Foreword
Without feeling any need, nor the inclination to finish a poem, full of revolutionary presentiment, in the year, when the revolution has already taken place, I want to preface the outline of the final chapter of the story of, as the poem was born, what were its causes, Where did its rhythms.
It is interesting and useful to for themselves and for others to remember the story of his own work. In addition, we, happy or unhappy children of his age, You have to remember all your life; all the years of our dramatically painted for us, and - alas!! - you can not forget them, - they are painted too indelibly, so that each digit appears written in blood; we can not forget those numbers; they are written on our own faces.
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The poem "Retribution" has been conceived in 1910 year and its main features sketched in 1911 year. What were the years?
1910 year - is death Kommissarzhevskaya, Vrubel's death and the death of Tolstoy. With Kommissarzhevskaya died lyrical note on stage; Vrubel - a huge private world of the artist, insane persistence, insatiable quest - until insanity. With thick dead human tenderness - wise humanity.
Further, 1910 year - a crisis of symbolism, which then a lot of written and spoken, in camp Symbolists, and in the opposite. This year, clearly had an effect direction, which stood in a hostile attitude and to symbolism and to each other: akmeizm, egofuturizm and the first beginnings of futurism. The slogan of the first of these areas was a man - but some have other people, even without humanity, some "primordial Adam".
Winter 1911 the year was filled with a deep inner tension courageous and awe. I remember the night conversations, from which grew the first time the inseparability of consciousness and art nesliyannosti, Life and politics. Think, which, apparently, aroused strong external shocks, at the same time knocking at all the doors, not content with just putting together a merger, it was easy and it is possible in the true mystic twilight years, prior to the first revolution, as well as - in the untrue mystic hangover, which came after her.
That courageous wafting prevailed: nesliyannosti tragic consciousness and indivisibility of all - the irreconcilable contradictions and demanded reconciliation. Clearly it became audible voice northern hard Strindberg, which was a year of life. It was already noticeable smell of burning, iron and blood. In the spring 1911 PN year. Miliukov read an interesting lecture entitled "armed peace and reduction of armaments". In one of the Moscow newspapers appeared prophetic article: "The proximity of a big war". In Kiev, there was a murder of Andrei Yushchinsky, and the question of the use of Christian blood by Jews came. this summer, extremely hot, so that the grass is burned on the vine, in London there were tremendous strike of railway workers, in the Mediterranean Sea - played out a remarkable episode of "Panther - Agadir".
Inextricably linked with all this for me flourishing French struggle in St. Petersburg circuses; thousandth crowd showed exceptional interest in it; among wrestlers were true artists; I will never forget the ugly Russian heavyweight fight with Dutch, muscular system which is a most perfect instrument of rare beauty.
This is the year, finally, I was in a special fashion in our aviation; - we all remember the series of beautiful stitches, flying upside down, - fall and death of talented and talentless aviators.
Finally, autumn, in Kiev was murdered Stolypin, which marked the final transition of the country from the hands of management poludvoryanskih, poluchinovnichih in the hands of the police department.
All these facts, seemingly so different, for me to have a musical meaning. I was used to compare the facts from all areas of life, my vision available at this time, and sure, that they are always together create a single musical pressure.
I think, that the simplest expression of the rhythm of the time, when the world, was preparing for unprecedented events, so strenuously and systematically develop their physical, political and military muscle, It was pentameter. probably, therefore led me, It has long been persecuted by the world of whips pentameter, Give it to an elastic wave for a longer time.
Then I had to start building long poem called "Nemesis". Her plan seemed to me in the form of concentric circles, which became narrower and narrower, and the smallest circle, huddled up to the limit, He begins to live his own life again, bursting and push the environment and, in turn, act on the periphery. Such was life drawing, who I pictured - in mind and words I try to translate only now; then it is present mainly in the minds of the music and muscular; a muscular consciousness I say not in vain, because at that time all the traffic and the development of the poem is closely united to me with the development of the muscular system. At regular manual labor first developed muscles in her arms, the so-called - biceps, and then - gradually - thinner, more refined and more sparse network of muscles on the chest and on the back under the shoulder blades. Here is a rhythmic and gradual increase in muscle should form a rhythm of the poem. Related to this and its basic idea, and theme.
