Literary Associations Research Articles

Dal ‘grande scrittore’ al ‘generale imperialista’ La ricezione di d’Annunzio in Cina

In the second decade of the 20th century, d’Annunzio was introduced to Chinese readers primarily via Anglo-Saxon culture and received as much success as controversy. This article focuses on the reception of d’Annunzio in a specific group in China: the League of Left-Wing Writers, one of the most important Chinese literary associations, which was founded in 1930. Through the analysis of the social-historical context and Chinese literary field during that time, this paper explores the reasons for the initial acceptance of d’Annunzio by the Left-Wing group and for their change of attitude toward the Italian poet.

A Century of Efforts in Standardizing Pashto

Pashto standardization initiatives did not begin long ago, nonetheless. The military designations were changed to Pashto in the 19th century, during the second reign of Amir Sher Ali Khan, but in the last century, efforts to make Pashto the official language have moved ahead. In the last 100 years, during the time of His Highness Amanullah Khan, məraka də paʂtʊ was established and published dictionaries and two books called "jawαzinəi paʂtʊ" and "paʂtʊ pʂwoja". The dictionaries have been destroyed, but the last two books remain. The names of Pashto months and other things came from these books, and they created new words for politicians and courtiers. We do not use most of the məraka də paʂtʊ words now, but instead we use other words because these words are not easy and are not clear in terms of meaning. After the mərakə də paʂtʊ, the Kandahar Literary Association worked in the field of creating new words. Later, the paʂtʊ ʈolәna (Pashto community) held several meetings on orthography, the first of which was held in 1321 and the others in 1327 and 1337. paʂtʊ ʈolәna has done a lot of work on orthography instead of creating new words (neologism). After the paʂtʊ ʈolәna, Peshawar Pashto Academy has also done commendable work in the field of orthography. In 1992, they held the Bara Gully seminar and many meetings after that. As individuals, Wazir Mohammad Gul Khan Momand, Habibi, Hussain Kawsar Ghoryakhil, Abdul Samad Khan Achakzai, Zyar, and others did the work, which involved both neologism and orthography. These works do have issues with the standardization of Pashto, but the benefits and good things outweigh the negatives. The plan for language enrichment and standardization has gained importance recently. Any language that does not have this strategy is gradually losing its structure. It is anticipated that institutions of higher learning and individuals will take note of this.

B. Ber and A. Sheller-Mikhailov: The history of a creative dialogue

The article is devoted to the history of a creative dialogue between the poet and translator B. Ber and his literary patron A. Sheller-Mikhailov. The correspondence between the two writers, which began in 1895, continued until 1900 when the latter died. The surviving part of the epistolary genre (letters from A. Sheller-Mikhailov to B. Ber) contains about twenty documents; B. Ber’s response letters have not been found yet. Based on the analysis of their correspondence, the history of their acquaintance, the literary ties and cooperation between the two artists of the realistic and pre-modernist trends is restored, the main motives of their correspondence are revealed, which, on the one hand, is the evidence of the acquaintance and communication of representatives of different literary generations; on the other hand, it is a curious epistolary text that actualizes such meanings as “old” and “young”, “capital” and “province”, “craft” and “inspiration”. Particular attention is paid to literary masks and game strategies used by the addressee and the sender of the letters, framing the epistolary dialogue as an aesthetic phenomenon and an artistic act. The study of the creative dialogue between B. Ber and A. Sheller-Mikhailov is interesting as it enables to characterize each of the participants in the correspondence and to understand the nature of pre-modernist aesthetics, which was formed in the conditions of simultaneous assimilation and rejection of classical traditions.

