The plot of O.E. Mandelstam's poem "For the explosive valor of the coming centuries...", written in the thirties of the twentieth century, has an autobiographical basis. Like many other cultural and artistic figures, the author of these lines fell into the millstone of Stalinist repression.
Hardly experiencing the suffocating social atmosphere of that time, O.E. Mandelstam showed an example of civil courage, continuing to write what he could not remain silent about.
The personality of the lyrical hero in this work is unique. The main thing for her is to maintain self-respect, not to become like the bestial essence of wolves, contrary to the laws of a cruel era.
In the first stanza, O.E. Mandelstam emphasizes the high price that in Stalin’s time was paid for the right to remain true to one’s position in life:
I lost even the cup at the feast of my fathers,
And fun, and your honor.
The last loss, placed at the end of the enumeration series, turns out to be undoubtedly the most important and irreparable for O.E. Mandelstam. Only the man himself, falling into the category of so-called “enemies of the people,” understood that he was innocent of anything and hoped that the authorities would sort it out and let him go. Many of his acquaintances sincerely believed in the truth of false, sometimes absurd accusations, and turned away. For the prisoners of Stalin's camps, this was perhaps one of the most difficult mental tests.
Thoughts about personal fate in the soul of the lyrical hero are inextricably linked with thoughts about the historical content of the era as a whole. The poet N. Glazkov wrote:
The twentieth century is an extraordinary century:
The better a century is for a historian,
That makes it even sadder for a contemporary.
The same idea is also expressed by O. Mandelstam, but it is expressed in a more figurative form:
Vek-wolfhound rushes onto my shoulders.
The lyrical hero laments that he “lost even the cup at the feast of his fathers.” This image of the cup of the fathers in the poem is extremely interesting. As is known, the cup was passed around in a circle at a feast in ancient times. She served as a symbol of life and fertility.
In the contemporary era of O. Mandelstam, the continuity of generations was disrupted. The best that had been accumulated over centuries and passed on was destroyed. It was a harsh time of the collapse of ideals and revaluation of values. Based on this, it becomes clear why the lyrical hero dreams of “a hot fur coat of the Siberian steppes. He is not afraid of the harsh climate of Siberia. He is a simple, peaceful person who needs, above all, peace of mind:
So as not to see a coward or a flimsy filth,
No bloody blood in the wheel,
So that the blue foxes shine all night
To me in its primeval glory.
The region “where the Yenisei flows” is idealized and depicted in the lightest and purest colors. O.E. Mandelstam emphasizes that this beauty is primitive, that is, given to man as a kind of immaculate value. It is concrete and visible, in contrast to the very abstract image of the “explosive valor of the coming centuries,” which may not come, and if it does, it will be in the lives of other generations.
The image of the “wolfhound century” looks voluminous and memorable in the poem. The bloody beginning of the twentieth century throughout the world, and especially in Russia, outraged the minds of humanist writers. The best years of an entire generation were poisoned by the ruthless carnage of the civil war. Social strife has embittered people. Many have undergone a reassessment of values. The landmarks that have been established for centuries have shifted. In the thirties, civil confrontation took other, more sophisticated forms, but its essence continued to be preserved: repression, denunciations, persecution of intelligentsia of noble origin.
O.E. Mandelstam's poem "For the explosive valor of the coming centuries..." is an indictment for many of the poet's contemporaries. He accuses some of the cruelty of tyranny, others of cowardice. Moreover, both of these roles seem unattractive to O.E. Mandelstam, unworthy of a real person, therefore Siberian exile is perceived as the only possible and even to some extent happy way out for a person who wants to preserve spiritual purity, his own dignity, and finally, the integrity of his personality and the inviolability of ideals.
O. E. Mandelstam’s poem “For the explosive valor of the coming centuries” is an autobiographical work of the poet, which expressed his experiences. It was written in the 30s of the XX century. You are offered a brief analysis of “For the explosive valor of the coming centuries” according to plan. This analysis can be used when studying a poem in a literature lesson in 11th grade.
Brief Analysis
History of creation- the poem was written in the 30s of the twentieth century, the period of Stalin’s reign, a severe economic crisis and the beginning of repression.
Subject- a poem about the plight of a poet who is ready to exchange everything for the vastness of a distant land, just not to observe the events happening around him.