Subject is, as links in a single chain of sorts developed. Individual offspring to develop any kind of limit laid them and then re-absorbed by the surrounding world environment; but is maturing and is deposited in each offspring is something new and something more acute, at the cost of endless loss, personal tragedies, failures in life, downs, etc.; tsenoyu, finally, the loss of those properties of infinitely high, who once shone, as the best diamonds in the crown of the human (as, eg, properties humane, virtue, irreproachable honesty, high morals and so on.).
in short, World maelstrom sucked into its vortex of almost all human; the personality of almost not a trace remains, she herself, if there is still exist, it becomes unrecognizable, obezobrazhennoy, crippled. There was a man - and he was not a man, remained sluggish crappy flesh and smoldering dushonka. But the seed is cast, and growing a new next firstborn, more stubborn; and the last first-born is a new and persistent begins, finally, palpable effect on the environment; in this way, kind, experienced the retribution stories, environment, era, - starts to turn, do the wages; last firstborn already able to snap and publish a lion roar; he is ready to grab his little hand of a Human wheel, which moves the history of mankind. AND, may be, grab the same for him…
What's next? I do not know, and I never knew; I can only say, that this whole concept originated under the pressure of ever-increasing hatred in me to various theories of progress.
Such an idea I wanted to realize my «Rougon-Macquar'ax» on a small scale, in short scrap kind of Russian, living in Russian life: "Two or three links, and certainly visible covenants dark antiquity "… By disasters and downs of my «Rougon-Macquar'y" gradually freed from the Russian-noble éducation sentimentale *, "Coal turns into diamond", Russia - a new America; a new, rather than the old America.
The poem was to consist of a prologue, three large chapters and an epilogue. Each chapter is framed description of events of global significance; they constitute its background.
The first chapter is developed in the 70s of the last century, against the background of the Russian-Turkish war and the People's Will movement, in enlightened liberal family; this family is a "demon", the first sign of "individualism", human, It seems to Byron, with some otherworldly poryvaniyami and aspirations, blunted, but, disease of the century, starting fin de siècle **.
The second chapter, the effect of which is developed in the late XIX and early XX century, have not written, with the exception of the entry, It was to be devoted to the son of the "demon", heir to his rebellious impulses and painful falls, - unfeeling son of the century. It - also only one link of a long kind; from it too does not remain apparently nothing, except sparks of fire, abandoned in the world, other than seed, throw them into a passionate and sinful night in the bosom of some quiet and feminine daughter of a foreign nation.
The third chapter describes, how to end the life of his father, what happened to the former brilliant "demon", into some abyss fell this bright once people. Action of the poem is transferred from the Russian capital, where it is still developing, Warsaw - an apparent first, "Russia's backyard", and then designed, apparently, play some messianic role, associated with the fate of the forgotten God and ravaged Poland. here, over the fresh grave of father, end development and way of life son, which gives way to own offspring, third link of the same soaring high and low kind of incident.
In the epilogue to be depicted baby, which holds and lulls in the lap simple mother, Lost somewhere in the broad Polish clover fields, no one knows herself about anything they do not know. But she lulls and breastfeeding her son, and son grows; he is already beginning to play, he begins to repeat syllables followed by mother: "And I'm going to meet the soldiers… And I throw myself on their bayonets… And for you, my freedom, I will ascend into the black scaffold ".
here, apparently, Circle of Life, shrunken to the limit, the last link of a long chain; the circle, who himself, finally, will begin to puff up, put pressure on the environment, offshoring; that's kind of the offspring, which the, may be, finally, little hand take hold of the wheel, mover of human history.
The whole poem must be accompanied by a leitmotif of "retaliation"; This leitmotif has Mazurka, dance, which bore on its wings Marina, I dream about Russian throne, Kosciuszko and with an outstretched right hand to heaven, Mickiewicz and on Russian and Parisian balls. The first chapter of this dance is easily heard from the windows of some apartments in St. Petersburg - deaf 70 years; in the second chapter of the dance at the ball rattles, mingling with the sound of the officers' spurs, like champagne foam fin de siècl'a famous veuve Cliquot; more deaf - Roma, apuhtinskie years; finally, in the third chapter mazurka cleared: it rings in a snow blizzard, speeding over night Warsaw, on the snow-covered fields of clover Polish. It has clearly heard the voice of Reckoning.
July 1919
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*sensitive education (fr.).
**the end of the century (fr.).
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