Comparison of Concepts in Poetry

The article presents a comparative cognitive analysis of Uzbek and Kazakh poetry. The poems of the poet T. Abdikakimov and the prominent representative of Uzbek poetry M. Yusuf on the theme of their native land and homeland are also considered. General aesthetic features and literary, cultural ties, characteristic of post-colonial countries, are determined on the basis of Kazakh, Uzbek poetry. The article made a comparative conceptual analysis of poetry. On its basis, through poetry, through literary creative space, the features and values ​​of the Kazakh, Uzbek nations are deeply analyzed. In the second part of the article, on the example of Kazakh and Uzbek poetry, a conceptual analysis is carried out and in the course of the analysis the role of cultural, mental, spiritual and literary ties between these peoples is determined. Research work through a conceptual analysis on the example of poetry opens the way to a deeper knowledge of the world of values ​​of fraternal peoples and, being fateful, reveals through poetry the manifestation of differences associated with the way of life. In the course of the analysis of national concepts, the concept of “tugan zher” based on the poem by T. Abdikakimov in Kazakh poetry and the concept of “otan” in the work of M. Yusuf, a prominent representative of Uzbek poetry, were studied. In the article we define the role and power, the influence of poetry as a "driving force", linking it with the mental consciousness of peoples, with the world of values. Conceptual analysis opens a wide path for this.

PERCEPTION OF THE WORKS OF ABAI KUNANBAYEV IN FOREIGN EASTERN COUNTRIES

The creative writings of Abai Kunanbayev occupies an important place in the history of Kazakhliterature’s international relations formation and development. In the article, based on the example of thecreativity of the great Kazakh poet Abai Kunanbayev, literary ties of Kazakhstan with such foreign easterncountries as Iran, Pakistan, Turkey, Mongolia, China, India have been analyzed. The process of translating hisworks into Oriental languages is presented. Abai’s poetry collections have been published in Urdu, Persian,Turkish and Mongolian. The prose work “Words of Edification” has been translated into Chinese and Korean.Thanks to these translations, Abai’s creative heritage became available to a wide range of Eastern readers,scientists and literary critics, who evaluated Abai’s creativity in newspapers, journals and introductory articlesto the published books. Important aspects of foreign literary reception include speeches by foreign participantsin the international conferences. The article discusses the reports of the researchers from foreign easterncountries. Most Eastern poets and writers, literary critics and literary historians have made comparisons of theirown literary traditions with the poets. Eastern literary figures, showing respect for the spiritual national leaders,unconditionally raised Abai to the rank of the Teachers of the East. The relevance of the research topic is dueto the fact that the perception of Abai’s creative writings by Eastern literary critics, who recognize the specialrole and place of the Kazakh poet in the life of their people, contributes to the international popularization ofKazakh literature.

Cloudscapes over the Baltic Sea–Cloud Motifs in Finnish, Swedish, German, Russian, Polish, Lithuanian, and Latvian Symbolic Landscape Painting around 1900

The cloud motif, a significant one in the landscape painting of the 1890s and early 1900s, has been usually marginalized by scholars despite the fact that during this (Symbolist) period clouds became independent subjects of landscape painting in many European countries, especially in the Baltic Sea Region. Cloud imagery makes a robust appearance in Scandinavian, Russian, Polish, Lithuanian, and Latvian art during the decades around 1900. The variety of symbolic meanings and possible interpretations of cloudscapes was impacted by cultural and literary associations that emerged with European Symbolism. There is a surprising resemblance of cloudscapes executed within the Baltic Sea Region, an examination of which reveals the complexity of artistic influence and the presence and wandering of motifs among artists.

Znachenie knigi L.E. Cherkasskogo «Syuj Chzhimo: polety vo sne i nayavu» v kontekste ee vospriyatiya v Kitae

The interaction of cultures has been developingfor many years, and the outstanding sinologist Leonid Evseevich Cherkassky made his contribution to the familiarization and acceptance of Chinese culture by Russians. He presented to the Russian reader the works of a wide range of Chinese writers, from the Middle Ages to the 20th century. Many pages of his scientific and literary work are unknown, and new information should be open to the public. The author of the article, from the standpoint of historical objectivity, turns to the study of the translation of the last book of L. Cherkassky published in China, which in itself is a confirmation of his merits. The author reaffirms the conclusion about the indisputable significance of Cherkassky's work for strengthening Russian-Chinese literary ties and his notable contribution to the rethinking of Chinese culture by Russians.

