Lyrical cycle by A. Blok “Poems about the Beautiful Lady
Alexander Blok entered literature as a symbolist poet. At the turn of the century European culture experienced a deep crisis due to disappointment in the old social ideals. The feeling of the inevitable death of the social system and the catastrophic nature of life required a revision of the previous moral values. This is how symbolism arose - one of the brightest literary movements in the poetry of the turn of the century. Symbolism is an aesthetic attempt to get away from the contradictions of reality into the realm of eternal ideas and truths. In the poetry of the Symbolists, there has been a departure from the civil traditions of Russian classics. A. Blok, A. Bely, V. Ivanov belonged to the "junior" symbolists, who defined symbolism as a philosophical and religious understanding of the world.
"Poems about the Beautiful Lady" (1904) - the first collection of poetry by A. Blok, an original and unique work of the great poet. It is called Blok's lyrical diary, since it is based on the facts of his biography, tells about his experiences and feelings. The cycle of "Poems about the Beautiful Lady" itself is the second (central) part of the collection. However, its features are difficult to understand without referring to those poems that make up the Ante Lucem section that opens the book. The name itself (translated from Latin - “before the light”) speaks of the loneliness of the lyrical hero, of his stay in darkness. The poem “Let the moon shine - the night is dark ...” just tells about the isolation of the lyrical hero from the joys of the world:
Spring in my soul of love
Will not change the stormy bad weather.
The poet compares the state of his hero's soul with a dark night. "Night spread out" over him, and in his soul the same darkness. The loneliness of the hero with a characteristic romantic attitude is exacerbated by isolation from life. Although there is no direct opposition between “I” and “we” anywhere, nevertheless, it is clear that somewhere there are people (“I wander among the crowd”) who live differently, but the lyrical hero cannot and does not want to break with with his loneliness. “Let life bring happiness to people,” but not to him. That is his position. And it is reinforced by his concept of duality. He - creative person- tries to comprehend the secrets of the universe, that is, the secrets of the heavenly, unearthly world. And, as you know, the night for reflection is the best time. The poem begins and ends with the same quatrain, in which the hero's attitude is expressed:
Let the moon shine - the night is dark.
May life bring happiness to people -
Spring in my soul of love
Will not change the stormy bad weather.
The lyrical hero is convinced that the night will remain dark for him, even if the moon is shining. However, there is also a hint of the possibility of the appearance of light in this gloomy world. The poet calls the mist "before dawn", which means that there is still hope for change.
The central cycle of the collection is verses, which are titled "Poems about the Beautiful Lady", reflecting the development of a complex love story between the poet and his future wife L. Mendeleeva. Here too, as in the first cycle, there is no sense of reality. Everything is very shaky, unclear, indefinite. However, the poet hints here at the approach of the one who will fill his life with meaning - the Beautiful Lady. In Blok, the medieval motif of knightly service to his lady of the heart arises and develops. We don't see her. She is incorporeal, her appearance is unclear, but everything hints at her appearance.
The poem "The wind brought from afar ..." is distinguished by its dynamics. It is the wind (one wants to say “wind of change”) here that becomes evidence of the approach of the one that is the embodiment of the beautiful and unearthly essence of the world. She is compared with “close spring”, “starry dreams hovered about her”, and the wind carried her “sonorous songs”.
Now Block has other images. So, the eternal night gradually dissipates - a “piece of sky” appears, which by the end of the poem expands to “bottomless azure”. Not only the world of light is changing, but also the world of sound. If earlier the lyrical hero was surrounded by a dead and silent night, now the wind brings a “song hint”, which then turns into “sonorous songs”.
The life of the poet before the appearance of his Beautiful Lady is compared to winter. And immediately there is a premonition of the imminent struggle of winter and spring. No, there is no spring yet, the lyrical hero only still feels its “twilight”, but it is already close:
In the twilight of near spring
Weeping winter storms...
If earlier poems were static, then this is striking in its dynamics. The movement is conveyed here by numerous verbs (“brought”, “opened”, “wept”, “reyali”) and a mobile rhythm. The very composition of the poem is built in such a way that everything speaks of the imminent destruction of the loneliness of the lyrical hero, of the premonition of the appearance of the one that he does not yet know, but sees in "star dreams".
