/

Look around! Countless insects are flying
And still follow honey trails as before,
But too many subtle signs are implying
That the anymore.
Not by chance, on mornings of amber,
More translucent than the skin of the moon,
, after hot-weather slumber,
Flies to find a new wife very soon.
At the market—hurly-burly, slashed prices.
? We have them. So sweet!
And if you are a bird, a few slices
Of you’ll eat.
Childhood is sadness itself. There, in the wastes,
Grandkids search for ,
Cabbage whites and they chase
And they sing an :
When, alas, our grandma will die,
We will lay her to rest, dust to dust,
So
When a hundred or a thousand years pass.
Nothing’s changed in the yard’s verdant thicket,
Only , not , bloom now.
More haphazard are the chirps of the .
And the hammock? No one’s weighing it down.
and give us an impression
That they flaunt the hue of their bugs,
While a cohort of young in session
Red in the cooper’s yard chugs.

Note II

Preparation of Cartridges

1
I strolled the other day
In the forest of .
The sand of its trails,
Its needle and its leaf,
Including —
Everything was dry.
And I was mad that I
Was foolish to put on
These of mine
And a slicker too.
So now, more mindful, I,
Getting ready to go,
Retired both the waders and the .
Then sunshine rain caught me on my way—
I ran and tried to hide;
When I came home, I shook all over.
My kept scolding: Serves you right,
I warned you—legs are throbbing—but you
Preferred to —
You banned the , discarded the .
Oh, daydreamer, she went on, oh, hothead.
2
You have a magic box!
In it you keep all things
Needed for hunting with a rifle.
So with no further words
Open it; from inside
Take out some ,
And also a few
Invented by the late Monsieur .
And in these
Thrust these
And sprinkle powder there.
Go, fellow!
Using a thick sack cut into small lots,
Or worn felt , or ,
Insert a ; follow with some shot;
And then another plug securely jam in.
is sitting headless on a chair.
My dear field marshal, it seems you’re not well.
The gentleman became slightly wrinkled.
Who dared to do this? Maybe
Swung his sharp from beyond ?
is sitting stately on the chair,
The sizes of the shot are six and five,
My powder’s smoky like ,
And of old age astonished my forehead,
The tick-tocks, imagining one thing,
Imagining the other, imagining something.
My asleep, chock-full of .
Well, may she dream of my love for her.
And I—of hunting.

Note III

The Time Between

Is good for a chat soul to soul.
Though the lunch isn’t lavish at all,
You’ll be able to talk round and round
With both, the wolf and the .
It’s good that near the ,
Sitting on a branch of ,
The with great glee
And repeats on and on:
How good I feel by the pond.
A mournfully brays
From the thirty-and-four.
The vistas can’t be bare any more.
The store is closed for a day.
Boredom. The still brays.
A jug dripped a drop on the plate,
The .
But really, can anyone tell
?
It dripped again on the plate.
You’ll be able to talk round and round,
Of course, if the topic is right.
If it’s not, have a good night:
Evening drags, as if spellbound,
After the wolf and the hound.

Note IV

(A Conversation with a Critic)

Don’t sleep on the ground—you’ll get weary,
!
Scat, my carper, stop nagging, you’re dreary!
I am dreaming that a valiant
Gave me that used to be fairer,
And they need to be sharpened—they’re dull.
You bet. But what, one may ponder,
The sound of the loud grind
Resembles at this moment of wonder?
It sounds like someone is crunching
The old chicken bone you were munching,
But then left it, unfinished, behind.
Enlightenment’s reins briefly dropping,
In a and , ,
The folk , all in motion,
Across a steep gully is hopping,
Comparing, full of emotions,
The grinding to the sound of a stream.
It’s taxing.
But the is bothered not
By the fact he doesn’t have access
To dull , or sickles, or axes,
But because nobody asks him:
.
At the moment, the grinder figure,
A dullard, a dolt, round the bend,
Upset that he’s not a ,
A builder, a tinker, a baker,
A light carrier or a toy maker,
.
That’s life: By the ,
Which, in winter, has a rink at its gate,
The approaches the lame,
Or rather, gnome,
, , and tame,
And keeps honing his lone figure skate.
Just look—and , heed this lesson:
Someone’s grief is not a true grief.
Even more, ’cause no one can lessen
Pains of those whom fate so distresses
That the can’t impress them,
Hence, no deluge can bring them relief.
Darkness falls. Irked by fate’s treason,
Like a hungry would do,
Stalks the verb-herd servile and sleazy,
But—sees no rhyme and no reason,
And the actual herd—is gone too.

Note V

Is it really October? Such
That if not for the rustling of leaf fall,
One could simply forget about everything
And for hours stare into .
And smell .
But one has to , to act, to go on,
Worry about the presence of kindling,
One has to new ,
Stockpile mushrooms and go hunting.
Inasmuch as winter is certain.
Carelessly showing the white of face,
Here I am; I’d like to listen to the .
Go on, rattle, , my dear hooting whoop,
Tiny toy, trifle, trinket, true treasure.
Who knows where and for what reason
Someone with a roams the copses;
.
With a glow of ,
Fragments of vulgar phrases,
,
And with the
Resembling the call,
Approaches a gaggle of .
It’s beginning.

Note VI

(Recollection of the City)

,
,
But for whom, she was still in the dark.
Among the musicians, excited,
A spun around,
And for he invited
The lady to a quaint .
is a wonderful dance,
In the evening, when all dancers vanished,
He became her friend and her crush.
He appeared to her to be ,
.
Next day, at the quay, she was musing:
Should she ask for a farewell encore?
music
From that morning sounded no more.

Note VII

Postal Chores in the Month of

.
The first—off trees, the other—southbound.
Soon, on warm mittens we’ll be relying
So our hands can be safe and sound.
Yet ere the frosts and blizzards commence,
To orphan winter prelude in light gray,
,
Devoted brother of .
In this connection, letters—piles of them,
And telegrams—ready for this day,
Have to be sent. Just two words: I am.
To all addresses. And without delay.
Have to be sent,
and we’re still not late.
I am—before people light their fires,
Before the cities finally lock their gates.
Have to be sent. Where’s the ink for my ?
Perhaps the sucked it up dry?
I am! And to the , to :
?—asking for their advice—Am I?
Have to be sent, with a short note—urgent,
By a swift or by the ,
.
That’s what I chose and, whacked by asthma,
Went to the cellar, for a swig down there.
And when I crawled out, pleasantly ,
A flashed in the air.

Note VIII

Insomnia

There’s no sleep in either eye
(The chemist’s right, alas—years fly),
But who would need it anyway,
With a velveteen ribbon around its ,
And with a bit of a tilt?
At the first sight—just a sieve.
I see it all as if it were now:
,
Caressed this and that,
And then, out of the blue
A hat with a tilt floated up;
Such a dashing .
Thin fog stole out from the stream,
A slithered into the to sleep.
.
I figured: That’s who needed a sieve!
Only, I thought, why with a tilt?
And a stood in the .
I wiped my monocle and put it on—
My goodness, it’s only a . . .
The burst out from the —frrr!
Thinking about it, just how many years
Flowed ever since into the sieve with a tilt?
Alas, the chemist is quite right, oh my.

As If One Salted . . .

Some mornings, when your boredom rages,
It seems you’re waiting for some tip.
Either you skim through pages
Or volume dully flip.
The hunt no longer seems arresting.
Your whipper-in does not take down
The horn and harness idly resting.
And in sadness drown.
And you’re so glum, as one may gather,
That faithful ale can’t make life right.
Should you clean your chibouk or rather
Challenge your neighbor to a fight?
Or your old that’s tight and scratches
Should you demand to cut today,
So for the new one you’ll have patches?
Or should you simply run away?
Instead, to calm depression’s fervor,
You take a stroll .
And later, with your household servants
You play just .
Or risking a snob’s reputation,
You proudly board your
With bright decorations,
And ride stiff like a wooden chunk.
It’s , may readers be reminded,
Therefore, the last leaf will alight,
When your gaze, truly absentminded,
Will bless it on its final flight.
Dusk,
.
But you forget about your troubles
And urge the coachman, shouting: Fast!
Because begin to flutter
High in the air, for all to see.
You rush home, open window shutters:
Oh, , look—what can it be?
As if one salted over yonder
Bathhouses, barns, and every hut . . .
And started just like that.

Оглянись! насекомых несметные
Кавалькады все тянет на мед;
Есть, однако, приметы заветные,
Предвестившие .
Не напрасно утрами янтарными,
Что прозрачней, чем кожа луны,
непарного
Вылетает на поиск жены.
На базаре и .
? Пожалуйста, есть.
Ну а если вы — птица, то куколку
можете съесть.
Детство грусть сама есть. Вон, на пустоши,
Внуки ,
ловят, капустницу
И старинный поют :
Во саду обстоятельства прежние,
Только цветут, а не ,
И стрекочет небрежнее,
И никем не гамак.
,
И
.

патронов

1
Вчера гулял в бору.
Песок его ,
Его игла и лист,
, —
Все сухо было. Я
Бранил себя за то,
Что я
Обул бездумно и
Напялил .
Я , прозорлив,
по делам,
Отставку дал и ботам, и .
в пути застигнут был —
Бежал и прятался;
Придя домой, дрожал весь.
укоряла: ,
Предупреждала — ноги тянет, ты же
—
отверг и отринул.
О , говорила мне она, о дерзкий.
2
Есть ящик у тебя!
В нем ты хранишь все то,
Что требует ружейная охота.
Его без дальних слов
Открой и из него
Бери ,
Ты бери,
Придуманных покойником ,
И в донца
Жевела те вживи
И .
!
Из резаных мешка,
Из кáтанка, из пижамы
Вложи и дроби закати
И все это опять .
сидит на стуле безголов.
Фельдмаршал мой, ты, видно, нездоров,
Стал джентельмен какой-то весь увядший.
Но кто посмел, неужто
Так махнул из-за ?
А дроби номера — шестой да пятый,
И дымен порох мой, как ,
старости чело мне изумили,
И идут,
.
спит, наевшись .
Пусть снится ей, что я ее люблю.
А мне — охота.

Записка III

для частных бесед:
Пусть незатейлив обед,
Всё вы обсудите
Вместе с собакой и
Как хорошо, что ,
Сидя себе на дубу,
дуду
И приговаривает:
Как хорошо мне у пруда.
Жалобно блеет
С ,
Дали пусты,
И выходной в магазине.
Скушно. И блеет .
Капнула капля из ,
шесток.
Кто бы ответствовать мог,
.
Капнуло снова из .
Все вы обсудите ,
Было бы что обсуждать.
Да не прошествовать ль спать:
Вечер грядет больно долгий
Вслед за собакой, за волком…

Записка IV

(Разговор с критиком)

Не спи на земле, ,
.
Оставь, мой досужий,
Мне снится, что храбрый
И надо его наточить.
. Однако на что же
Звучанье дел
В час похоже?
, что кто-либо гложет
Куриную косточку, может,
Которую ты не успел?
Забросив просвещенья,
В халате, , ,
Над самым глубоким ущельем,
Сравнить поскорей, весь движенье,
Народный проскакал.
теперь не дает
Покою не то, что не носят
Ему инструменты и ,
А то, что никто не попросит:
и капот.
Об эту-то пору точильщик,
, , ,
Горюя, что он не могильщик,
,
.
Се жизнь: к ,
— каток,
подошел и хромому,
Точней, ,
, ,
Фигурный все правит конек.
Взгляни — и
Чужая беда — не беда,
Тем что неутолимы
Печали фортуной гонимых,
И если уж ,
Им ливень — .
,

Записка V

Неужели ? Такая .
Ведь когда бы не ,
Можно было бы просто забыть обо всем
И часами глядеть в .
И нюхать .
Но приходится действовать, надобно ,
О заботиться,
И приходится ,
Запасаться грибом и охотиться.
Потому что зима неизбежна.
белея лицом,
Вот он я, мне бы только наслушаться.
, моя,
, .
Непонятно куда и зачем
Некто с бредет ;
.
свеченьем,
Фрагментами бранных фраз,
,
И уключин кряхтеньем,
Похожим на зов,
Приближается .
Начинается.