Literary and Publishing Activities of Poetic Groups of the Russian Far Eastern First-Wave Émigré

The material laid down in the basis of the article is drawn on various bibliographic sources and library collections (Russian State Library, Russian National Library, Research Library of Tomsk State University). The object of the article is for the first time to present and systematize the main body of literary and fiction texts of the 1920s–1940s in the context of publishing activity of literary groups and associations of the Russian Far Eastern First-Wave émigré. The poetic activity of this period initially realized itself through groups, following the Silver Age traditions, and creative persons brought together, as fate willed it, in the situation of “Russian scattering.” In this aspect, the literary group is considered as a sociocultural form due to the methodology of Yu. N. Tynyanov, B. M. Eikhenbaum and A. I. Reitblat. Such tendencies were most apparent in the second period of the literary process formation among the Russian Far Eastern émigré in Harbin, where “Young Churaevka” literary association (1926–1935) had a very well-thoughtout program and concept. In addition to regular general gatherings and discussions among like-minded people, the typology of the literary group includes public speaking and promotion of joint undertakings in the press. As a rule, the activity of any literary group or association is directly connected with some publishing body, so the defining genre of such creativity is a literary collection – the most flexible type of literary publication with all kinds and genres of fiction. All this outlines the perspective for systematization of collections of that type and revealing their common typology with the determining role of socio-cultural environment.

Did the Septuagint’s Account of the Life of Abraham in Gen 12–25 Serve as a Model for the Description of Mattathias’ Achievements in 1 Macc 2:1–70?

By recording Mattathias’ final eulogy (1 Macc 2:49–68), the author of 1 Maccabees presented the main character as encouraging his sons to imitate faithfully their ancestors (2:51). The fighting insurgents were to take this example for their behaviour in specific, difficult life situations. In this way, the successively mentioned fathers were to become both models and support in the struggle for the religious and political freedom of the Jews in the Seleucid period. It is very likely that the main character himself – the patriarch of the Maccabean family – was described as a faithful follower of Abraham, the first patriarch of all Israel. The article shows possible connections between these two figures on the basis of situational and literary associations, to answer the question whether this could have been the hagiographer’s intended intention or it is just an accidental similarity. Intertextual exegesis seems to be most suitable tool for studying this problem.

Laṭxāna (1950–1954), an Intellectual Commune in Quetta (Baluchistan)

Abstract This paper retraces the history, activities, and contribution of an intellectual commune active in Quetta, Pakistan between 1950 and 1954: the ‘Laṭxāna commune’. Laṭxāna (Psht. ‘House of idleness’) is the name of a place in which Baluch, Pashtun, Urdu-speaking and Sindhi intellectuals settled in 1950. Laṭxāna’s intellectuals were in close contact with the Communist Party of Pakistan and its cultural branch, the Progressive Writers’ Association, and attempted to spread socialist or communist thought in Baluchistan. Following an agenda outlined by communist and progressive writers, they set out to develop literature in the languages of Baluchistan, launching a Baluchi literary association and a Pashto-language journal and publishing the first collections of modern Baluchi poetry. Laṭxāna’s members also promoted their outlook through journalism, and edited journals, such as Xāwar, Nawā-e waṭan and Ciltan. In 1954, the Laṭxāna intellectuals—who had so far been simple representatives of the Communists or Progressives in Baluchistan—started their own political movement. They created a political party and published a manifesto, which called for a socialist Baluchistan free from the influence of landowners and feudal leaders. Alongside ideological disagreements, the arrest of some of the commune’s prominent members finally led to the closure of Laṭxāna, but the group nevertheless had a long-lasting influence on Baluchistan’s political and intellectual landscape. In this paper, I shall discuss the commune’s literary, journalistic, and political contributions, notably through the accounts of its founding fathers, Mir Abdullah Jamaldini and Sain Kamal Khan Sherani.

