*Russian text only
Translated by Alexander Boguslawski
To My Pals in Dispersion
–Aleksandr Pushkin, Eugene Onegin
Приятелям по рассеянью
Пушкин
Alcohol theme.
Between dog and wolf. The disclosure of the literary source of the expression is important, as well as the reference to Pushkin itself, as Yakov refers to his style in his own verses.
A.S. Pushkin, Evgeny Onegin, chapter 4, XLVII. Sokolov on Pushkin: “Pushkin is dear to me above all as a person. And in that quality he’s close. And, I would guess, not only to me. Thanks to that, his entire epoch is entirely an accessible, open book. It seems to me that, despite all the tragedies that have befallen Russian culture, the divide between Pushkin’s time and ours is practically nonexistent. At the very least in the creative sense” (Matich, “Nuzhno zabyt’” 12).
Double meaning, very relevant from a thematic point of view for the plot: 1. hunting / 2. desire. The quote is from B. Pasternak, Doctor Zhivago, part 5, chapter 14. It is also interesting to notice that in Pasternak’s novel this “young man” is the interlocutor with whom Zhivago converses while on the train: “Once in the dark of the night, the interlocutor turns out to be deaf and, therefore, capable of sustaining a conversation solely by lip reading. This pivotal sequence in Pasternak’s novel unravels the theme of incommunicability, a topic that is of great interest to Sokolov too. By evoking the idea of the power of language and of its sound, which not everyone is capable of hearing, Sokolov once again stresses the redeeming sacredness of the word. After all, this seemingly epistolary second novel by Sokolov presents itself as a letter addressed to detective Pozhilykh by Ilya Zynzyrela (later discovered to be dead), in which the sender seeks justice for a wrongdoing. Thus, the writing offers a refuge and a redemption from (linear) time and death” (Napolitano, Sasha Sokolov 88). Elena Kravchenko also writes, “The unsettling feeling, triggered by the man’s intense gaze, overly articulate speech, and lapses into occasional withdrawals, is explained next day. He is deaf, and in order to hear and therefore speak, he needs to see and read the lips of his collocutor. By virtue of his link with Pasternak’s hunter, Iakov can be associated with the visual aspect of language. It is also reflected in his artistic aspirations, manifested in the ‘picture gallery’ of the prose section” (*Reflections *81).
B. Pasternak, Doсtor Zhivago, part 5, chapter 14.
Allusion to the author’s biography and to the situation many authors were facing in the 1980s. It is also relevant that Sokolov uses the word ‘priiateli’ (echoed also in the adj. druzhesky in the reference from the Evgeny Onegin): when in dispersion (i.e., exile), people who belong to the other (non-official / “second”) culture can rebuild the links among them.
The adjectival form of this word (рассеянный) can mean absend-minded or forgetful. In many ways, Between Dog and Wolf is an attempt by Ilya, one of the protagonists, to remember his life, despite the fact that multiple variants are presented in the narrative.
Alcohol theme.
Тема алкоголя.
The disclosure of the literary source of the expression is important, as well as the reference to Pushkin itself, as Yakov refers to his style in his own verses.
Введение главной темы Собаки и отсылка к Пушкину, чьи стихотворения являются одним из важнейших (искажаемых) источников стихов Якова.
A.S. Pushkin, Evgeny Onegin, chapter 4, XLVII. Sokolov on Pushkin: “Pushkin is dear to me above all as a person. And in that quality he’s close. And, I would guess, not only to me. Thanks to that, his entire epoch is entirely an accessible, open book. It seems to me that, despite all the tragedies that have befallen Russian culture, the divide between Pushkin’s time and ours is practically nonexistent. At the very least in the creative sense” (Matich, “Nuzhno zabyt’” 12).
А.С. Пушкин, Евгений Онегин, гл. 4, XLVII. Соколов о Пушкине: “Пушкин мне дорог прежде всего как человек. И в том же качестве - близок. И, догадываюсь, не только мне. Благодаря этому вся эпоха его представляется совершенно доступной, открытой книгой. Мне кажется, несмотря на все трагедии, постигшие русскую культуру, разрыва между пушкиным временем и нашим практически нет. Во всяком случае - в творческом смысле” (Матич, “Нужно забыть” 12).
Double meaning, very relevant from a thematic point of view for the plot: okhota = 1. hunting / 2. desire. The quote is from B. Pasternak, Doctor Zhivago, part 5, chapter 14. It is also interesting to notice that in Pasternak’s novel this “young man” is the interlocutor with whom Zhivago converses while on the train: “Once in the dark of the night, the interlocutor turns out to be deaf and, therefore, capable of sustaining a conversation solely by lip reading. This pivotal sequence in Pasternak’s novel unravels the theme of incommunicability, a topic that is of great interest to Sokolov too. By evoking the idea of the power of language and of its sound, which not everyone is capable of hearing, Sokolov once again stresses the redeeming sacredness of the word. After all, this seemingly epistolary second novel by Sokolov presents itself as a letter addressed to detective Pozhilykh by Ilya Zynzyrela (later discovered to be dead), in which the sender seeks justice for a wrongdoing. Thus, the writing offers a refuge and a redemption from (linear) time and death” (Napolitano, Sasha Sokolov 88). Elena Kravchenko also writes, “The unsettling feeling, triggered by the man’s intense gaze, overly articulate speech, and lapses into occasional withdrawals, is explained next day. He is deaf, and in order to hear and therefore speak, he needs to see and read the lips of his collocutor. By virtue of his link with Pasternak’s hunter, Iakov can be associated with the visual aspect of language. It is also reflected in his artistic aspirations, manifested in the ‘picture gallery’ of the prose section” (*Reflections *81).
B. Pasternak, Doсtor Zhivago, part 5, chapter 14.
Б. Пастернак, Доктор Живаго, часть 5, гл. 14.
Allusion to the author’s biography and to the situation many authors were facing in the 1980s. When in dispersion (i.e., exile), people who belong to the other (non-official / “second”) culture can rebuild the links among them.