Записка VI

(Воспоминанье о городе)

звучала
,
.
Среди молодых оркестрантов
Крутился ,
Ее он в
.
А вечером, после тех танцев,
Он стал ей как преданный друг,
Он ей показался ,
.
А утром оркестр до причала
Дама проводила пешком,
Музы́ка с тех пор не звучала
.

Записка VII

.
Эти — от веток, а те — на юг.
Скоро потребуются рукавицы,
создавали уют.
Правда, порош и морозов скорее
Сизым прелюдом к
Близится ,
Брат ненаглядный .
Надо в связи с этим писем,
Или же пуще того — телеграмм
отправить. Два слова: .
Без промедленья. По всем адресам.
Надо отправить, пока не вечер,
:
, пока не затеплились свечи,
Пока не заперли города.
Надо отправить. Но где ?
, что ли, впитали их?
! А если , в :
? — прося консультаций, — ?
Надо отправить их
то ль с ,
То ль, оперируя термином почты,
Просто отбить их, как пару котлет.
Принял решенье и, мучим астмой,
Что-нибудь выпить сошел в подвал,
А когда вылез — уже, ,
Первый во дворе мелькал.

Записка VIII

Нету сна ни в одном глазу
(Прав провизор, увы, — года),
она сдалась,
С лентой плисовой вкруг ,
несколько ,
А на первый взгляд — решето.
Вижу все, как будто теперь:
Это — тут , там — то́,
И
Шляпа выплыла ,
такой .
Тонкий из ручья туман,
.
Я прикинул: а вот кому решето!
Только, думаю, к чему ?
И стоял в .
Я достал монокль, протер и вдел —
Батюшки мои, да это ведь …
из вспорхнули — фррр!
Сколько же, если представить, с тех дней
Лет стекло в решето ?
Прав, увы, провизор, и ах.

Бывает так: с утра скучаешь
И словно бы чего-то ждешь.
То
перелистнешь.
Охота не прельщает.
Рога и со стены
Твой доезжачий не снимает,
грустны.
ли старый, тесноватый
Велеть изрезать в лоскуты,
Чтоб были новому заплаты,
?
Но вместо этого, ,
И вместе с своею
В играешь .
А то, рискуя снобом,
Влезаешь важно в
С гербами
И катишь важно, как чурбан.
И лист последний отлетит,
Когда твой взор, вполне рассеян,
Его в полет благословит.
Из
,
Но позабудешь все
И крикнешь кучеру: ! —
Когда вдруг — Боже сохрани! —
Сорвутся .
Вбегаешь в дом — и окна настежь:
Ах, , что это, взгляни!
Как будто солью кто посыпал
Амбары, бани, терема…
И началась себе …

Chapter Notes

Despite its many oddities, Between Dog and Wolf features a strict, formal structure: eight prose chapters from the perspective of the itinerant grinder Ilya Zynzyrella; five prose chapters that concern the life and thoughts of the dog-keeper Yakov Palamakhterov; four chapters consisting of 36 poems written by Yakov; and a final chapter made up of a single, separate poem, again authored by Yakov. As Alexander Boguslawski writes, the chapters follow this pattern: ABCABACABACABACBAC (“How Sokolov’s” 205). Serge*i Orobii suggests that “in the novel *Between Dog and Wolf, the principle that will become the cornerstone for determining the root affiliation of Sokolov’s texts of the 2000s is mastered: prose is replaced with ease by poetry, or even merges with it. Such a narrative maneuver, of course, originates not in the plot, but in the field of language: considering that the Russian literary language has ‘worn out’ from constant use and has lost all expressiveness, the writer tries to get away from the usual linguistic norms and constructs a unique style, which becomes the driving force of the narrative. Here, the boundaries between replicas, between direct and indirect speech, between chatter and quotation are fundamentally blurred” (299).

structure

Notes of a Binging Hunter

A reference to Ivan Turgenev’s 1852 cycle of short stories Notes of a Hunter (also translated as A Sportsman’s Notebook, The Hunting Sketches, and Sketches from a Hunter’s Album). This work was acclaimed for its portrayal of peasant life. The “Notes” (Записки) trope is common in Russian literature: Notes of a Rifle Hunter (Aksakov), Notes of a Shallow Grass (Dryansky), “Notes of a Madman” (Gogol), Notes from the Underground (Dostoevsky), Notes from a Dead House (Dostoevsky), “Notes of a Madman” (Tolstoy), “Notes of a Christian” (Tolstoy), Notes of a Doctor (Veresaev), Notes of a Young Doctor (Bulgakov), Notes of a Psychotic (Ven. Erofeev), and Notes of a Nonhunter (Vantalov). Gerald Smith suggests that the Drunken Huntsman may also be a literary descendent of Alexander Pushkin’s hero in The Gypsies (“The Verse” 329). Furthermore, on a technical level, Smith writes: “The metrical-typology of the poems in DW, crudely stated, is as follows. The texts fall into the conventional four groups as follows: Iambic, 8; Trochaic, 6; Ternary, 17; Other, 4; one poem is polymetric (XXXI). Compared with the norms for contemporary Russian poetry, this distribution represents much higher proportions than usual in the trochaic and ternary groups, and a reduced proportion in the iambic; that is, Sokolov is modelling a repertoire that deviates from literary verse and leans towards folkloric models. However, the two poets who made the most important contribution to the domestication and exploitation of ternary metres in Russian poetry were Nikolai Nekrasov in the mid-nineteenth century and then Boris Pasternak in his work before the mid-1920s, and Sokolov’s verse evokes a strong echo of their work” (“The Verse” 329–330). As for the number of poems in the novel, Alexander Boguslawski writes: “one can construct an even more tempting hypothesis that the number of chapters — 18 and the number of poems — 37 are a concealed intertextual reference to the date of Pushkin’s death (1837) and to his age at death” (“How Sokolov’s” 207).

intertextuality

Binging Hunter

That is, Yakov. These verse segments are allegedly written by Yakov during his year on the Volga to the extent we can assume he is the author of the Notes; such a first name, so close to the Russian word iakoby (allegedly), makes him literally only “allegedly” a hunter, a wannabe poet/artist, or, generally speaking, a round and authentic character” (Napolitano, “Studyin this Volapuke” 292). The Notes come divided in sections according to the time of the year, which is however never a specific season but a period between seasons. In these first Notes, the setting is fall-winter. Gerald Smith suggests that the “idea of going to the country for the winter rather than the summer is a calculated reversal of the accepted routine of polite society, and a fundamental aspect of the novel’s anti-‘civilized’ stance” (“The Verse” 325). In opposition to most critics, he also proposes that the Notes are composed by a “controlling intelligence” beyond the novel’s main characters (“The Verse” 326). A different interpretation is advanced by Leiderman and Lipovetsky, who interpret the novel as a tripartite narration, unfolded progressively by Ilya, Yakov, and a third “impersonal author” (Russkaia literatura xx veka, 407). However, as Napolitano underlines, “In such a drunk atmosphere, not only the narrative staggers, due to the blurred vision of its narrators, but the reader, too, wavers in following the flows of the voices weaving together the narrative texture. These voices are not simply Ilya’s and Yakov’s (and his alternative personalities, including the Binging Hunter’s), but Maria-Orina also shows up, accompanied for instance by a nineteenth-century porter, or even a certain Carus Sterne with his natural history book Werden und Vergehen. Alcohol theme.

time theme character

Despite its many oddities, Between Dog and Wolf features a strict, formal structure: eight prose chapters from the perspective of the itinerant grinder Ilya Zynzyrella; five prose chapters that concern the life and thoughts of the dog-keeper Yakov Palamakhterov; four chapters consisting of 36 poems written by Yakov; and a final chapter made up of a single, separate poem, again authored by Yakov. As Alexander Boguslawski writes, the chapters follow this pattern: ABCABACABACABACBAC (“How Sokolov’s” 205). Sergei Orobii suggests that “in the novel Between Dog and Wolf, the principle that will become the cornerstone for determining the root affiliation of Sokolov’s texts of the 2000s is mastered: prose is replaced with ease by poetry, or even merges with it. Such a narrative maneuver, of course, originates not in the plot, but in the field of language: considering that the Russian literary language has ‘worn out’ from constant use and has lost all expressiveness, the writer tries to get away from the usual linguistic norms and constructs a unique style, which becomes the driving force of the narrative. Here, the boundaries between replicas, between direct and indirect speech, between chatter and quotation are fundamentally blurred” (299).

structure

Записки запойного охотника

Отсылка к написанному в 1852 году циклу рассказов Тургенева “Записки охотника”. Произведение получило признание за отражение крестьянской жизни. Образ “Записок” нередко встречается в русской литературе: Записки ружейного охотника (Аксаков), “Записки мелкотравчатого” (Дриянский), “Записки сумасшедшего” (Гоголь), Записки из подполья (Достоевский), Записки из Мертвого дома (Достоевский), “Записки сумасшедшего” (Толстой), “Записки христианина” (Толстой), Записки врача (Вересаев), Записки юного врача (Булгаков), Записки психопата (Вен. Ерофеев), Записки неохотника (Ванталов). Дж. Смит предполагает, что Запойный охотник может быть литературным потомком пушкинского героя из поэмы “Цыгане” (CASS 1987, Smith, “The Verse”, 329). Более того, с технической точки зрения, Смит пишет: “Метрическая классификация стихов в Между собакой и волком, грубо говоря, следующая. Cтихи разделяются на четыре традиционные группы: Ямб, 8; Хорей, 6; Трехдольное, 17; Другое, 4; один из стихов полиметрический (XXXI). Согласно нормам современной руской поэзии, такое распределение показывает намного большую долю хореических и трехдольных стихов, и меньшую долю ямбических; то есть, Соколов создает репертуар, отклоняющийся от литературного слога и больше напоинающий фольклорические модели. Однако, если двумя поэтами, которые внесли значимый вклад во внедрение и адаптацию трехдольного метра в русской поэзии, были Н. Некрасов в середине XIX века и Б. Пастернак в его работах до середины 1920-х, то в слоге Соколова прослеживается сходство с их работами (CASS 1987, Smith, “The Verse” 329–330). Что касается количества стихов в романе, А. Богуславский пишет: “можно предложить еще более заманчивую гипотезу о том, что число глав – 18 – и число стихов – 37 – являются скрытой отсылкой к году смерти Пушкина (1837) и возрастом его смерти” (Boguslawski, “How Sokolov’s” 207).