Composition– circular, the poem consists of an introduction and three quatrains, which seem to close, starting and ending with the same lines.
Genre- lyrical.
Poetic size- the poem consists of four stanzas (quatrains), written in anapest, exact rhyme, masculine, cross rhyme.
Metaphors- "For the explosive valor of the coming centuries", “...the wolfhound Vek throws himself on his shoulders”, “The blue foxes shone all night”.
Metonymy-"The hot fur coat of the Siberian steppes."
Hyperbola – “And the pine tree reaches the star”.
History of creation
The years of Osip Mandelstam's life fell on difficult, turning-point times for Russia. He witnessed the death of the Russian Empire and the birth of a new Soviet state. He, like many other poets and writers, could not come to terms with these changes. Stalin's repressions, strict censorship - all this constrained him and did not allow him to express himself. During this period, in the 30s of the twentieth century, Mandelstam wrote the poem “For the explosive valor of the coming centuries,” in which his desire to free himself is manifested. The new time for him is the “wolfhound age,” and the poet sees salvation from it in distant Siberia, “where the Yenisei flows and the pine tree reaches the star.”
Subject
The theme of the poem is closely related to the history of its writing. The poet cannot bear the policies of a state that displeases him. The authorities seek to suppress manifestations of freedom and freedom of speech. The atmosphere of denunciations that reigned in society at that time, the harsh reprisals against those who are not afraid to speak the truth - Mandelstam takes all this seriously. Maybe someday people will really have a bright future, for which he “lost the cup at the feast of his fathers, and his fun, and his honor,” but now he dreams of finding himself far away, “So as not to see a coward, or a flimsy filth, or bloody blood in the wheel."
Composition
The poem can be roughly divided into two parts. The first indicates the reason that explains the experiences of the lyrical hero. He lost what was valuable to him: “I lost the cup at the feast of my fathers, and the fun, and my honor.” The second part consists of three quatrains closed in a ring. The poet begins and ends these lines by calling the new century a “wolfhound” and saying: “... I am not a wolf by blood,” as if once again emphasizing that he does not belong to the time in which he lives, and does not want to come to terms with new values.
Genre
The verse belongs to the lyrical genre. It consists of four quatrains using trisyllabic feet with stress on the third syllable (anapaest). The author uses rhyme: exact (muds - arctic foxes, wheel - beauty), masculine - in all the last words of the lines the emphasis falls on the last syllable (centuries, people, fathers, own). ABAB cross rhyme is used.
Means of expression
Mandelstam uses a lot metaphors: “For the explosive valor of the coming centuries”, “...the age-wolfhound throws itself on the shoulders”, “the blue foxes shone all night”.
In addition, the following means of expression are used: metonymy(“The hot fur coat of the Siberian steppes”), hyperbola(“And the pine tree reaches the star”).
Poem test
Rating analysis
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At the time of the October Revolution, he was already a fully accomplished poet, a highly valued master. His relationship with the Soviet government was contradictory. He liked the idea of creating a new state. He expected the degeneration of society, of human nature. If you carefully read the memoirs of Mandelstam's wife, you can understand that the poet was personally acquainted with many statesmen - Bukharin, Yezhov, Dzerzhinsky. Stalin’s resolution in the criminal case of Osip Emilievich is also noteworthy: “Isolate, but preserve.” However, some poems are imbued with rejection of the Bolshevik methods and hatred of them. Just Remember (1933). Because of this open ridicule of the “father of the people” and his associates, the poet was first arrested and then sent into exile.
(1931-35) - a poem somewhat similar in meaning to the above. The key motive is the tragic fate of the poet living in a terrible era. Mandelstam calls it “the wolfhound century.” A similar naming was found earlier in the poem “Century” (1922): . The lyrical hero of the poem “For the explosive valor of the coming centuries...” contrasts himself with the surrounding reality. He does not want to see its terrible manifestations: "cowards", "flimsy dirt", "bloody bones in the wheel". A possible way out is an escape from reality. For the lyrical hero, salvation lies in Siberian nature, so the request arises: “Take me into the night where the Yenisei flows”.
An important idea is repeated twice in the poem: “...I am not a wolf by blood”. This dissociation is fundamental for Mandelstam. The years when the poem was written were extremely difficult times for Soviet residents. The party demanded complete submission. Some people were faced with a choice: either life or honor. Someone became a wolf, a traitor, someone refused to cooperate with the system. The lyrical hero clearly considers himself to be in the second category of people.