Thus, the central plot of "Poems about the Beautiful Lady" is the expectation of that meeting, which will transform the lyrical hero, connect the world of heaven and earth. The lyrical hero and his Beautiful Lady are not equal in advance in the poet's view. She is his unattainable and eternally beautiful ideal. He is a knight, ready to serve her and bow before her.
The “Poems about the Beautiful Lady” embodied the idea of “two worlds” characteristic of the Symbolists - the opposition of “earth” and “heaven”, material and spiritual. The Beautiful Lady is the Soul of the world - a feminine substance by nature. This idea belongs to V. Solovyov, who created the doctrine of the World Soul, which is a spiritual principle, harmony, a symbol of goodness and beauty.
In general, Blok's poetry collection is characterized by lofty feelings, a break with reality, the holiness of unearthly ideals, and the cult of beauty.
The lyrical plot of the cycle is the expectation of the meeting of the hero and the Beautiful Lady, who must transform the world, make the kingdom of God on earth. The lyrical hero - an earthly creature - feels love for the Beautiful Lady, for a deity, for an unearthly ideal:
I anticipate you. Years pass by
All in the guise of one I foresee You.
The whole horizon is on fire - and unbearably clear,
And silently I wait, yearning and loving.
In the halo of holiness and divine radiance, the hero appears his dream, the hope for future happiness. It is no coincidence that the action takes place in the temple, where a person communicates with God through prayer.
I enter dark temples
I perform a poor ritual.
There I am waiting for the Beautiful Lady
In the flickering of red lamps.
The Beautiful Lady is an unearthly creature, only remotely resembling a female appearance. This is a lofty idea, a man's dream of a better life, hope for happiness, longing for the incomprehensible.
"Poems about the Beautiful Lady" is written in a refined and refined language, imbued with the search for the ideal, harmony, beauty, a sharp rejection of everyday life, the desire for perfection.
Alexander Blok is a symbolist poet who lived at the turn of the century, in Time of Troubles when there was a reassessment of values, a revision of the principles of life. And suddenly "Poems about the Beautiful Lady"? In times of protests, repressions, suppression of a person, as a person, whether you are a peasant or a nobleman. At a time like this, I wanted to somehow escape from reality. That's just the writers and began to resort to symbolism in order to find an outlet, they began to resort to the mystical and unreal.
Poems about the Beautiful Lady creation story
Blok found his outlet in love, in that feeling that inspires and elevates to heaven. In love with the "Beautiful Lady", which he began to express on sheets of paper. This is how Blok's "Poems about a Beautiful Lady" appeared. In each of his works, he sought salvation, hiding from the dullness of everyday life, and he succeeded. When he wrote, he fell into a heavenly place, into the world of love for the “Beautiful Lady”, the image of which he created in his thoughts and began to worship him “sometimes a servant, sometimes a darling; and forever a slave,” as the poet writes in verse.
Blok feared that real world he will not find such a woman, the image he created will be lost: “But I am afraid: you will change your appearance.” However, Blok continues to look for the “Beautiful Lady”, he looks for her everywhere, hears her voice, breathes on the streets, looks for her look and finds it. Finds a much more beautiful woman, real, alive.
He met his happiness, his love in the image of Lydia Mendeleeva. His love with even greater zeal began to be displayed on paper. He was afraid to frighten her away, he didn’t want her to fly away like a butterfly, so he only watched her for a long time, admired from afar, but he understood that this was the same woman, the same “Magnificent Eternal Wife”, his half “not a sigh was heard , no speech, but I believe: Sweetheart - You. And he decided to propose. Over the years, the feelings did not fade away, but only flared up, as evidenced by the works included in the cycle called “Poems about the Beautiful Lady”.
To whom did Blok dedicated Poems about a Beautiful Lady?
Answering the question: “To whom Blok dedicated “Poems about a Beautiful Lady”, we can say with confidence, to her, Lydia Mendeleeva, who lived with him until his last breath. Such wonderful masterpieces were dedicated to her alone and to the wonderful feeling of love.
Brief analysis of Blok's early lyrics in Poems about a Beautiful Lady
Working on Blok's "Poems about the Beautiful Lady" and making an analysis, we can say that the "two worlds" are intertwined here: heaven and earth, material and spiritual. All poems are filled with lofty feelings, here one feels a break with reality, the creation of unearthly ideals. When you read poems about a beautiful woman, you begin to understand all the feelings that the poet experienced and it seems as if you are reading his life, because it is not for nothing that Blok’s early lyrics “Poems about the Beautiful Lady” were called the poet’s lyrical diary.