intertextuality

запойного охотника

То есть, Яков. Можно предположить, что эти стихотворные фрагменты написаны Яковом во время его годового пребывания на Волге; они разделены на части согласно временам года, однако, не конкретным сезонам, а межсезоньям. В первых Записках время действия — осень-зима. Дж. Смит предполагает, что “идея ехать в деревню зимой, а не летом, умышленно противопоставляется общепринятому обычаю приличного общества и является фундаментальным аспектом анти-цивилизованной позиции романа” (CASS, “The Verse”, 325). Вопреки мнению большинства критиков, он также считает, что Записки созданы неким “управляющим разумом” за пределами круга главных героев романа (CASS, “The Verse”, 326). Тема алкоголя.

explanatory time theme character

Text Annotations

Note I

Sokolov once described the process of writing Between Dog and Wolf as follows: “because I had little time, I wrote, primarily, poems. I couldn’t write prose. It requires a long ‘entrance.’ It simply requires continues life, somehow constant. But you can write poets in a train, anywhere you want … And therefore I also wrote a lot of poems for this book in Switzerland. And in Austria. In Austria I could write every evening but poems. Because when you return home from the forest at nine with axe, with a pitchfork or a saw in your hands, there’s simply no talk about prose. Therefore, that’s probably Sobaka’s form is so unusual, why poems and prose are interspersed” (Polovets 8).

structure

Impression

Oleg Dark calls the poems of Between Dog and Wolf “autocommentaries that connect a stylistically disintegrating narrative” (228).

structure

summer won’t be back

This first poem begins the transition from late summer to fall.

time

Gypsy moth

Silk moth. Animal motif.

motif

Bergamot pears

A kind of sweet pear that often resembles apples. The name is derived from the Italian bergamotto. Plant motif.

motif foreign

potato beetle’s larvae

The Colorado potato beetle (Leptinotarsa decemlineata) is also known as the Colorado beetle, the ten-striped spearman, the ten-lined potato beetle, or the potato bug. A pest native to the Rocky Mountains. Animal motif.

motif

grandpa’s tobacco

Grandfather’s tobacco is another name for the lycoperdon genus of mostly edible puffball mushrooms. The scientific name is derived from the Greek lycos meaning wolf and perdon meaning to fart. Read more here. The choice to mention this particular type of mushrooms is linked with the preceding word “vnuki” (grandchildren), which thus creates an ironic twist. See Note 2 below (R165/E30).

intratextuality irony pun

field browns

Russian: шоколадницу (shokoladnitsu). Sokolov explains: “this is how brown butterflies are called in Russia; there are several species of these butterflies, one of which is the anglewing butterfly” (personal communication, June 7, 2023). Animal motif.

motif

old dance tune from Cracow

A fast Polish folk dance in 2/4 from the region of Kraków, the second largest city in Poland. Closely associated with the folk costume worn during performances. Watch a performance here.

music foreign

she’ll turn into a white butterfly

Another instance of humans transforming into animals. Ostanin also notes a connection to A School for Fools, namely the scene in which the hero visits his grandmother’s grave: “a multicolored winter butterfly that was sitting on the branch of the elder gets scared and flies in the direction of the next grave; the angel only shudders but does not fly away; he stays with grandmother” (Shkola R78/E95). In general, the link between butterflies (or moths) and death is stressed both in A School for Fools and in this novel. Indeed, butterflies are often mentioned in relation to the idea of a short (but bright, beautiful, and light) life. Animal-human motif.

self-reference symbol theme motif

asters

A genus of dozens of perennial flower species. Plant motif.

motif

poppies

A genus of approximately 90 species of flowers. Plant motif.

motif

cricket

Cricket. Animal motif.

motif

Shrubs

Shrub. Plant motif.

motif

bushes

Bush. Plant motif.

motif

craftsmen

Handicrafts and craftsmen are mentioned several times in the novel (R206, 220 / E98, 123).

intratextuality

Cahors

A dessert wine consisting of cabernet sauvignon, saperavi, and other grapes produced in Moldova and Crimea. Originally sacramental wine used in Russian Orthodox liturgy. Also, red wine produced with Malbec grapes from Cahors, France. Also mentioned in Note X (R195/E83). Alcohol theme.

theme foreign intratextuality

pine

Plant motif.

motif

arrowleaf

A genus of perennial aquatic plants including the arrowhead and katniss. Plant motif.

motif

wetwalkers

Galoshes. D.B. Johnson has identified more than twenty different types of shoes across Sokolov’s three novels: “bashmaki, botforty, boty, botinki (polubotinki), cheboty, chizmy, chubury, galoshi (kaloshi), gety, ichigi, kedy, klogi, lapti, mokrostupy, obuvi (obuvki), sapogi, sandalii, tapochki (polutapochki), shlepantsy, shtiblety, tapti, tufli, valenki. The list may easily be extended with appurtenances such as socks, stockings, footcloths, gaiters, skates, crutches, and artificial legs” (“The Galoshes Manifesto” 156). Regarding Between Dog and Wolf, he notes that Ilya’s last name immediately evokes Cinderella’s vair slippers. Johnson observes that “the footwear motif is Sokolov’s tribute, both conscious and unconscious, to the tradition in Russian literature represented by his predecessors – Ivan Bunin and Valentin Kataev” (179). In an interview with A. and N. Voronel’, Sokolov calls Bunin, along with Gogol, his “contemporaries, collaborators along a chain, older masters” (Voroneli, “Ia khochu” 184). Shoe motif.

motif intertextuality

don

Russian: епанчу (epanchu). A long, sleeve coat with a hood. The term is derived from the East (epancha comes from yapancha/yaponchitsa, Japanese), even though it’s more Arabic. Its ancient origin is documented in works such as The Tale of Igor’s Campaign and the Domostroy. Clothing motif.

motif foreign

raincoat

Mentioned in chapter 2 (R159/E17). Clothing motif.

motif intratextuality

lonesome babe

Russian: bobylka. Colloquial: an unmarried, lonely (peasant) woman. She will make several appearances throughout the novel and is associated with Orina.

character register/style intratextuality

listen to the wagging dog’s tail

According to Sokolov, a Siberian idiom meaning to act stupidly rather than follow wise advice. Apparently, “tail” is a euphemism (“Bol’shoe pis’mo” 126).

phraseologism explanatory

coat

A woman’s cape. Clothing motif.

motif

gummies

A shoe with a slight heel, boot, and curved toe. Ilya mentions that he once wanted to modify one (R151/E5). D.B. Johnson has identified more than twenty different types of shoes across Sokolov’s three novels: “bashmaki, botforty, boty, botinki (polubotinki), cheboty, chizmy, chubury, galoshi (kaloshi), gety, ichigi, kedy, klogi, lapti, mokrostupy, obuvi (obuvki), sapogi, sandalii, tapochki (polutapochki), shlepantsy, shtiblety, tapti, tufli, valenki. The list may easily be extended with appurtenances such as socks, stockings, footcloths, gaiters, skates, crutches, and artificial legs” (“The Galoshes Manifesto” 156). Regarding Between Dog and Wolf, he notes that Ilya’s last name immediately evokes Cinderella’s vair slippers. Johnson observes that “the footwear motif is Sokolov’s tribute, both conscious and unconscious, to the tradition in Russian literature represented by his predecessors – Ivan Bunin and Valentin Kataev” (179). In an interview with A. and N. Voronel’, Sokolov calls Bunin, along with Gogol, his “contemporaries, collaborators along a chain, older masters” (Voroneli, “Ia khochu” 184). Shoe motif.

motif intratextuality intertextuality

carton tubes

The case of a bullet cartridge, which holds the gunpowder and other essential elements for firing.

explanatory

caps

Percussion caps (or primers) used in guns. See the following page for a quick primer on percussion caps’ functions.

explanatory

Gévelot

A device designed to ignite the powder charge in hunting cartridges. From the French, Gevelot.

foreign explanatory

carton tubes

The case of a bullet cartridge, which holds the gunpowder and other essential elements for firing.

explanatory

Gévelot

A device designed to ignite the powder charge in hunting cartridges. From the French, Gevelot.

explanatory foreign

caps

Percussion caps (or primers) used in guns. See the following page for a quick primer on percussion caps’ functions.

explanatory

boots

D.B. Johnson has identified more than twenty different types of shoes across Sokolov’s three novels: “bashmaki, botforty, boty, botinki (polubotinki), cheboty, chizmy, chubury, galoshi (kaloshi), gety, ichigi, kedy, klogi, lapti, mokrostupy, obuvi (obuvki), sapogi, sandalii, tapochki (polutapochki), shlepantsy, shtiblety, tapti, tufli, valenki. The list may easily be extended with appurtenances such as socks, stockings, footcloths, gaiters, skates, crutches, and artificial legs” (“The Galoshes Manifesto” 156). Regarding Between Dog and Wolf, he notes that Ilya’s last name immediately evokes Cinderella’s vair slippers. Johnson observes that “the footwear motif is Sokolov’s tribute, both conscious and unconscious, to the tradition in Russian literature represented by his predecessors – Ivan Bunin and Valentin Kataev” (179). In an interview with A. and N. Voronel’, Sokolov calls Bunin, along with Gogol, his “contemporaries, collaborators along a chain, older masters” (Voroneli, “Ia khochu” 184). Shoe motif.

motif intertextuality intratextuality

flannel pajamas

Clothing motif.

motif

plug

A device used to limit the number of cartridges that a gun can hold.

explanatory

Sir French

John Denton Pinkstone French (1852–1925) was a British Army officer famed for his service in the Second Boer War, in particular the Battles of Elandslaagte Klip Drift.

foreign

French

A military jacket used by the Russian and Soviet armies and named after John French. Clothing motif.

motif foreign

Jomini

Antoine-Henri Jomini (1779–1869), a Swiss military officer who served both the French and Russian armies. He is also well known for his influential The Art of War (1838).

foreign

saber

Known as a Circassian or Cossack sabre, this single-edged sword resembles a cross between a curved and straight blade.

explanatory

La Manche

Also known as the English Channel. The name derived from the French “la Manche” that is, “sleeve,” due to its shape.

explanatory foreign

Sir French

John Denton Pinkstone French (1852–1925) was a British Army officer famed for his service in the Second Boer War, in particular the Battles of Elandslaagte Klip Drift.

foreign

French

A military jacket used by the Russian and Soviet armies and named after John French. Clothing motif.

motif foreign

But since the barrel is caliber twenty, The shells’ caliber is also twenty-two.

