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Translated a couple of passages from Michail Artsybashev's notes concerning the glorification of slavishness in Russia. There's many more I want to translate but decide to spread them between different entries. Other quotes are mostly about life and death, these ones are specifically about the Russian mentality. Not that I think many of my readers are interested in this particular question, I just like to save stuff on my blog that I can easily find later and share if I want to.
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Original quotes in Russian:
Татарщина не прошла даром русскому народу. Два века на наших полях простоял стан великого кочевого народа, и когда кочевники ушли, на земном шаре, как после ярмарки в поле, осталось место, покрытое соломой и навозом, изрытое ямами, утыканное кольями, сожженное кострами и вытоптанное конскими копытами. и там, где когда-то росла свежая, буйная трава степи, поднял голову пыльный бурьян. Выросло крепостное право. Оно не могло не вырасти, ибо рабский навозный дух глубоко впитался в землю.
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Гной стал проступать РїРѕРІСЃСЋРґСѓ, РїРѕ всему телу пошли нарывы, холопство Рё хамство стали чуть ли РЅРµ национальными чертами. Р’Рѕ всей стране почти РЅРµ осталось человека, Рє которому РЅРµ пристало Р±С‹ слово холоп… Можно было Р±С‹ сказать — холоп или барин, если Р±С‹ наш СЂСѓСЃСЃРєРёР№ барин РЅРµ был сугубым холопом… Нам нужен погонщик, нужен РєРЅСЏР·СЊ… РџСЂРёС…РѕРґРё княжить Рё володеть нами!
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РќРѕ, как люди культурные Рё остроумные, РјС‹ Рё холопство умеем облекать РІ красивые одежды. РњС‹ давно Рє этому привыкли: РЅРёРіРґРµ, РІРѕ всей РјРёСЂРѕРІРѕР№ литературе, РЅРµ было такого поэтизирования рабской преданности… Сколько прекрасных Рё умилительных страниц написано нами Рѕ типах старых крепостных лакеев, готовых живот положить Р·Р° своего РіРѕСЃРїРѕРґРёРЅР°. Р’ РёС… преданности, РІ РёС… бесконечном унижении РјС‹ РѕРґРЅРё ухитрились увидеть РїРѕСЌР·РёСЋ Рё красоту Рё РЅРµ заметили, что РѕРЅРё — поэтические образы преданных слуг — просто-напросто махровые цветы холопства Рё лакейства, доведенных РґРѕ утраты человеческого СЏ.
(Михаил Петрович Арцыбашев "Записки писателя")
More posts from this category: Hooked on breedingDwarfs in tiaras...
Irina |
21-12-2015
That's the thing, it rings true with my experience. Had I lived in Russia I possibly would have deemed it normal but here in Ukraine these 2 mentalities get contrasted very clearly: our East and West are a clash of Asian and European civillizations. I come from a Russian family and obedience and utmost respect to authority is quite big. You've read Sanin, eh? I found myself having read half of it and half of the Breaking Point (which could be translated literally as 'At the final line') and so now I have a bit of a mix up with the charachters, lol. I just couldn't open the Breaking Point once (the format didn't work for my tablet) so I started reading Sanin. I'm sort of trying to not finish them both because then what will I read and enjoy so much? His notes is basically it - his notes, not a fiction. They rock. But they're too short. Unfortunately, you've probably missed out on a lot of things that weren't translated properly. At least the free translation of the Breaking Point that is available on the net is quite poor. This guy is much more talented when you read the original. I'm going to try and translate a few of my favorite quotes from both of the novels later. Not that I think I'm such a perfect traslator, but at least I'm trying to preserve his passionate wording. |
theMeme
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22-12-2015
I have read a German translation of Sanin from 1908, which was actually quite good and well written. Took some time and effort to find one, though. But I don't understand Russian, so I can't compare it with the original one. It also got banned in Germany for 4 months, and this edition contained several court opinions from experts, judging it's literary quality. Some of this 'experts' saw it as pornographic filth that only will corrupt the youth and other gullible people (the original reason for the ban), others, prestigious literary professors among them, praised and mentioned it in the same breath with other great works of literature. Probably because of this praise, they lifted the ban after some months. So, not even the Germans wanted to be seen as barbarians who censor great literature.