There is another important motive - the connection of times. The metaphor comes from Hamlet. In Shakespeare's tragedy there are lines about a broken chain of times (in alternative translations - a dislocated or loosened eyelid, a torn connecting thread of days). Mandelstam believes that the events of 1917 destroyed Russia's connection with the past. In the already mentioned poem “Century,” the lyrical hero is ready to sacrifice himself in order to restore broken ties. In the work “For the explosive valor of the coming centuries...” one can see the intention to accept suffering for the sake of the “high tribe of people” who are destined to live in the future.
The confrontation between the poet and the authorities, as often happens, ended in victory for the latter. In 1938, Mandelstam was arrested again. Osip Emilievich was sent to the Far East, and the sentence was not too harsh for those times - five years in a concentration camp for counter-revolutionary activities. On December 27, he died of typhus while in the Vladperpunkt transit camp (the territory of modern Vladivostok). The poet was not buried until the spring, like other deceased prisoners. He was then buried in a mass grave, the location of which remains unknown to this day.
In his work, Mandelstam relies on the rich traditions of world culture, including in his works the ideas and images of artists from different eras and different peoples, events of centuries-old history and imperishable art. This was a common feature of Silver Age poetry. But Mandelstam’s approach to cultural and historical heritage differs from many of his contemporaries. Mandelstam’s cultural and historical realities are very close to modern times and are part of today’s life.
One of his favorite topics is political. Ever since the revolution, when Mandelstam was already an established poet, he was worried about what was happening around him. The poet is ready to voluntarily join the efforts of those who are trying to move humanity in a new, unknown direction: “Well, let’s try a huge, clumsy, creaky turn of the steering wheel...” But he knows that the “twilight of freedom” has come and “we will remember and in the Lethean cold, that the earth cost us ten heavens! In this ode there is a clear readiness to accept the revolution, with full awareness of the size of the payment.
Mandelstam did not want and could not be a passive, impersonal victim, an “unknown soldier” of the wheel of history - and entered into an unprecedented duel with his time. Mandelstam's poetry in the early 30s became poetry of challenge. This is how the work “For the explosive valor of the coming centuries...” (1931-35) appeared.
The poem is written in multi-foot anapest, this was supposed to make the tone and rhythm of the poem soft and smooth. But the cross masculine rhyme, as well as the absence of pyrrhic rhymes, gives the entire work a rigid, stable rhythm that corresponds to the ideological content.
The poet writes about the lot of a noble man, that he is surrounded only by “cowards”, “flimsy filth”. It is enough to remember at what time the poem was written, and everything will become clear. This is a time of radical purges among the Russian people, a time of collectivization, a time when a person had to meekly submit to the party, otherwise - a “black hole.” Everything happened under the slogan “Everything for communism!”, but under this slogan not only bright ideas were hidden, but also dirt, meanness, cruelty and stupidity. The poet writes in the first quatrain:
For the explosive valor of the coming centuries,
For the high tribe of people
I lost even the cup at the feast of my fathers,
And fun, and your honor.
Yes, that time was depriving of honor, since in order to survive, it was necessary to “sincerely” support the policy, otherwise, again, it would be a “black funnel.” The choice was between life and honor. The poet expresses the cruelty of this choice in the epithet “wolfhound age”:
The wolfhound century rushes onto my shoulders,
But I am not a wolf by blood.
The poet does not want to make a choice, because he understands how stupid and absurd it is. Meanness cannot be supported with your life. Therefore, the lyrical hero decides to leave this society. He agrees to the link:
You better stuff me like a hat into your sleeve
Hot fur coats of the Siberian steppes.
The nature of the Russian land, far from civilization, and most importantly, far from the directives of the party, seems to the poet to be a paradise.
To describe the happiness of freedom and the real horror that surrounds the lyrical hero, the author uses the technique of antithesis. In the third quatrain, the first two lines describe the surrounding reality, the second - the unattainable paradise, the nature of Siberia:
So as not to see a coward or a flimsy filth,
No bloody blood in the wheel,
So that the blue foxes shine all night
To me in its primeval beauty...