Sokolov explains this passage as follows: “While loading cartridges, the Binging Hunter drinks and gets drunker and drunker, so he starts to think illogically and confuses calibers. He has a 20-caliber smoothbore shotgun, but it seems to him that the cartridges he is loading are 22-caliber. However, he does not see any contradiction in this, on the contrary: it seems to him that everything is in order, that twenty and twenty-two are the same, that such cartridges will fit the shotgun. This logic becomes especially paradoxical when one considers that 22-caliber cartridges are suitable only for rifle shooting, in other words, it is a purely rifled caliber” (personal communication, August 25, 2023).

explanatory

grandpa’s tobacco

Grandfather’s tobacco is another name for the lycoperdon genus of mostly edible puffball mushrooms. The scientific name is derived The scientific name is derived from the Greek lycos meaning wolf and perdon meaning to fart. Read more here.. See Note 1 above (R164/E27).

intratextuality

flashes

Lightning flashes. Mentioned in chapter 2 in connection to other body parts (R160/Е20).

intratextuality

clock

Wall clock, which is here personified (it “imagines”). On a narrative level, time affects all aspects of the novel.

explanatory poetic device time

lonesome babe’s

Russian: bobylka. Colloquial: an unmarried, lonely (peasant) woman. She will make several appearances throughout the novel and is associated with Orina.

character register/style intratextuality

kissel

A berry fruit dish or drink (depending on how much thickening agent is added) popular in Northern, Central, and Eastern Europe.

explanatory

The time between wolf and hound

Twilight.

time theme

hound

Each stanza has a ring structure and ends with the repetition of the last word of the first line.

structure

pond

The setting opening A School for Fools.

self-reference intertextuality

oak tree

Oak. Mikhail Epstein notes that in Russian poetry “the oak tree is separated from the other trees, which makes it the king of the tree kingdom. It embodies the highest degree of hardness, courage, strength and majesty. It is this clarity of the original meaning that made the image of the oak tree especially popular in the early stages of poetry, and then weakened its significance when the imagery of poetry began to become more complex and overcome the unambiguity of folklore and allegorical musings. […] The oak tree in Russian poetry, as well as in world folklore, symbolizes the power of life that overcame death; that is why the decay of the oak tree acts as an ominous sign of the collapse of life, the invasion of demonic forces in its sanctuary” (47, 50). Plant motif.

motif symbol

Hoopoe

The hoopoe appears several times throughout the novel, mostly in Yakov’s poems (R167, 168, 169, 233, 236, 262, 280/E31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 145, 149, 199). José Vergara writes: “the hoopoe plays a key role in the story of Tereus in Ovid’s Metamorphoses. In this myth, the Thracian king rapes Philomela, his wife Procne’s sister, and cuts out her tongue to keep the secret. After Philomela manages to convey to Procne what happened, the sisters conspire to kill the latter’s son, Itys, and feed him to Tereus. Upon learning of their actions, Tereus in turn seeks them out, but before he can enact his revenge, the gods transform them all into birds: Procne into a swallow, Philomela into a nightingale, Tereus into a hoopoe. According to the folklore, the hoopoe’s hooting call is said to mean “where, where” in Greek – Tereus’s plea as he searches for his displaced family” (“Flap” 364–365). Throughout the novel, Ilya is associated with the hoopoe in that he also looks for his missing family. Therefore, Ilya reenacts this plot as he seeks out Orina and their son, Yakov. “He is displaced, like Tereus, in his various transformations and peregrinations, pursuing his idealized family,” Vergara continues, “but constantly mired by the imagery he uses and that is used to describe him” (“Flap” 366). Boris Ostanin also notes that in the Koran the hoopoe turns up late to King Solomon’s congress of birds but manages to escape the death sentence after he explains that he was spying in Queen Sheba’s kingdom; Solomon then sends the hoopoe with a message to Sheba (39). In this way, additional links between the myth and Ilya are activated: Ilya’s letter to Pozhilykh sent after his own murder at the hands of Yakov, mail, an escape from death (Vergara, “Flap” 367). Animal-human motif.

intratextuality motif intertextuality foreign

pipes

Pipe.

music

handcar

A draisine, a light auxiliary rail vehicle. Railroad theme.

theme

versta

An obsolete Russian unit of length equal to approximately .66 miles (1.7 km).

explanatory Russia

handcar

A draisine, a light auxiliary rail vehicle. Railroad theme.

theme

cricket knows its place well

A paraphrase of the expression “всяк сверчок знай свой шесток,” meaning, “every person [cricket] should know their place [and not involve themselves in others’ business].” Animal motif.

motif phraseologism

Whether it’s early or late

Ambiguity of time, the time between dog and wolf.

time theme

The Grinder

That is, Ilya.

character explanatory

You’ll be barely moving at all

Ilya has lost a leg in an accident and must, in this way, drag along his remaining limb.

explanatory character

flag-bearer

Originally (since the XI century) the khorunzhy was a military rank identifying the standard-bearer (khorugv’ means heraldic flag) in military units of armies of many Slavic countries, later (since the XIV century) a commander of a military unit in medieval Poland and Lithuania. In the XVI-XVIII centuries it was also the name of an army official in the Zaporizhian Sich and other Cossack communities. There existed a general (troop), a regimental and a centurion khorunzhy, who were part of the Cossack senior officers and performed duties related to the organization of gatherings and inspections of troops, accounting of weapons, storage of flags, etc.. The khorunzhy was also the name of a junior officer rank in the Cossack troops of pre-revolutionary Russia (since the 18th century), corresponding to the rank of lieutenant and cornet in the regular Russian Imperial army. Emel’yan Pugachyov (leader of a major popular uprising under Catherine II) was a khorunzhy.

Russia foreign explanatory

weapons

That is, knives.

explanatory

Do I love such weather

According to Boguslawski, a “paraphrased quote from Vladimir Sokolov’s untitled 1967 poem ‘Na vlazhnye planki ogrady’ (On the wet planks of the fence)” (“Annotations” 236). Read the poem (in Russian) here. In the poem, two people have a conversation by a fence. It is the beginning of autumn, and it is raining. The first speaker asks whether the other person likes this weather, “When it drizzles, drizzles… / And the yellow eye on the water, / The streetlamp because of the branches squints”. The second responds that they like it, “That they (both) are, as in their youth, delirious, / That their coat smells like rain.” They like it, but they decide to leave, to go where no one knows. The last stanza of the poem describes how, for a long time at the fence, “where seconds drip into the tub,” fragments of that conversation like leaves rustle and rustle.

intertextuality

Do I love such weather, so pleasing, When the clouds are suddenly gone, And the masses can notice much easier The appearance, let’s not say: of a cuckoo, But correctly, let’s say: of the Hoopoe Who is cranking his grinding flint stone?

In these lines and others, the connection between the mythic hoopoe and Ilya the knife-grinder become clearer: “The hoopoe shares Ilya’s profession of grinding, moves about on one leg, and lives in the same space as his human counterpart among the other invalids of Gorodnishche. In a transmutation of the Tereus myth, the cutting of Philomela’s tongue echoes Ilya-hoopoe’s association with ‘scythes, or sickles, or axes,’ as well as the loss of his leg on a railroad track at some point in the novel (at least a couple variants of the story are given). In this case, of course, it is the man who suffers the dismemberment, but the cycle of violence from the original myth finds resonance in Dog’s plot where no bad deed goes unreciprocated” (Vergara, “Flap” 366). Animal-human motif.

intertextuality motif

When the clouds are suddenly gone

A reference to Boris Pasternak’s 1956 poem and cycle “When the Weather Clears…” Read the poem and a translation here.

intertextuality

cuckoo

Russian original: урод (urod) — freak, monstrosity.

translation

Hoopoe

intratextuality intertextuality motif foreign

Hoopoe’s

intratextuality intertextuality motif foreign

turban

Turban. Clothing motif.

motif

caftan

Robe or tunic. Clothing motif.

motif

hakeem

A wise or learned man. Russian original: аксакал (aksakal). Male elders in parts of Central Asia. The term means “white beard.”

foreign explanatory translation

akyn

A Kyrgyz or Kazakh singer/poet who improvises their works. Watch a performance here.

foreign music

What a dank, clammy autumn!

As Boguslawski notes, this line references an untitled 1854 poem by Afanasy Fet: “What a cold autumn!” (“Annotations” 237). Read the poem and a translation here.

intertextuality

autumn

The setting has shifted fully into autumn.

time

Hoopoe

intratextuality motif intertextuality foreign

scythes

Braid, scythe, or sandback/spit. The ambiguity of the word “kosa” has a famous literary “predecessor” in Aleksandr Blok’s drama Balaganchik (The Puppet Show, 1906). The female character of Columbine has a “kosa” behind her back: either a hair braid or a scythe. The “mystics” warn Pierrot about her being Death, but he calls her his bride (“Я не слушаю сказок. Я — простой человек. Вы не обманете меня. Это — Коломбина. Это — моя невеста”; I don’t listen to fairy tales. I am a simple man. You will not deceive me. This is Columbine. This is my bride). The ambiguity is also stressed by the character of the Author who enters the scene and exclaims: “Я не признаю […] аллегорической игры словами: неприлично называть косой смерти женскую косу! Это порочит дамское сословие!” (I do not recognize […] such allegorical wordplay: it is indecent to call a woman’s braid a scythe of death! It denigrates a lady’s status!). In the end, Pierrot sadly discovers that this Columbine was just a “cardboard bride” (Она картонной невестой была). The crucial theme linking a woman’s love to death draws parallels between Sokolov’s novel and Blok’s Balaganchik, although there is a very long literary tradition that has developed this line (e.g., Eros and Thanatos; Catullus’s Odi et amo, I hate and I love). Read the original by Blok here.

theme intertextuality language

Please, put on my scarf and my coat

Boguslawski further notes that this line borrows from the same Fet poem as in the first line of this stanza: “Put on your shawl and coat” (“Annotations” 237). Read the poem and a translation here. Clothing motif.

motif intertextuality

scarf

Scarf. Clothing motif.

motif

coat

Coat. Clothing motif.

motif

gravedigger

Both meaning gravedigger and indicating the burying beetle. Animal motif.

motif

Sings something about motherland

A line from the song “On the Wild Steppes of Transbaikal” (also known as “The Wanderer”). The story of the song’s hero reflects Ilya’s misfortunes: “I left my young wife / And left my young children, / Now I’m wandering haphazardly, / God knows whether I’ll see her!” Read the lyrics, in Russian and English, here. Listen to a recording here. Ilya also quotes this song in chapter 6 (R192/E76).

intertextuality music intratextuality

invalids’ home

One of the settings of the novel.

location setting

Hoopoe

intratextuality motif intertextuality foreign

one-legged

Ilya has lost a leg in an accident.

explanatory character

Blind and mute

Blind and dumb people (but also deaf people) will be mentioned throughout the novel.

intratextuality

hunchbacked

Humpback. The image of humpbacked people and animals appears several times throughout the novel (R152, 168, 180, 184, 187, 189, 200, 217, 103, 268/E6, 61, 66, 69, 89, 208).

intratextuality

pass by

Leona Toker identifies this line as a reference to Nikolai Nekrasov’s poem 1861 “Peasant Children” (read the original here) and Williams Wordsworth’s 1807 poem “The Solitary Reaper” (available here) (“Gamesman’s Sketches” 358).