The writing
Poems about the "Beautiful Lady" are the first step of Alexander Alexandrovich Blok in his
multi-year creative way from romantic symbolism to critical realism. This is the first and most
brilliant, in my opinion, his achievement. These works are amazingly beautiful, warmly and tenderly written...
Poems about the "Beautiful Lady" were written at the end of the 19th century and the beginning of the 20th century, a difficult, troubled time; time
reassessment of values, revision life principles; time of repression and revolution, protest, humiliation and
ignoring the person as a person. Everyone suffered from the peasant to the nobleman. Thus people
exhausted by the ruthless reality, they were looking for an outlet, peace in the mystical.
Solovyov's philosophy had a huge influence on the formation of the worldviews of many of Blok's contemporaries.
especially the thesis: "the very love of the world is revealed through love for a woman ... in love is our salvation ...", so is our
the poet, creating his small works, tried to hide from the gray, rough reality, sought salvation in
heavenly, perhaps even utopian, world of his endless love for the "Beautiful Lady", in her beauty,
"Eternal Femininity." The poet completely dissolved in the pool of beautiful dreams, the worship of this heavenly goddess, he
he clearly saw every feature of her face, knew everything about the creature created by his thought, he was a slave of his dream:
Your passions defeated by force,
Weak under the yoke.
Sometimes a servant; sometimes - cute;
And forever - a slave.
For some reason, Blok foresaw the arrival of this amazing maiden, he was afraid that on the way to reality, a gentle creature
will lose some of its original beauty:
How clear is the horizon! And radiance is near.
But I'm afraid: you will change your appearance.
In fear of the terrible, burning and corroding everything in its path, the elemental world, Alexander Alexandrovich
he himself begins to look for his "Beautiful Lady": a soft, bewitching voice in bustling shops, a quiet
breathing in the noise of an unceasing street, a modest look in the crowd of passers-by... Looking for a soulless, wordless creation
his own - finds an even more beautiful, real, living woman, independent and free, like the wind, light and
transparent ... His soul was overflowing with joy, hope for happiness, he wanted to take his beloved by the arm and
fly to a free future. The power of beauty of Lydia Dmitrievna Mendeleeva (It was truly a “Beautiful Lady”:
graceful, educated. She illuminated everyone not only with the light of the goodness of her heart, but outwardly she was like a golden
a ray of sun in the gray dust of the present: a blond braid neatly descended to the waist, huge sapphire eyes
often woke sincere smiles on tired faces ordinary people.) was so large and bright that he did not
he was afraid of hurting himself on the sharp thorns of all-consuming time, on the evil "rabbit looks of drunkards", ridicule
"twelve" on that long and bottomless journey to the star of supreme contentment shining somewhere in the distance:
And full of cherished trembling
We will rush off-road
Into the unspeakable world.
So the poet fell in love with an earthly woman, forever burying somewhere in the depths of his soul the image of his dream. That's what he
then felt:
No longing, no love, no resentment,
Everything faded, passed, departed ...
And your golden oar.
But nevertheless, the "Beautiful Lady" was still alive, she simply reincarnated, like Blok's feelings. They are
became even more sublime and at the same time closer to reality. Alexander Alexandrovich is still up to the end
did not believe in the reality of the existence of Lydia Dmitrievna. He loved her with a pure, sincere, divine love,
trembled at the thought of frightening her, believed that she would fly away like a butterfly if she heard footsteps close by, and therefore
for a very long time just admired the perfection of her beauty:
In the shadow of a tall column
I tremble at the creak of doors.
And he looks into my face, illumined,
Only an image, only a dream about Her.
In those moments, the lover knew for sure that it was this girl who was his “Magnificent Eternal Wife”, the same
half, which he was lucky to meet at the very beginning of his life:
I hear neither sighs nor speeches,
But I believe: Honey - You.
It was really her. In January 1903, the solemn marriage of Alexander
Aleksandrovich Blok and Lydia Dmitrievna Mendeleeva.
The great poet lived with this woman until last day your life, and last breath he didn't stop it
be in love. Over the years, this feeling grew stronger, in the most difficult moments only the thought of a loved one helped to survive and gave
strength to rise again and again and move on towards your cherished goal, at least a little distract from the evil
injustices of life
... And there, having sharpened axes,
merry red people,
Laughing, lit fires ...
