Alexander Pushkin: Eugene Onegin

128 Pages·1992·0.96 MB·English

by  A. D. P. Briggs

Landmarks of world literature
Alexander Pushkin
EUGENE ONEGIN
Landmarks of world literature
General Editor: J. P. Stern
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ALEXANDER PUSHKIN
EugenOen egin
A. D. P. BRIGGS
Professor of Russian Language and Literature,
University of Birmingham
� CAMBRIDGE
�
UNIVERSITY PRESS
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Published in the United States of America by Cambridge University Press, New York
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©Cambridge University Press 1992
This publication is in copyright. Subject to statutory exception
and to the provisions ofrelevant collective licensing agreements,
no reproduction of any part may take place without the written
permission of Cambridge University Press.
First published 1992
This digitally printed version 2008
A catalogue record for this publication is available from the British Library
Library of Congress Cataloguing in Publication data
Briggs, A.D.P.
Alexander Pushkin, Eugene Onegin I A.D.P. Briggs.
p. cm. -(Landmarks of world literature)
Includes bibliographical references.
ISBN 0 521 38472 9 (hardback) ISBN 0 521 38618 7 (paperback)
l. Pushkin, Aleksandr Sergeevich, 1799-183 7. Ev genii Onegin.
I. Title. II. Series.
PG3343.E83B75 1992
891.71 '3 -dc20 91-43489 CIP
ISBN 978-0-521-38472-8 hardback
ISBN 978-0-521-38618-0 paperback
Contents
Preface page vii
Note on translations and references viii
Chronology ix
The poetry of Eugene Onegin
Introduction 1
The Russian language 2
Problems of translation 4
The Onegin stanza 8
A close look at two stanzas 15
2 Shades of unreality 28
The story 29
The presence of Pushkin 30
Inherited perceptions of Eugene Onegin 35
Morning into midnight 38
3 The unreal reputations of Eugene Onegin and
Tatyana Larina 48
Eugene Onegin 48
Guilty or not guilty? 48
Imaginary superiority 50
The Byronic background 51
In and out of character 53
Tatyana Larina 60
The two Tatyanas and two Eugenes 60
The two rejection scenes 63
The earlier Tatyana 71
4 Olga, Lensky and the duel 80
The younger sister 80
v
vi Contents
Vladimir Lensky 81
The duel 87
Why did he do it? 94
S It is in verse, but is it a novel? 99
'The careless fruit of my amusements' 100
An educated pen 101
In search of the serious content 103
Privacy of conscience and moral awareness 103
History and fate 104
The possibility and closeness of happiness 1 OS
Dealing with death 108
Knowledge of human nature 110
Eugene Onegin as a landmark 111
Guide to English translations and further reading 114
Preface
The most important event in the story of Eugene Onegin
occurred at nine o'clock on the morning of 21 January 1821
when a boy of eighteen was shot dead in a duel. His victorious
opponent was a mature man of twenty-five and an experienced
duellist. The circumstances of the duel had been manipulated
in the older man's favour. It was the offended party, Vladimir
Lensky, who died - not the offender, Eugene Onegin.
The facts are clear. Onegin not only caused the duel, un­
provoked, but carried it through ruthlessly, having been like a
cheat and a murderer. Why, then, has he been treated so lightly
by almost all the critics who have written about him? Why are
they so ready to explain his conduct in terms of external cir­
cumstances bearing upon him and diminishing his guilt? Why
do some people even forget that a duel took place, believing
that the unsuccessful relationship between Onegin and Tatyana
is all that matters in this story? This book addresses these
questions and, in view of the answers to them, attempts a
reappraisal of all the main events and characters.
Eugene Onegin is not just a novel; it is a novel written in
poetry of the highest quality. An explanation is given of the
'Onegin stanza', and two such stanzas are examined in detail.
Pushkin's role as a linguistic and literary innovator is also
described.
Finally, this novel is placed in its literary-historical context.
Drawing inspiration from writers as diverse as Sterne, Constant
and Byron, and standing also at the head of the great tradition
of nineteenth-century Russian realist fiction, Eugene Onegin
may be seen to have emerged from, and contributed to, the
mainstream of European culture. It is a true landmark in world
literature.
vii
Note on translations and references
In the first chapter, four complete stanzas of Eugene Onegin
have been given in Charles Johnston's verse translation in
order to give some idea to non-Russian speakers of the feel
and flow of an Onegin stanza. Subsequently literal translations
of passages under discussion have been supplied.
Extracts from the text are indicated by chapter and stanza
number, e.g. (one, XX). Numerous references have been made
to Vladimir Nabokov's literal translation and commentary;
these indicate volume and page, e.g. (vol. 3, p. 41).
viii
Chronology
Pushkinl'isfa en dw orks Relatleidt eraanrdyh istoreivceanlt s
1799 May 26: Aleksandr Sergeyevich Pushkin born Birth of Balzac
Moscow.
1800-11 Entrusted to nursemaids, French tutors and governesses,
Pushkin grew up without parental affection. A lazy
child, but an avid, precocious reader. Learned Russian
from household serfs and especially his nanny, Arina
Rodionovna.
1801 Murder of Tsar Paul. Accession of Alexander I.
Chateaubriand: Atala.
1802 Death of Radishchev, political radical, author of
A Journefyr omS tP etersbtuorM go scowB.ir th of
Hugo. Mme de Stael: DelphiCnhea.te aubriand: Rene.
1803 Death of Bogdanovich, poet, author of Dushe'nk a.
1804 Birth of George Sand. Death of Kant.
1805 Battles of Trafalgar and Austerlitz. Death of Schiller.
1807 Mme de Stael: Corinne.
1808 Scott: MarmionG.o ethe: FaustPa,r t One.
1809 Birth of Gogol. Krylov: first book of Fables.
1810 Birth of Musset. Mme de Stael: De l'Allemagne.
Pushkinl'isfa en dw orks Relatleidt eraanrdyh istoriecvaeln ts
1811 Zhukovsky: SvetlaAnuas.te n: Sensaen dS ensibility.
Byron: Chi/dHea roldP'isl grimaCganeto,s One and
Two. Birth of Belinsky, radical literary critic.
1811-17 Studied at the new lycee of Tsarskoye Selo, near St
Petersburg
1812 Napoleon's invasion of Russia. Battle of Borodino.
Seizure of Moscow, followed by Napoleon's retreat.
1813 Austen: Pridaen dP rejudiBcyreo.n: TheG iaour.
1814 Paris taken by Allied Forces. Birth of Lermontov.
Scott: Waverley.
1815 Battle of Waterloo. Holy Alliance initiated by
Alexander I.
1816 Deaths of the poet Derzhavin and playwright Ozerov.
Byron: TheP risonoef Crh i/IoCnol.er idge: Christabel.
Constant: AdolphGeo.e the: ItalienRisecishee.
1817 Byron: ManfredC.h i/de HarPoilldg'rsi mafignael ,
cantos.
1817-20 Occupied an undemanding government post in St
Petersburg. Dissipated life style. Tenuous connections
with revolutionary-minded young people. Some poems,
unpublishable because of their liberal sentiments,
circulated in manuscript form.
1818 Birth of Turgenev. Death of satirical journalist
Novikov. Byron: Beppo.