intertextuality foreign

scorching sun

According to Boguslawski, a direct borrowing from Nikolai Nekrasov’s 1858 poem “Thoughts at the Vestibule” (“Annotations” 236). Nekrasov directly references the Volga and the sorrows of the lower classes: “Go out to the Volga: hear whose moan / Rises over Russia’s greatest river?” Read the poem, in Russian and in English, here.

intertextuality

Gorgon

Greek mythology. Three sisters (Stheno, Euryale, and Medusa) with snakes for hair who could transform those who saw them into stone.

intertextuality foreign

The leaf fall’s whispering season

Another marker of the poem’s temporal setting: leaves falling in autumn.

time

October

A continuation of the temporal setting: autumn.

time

a balmy air

Possible reference to the so-called Indian summer.

time explanatory

farnowheres

Original Russian: neologism: никуда (nowhere) + даль (distance, horizon, expanse).

translation language neologism

sagebrush

Artemisia. Pictured here:Common species include mugwort, wormwood, and sagebrush. Most famously, wormwood (полынь) is the name of the star that falls and poisons the waters of the world in the Book of Revelation. See Revelation 8:10–11. Plant motif.

motif religion bible

live

See the beginning of chapter two (R158/E17).

intratextuality

sew

Various characters sew in the novel. In Yakov’s eighth poem, an oriole “resews evening into night” (R172/E39). Sewing is also mentioned in Note XVI (R200/E92). Yakov sews slippers (R274/E219). Sewing theme.

theme intratextuality

squirrel

Made out of squirrel fur. Clothing and animal motif.

motif

slip-ons

Original Russian: ичиги (ichigi). A Tatar light shoe with a soft toe. Also used by peoples of the Caucasus and Central Asia. D.B. Johnson has identified more than twenty different types of shoes across Sokolov’s three novels: “bashmaki, botforty, boty, botinki (polubotinki), cheboty, chizmy, chubury, galoshi (kaloshi), gety, ichigi, kedy, klogi, lapti, mokrostupy, obuvi (obuvki), sapogi, sandalii, tapochki (polutapochki), shlepantsy, shtiblety, tapti, tufli, valenki. The list may easily be extended with appurtenances such as socks, stockings, footcloths, gaiters, skates, crutches, and artificial legs” (“The Galoshes Manifesto” 156). Regarding Between Dog and Wolf, he notes that Ilya’s last name immediately evokes Cinderella’s vair slippers. Johnson observes that “the footwear motif is Sokolov’s tribute, both conscious and unconscious, to the tradition in Russian literature represented by his predecessors – Ivan Bunin and Valentin Kataev” (179). In an interview with A. and N. Voronel’, Sokolov calls Bunin, along with Gogol, his “contemporaries, collaborators along a chain, older masters” (Voroneli, “Ia khochu” 184). Shoe motif.

motif intertextuality translation

Hoopoe

intratextuality motif intertextuality foreign

cuckoo

The original Russian repeats “hoopoe” using a different term: потатуйка (potatuika). Same as удод (hoopoe). The hoopoe appears several times throughout the novel, mostly in Yakov’s poems (R167, 168, 169, 233, 236, 262, 280/E31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 145, 149, 199). Animal motif.

motif intratextuality

drum

An instrument similar to the tambourine. The main difference is that some bubens have metal rings, plates, cymbals, or bells attached. Also mentioned in chapter 1 by Ilya (“брюзжи себе под дугою хоть до Валдай-пристани — литье бубенчиков” [R150/E2]) and at the end of chapter 2 (“некто нетрезво бьет в бубен” [R163/E25]).

intratextuality music

Spindlewort, fusoria, fusanum, Scarletberry, snakeberry, solanum

Names for the plants Euonymus europaens (European spindle) and Solanum dulcamara (bittersweet nightshade). A reflection of the characters’ various, shifting names. Gerald Smith compares this passage to the verse of Velimir Khlebnikov (1885–1922) and his literary descendants, including the OBERIU poets (“The Verse” 334). According to S. Efimova: “The words found and invented by the author are mixed: in V.I. Dahl’s dictionary there are “beresklet,” “brusklet,” “beresdren,” “bereske,” “berendeika,” and “bud’derevo”; the writer invented the word “bredovnik,” and “brusklet” is modified into “burusklen.” While working as a huntsman, who provided the material for the novel, the writer was greatly influenced by the speech of local residents. The selection of consonant words from folk dialects also allowed him to convey a fabulous, folkloric picture of the world, as well as the first group of metaphors” (43). Plant motif.

motif intertextuality

roll-ups

A homemade papirosa (cigarette), rolled up in the form of a funnel and bent in half.

explanatory

A part of speech known by the name of cough

Metaphoric description of the cough.

poetic device

moaning of rowlocks

The device used to hold an oar in place on a boat. Ilya mentions “rowlocks crying” in chapter 8 (R206/E105). Boat motif.

intratextuality motif

mallard’s

Mallard. The duck has been seen as a symbol of sex and constancy (Rowland, Birds 49). Animal motif.

motif

ragged freeshooters

A reference to the Russian translation (“Волшебный стрелок”) of the opera Der Freischütz by Carl Maria von Weber. The opera draws on August Apel’s “Der Freischütz” (1810), itself based on German folklore, and tells the story of a forester who must prove his mettle in marksmanship to marry his love. Watch a performance (with English subtitles) here.

foreign Russia intertextuality

Pas d’Espaigne

The “Pas D’Espaigne” is a famous ballroom piece in 3/4 time that draws from Spanish dance. Watch a performance here. Despite its name, this music and dance scheme was created by the Russian composer and choreographer Alexander Tsarman (1873-1939) in 1899, receiving great fame and success all over Eastern Europe thanks also to its catchy music and easy (simplified) dance.

Russia foreign intertextuality music

Mozart’s

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756–1791) — composer born in Salzburg. Before dying at 35, he wrote more than 800 varied works.

intertextuality music foreign

music was merrily sounding One day in the old city park

In A School For Fools an orchestra plays in the grass and their music is carried by the wind (ch. 1)

self-reference music intertextuality

A lady was blissfully longing

A possible reference to a passage from D. Eremin’s Before the Jump. Read the original here.

intertextuality

visiting cornet

According to Ostanin, a reference to Nikolai Nekrasov’s 1846 poem “The Troika” (32). Read the original poem here. Read an English translation here. This figure also appears in chapter 12 (R246/E169).

intertextuality intratextuality

tête-à-tête

French: head-to-head, in private, face-to-face.

foreign

restaurant

Italicized to signify the French origins of the word.

foreign

Pas d’Espaigne

The “Pas D’Espaigne” is a famous ballroom piece in 3/4 time that draws from Spanish dance. Written by the Russian ballet dancer Alexander Tsarman. Watch a performance here.

foreign Russia intertextuality music

Pas d’Espaigne is a wonderful dance, Because it’s so easy to learn: Two steps back, then two to advance, Turn around, and repeat all again.

Not unlike Between Dog and Wolf itself: movement and comprehension in one direction, then a spiral back to some other state of affairs with repetitions. Four lines taken directly from the “Pas D’Espaigne,” a famous ballroom piece in 3/4 time that draws from Spanish dance. Written by the Russian ballet dancer Alexander Tsarman. Watch a performance here.

foreign Russia intertextuality structure self-reference

Spanish

A Spaniard.

foreign

And, all of a sudden, she blushed

According to Ostanin, a reference to Nikolai Nekrasov’s 1846 poem “The Troika” (32). Read the original poem here. In this famous poem, Nekrasov describes the typical tragic fate of peasant women of his time, while in this Note, the woman is a “dama,” and the verses suggest her encounter with a foreigner (a Spanish man) who may represent for her an escape, just like the image of a troika on the road for Nekrasov’s young woman. Read an English translation here.

intertextuality

In the old city park

In A School For Fools an orchestra plays in the grass and their music is carried by the wind (ch. 1)

self-reference music intertextuality

Mozart’s

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756–1791) — composer born in Salzburg. Before dying at 35, he wrote more than 800 varied works.

intertextuality music foreign

November

The first chapters of the novel frequently mention fall-winter months and settings (snow, ice, etc.), while later on spring and summer will substitute them.

time

The leaves and the birds—they all went flying

A continuation of the temporal setting: autumn. Leaves have fallen. Birds have departed. Animal motif.

time

Nigh is the time of Saint Vitus’s dance

As Boguslawski notes, the reference to chorea here is suggestive of “the time of day when the air flickers and shivers, making things blurry and difficult to identify” (“Annotations” 237). Ilya mentions chorea in chapter 6 (R191/E74).

time explanatory intratextuality

Saint Vitus’s dance

Chorea — a movement disorder belonging to the dyskinesias group of neurological disorders. Its name comes from the Ancient Greek “χορεία” and was used to described the movements of those inflicted by the disease. Sokolov’s first novel, A School for Fools, is dedicated to Vita Plyaskina, which refers to Sydenham’s chorea (also known as “St. Vitus’s dance, пляска святого Вита in Russian). Watch a video here. Referred to several times in the novel (R171, 191, 205, 214, 215/E37, 74, 97, 113, 115).

self-reference intratextuality

the bag and jail

A reference to the saying “от сумы да тюрьмы не зарекайся” (meaning, no one is immune from prison or poverty).

phraseologism

while telegraph wires Can still be seen

It may allude to Marina Tsvetaeva’s poem “Wires.” Read the original here.

intertextuality

stilo

According to Evgeny Sokolov, this verse is a varied quotation from Boris Pasternak’s poem “February. Get ink and cry).” Read it here.

intertextuality

twilight

Again, twilight — the central metaphor and time of the novel.

time theme

Chinese

Referring to the inversion of “I am” that ends this poem, Sokolov explains: “Chinese are foreigners […] thus should be addressed accordingly, that is, in an unusual style, using inversion, as if backwards” (personal communication, June 7, 2023).

foreign

Manila

The capital of the Philippines. Intentionally wrong geography: to Manila for Chinese. Reminiscent of Vladimir Vysotsky’s “Instructions Before a Trip Abroad”: “I am leaving for Bulgarian Budapest.” Read the lyrics in the original and in English here. Listen to a recording here.

foreign location music intertextuality

Bin ich

German: Am I?

foreign

gryphon

Griffin —a mythological creature with a lion body and head, wings, and talons of an eagle.Animal motif.

motif intertextuality

pale mare

The Pale Horse, the horse ridden by the Fourth Horseman of the Apocalypse, Death, in the Bible: “When the Lamb broke the fourth seal, I heard the voice of the fourth living creature saying, ‘Come.’ I looked, and behold, a pale horse; and he who sat on it had the name Death; and Hades was following with him. Authority was given to them over a fourth of the earth, to kill with sword and with famine and with pestilence and by the wild beasts of the earth” (Revelation 6:7–8). The color comes from the Greek “khlōros” (χλωρός), meaning greenish-yellow or pale/pallid. Animal motif.

intertextuality motif bible religion

Or, using the term of the postal agent, Pounded like cutlets, leaving none to spare

Stamping the envelopes, putting stamps on them.

explanatory

plastered

Extremely drunk. Alcohol theme.

theme

vespertilio

Serotine bat. Animal motif.

motif

crown

Upper part of a hat. Clothing motif.

motif

Darkness entered my pines

Ostanin identifies this line as a reference to the opening of Dante’s Inferno: “Midway upon the journey of our life / I found myself within a forest dark” (32).