With me - spring thought,
I know you are not alone...
The violins groan indefatigably
Sings to me: "Live!"
The image of a beloved girl -
A tale of sweet love.
It was this tender feeling that illuminated the whole life path poet.
Blok was able to brilliantly portray him in his cycle of poems about the "Beautiful Lady". Each
of which there is a small masterpiece, as it was written under the influence of emotions, moments, fragments ... All these
individual and harmonious fragments are alive, each of them breathes love, and if you listen, you can even feel
the rhythm of his heartbeat:
Oh I'm used to these robes
Majestic Eternal Wife!
Run high on the ledges
Smiles, fairy tales and dreams!
The poet poured the raging music of his feelings into poetry, and now each of us can enjoy this wonderful
consonance in the cycle "About the Beautiful Lady".
In 1904, Alexander Blok first published Poems about the Beautiful Lady. The analysis carried out by the researchers of his work shows that this is the first serious collection of the poet's poems. He immediately singled out Alexander Alexandrovich among other artists of the word. In our article, we will analyze the Beautiful Lady "- one of the best creations of Alexander Alexandrovich.
Feeling for L. Mendeleeva
The cycle we are interested in was created under the influence of the feeling Blok had for Lyubov Mendeleeva, who later became his wife. Boblovo, the estate of the Mendeleevs, was located near Shakhmatov, the family estate of Alexander Alexandrovich. Thanks to this, he could often see his future wife. In the photo below - Blok with L. Mendeleeva.
The influence of the teachings of V. Solovyov
The collection we are interested in was also created under the influence of the teachings of V. Solovyov about eternal femininity. According to this philosopher, the Eternal Feminine can reconcile the heavenly and the earthly, the divine and the mundane. Thanks to her, the soul of the poet is renewed. The feeling that A. Blok felt for L. Mendeleeva was rethought by Alexander Alexandrovich in the spirit of the teachings about the world soul of Plato and about the Eternal Femininity, acting as an incorruptible divine principle.
Solovyov's position is fully consistent with Blok's opinion of that period. The philosopher looks at the Eternal Femininity as a phenomenon that has a cosmic scale. The poet also sees in his beloved the embodiment of the divine principle. We can judge this from the letters addressed to Lyubov Mendeleeva. These views of Alexander Alexandrovich determined general character his poetic cycle called "Poems about the Beautiful Lady". The heroine of the cycle is a mystical, incomprehensible image ("Holy," Virgin, "Incomprehensible"). Sometimes this is a real woman who has specific features: tall, slender, always arrogant and harsh.
mystic halo
His collection is marked with a mystical halo, which allows you to notice that the feeling of the unreality of everything that happens is strengthened by poetic epithets, such as in a quiet backwater, unknown shadows, White dress. They surround the author's feelings with a mystical halo. The love of the lyrical hero turns into poetry of halftones, symbols, allusions. This feeling is a state of mind. It simultaneously makes the lyrical hero experience and captivates him. Alexander Alexandrovich turns to a symbol that transfers perception from the world of real-concrete things to a mysterious, incomprehensible, vaguely guessed world. This view of art determined the general symbolic nature of the cycle that interests us.
"The girl sang in the church choir..."
Let's turn to this poem, conducting a general about the Beautiful Lady "- a cycle, one of the most famous works of which is precisely this one. It is filled with the following symbols: "white dress", " white shoulder"and a shining beam on it, "a voice flying into the dome." In this work, the epithet "white" emphasizes the feeling of peace, peace, silence emanating from the heroine's voice, which is characterized as "flying into the dome." The girl sings about those who have gone to sea ships, about people who find themselves in a foreign land, about those who have forgotten their joy. The ending of this poem is mystical. It does not leave us with a feeling of happiness at all. Blok writes that the child, "participated in secrets," cried that no one would return back.
"I enter dark temples..."
Let's continue Block. "Poems about the Beautiful Lady" is a cycle in which many interesting works are presented. One of them - "I enter ...". This creation of Alexander Alexandrovich was created in 1902. It is the central work of the cycle "Poems about the Beautiful Lady" (Block). An analysis of the poems included in it allows us to identify some interesting features. In particular, in the work we are considering, the lyrical hero only sees the image of the "Eternal Wife", the majestic Beautiful Lady. It's a symbol true love. At the same time, the lyrical hero is waiting for a meeting with Mila, and is also afraid of his own feelings.
