‘Without rules and restrictions, there is no art’

Abstract

In this interview, the renowned writer and poet Sergey Gandlevsky talks about his view of poetry as essentially an outcome of a ‘lucky error,’ which the author then tweaks to perfection. A lot of his works result from the author’s desire to stress self-reflection, causing the poet to separate himself from the lyrical hero instead of identifying with him, as if the author is looking at a bystander’s image of himself. According to Gandlevsky, true art thrives on rules and restriction and it is for that reason that he personally prefers accentualsyllabic verse to vers libre. As for prose writing, this task is easier for a poet than writing poetry is for a prose writer. A poet normally draws on their own experience, so locations visited and books read are of particular significance. Gandlevsky believes poetry to be a sensory rather than intellectual phenomenon, one which translates reading into physical pleasure. He also insists that poetry plays the role of a ‘gold standard,’ essential for maintaining ‘supreme examples of feelings and emergency supplies of idealism.’