foreign intertextuality

chapeau

A flat-topped hat. Original Russian: шапокляк (shapokliak). An opera hat. A portmanteau from шляпа (hat) and шлепок (slap, smack). The term is in turn derived from the French “chapeau claque,” which combines “hat” and “click,” as the hat closes with a clicking sound. Ilya picks out the same style of hat in chapter 4 (R183/E59). Clothing motif.

foreign translation motif intratextuality

racer

Species of nonvenomous snake. Animal motif.

motif

sward

Top layer of soil, often covered with grass.

explanatory

An oriole kept sewing evening into night

Olga Matich writes of the sewing themes: “Yet the verb “weave” and noun “weaving” appear only rarely in the novel and only with its meaning defamiliarized or rewoven, for example in the wellknown colloquial idiom in which weaving words is a metaphor for speaking nonsense (‘Ой, плетете вы сами не знаете что,’ 142), perhaps intended as a parody of word-weaving. Another estranged usage is that of ‘pleten’’ (wattle fence) metamorphosed into a thrice removed distant relative (‘троюродный плетень,’ 112); or ‘spletni’ (108), meaning gossip, which comes from the verb ‘spletat’’ (weave in the sense of intertwine). The altercation between Ilya and the wolf on the ice inscribes reweaving (perepletat) rendered as ‘Мудрено индивиду в таких переплетах баланс удерживать’ (139) […] ‘Pereplet’ means book binding, with its plural in this passage metaphorized as a situation in which Ilya finds it difficult to keep his balance on the ice. The phrase, I would suggest, may also be a nod to Between Dog and Wolf’s readers who sometimes find it very difficult to interpret that which they encounter between its, so to speak, woven, rewoven, or interwoven ‘bindings’” (Between Dog and Wolf 255–256).

theme

oriole

The golden oriole. The Russian name “ivolga” is homonymous with the word “vlaga” (moisture). It was once believed that the bird is a herald of rain. Here however the oriole is also chosen for its closeness to the name of the river Volga. Animal motif.

motif

sewing

Various characters sew in the novel. Maria (a variant of Orina, the bobylka, Lonesome Babe) is associated with sewing (R161/E21). In Yakov’s eighth poem, an oriole “resews evening into night” (R172/E39). Sewing is also mentioned in Note XVI (R200/E92). Yakov sews slippers (R274/E219). Sewing theme.

intratextuality theme

evening into night

The moment of twilight between evening and night.

time theme

crane

Crane. Among other things, cranes hold a “reputation for vigilance,” as seen here with the standing crane, which contrasts with the poet’s mistaken vision (Rowland, Birds 32, Tate 14). Animal motif.

motif

reeds

Reed. Plant motif.

motif

canotier

From the French canotier. A straw boating hat. Clothing motif.

motif

mallards

Mallard. The duck has been seen as a symbol of sex and constancy (Rowland, Birds 49). Animal motif.

motif

sedge

Sedge. Plant motif.

motif

Note IX

According to D. Barton Johnson, this was the first poem written by Sokolov for the novel. It was written in July 1976 on a train between Zürich and Locarno (“Background Notes” 338). Railroad theme.

author theme structure

Pushkin’s

Alexander Sergeevich Pushkin (1799–1837), the father of modern Russian letters and a crucial source of subtexts in Between Dog and Wolf. In fact, the phrase “пора меж волка и собаки” (the time between wolf and dog”) appears in Pushkin’s celebrated novel-in-verse Eugene Onegin (ch. 4, stanza 47).

intertextuality

Pushchin’s

A Decembrist poet, who was friends with Pushkin (1798-1859).

Russia intertextuality

hunting grounds

A reference to Pushkin’s poem “Autumn”: (“and my neighbor hastens / to his far-flung fields with all the members of his hunt”). Read the poem (in Russian and in English translation) here.

intertextuality

And you’re so glum, as one may gather, That faithful ale can’t make life right. Should you clean your chibouk or rather Challenge your neighbor to a fight?

This poem merges different lines of Pushkin’s oeuvre and biography (duels, spleen, etc.). In particular, this poem seems to creatively rewrite Pushkin’s “Winter. What’s there to do in the village?”. Read the original here.

intertextuality

chibouk

A long-stemmed Turkish pipe.

foreign

robe

German: Schlafrock. A long nightgown. Clothing motif.

foreign motif

pour l’appetite

French: for the appetite.

foreign

cerceau

From the French “cerceau.” Hoop rolling — a children’s game in which hoops are kept rolling with a stick or other device. Depicted in the bottom center of the 1560 painting Children’s Games by Bruegel: Sabine Pénot and Elke Oberthaler write, “Children’s Games is one of the earliest known panel paintings by Bruegel. […] Bruegel’s encyclopaedic approach is not limited to the depiction of the greatest possible variety of games but also embraces the rendering of a whole gamut of personal dispositions, from calm to aggressive. With just a few strokes of the brush the painter manages to give each of the protagonists a clearly legible expression that goes well beyond stock characterization, through the play of facial features and body language. Different types of customs make it clear that Bruegel was intending to depict a miscellany of children’s activities from all four seasons” (132). Ostanin also notes that Серко (Serko) is the name given to dogs in the Ukrainian fairy tale “Серко” (33).

intertextuality foreign

à petit

French: a little.

foreign

charabanc

Сhar-à-banc, a horse-drawn vehicle.

foreign

English Club’s

A member of the “Aglitsky Club” was Famusov, a character in Griboyedov’s comedy Woe from Wit. Pushkin himself was a regular member of the English Club.

explanatory intertextuality

fall

Fall is the season traditionally associated with A.S. Pushkin.

time intertextuality

like a wolf from forest’s stubble, Yawns, when the lights go on, at last

The transition from day to night.

time theme

white flies

Another metaphor for “snow.”

poetic device metaphor

nanny

A reference to Pushkin’s nanny, Arina Rodionovna Yakovleva (1758–1828). Pushkin retained a loving attitude to her, even dedicating poems to her and taking notes from her folk tales and tunes; she opened up for him an entire peasant world in terms of motifs, characters, and even words. Tatyana’s nanny from his masterpiece Eugene Onegin draws on her profile. Tatyana thrice says “Ах, няня…” (ch. 3, stanzas 19, 34, 35). Also mentioned in Note XXV (R234/E146).

intertextuality intratextuality

Ah, snow has fallen! What a wonder!

Leona Toker identifies this line as a reference to the seventh stanza of Alexander Pushkin’s 1833 poem “Autumn” (“Gamesman’s Sketches” 382). Read the original and a translation here.

intertextuality

winter

This set of poems deals with the time between fall and winter. Here, we move onto winter and the next batch of Notes.

time

Записка I

structure

Записка I

An3, ABAB.

Aн3, ABAB.

metrical pattern rhyme

Впечатление

Oleg Dark calls the poems of Between Dog and Wolf “autocommentaries that connect a stylistically disintegrating narrative” (228).

structure

лета исход

This first poem begins the transition from late summer to fall.

time

Мотылек шелкопряда

Silk moth. Animal motif.

explanatory motif

дешевка

Colloquial: bargain prices, cheap sales.

Разговорное: низкие цены, дешевые вещи.

сутолка

Colloquial: hustle and bustle, commotion.

Разговорное: балаган, толчея, суета.

Бергамотных

A kind of sweet pear that often resembles apples. The name is derived from the Italian bergamotto. Plant motif.

Вид сладких груш, напоминающих яблоки. Название происходит от итальянского bergamotto.

foreign motif

куколку Колорадскую

Колорадский картофельный жук (Leptinotarsa decemlineata), известный также как колорадский жук или картофельный листоед. Родиной жука являются Скалистые горы (Rocky Mountains). Изображено ниже:

Мотив животных.

motif

дедушкин ищут табак

Дедушкин табак (grandfather’s tobacco) is another name for the lycoperdon genus of mostly edible puffball mushrooms. The scientific name is derived from the Greek lycos meaning wolf and perdon meaning to fart. Read more here. The choice to mention this particular type of mushrooms is linked with the preceding word “vnuki” (grandchildren), which thus creates an ironic twist. See Note 2 below (R165/E30).

Дедушкин табак — альтернативное название преимущественно съедобного гриба дождевик, который напоминает шар с шипами. Научное название гриба происходит от греческого lycos, то есть волк, и perdon, то есть пуканье. Прочитать больше можно здесь (статья на английском) или здесь (статья на русском). Изображено ниже:

См. Записка II ниже (R165/E30).

intratextuality irony pun

Шоколадницу

Sokolov explains: “this is how brown butterflies are called in Russia; there are several species of these butterflies, one of which is the anglewing butterfly” (personal communication, June 7, 2023). Animal motif.

Соколов объясняет: “Шоколадницами в России называют бабочек коричневого цвета, которых несколько видов, один из них - углокрыльница” (личное сообщение, 7 июня 2023). Изображена ниже: Мотив животных.

motif

краковяк

A fast Polish folk dance in 2/4 from the region of Kraków, the second largest city in Poland. Closely associated with the folk costume worn during performances. Watch a performance here.

Быстрый польский народный танец в 2/4, берет начало из Кракова, второго по величине города в Польше. Тесно связан с танцевальным костюмом, надевающимся при его исполнении. Посмотреть выступление можно здесь.

foreign music

Вот умрет наша бедная бабушка, Мы ее похороним в земле, Чтобы стала она белой бабочкой Через сто или тысячу лет.

Paronomasia (babushka - babochka).

Парономазия (бабушка - бабочка).

sound stylistic device

стала она белой бабочкой

Очередной случай, когда человек превращается в животное. Останин также подчеркивает связь со “Школой для дураков”, в частности, со сценой, в которой герой навещает могилу бабушки”: “зимняя бабочка, сидевшая на ветке бузины, пугается и летит к соседней могиле; ангел лишь вздрагивает, но не улетает, он остается с бабушкой” (29). Мотив людей-животных.

self-reference symbol theme motif

астры

A genus of dozens of perennial flower species. Plant motif.

Род многолетних травянистых растений (цветов), включающий десятки видов. Изображено ниже:

Мотив растений.

motif

мак

A genus of approximately 90 species of flowers. Plant motif.

motif

кузнечик

Cricket. Animal motif.

Изображено ниже: Мотив животных.

motif

беремен

Meaning shift and personification.

Сдвиг значения и олицетворение.

poetic device

Впечатление есть, что кустарники Козыряют всей мастью червей

As Leona Toker explains, tracing the connections between these various words, the “trump card of the bushes is, thus, a breed of worms” and the shape of the red card-suit calls to mind the poisonous red berries produced by the bushes (“Gamesman’s Sketches” 350). Animal motif.

explanatory motif

кустарники

Shrub. Plant motif.

Куст. Мотив растений.

motif

мастью червей

Colloquial: color. Used at the end of the chapter in Note IX (R173/E41). “Chervi” can mean “worms” or “card suits.” Thus, “масть червей” means hearts, referring to the type of card. Animal motif.

Разговорное: цвет. Встречается в конце главы в Записке IX (R173/E41). “Масть червей” также означает один из четырёх разрядов, на которые делится колода карт по цвету и форме очков.

