150
Spring 151
Truth 151
Yazýkov (1803-1846) 152
The Sailor 153
The Storm 154
To the Poet 155
Lérmontov (1814-1841) 155
A Hero of Our Times. Maksím Maksímych 157
The Demon 165
Dispute 167
Alone I wander out along the road 170
The Sail 171
The Prayer 171
The Branch of Palestine 172
Remember’st thou the day when we 173
At a Ball 174
Dream 175
Koltsóv (1808-1842) 176
First Love 176
The Abundant Harvest 177
The Forest 179
Betrayed by a Bride 181
The Mower 182
Gógol (1809-1852) 185
The Dnieper 187
The Revizór 188
Dead Souls. Mrs. Koróbochka 199
Byelínski (1811-1848) 205
The Natural School 206
Aksákov (1791-1859) 216
The Family Chronicle 217
Khomyakóv (1804-1860) 229
To My Children 230
The Eagle 231
Kíev 232
Tyútchev (1803-1873) 234
Scarce cooled from midday heat 234
The Spring-Storm 235
I suffer still from anguished longing 235
Sunrise 235
Gértsen (Herzen) (1812-1870) 236
Slavophiles and Panslavism 237
Ogarév (1813-1877) 242
To Iskánder 242
Monologues 244
The Village Watchman 244
Count A. K. Tolstóy (1817-1875) 245
Prince Serébryany 246
The Death of Iván the Terrible 255
The Kurgán 257
Goncharóv (1812-1891) 259
Oblómov 260
Dobrolyúbov (1836-1861) 271
What is Oblómovism? 272
Turgénev (1818-1883) 280
Fathers and Sons 282
Poems in Prose. Nature 295
Grigoróvich (1822-1900) 296
The Fishermen 297
Polónski (1820-1898) 303
The Birds 303
Night in the Crimea 304
Love scared thee not 305
Musician Grasshopper 305
Písemski (1820-1881) 310
The Old Proprietress 311
Shenshín (Fet) (1820-1892) 319
When deeply musing in the silence of the night 320
Every feeling at night to me becomes clearer and deeper 320
Stay here awhile, ’tis good 321
Night, thou art so blest with odours sweet and strong 321
Tryst 322
Dostoévski (1821-1881) 322
Crime and Punishment 323
A. N. Máykov (1821-1898) 339
The Peris 340
Who Was He? 341
The Marble Faun 342
Three Deaths. The Death of Seneca and of Lucius 344
Nekrásov (1821-1877) 347
Red-nosed Frost 348
A Moral Man 352
Who Lives in Russia Happily 353
The Unmown Strip 359
A Mother’s Tears 360
Nikítin (1824-1861) 361
Burlák 361
The Gaffer 364
Pleshchéev (1825-1894) 365
Forward 366
My Country 367
A Legend 367
Spring 368
Ostróvski (1823-1886) 369
The Storm 369
Saltykóv (Shchedrín) (1826-1889) 379
Beyond the Border 380
Písarev (1841-1868) 385
Flowers of Harmless Humour 386
Count L. N. Tolstóy (1828-0000) 391
Ánna Karénin 392
War and Peace 401
Uspénski (1840-1902) 408
The Power of the Land. Iván Petróv 409
Levítov (1842-1877) 417
Shoemaker Cock-of-the-Boots 417
Zlatovrátski (1845-0000) 427
Old Shadows 428
Korolénko (1853-0000) 436
The Old Bell-ringer 437
Garshín (1855-1888) 443
That Which Was Not 443
Potápenko (1856-0000) 448
A Thousand Talents 448
Nádson (1862-1887) 457
My Friend, My Brother! 458
Poetry 458
Pity the stately cypress trees 459
Chékhov (1860-0000) 459
In the Court-room 460
Pyeshkóv (Górki) (1871-0000) 467
In the Steppe 468
Merezhkóvski (1865-0000) 482
From an Essay on “Pushkin” 483
Index 495