PORTRAIT OF A RAPW PARTICIPANT: THE EXPERIENCE OF STUDYING QUESTIONNAIRES FILLED OUT BY MEMBERS OF ASSOCIATIONS OF PROLETARIAN WRITERS

Within the framework of the writer associations’ archives digitization project ‘Transcript’: Politics and Literature. The Digital Archive of Literary Organizations of the 1920s-1930s a significant array of questionnaires of proletarian writers was studied. The source is stored in the Department of Manuscripts of A.M. Gorky Institute of World Literature of the Russian Academy of Sciences. At the moment, the project executors have digitized the questionnaires filled out by members of the Moscow Association of Proletarian Writers (MAPW), All-Russian Association of Proletarian Writers (RAPW), All-Soviet Association of Proletarian Writers (SAPW), Russian Association of Proletarian Writers (RAPW) and presented on the project’s website. The documents from RAPW fund were allocated separately. We have found information about the delegates of the First Congress of Proletarian Writers, held from April 28 to May 8, 1928 in Moscow. While analyzing the questionnaires, valuable information about the biographies and works of writers whose names were not included in encyclopedias and reference books was obtained. In terms of the sociology of the literary process the answers given by the respondents indicate important characteristics of those who had to build the culture of the socialism country. These questionnaires form the Big Data, representing the ‘average’ biography of the proletarian writer, the main actor of the literary process of 1920-1930. The generalized characteristic brings out specific features of the mass literature phenomenon in the context of the Soviet project, which was implemented by the proletarian literary associations. The statistical data open up prospects for further research of literary processes of this period in the anthropology field. The analyzing of the sources stored in the funds of proletarian writers’ associations will allow not only to see the actor of the literary process, but also to get closer to understanding the mass writer and mass literature of the Soviet era phenomenon.

Do not blame the “bad” weather: Stimulating its poetic aesthetics in nature-based tourism destinations

The negative effects of on-site bad weather are generally recognized. However, the experiences of tourists engaging with bad weather are extremely complex and far from being a generalization of negative outcomes, especially as the positive aesthetic value of bad weather begins to gain attention. From an aesthetic perspective, taking complex ensembles of interacting natural elements including weather as aesthetic objects, this study constructs a robust theoretical framework to analyze these complex bad weather experiences. Through a mixed methods research design, this study identifies one of the possible negative impact mechanisms whereby bad weather can negatively affect perceived aesthetic quality, further negatively impact aesthetic emotion, and ultimately reduce tourist loyalty. Literary association and aesthetic sensitivity are revealed as boundary conditions that inhibit the negative effects of bad weather on aesthetic quality. Building on these findings, this study further advances our knowledge of the interplay of weather experiences and natural aesthetics.

Effacing the Poet: Mary Sidney Herbert Translates Petrarch’s Triumphi

ABSTRACT Mary Sidney Herbert’s translation of the third canto of Petrarch’s Triumphi has been frequently acknowledged as one of the most accurate translations of that text into English. The Countess of Pembroke not only preserves the terza rima rhyme scheme throughout but also meticulously follows the original poem in every terzina, and the two texts—the source and translation—correspond almost line by line. However, a key component of Petrarch’s text is repeatedly altered in her version: Pembroke effaces many important mentions of the narrator’s poetic vocation, presenting instead a narrator who ostensibly lacks obvious literary associations and pursuits. Following previous studies that argue that Pembroke’s writings have been shaped by the endeavour to honour her famed brother’s death and his literary legacy, through which she was also able to implicitly lay her own claim for poetic authority, this essay argues that her translation—and crucially, the changes between the source text and its English rendition—is another example of how Pembroke was able to simultaneously eschew the known tropes of poetic mastery that were associated with Petrarch and Philip Sidney, yet still assert her independent poetic voice and position.