кагор

Красное вино, изготавливаемое из винограда, выращенного в регионе Кагор (Каор) во Франции. Также упоминается в Записке X (R195/E83).

foreign intratextuality theme

кагор на дворе у бочарника Пьет когорта

Paronomasia (kagor - kogorta).

Парономазия.

stylistic device sound

бочарника

Ukrainian: cooper. Another form, бондарь, appears in chapter 4 (R174/E44). Alexey Salomatin and Artem Skvortsov suggest that the novel’s stylistic dominant is not skaz but rather surzhik, a combination of Russian and Ukrainian (349). For a detailed reconsideration of skaz in Between Dog and Wolf, see Mario Caramitti’s “Skaz Zynzyrely.” There, he suggests that skaz is “only one of the stylistic layers (perhaps the most important) of Ilya’s ‘Zaitil’shchina,’ as it constitutes a very peculiar metaprojection of the textual, stylistic, and performative heritage of folk tales and byliny on a modern narrative” (397).

Украинское: бочар, мастер по изготовлению бочек. Другая форма, бондарь, встречается в главе 4 (R174/E44).

intratextuality foreign language

младых

Archaism (instead of “molodykh”). See for instance Pushkin’s poem “Kogda tvoi mladye leta…”. Read a translation here.

Архаизм (вместо “молодых”). См. у Пушкина “Когда твои младые лета…”.

archaism

кустарей

This word is seemingly conjured up by the кустарники (bushes) of the first line of the stanza, and a parallel is drawn between the violence of the craftsmen and the danger of the poisonous berries (Toker, “Gamesman’s Sketches” 351). Handicrafts and craftsmen are mentioned several times in the novel (R206, 220 / E98, 123).

intratextuality language explanatory

Записка II

Ya, non-regular pattern.

Я разностопный.

metrical pattern

Снаряженье

Archaic suffix (-ье instead of -ие).

archaism

стезей

Poetic/high: path, way.

Поэтическое/высокий стиль: путь, дорога.

лист, Включая стрелолист

Figura etymologica.

Этимологическая фигура речи.

stylistic device sound

стрелолист

A genus of perennial aquatic plants including the arrowhead and katniss. Plant motif.

Род водных многолетних растений. Изображено ниже:

Мотив растений.

motif

мокроступы

Резиновые сапоги.

intertextuality motif

епанчу

A long, sleeve coat with a hood. The term is derived from the East (epancha comes from yapancha/yaponchitsa, Japanese), even though it’s more Arabic. Its ancient origin is documented in works such as The Tale of Igor’s Campaign and the Domostroy. Clothing motif.

Длинный плащ с капюшоном. Мотив одежды.

motif foreign

ныне

Literary/dated/high: now.

Сбираясь

Dated: to get ready to (собираться).

Устаревшее: собираться.

крылатке

Mentioned in chapter 2 (R159/E17). Clothing motif.

Упоминается в главе 2 (R159/E17).

intratextuality motif

Дождем грибным

Light rain during sunshine. A continuation of the mushroom motif from Note I.

Моросящий, мелкий дождь вместе с солнцем. Продолжение грибного мотива Записки I.

intratextuality phraseologism

Бобылка

Colloquial: an unmarried, lonely (peasant) woman. She will make several appearances throughout the novel and is associated with Orina.

Разговорное: незамужняя, одинокая женщина-крестьянка. Она встречается далее в романе и обычно ассоциируется с Ориной.

поделом

Colloquial: serves you right.

Разговорное: справедливо, заслуженно.

Послушался собачьего хвоста

According to Sokolov, a Siberian idiom meaning to act stupidly rather than follow wise advice. Apparently, “tail” is a euphemism (“Bol’shoe pis’mo” 126).

Согласно Соколову, сибирское выражение: вместо того, чтобы поступить по совету мудрого человека, поступить опрометчиво, глупо. Хвост, видимо, эфремизм. (“Большое письмо” 126)

explanatory phraseologism

Салоп

A woman’s cape. Clothing motif.

Женская верхняя одежда. Изображено ниже:

Мотив одежды.

motif

чеботы

Сапоги с каблуком, высоким голенищем и загнутым носком. Илья рассказывает о видоизменении своего чебота (R151/E5). Мотив одежды.

intratextuality motif intertextuality

неслух

Colloquial: obstinate child, disobedient person.

Разговорное: своенравный ребенок, непослушный человек.

картонных гильз

The case of a bullet cartridge, which holds the gunpowder and other essential elements for firing.

Трубка, предназначенная для помещения пули, дробового заряда и других конструктивных элементов, необходимых для выстрела. Служит оболочкой для огнестрельного патрона. Изображено ниже:

explanatory

капсюлей

Percussion caps (or primers) used in guns. See the following page for a quick primer on percussion caps’ functions.

Устройство для воспламенения порохового заряда в огнестрельном оружии. Изображено ниже:

explanatory

Жевело

A device designed to ignite the powder charge in hunting cartridges. From the French, Gevelot.

foreign explanatory

этих гильз

The case of a bullet cartridge, which holds the gunpowder and other essential elements for firing.

explanatory

пороху напороши

Etymological convergence of words in this context.

Этимологическое сближение слов в контексте.

stylistic device poetic device

За дело

Set expression: to work, let’s get down to it.

Выражение: приступить к работе.

войлочного

Made of felt. Clothing motif.

motif

байковой

Made of cotton flannel. Clothing motif.

motif

пыжи

Wadding. The use of the word is ironically linked with the preceding pyjamas.

explanatory irony pun

заткни

Anagrammatic assonance (zakati - zatkni).

Анаграмматический ассонанс.

stylistic device sound

пыжами

Paronomasia (pizhamy-pyzhami).

Парономазия.

stylistic device sound

Сэр Френч

A military jacket used by the Russian and Soviet armies and named after John French. Clothing motif. John Denton Pinkstone French (1852–1925) was a British Army officer famed for his service in the Second Boer War, in particular the Battles of Elandslaagte and De Klipdrift.

Джон Дентон Пинкстон Френч (1852–1925) был британским военачальником, ставшим известным благодаря его военной службе во время Второй англо-бурской войны, в частности, битве у Эландслаагте и сражении при Твебоше или Де Клипдрифте. Изображен ниже:

foreign motif

Френч

motif foreign

Жомини

Antoine-Henri Jomini (1779–1869), a Swiss military officer who served both the French and Russian armies. He is also well known for his influential The Art of War (1838).

Антуан-Генрих Жомини (1779–1869) — швейцарский военный офицер, служивший во французской и русской армиях. Широко известен благодаря свой работе «Краткое изложение военного искусства» (1838). Изображен ниже:

foreign

шашкою

Known as a Circassian or Cossack sabre, this single-edged sword resembles a cross between a curved and straight blade.

Однолезвийное холодное оружие, нечто среднее между ножом и саблей. Изображено ниже:

explanatory

Ла-Манша

Also known as the English Channel. The name derived from the French “la Manche” that is, “sleeve,” due to its shape.

Также известен как Английский канал. Имя заимствовано от французского “la Manche”, что означает “рукав”, благодаря форме канала.

explanatory foreign

Сэр Френч

foreign motif

Сэр Френч на стуле медленно сидит,

Anaphora.

Анафора.

stylistic device

Френч

foreign motif

медленно сидит

Semantic archaism (Zubova 153).

Семантический архаизм (Зубова 153).

Но потому, что ствол — калибр двадцатый, Калибр патронов тоже двадцать два.

Соколов объясняет: “Снаряжая патроны, Запойный пьет и пьянеет все больше, поэтому начинает мыслить нелогично и путает калибры. У него гладкоствольное ружье двадцатого калибра, но ему кажется, что снаряжаемые патроны - двадцать второго калибра. Он, однако, не усматривает в этом противоречия, наоборот: ему кажется, что все в порядке, что двадцать и двадцать два - одно и то же, что такие патроны подойдут к ружью. Эта логика становится особенно парадоксальной, если учесть, что патроны двадцать второго калибра подходят только для стрельбы из винтовки, иначе говоря, это чисто нарезной калибр” (личная переписка, 25 августа 2023).

explanatory

дедушкин табак

Дедушкин табак (grandfather’s tobacco) is another name for the lycoperdon genus of mostly edible puffball mushrooms. The scientific name is derived The scientific name is derived from the Greek lycos meaning wolf and perdon meaning to fart. Read more here.. See Note 1 above (R164/E27).

См. Записка I выше (R164/E27).

intratextuality

Зарницы

Lightning flashes. Mentioned in chapter 2 in connection to other body parts (R160/Е20).

Вспышки молнии. Упоминаются в главе 2 в связи с другими частями тела (R160/Е20).

intratextuality

ходики

Wall clock, which is here personified (it “imagines”).

explanatory poetic device

соображая, что, Соображая то, соображая что-то

Rhythm through repetition.

Ритм образуется через повтор.

rhythm

Бобылка

Colloquial: an unmarried, lonely (peasant) woman. She will make several appearances throughout the novel and is associated with Orina.

киселю

A berry fruit dish or drink (depending on how much thickening agent is added) popular in Northern, Central, and Eastern Europe.

Ягодно-фруктовое блюдо или напиток (в зависимости от количества добавленного крахмала), распространенный в Северной, Центральной и Восточной Европе. Изображено ниже:

explanatory

Между собакой

Amf3; ABBAA/ABBCA.

Амф3; ABBAA/ABBCA.

metrical pattern rhyme scheme

Между собакой и волком — Время

Twilight.

time theme

толком

Colloquial: well, fully.

Разговорное: ясно, полностью.

волком.

Each stanza has a ring structure and ends with the repetition of the last word of the first line.

Каждая строфа имеет кольцевую структуру и заканчивается повторением последнего слова первой строки.

structure

у пруда

The setting opening A School for Fools.

self-reference

дубу

Изображено ниже: Михаил Эпштейн замечает, что русская поэзия “выделяет дуб среди других деревьев, делая как бы царем древесного царства. Он олицетворяет собой высшую степень твердости, мужества, силы, величия. Именно эта ясность исходного смысла сделала образ дуба особенно популярным на ранних этапах поэзии, а затем ослабила его значимость, когда образный строй поэзии стал усложняться и преодолевать однозначность фольклорно-аллегорического мышления. […] дуб в русской поэзии, как и в мировом фольклоре, символизирует жизненную мощь, преодолевшую смерть, именно поэтому омертвение дуба выступает как зловещий признак распада жизни, вторжения демонических сил в ее святилище” (47, 50).

motif symbol

дубу, Дует Удод во дуду

Alliteration (du).

Аллитерация (ду).

sound stylistic device

Удод

Удод несколько раз упоминается в романе, в основном, в стихах Якова: (R167, 168, 169, 233, 236, 262, 280/E31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 145, 149, 199). Изображено ниже:

Мотив животных.

intratextuality motif intertextuality foreign

дуду

Colloquial: pipe, fife.

Разговорное: дудка, духовой иструмент.