The antithesis is strengthened by the contrast of colors: red (“bloody blood”) and blue (“blue foxes”). Siberia is generally described by the poet in an associative blue palette: “Yenisei”, “to the star” (sky):
Take me into the night where the Yenisei flows
And the pine tree reaches the star...
The last two lines of the poem are, as it were, the quintessence of the entire work. In them, the lyrical hero not only once again emphasizes his non-belonging to the “wolves” (in prison slang this means “traitors”), but also points out that his “killers” cannot reach him. That is, do not break the hero’s spirit, do not force him to become a “wolf,” do not force him to betray:
Because I am not a wolf by blood,
And only my equal will kill me.
In his work, Mandelstam relies on the rich traditions of world culture, including in his works the ideas and images of artists from different eras and different peoples, events of centuries-old history and imperishable art. This was a common feature of Silver Age poetry. But Mandelstam’s approach to cultural and historical heritage differs from many of his contemporaries. Mandelstam’s cultural and historical realities are very close to modern times and are part of today’s life.
One of his favorite topics is political. Ever since the revolution, when Mandelstam was already an established poet, he was worried about what was happening around him. The poet is ready to voluntarily join the efforts of those who are trying to move humanity in a new, unknown direction: “Well, let’s try a huge, clumsy, creaky turn of the steering wheel...” But he knows that the “twilight of freedom” has come and “we will remember and in the Lethean cold, that the earth cost us ten heavens! In this ode there is a clear readiness to accept the revolution, with full awareness of the size of the payment.
Mandelstam did not want and could not be a passive, impersonal victim, an “unknown soldier” of the wheel of history - and entered into an unprecedented duel with his time. Mandelstam's poetry in the early 30s became poetry of challenge. This is how the work “For the explosive valor of the coming centuries...” (1931-35) appeared.
The poem is written in multi-foot anapest, this was supposed to make the tone and rhythm of the poem soft and smooth. But the cross masculine rhyme, as well as the absence of pyrrhic rhymes, gives the entire work a rigid, stable rhythm that corresponds to the ideological content.
The poet writes about the lot of a noble man, that he is surrounded only by “cowards”, “flimsy filth”. It is enough to remember at what time the poem was written, and everything will become clear. This is a time of radical purges among the Russian people, a time of collectivization, a time when a person had to meekly submit to the party, otherwise - a “black hole.” Everything happened under the slogan “Everything for communism!”, but under this slogan not only bright ideas were hidden, but also dirt, meanness, cruelty and stupidity. The poet writes in the first quatrain:
For the explosive valor of the coming centuries,
For the high tribe of people
I lost even the cup at the feast of my fathers,
And fun, and your honor.
Yes, that time was depriving of honor, since in order to survive, it was necessary to “sincerely” support the policy, otherwise, again, it would be a “black funnel.” The choice was between life and honor. The poet expresses the cruelty of this choice in the epithet “wolfhound age”:
The wolfhound century rushes onto my shoulders,
But I am not a wolf by blood.
The poet does not want to make a choice, because he understands how stupid and absurd it is. Meanness cannot be supported with your life. Therefore, the lyrical hero decides to leave this society. He agrees to the link:
You better stuff me like a hat into your sleeve
Hot fur coats of the Siberian steppes.
The nature of the Russian land, far from civilization, and most importantly, far from the directives of the party, seems to the poet to be a paradise.
To describe the happiness of freedom and the real horror that surrounds the lyrical hero, the author uses the technique of antithesis. In the third quatrain, the first two lines describe the surrounding reality, the second - the unattainable paradise, the nature of Siberia:
So as not to see a coward or a flimsy filth,
No bloody blood in the wheel,
So that the blue foxes shine all night
To me in its primeval beauty...
The antithesis is strengthened by the contrast of colors: red (“bloody blood”) and blue (“blue foxes”). Siberia is generally described by the poet in an associative blue palette: “Yenisei”, “to the star” (sky):
Take me into the night where the Yenisei flows
And the pine tree reaches the star...
The last two lines of the poem are, as it were, the quintessence of the entire work. In them, the lyrical hero not only once again emphasizes his non-belonging to the “wolves” (in prison slang this means “traitors”), but also points out that his “killers” cannot reach him. That is, do not break the hero’s spirit, do not force him to become a “wolf,” do not force him to betray:
Because I am not a wolf by blood,
And only my equal will kill me.
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