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I'm sort of trying to not finish them both because then what will I read and enjoy so much? You could read books from some of our 'cheerful' Austrian writers. Thomas Bernhard is one of my favorite: http://www.goodreads.com/author/quotes/7745.Thomas_Bernhard Oh and a great quote from his debut novel "Frost": 'People who make a new person are taking an extraordinary responsibility upon themselves. All unrealizable. Hopeless. It’s a great crime to create a person, when you know he’ll be unhappy, certainly if there’s any unhappiness about. The unhappiness that exists momentarily is the whole of unhappiness. To produce solitude just because you don’t want to be alone anymore yourself is a crime.' |
Irina |
23-12-2015
Huh. Maybe German translation is ok, I wouldn't be able to evaluate. Wow! "got banned in Germany for 4 months"? What's so porgnographic about it? Maybe I haven't gotten to those parts yet, I'm half way through. There was one sex scene which didn't resemble pornography at all. It was more innocent than the Nine 1/2 Weeks. Good to hear that some reputable wuthors came to the book's defence. Thomas Bernhard is one of my favorite: http://www.goodreads.com/author/quotes/7745.Thomas_Bernhard Ooooh, looks nice! Going to add a few quotes from there to my collection! Thanks for the recommendation! |
turiya
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23-12-2015
Interesting, so the Russian servility comes from Tatar rule. The similar story is to find in ex Yugoslavia, namely the "father" of Croatian nation Ante Starcevic already before Artsybashev (he died at 1896) states that name Serb comes from Latin verb to serve. Now this is hard to find out where from the name Serb comes, but interesting for me he also gives this servitude (I myself as serbian feel it more like passivity) to eastern nation, that also later famous Hitler did.
Ok, Serbs where maybe under Turks few hundred years, but Croats where actually till 1991 never free, so there is for me no logic, except if we say that the Turks influenced the Serbs with they culture. What makes the difference is actually the religion, that are really different ,Catholics and orthodox. St. Augustin glorifies the value of good deeds, where in old orthodoxy Hesychasm is to search for god in your heart. So you are wright, this is fight between east and west. |
Irina |
23-12-2015
Interesting information and thoughts. I suppose it's always a multitude of factors. Can be both religion and occupation, AND by whom AND the way in which the occupation is done. I think historians would better highlight the differences between, say, Tatar rule in Russia and Polish rule in Western Ukraine. All I know from school is that while Ukraine was divided between different occupying powers, the lives and cultural development was different under each. Can be more or less severe, own language, literature, schools can be either allowed or forbidden, you know, the degrees of freedom. Also, I over time you start resembling whoever you're ruled by, so again, by whom is the key, too. One thing I like about Orthodox Church btw - since you've mentioned it - (as compared to Catholic) is that they allow their priests to marry. Saves a lot of young altar boys from rape. |
theMeme
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26-12-2015
@Irina
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What's so porgnographic about it? Yes that was quite strange. The prosecutors weren't able you cite a single explicit passage. Just subtle hints, which they claimed where an 'invitation for fantasizing '. But anyway, the whole thing seemed to be quite fabricated. Even stranger, also at that time there was plenty of French an German Literature around and available, that actually were quite explicit and detailed. So I guess some people just didn't like the 'message' of the book (whatever they thought it was) and were worried how it could influence people. But also the way the publisher marketed that book,as something scandalous with a lot dirty passages, probably wasn't very helpful too. But scandals sell and that was also true 100 years ago. |
Irina |
27-12-2015
So I guess some people just didn't like the 'message' of the book (whatever they thought it was) and were worried how it could influence people. This could very well be the case. Artsybashev was banned in Russia, too. From my very quick research - stil during his lifetime, in 1908 -ish, and then I'm not sure if the ban have been lifted and imposed again, but it looks like only in 1990-ies did his books get printed again. Artsybashev himself, in his notes, writes that he was blamed for the 'epidemic of suicides'. |
theMeme
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29-12-2015
quote:
Artsybashev was banned in Russia I think because he was also an outspoken Anti-Bolshevik, he probably remained banned during the Sowjet-era, and so no one was allowed to talk about him or his works in public. That's a shame. Btw. Я изучаю русский язык. К сожалению, я не могу много. До свидания. |
Irina |
30-12-2015
I think because he was also an outspoken Anti-Bolshevik, he probably remained banned during the Sowjet-era, and so no one was allowed to talk about him or his works in public. One didn't have to be an outspoken Bolshevik to get banned in Soviet Russia, numerous authors were. Whenever ideas hailed in literature seemed to contradict the desired ideals of the "Soviet man" the thing would get banned. I've just read that "Sanin" got prohibited first because Gorkyi called it "antirevolutionary". (He seemed to have praised it later on though, but his verdict has done the damage by then) Then Sanin was also deemed to be pornographic. Geez. Then this overview of Artsybashev's biography reads that "Sanin" got unwarm welcome in Europe, just like in Soviet Union, then it proves what you've said before about it's destiny in Germany, mentioning that it was rescued by Людвиг Гангхофер - there, for your Russian exercise )) |
I have already read Sanin from Artsybashev. I liked it as he explores the "give a fuck"-nihilistic-hedonistic attitude of the protagonist. He seems to appreciate it and also mock it at the same time, which left me off in a sort fatalistic mood. But I never heard of 'Author's notes'. Is that a novel?