«Мы – содружество, мы – общество, но мы не школа…»: к столетию объединения «Серапионовы братья»

This article reviews the materials of a multi-author monograph dedicated to the 100th anniversary of the literary association “Serapion brothers”. This project has united researchers from Saratov, Moscow, St Petersburg, considered to be renowned experts in the history of Russian literature of the 1920–1930s. The research is based on the unique documents from the Serapion brothers’ legacy being introduced into the scientific circulation (K. Fedin, Vs. Ivanov, N. Tikhonov, V. Kaverin, I. Gruzdev). The documents are kept in the funds of the Russian State Archive of Literature and Art, Gorky Institute of World Literature of the Russian Academy of Sciences (Moscow), Literary Museum of the Institute of Russian Literature of the Russian Academy of Sciences (The Pushkin House), National Library of Russia (Saint Petersburg), State Museum of K. A. Fedin (Saratov). Their interpretation allows to fill the factual gaps in the history of the association and in the biographies of its members, to define the system of creative and interpersonal relationships between them more precisely. The monograph’s intention is unified by the material itself, by the general methodological principles of working with archive materials, by the presence of several recurrent plots, appearing in different articles. Among them there is a plot, rather appropriate for the anniversary edition, about different anniversaries of Serapion brothers, discussions of Eurasianism, of the nature of genre, of the “red Pinkerton”. The issues of censorship and self-censorship, questions of text studies and principles of ego-documents’ publication hold a prominent place on the pages of the monograph. These questions are not only theoretical, they have a rather practical significance in preparing the full texts of K. A. Fedin’s diaries for publication, on which the creative team is working. The monograph itself manifests the implementation of the proclaimed principles, as it is supplemented by wide-ranging reference materials, which offer great opportunities of further research of the literary phenomenon of Serapion brothers.

«Роза и крест» Александра Блока и «Мельмот-скиталец» Чарльза Роберта Метьюрина

This article deals with Alexander Blok’s symbolist drama “The Rose and the Cross” (1913), the main idea of which is the tragedy of love and death. There is no doubt that this play reflected the writer’s own experiences, national literary associations connected with the fate of poets of the 19th century (for example, Vasily Zhukovsky, or Apollon Grigoryev), and Western European literary reminiscences: storylines, themes, and motifs of the Old Provençal courtly “Romance of Flamenca,” 12th-century Codex Campostellanus, “The Book of Sir Launcelot and Queen Guinevere,” etc. As is known, Blok was engaged in a thorough study of early medieval literary texts and reading special literature about this historical period to create his play. The major sources of “The Rose and the Cross” were once analyzed by Viktor Zhirmunsky, but the key idea of Blok’s drama (love and sorrow often go together, or love is impossible without suffering) is most clearly, vividly and consistently carried out in the book, which was never mentioned either in the poet’s works, or any preparatory materials for the play. It is the famous English Gothic novel by Charles Robert Maturin “Melmoth the Wanderer” (1820), where, as we assume, motifs similar to Blok’s dramatic work can be found in the nested story “Tale of the Indians,” which influenced, to some extent, his text: thus, only the knight Bertrand, like the beautiful Immalee (Isidora), whose love for Melmoth is happiness, but it is also inseparable from grief and sorrow, is destined to understand the mysterious words of the poet Gaetan and combine joy, suffering and death at the cost of his life.

История создания и деятельности Новгородской ассоциации пролетарских писателей: вопросы и ответы

The history of the creation and activity of the Novgorod Association of Proletarian Writers (NAPW) is presented. Various sources were taken as the basis for characterizing the activities of the NAPW: firstly, documents from the State Archives of Novgorod Region and secondly, the journal “Litye”, published from 1927 to 1930 as an organ of the NAPW. For the first time, information about 15 active members of the NAPW, noted for their publications in Novgorod periodicals, is given. Some research questions remain unanswered and need to be worked out using the funds of other archives. Attention is drawn to the lack of documents that would confirm the legal status and membership of the participants of this literary association from the very beginning of its existence. At this time, no documents on the reorganization or infusion of NAPW into LAPW after 1927 in connection with the entry of the Novgorod province into the Leningrad region have been found. Related to this is the problem of determining the time frame for the existence of NAPW.