Cycle "Crossroads"
The cycle "Crossroads", created in the period from 1902 to 1904, closes the book "Poems about the Beautiful Lady" (Block). An analysis of it allows us to notice that it stands as if standing apart from other works of the book. In these poems of Blok, a motive of confusion and anxiety arises. The lyrical hero has thoughts that in real life finding harmony is impossible. The author's attention switches to contemporary reality. He portrays real city, he is interested in the mysticism of passion and nature.
"Incarnation Trilogy"
The first volume of this cycle consists mainly of "Poems about the Beautiful Lady". Blok, whose poems are still being analyzed by many researchers, independently prepared his collection for publication. He divided it into 3 books, uniting them under the title "Incarnation Trilogy". At the same time, other topics are outlined in the first volume. It's a connection to the "everyday" social issues("From the newspapers", "A child is crying ...", "Factory", etc.). The motif of the "end of the world" arises, as analysis of Blok's poems shows. "Poems about the Beautiful Lady" are filled with new motives. Full of shadows, werewolves, ghosts modern city reminds the reader of the picture of the Apocalypse. Nobody needs a crying child, women are thrown out of windows... Despite the fact that these poems contain an abundance of realistic details, the author still retains their symbolist essence. In the work "Factory" black and yellow colors ("black someone", "windows are yellow", etc.) symbolize the essence of people who are endowed with money and power. They become soulless. The poet, who hears everything "from his height", does not participate in what is happening.
So, we briefly described "Poems about the Beautiful Lady" (Block). You can supplement our analysis with your own thoughts, since we have noted only the main features of this cycle.
It is rare that a lyricist does not touch on the theme of "Lady Fair". Here is Alexander Blok, whose first collection of poetry was published in 1905, and called it “Poems about the Beautiful Lady”.
The idea to give such a name to the cycle was suggested to the author by the Russian poet Valery Yakovlevich Bryusov. Censorship did not have a hand in the collection of the poet; this happened thanks to the patronage of E.K. Medtner, the future well-known head of the Musaget publishing house, with whom the author later maintained friendly relations.
"Poems about the Beautiful Lady" consists of three sections, interconnected: "Stillness", "Crossroads", "Damage".
The first section, "Stillness", contains poems directly addressed to the Beautiful Lady. “Blok puts a deep philosophical meaning into the very concept of “immobility”, and in his poetic allegory it has many shades. The most undoubted of them expresses the idea of constancy, fidelity, chivalrous service to the Beautiful Lady. This section of the collection "selected the most lyrically strong, responsible, sharp-sounding poems."
Singing dream, blooming color,
Disappearing day, fading light.
Opening the window, I saw a lilac.
It was in the spring - on a departing day.
Flowers burst forth - and on the dark cornice
The shadows of the jubilant robes moved.
Anguish was suffocating, the soul was engaged,
I opened the window, trembling and trembling.
The second section of the collection, called "Crossroads", is of a different plan. The palette and rhythm change significantly, Petersburg appears in Blok's vision. Before us is his City. If "Stillness" is all about the rural, about the wonderful world of Nature, then "Crossroads" is about a certain turn that the author made. Already the starting poem "Deception", its name, will tell us a lot. The radiance of the lines is behind, the gravitas and outright audacity are ahead. Instead of pink dawns - factory burnt, red light rushes into the eyes.
Morning. Clouds. Smokes. Overturned tubs.
In the light streams, the blue dances merrily.
Red slingshots are placed along the streets.
Soldiers spank: one! two! once! two!
Section "Damage", the third in a row - a transitional plan. Ahead is a new collection of poems - "Unexpected Joy".
“In one of his later letters (in the spring of 1914), Blok uttered prophetic words for him, relating equally to his past, present and future, to his whole life, along which he walked “the path of truth:” ... art is where damage, loss, suffering, cold. This thought always guards ... ". The title of the final section of the book "Poems about the Beautiful Lady" - "Damage" - contains exactly this meaning, which was mentioned in Blok's letter.
« The present is around You, a living and beautiful Russian girl”- this is how Blok wrote to his bride, making comments on the collection about “The Beautiful Lady”. The release of this poetic work of Blok did not go unnoticed. One of the first critics of the poet was his friend Andrei Bely ( conflict situations at that time they were not between them yet). " There are people here in Moscow who put you at the head of Russian poetry. You and Bryusov are the most important poets for Russia».
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