Robert Burns in the perception of the soviet writer Afanasy Koptelov

Abstract

An essay of the Soviet novelist, researcher of Mountainous Altai, Afanasy Lazarevich Koptelov, about the life and work of Robert Burns, published on the pages of the Siberian journal «Siberian Lights» in 1959 is firstly systematized and comprehended in the article. The essay, written on the occasion of the 200th anniversary of the birth of Robert Burns, presents the writer’s impressions after a trip to Scotland, the birthplace of the great poet. Describing the nature of mountain landscapes, scenery of numerous lakes, forests and fields flashing outside the window that once inspired R. Burns to create amazing examples of Scottish poetry, the author of the article focuses on the unfair division of land between the citizens of one state, regrets that nothing has changed since the days when the Scottish bard himself wrote about hard farming activities and endless financial dependence on wealthy landowners. A.L. Koptelov focuses in the article on the universal recognition of the art of the Scottish poet, a fighter for freedom and justice, the rights of workers and peasants oppressed by hard work, gives information about the numerous architectural monuments and museums dedicated to the creativity of Robert Burns, in his homeland, in Scotland, the question of the genre diversity of the work of the «bard of Caledonia» is revealed, some testimonies of contemporaries about the «second life» of the works of R. Burns in Russia are given, which became possible due to the talented interpretations of S. Y. Marshak.