A Tribute to Joseph Conrad and Aleksandr Grin in Anastasia Tsvetaeva’s Poem “Twins”

Anastasia Tsvetayeva was a Russian writer, poet and memoirist. She started to write earlier than her younger sister Marina Tsvetayeva. Although Anastasia Tsvetaeva published several stories in the 1910s, she was not a representative of any leading literary association or group. She worked as a teacher of English, and a librarian in the Moscow Museum of Fine Arts. She also translated literary and philosophical works from French, English and German. Living in Moscow, Tsvetaeva was not fundamentally involved in politics, giving time and energy to creative work. However, the religious nature of her works made her unreliable in the eyes of the official authorities. She was arrested twice. During the second arrest in 1937, all her writings were confiscated and destroyed by NKVD. On the far-fetched charge Tsvetaeva was sent to Siberia. While in the camp, at the age of forty-one, Tsvetaeva started writing poems, first in English, and then in Russian. Her only book of poetry Moi edinstvenny sbornik (My Only Collection) was published posthumously in 1995. Tsvetaeva wrote about twelve poems in English. Seven of them – “Maturity,” “Twins,” “My Fate,” “A Dream,” “To Raya,” “A portrait attempt” and “To Thomas Caryle” – are included in her collection of poems. Tsvetaeva’s four-page poem “Twins,” which was also translated by the author into Russian, praises Joseph Conrad’s novella Typhoon (1902) and Aleksandr Grin’s adventure novel Scarlet Sails (Алые паруса 1923). Except the fact that both writers had Polish ancestors, they were fascinated by the beauty and mightiness of the ocean. Life at sea, perceived as the embodiment of freedom, is something both Conrad and Grin longed for. The sea also occupies a central place in Typhoon and Scarlet Sails. The characters in both stories also struggle with adversities of fate and water – one of the most powerful elements of nature.

Victorian Women Writers and the Other Germany: Cross-Cultural Freedoms and Female Opportunity

Victorian Women Writers and the Other Germany: Cross-Cultural Freedoms and Female Opportunity

Літературні угруповання українських романтиків та значення їхніх ідеологем

This article examines the forms of spiritual consolidation and the real number of literary associations of Ukrainian romantics. The peculiarities of the manifestation plan of each school of romanticism in Ukraine are emphasized, the leading personalities of each school are named. Attention is focused on ordering the sequence of expression of slogans and ideas and their importance for the preservation of national values in difficult times for the ethnic group. It has been emphasized that Hryhoriy Skovoroda’s cordocentrism saved the nation from assimilation during the destruction of Zaporozhian Sich, as well as during the persecution of the Cyril-Methodius brotherhood. The “heart” in Ukrainian romanticism became a symbol of piety, a key to true art, a symbol of eternal love, political independence of a Ukrainian, and even a guarantee of family well-being. All literary schools of Ukrainian romanticism develop the symbolism of the “heart” and aesthetic cordocentrism, creating a specific typological sign of the unity of the entire artistic field of Ukrainian romanticism. The number of groups in the era of romanticism in Ukraine was greater than in various national apartments of Western romanticism, due to the acute need for self-preservation and resistance to genocide and ethnocide at that time.

Creation of Literary Associations of Writers of Chuvashia in the 1920s-1930s.

The article examines the process of the origin and development of literary associations of writers of Chuvashia in the period of the 1920s-1930s. The object of research is the literary associations of writers of Chuvashia in the period under consideration. The subject of the study is the formation of creative literary associations of Chuvash writers in the 1920s-1930s. The theoretical and methodological basis of the study was made up of comparative historical, logical methods, as well as a chronological approach. Their application made it possible to reveal the literary and unifying processes in the development and in the context of phenomena occurring both in the whole country and in individual regions. The purpose of the article is to identify the features of the origin and development of literary associations of Chuvash writers as an emerging whole, including some structural elements. In modern Russia, in conditions of spiritual crisis, when interest in the literary works of national writers is declining, it is necessary to use the experience accumulated in the 1920s and 1930s. Over two decades, a galaxy of professional writers has formed in Chuvashia, largely due to the cultural and educational activities of literary associations. The scientific novelty lies in the identification of the specifics and conditions for the creation of literary associations in Chuvashia. Thus, we come to the conclusion that the peculiarities of the origin and development of literary associations of Chuvash writers acted as a becoming whole, which includes moments and stages of formation: 1) groups of Chuvash writers, 2) Chuvash journalism, 3) Chuvash literature with a variety of literary genres.