дрезина

A draisine, a light auxiliary rail vehicle. Railroad theme.

theme

тридцать четвертой

Sokolov explains: “Once Boris Ostanin asked me a similar question, he was also confused by this number, which, by the way, appears not only in Chapter 16, but also in Note 3. I answered him that I used the number 34 arbitrarily, without any backward thought, that is, I took it from the ceiling, although there is a possibility that subconsciousness played a role, which recalled how once in my childhood, after a military parade, I had the pleasure of riding in a tank on Red Square: my father, a veteran of the first German-Soviet tank battles, took me for a ride, and the tank on the square was his favorite - the T-34” (personal communication, August 4, 2023).

Соколов объясняет: “В свое время аналогичный вопрос задал мне Борис Останин, тоже озадаченный этой цифрой, фигурирующей, кстати сказать, не только в главе 16, но и в Записке 3 Я ответил ему, что цифру 34 я использовал произвольно, без всякой задней мысли, что называется, взял ее с потолка, хотя имеется вероятность, что сыграло свою роль подсознание, которое вспомнило, как в однажды в детстве, после военного парада, я имел удовольствие прокатиться в танке по Красной площади: прокатил меня отец, ветеран первых немецко-советских танковых баталий, а танк на площади был его любимый - Т-34” (личная переписка, 4 августа 2023).

explanatory author

версты

An obsolete Russian unit of length equal to approximately .66 miles (1.7 km).

Устаревшая русская мера длины, соответствующая примерно 0,66 милям или 1,7 км.

explanatory Russia

донельзя

Colloquial: totally, utterly, completely.

Разговорное: как нельзя более, до предела.

дрезина

A draisine, a light auxiliary rail vehicle. Railroad theme.

theme

жбана

A jug.

Кувшин с крышкой. Изображено ниже:

explanatory

Занял сверчок свой шесток.

Перефразирование выражения “всяк сверчок знай свой шесток”, означающее, что “каждый должен знать свое место и не вмешиваться не в свое дело”. Мотив животных.

motif phraseologism

Поздно теперь или рано

Ambiguity of time, the time between dog and wolf.

Неопределенность времени, время между собакой и волком.

time theme

жбана

A jug.

Кувшин с крышкой. Изображено ниже:

explanatory

толком

Colloquial: well, fully.

Разговорное: ясно, полностью.

Точильщик

That is, Ilya.

То есть, Илья.

explanatory character

Точильщик

Amf3; ABACCB.

Амф3; ABACCB.

metrical pattern rhyme scheme

занедужишь

Low: to take ill.

Просторечное: заболеть.

Не станешь и ног волочить

Ilya has lost a leg in an accident and must, in this way, drag along his remaining limb.

Илья потерял ногу в аварии и вынужден, в каком-то смысле, волочить оставшуюся конечность.

explanatory character

назоил

A combination of Назон (носатый, Овидий / big-nosed, Ovid) and Зоил (Zoilus, an extremely harsh critic). Zoilus, also known as Homeromastix, was a Greek critic and grammarian whose name eventually became a signifier for intense criticism.

Сочетание имен Назон (носатый, Овидий) и Зоил (чрезвычайно строгий критик). Зоил, также известный как “Бич Гомера” (Гомеромастикс), был греческим критиком-педантом, чье имя впоследствии стало нарицательным для беспощадных критиков.

explanatory intertextuality

хорунжий

Originally (since the XI century) the khorunzhy was a military rank identifying the standard-bearer (khorugv’ means heraldic flag) in military units of armies of many Slavic countries, later (since the XIV century) a commander of a military unit in medieval Poland and Lithuania. In the XVI-XVIII centuries it was also the name of an army official in the Zaporizhian Sich and other Cossack communities. There existed a general (troop), a regimental and a centurion khorunzhy, who were part of the Cossack senior officers and performed duties related to the organization of gatherings and inspections of troops, accounting of weapons, storage of flags, etc.. The khorunzhy was also the name of a junior officer rank in the Cossack troops of pre-revolutionary Russia (since the 18th century), corresponding to the rank of lieutenant and cornet in the regular Russian Imperial army. Emel’yan Pugachyov (leader of a major popular uprising under Catherine II) was a khorunzhy.

Военный чин.

explanatory Russia foreign

Холодное выдал оружье

A cold weapon, that is to say a knife, that should be sharpened.

explanatory

Люблю ли я эту погоду

Согласно Богуславскому, “перефразированная цитата из безымянного стихотворения Владимира Соколова “На влажные планки ограды”, написанного в 1967 году (“Аннотации” 236). Прочитать стихотворение (на русском) можно здесь.

intertextuality

Люблю ли я эту погоду, Когда разгуляется вдруг И ýзрят простые народы Явленье — не скажем: урода, А скажем корректно: Удода, Кремневый крутящего круг?

intertextuality motif

Когда разгуляется вдруг

A reference to Boris Pasternak’s 1956 poem and cycle “When the Weather Clears…” Read the poem and a translation here.

Отсылка к стихотворению Бориса Пастернака 1956 года и лирическому циклу “Когда разгуляется”. Прочитать стихотворение и английский перевод можно здесь.

intertextuality

разгуляется

Colloquial: (here) to clear up.

Разговорное: (здесь, о погоде) проясниться.

ýзрят

Dated/poetic: to see, behold, gaze upon.

Устаревшее/поэтическое: увидеть.

урода, А скажем корректно: Удода,

Paronomasia.

Парономазия.

stylistic device sound

Удода

Мотив животных.

intratextuality motif intertextuality foreign

Еще бы

Colloquial expression: to be sure, of course, you bet.

Разговорное выражение: конечно, безусловно, само собой.

удодовых

Мотив животных.

intratextuality motif intertextuality foreign

сей

Archaism: this.

Архаизм: этот.

препогожий

Really good.

Очень хороший.

language

похоже? Похоже

Anadiplosis.

Анадиплосис.

stylistic device rhythm

бразды

Archaism: reins.

Архаизм: конские удила, управление.

archaism register/style

чалме

Turban. Clothing motif.

motif

аксакал

Male elders in parts of Central Asia. The term means “white beard.”

Пожилые мужчины в некоторых регионах Центральной Азии. Термин означает “белая борода”.

explanatory foreign

Точенье с журчащим теченьем

Paronomasia.

Парономазия.

stylistic device sound

акын

A Kyrgyz or Kazakh singer/poet who improvises their works. Watch a performance here.

Кыргызский или казахский поэт-импровизатор. Посмотреть выступление можно здесь.

foreign music

Какая промозглая осень!

As Boguslawski notes, this line references an untitled 1854 poem by Afanasy Fet: “Какая холодная осень!” (“What a cold autumn!”) (“Annotations” 237). Read the poem and a translation here.

Как замечает Богуславский, эта строчка ссылается на безымянное стихотворение Афанасия Фета “Какая холодная осень!” 1854 года (“Аннотации” 237). Прочитать стихотворение и английский перевод можно здесь.

intertextuality

промозглая

Colloquial: cold and damp, inclement. The narrator uses the same word to describe Yakov’s year at the end of chapter 2 (R163/E25).

Разговорное: сырой и холодный. Рассказчик использует это слово для описания года Якова в конце главы 2 (R163/E25).

промозглая осень

The setting has shifted fully into autumn.

time

Удоду

Мотив животных.

intratextuality motif intertextuality foreign

косы

theme intertextuality language

Надень мою шаль и капот.

Boguslawski further notes that this line borrows from the same Fet poem as in the first line of this stanza: “Надень свою шаль и капот” (“Put on your shawl and coat”) (“Annotations” 237). Read the poem and a translation here. Clothing motif.

Богуславский далее замечает, что эта строка заимствована из того же стихотворения Фета, что и первая строка четверостишия: “Надень свою шаль и капот” (“Аннотации” 237). Прочитать стихотворение и английский перевод можно здесь. Мотив одежды.

intertextuality motif

капот

Archaism: a woman’s housecoat. Clothing motif.

Архаизм: женский домашний халат. Мотив одежды.

archaism register/style motif

точильщик, Точило

Figura etymologica.

Этимологическая фигура речи.

stylistic device sound

мурло

Low/dialectical: ugly, snout.

Просторечное/диалектическое: некрасивое лицо, рожа.

обормот

Colloquial: blockhead, stupid person.

Разговорное: болван, глупый человек.

могильщик

Both meaning gravedigger and indicating the burying beetle. Animal motif.

motif

могильщик, Равно не фонарщик, не пильщик, Не бакенщик и не лудильщик

Repetition of the suffix.

Повтор суффикса.

sound

лудильщик

See R168, 230, 244/E33, 140, 166.

Ср. R168, 230, 244/E33, 140, 166.

intratextuality

О родине что-то поет

Строка из песни “По диким степям Забайкалья” (также известная как “Бродяга”). Прочитать слова на английском и русском можно здесь. Послушать запись можно здесь. Илья также упоминает эту песню в главе 6 (R192/E76).

intertextuality music intratextuality

инвалидному дому

One of the settings of the novel.

setting intratextuality

Пред

Archaic spelling of “pered” (in front of).

archaism

коим

Dated/poetic: which.

Устаревшее/поэтическое: которым.

зимою

Winter.

Зима.

time

Удод

Мотив животных.

intratextuality motif intertextuality foreign

одноногому гному

Ilya has lost a leg in an accident.

Илья потерял ногу в результате аварии.

explanatory character

Горбатому

Humpback. The image of humpbacked people and animals appears several times throughout the novel (R152, 168, 180, 184, 187, 189, 200, 217, 103, 268/E6, 61, 66, 69, 89, 208).

intratextuality

слепонемому

Blind and dumb people (but also deaf people) will be mentioned throughout the novel.

intratextuality

ступай себе мимо

intertextuality foreign

паче

Archaism: even more so, more.

Архаизм: более, тем более.

солнцем палимы

According to Boguslawski, a direct borrowing from Nikolai Nekrasov’s 1858 poem “Размышления у парадного подъезда” (“Thoughts at the Vestibule”) (“Annotations” 236). Nekrasov directly references the Volga and the sorrows of the lower classes: “Go out to the Volga: hear whose moan / Rises over Russia’s greatest river?” Read the poem, in Russian and in English, here.

Согласно Богуславскому, прямая цитата мз стихотворения Н. Некрасова 1858 года “Размышления у парадного подъезда”. (“Аннотации” 236). Прочитать стихотворение на русском и английском можно здесь.

intertextuality

как с гуся вода

Set expression: like water off a goose’s [duck’s] back. Total indifference to something. Throughout the novel, geese are associated with sexual arousal. Although today far more commonly considered silly or stupid, geese have a lofty mythology. The goose has been traditional viewed as “an erotic symbol for both sexes, because it was the bird of creation, whether in the male solar form of the gods or the female lunar form of the mother goddesses” (Rowland, Birds 68). Similar connections between geese, sexuality, and foolishness appear elsewhere in the novel (R210, 221/E106, 125). Animal motif.

Устойчивое выражение, означающее полное безразличие к чему-либо. Мотив животных.

phraseologism motif intratextuality

Темнеет; судьбою не рада, Голодной Горгоной вослед Глаголов угодливых стаду Глухая пора листопада Глядит — и ни складу ни ладу, Ни собственно стада уж нет.

The entire stanza is structured on the alliteration of certain sounds: d, g, l, gl/kl/dl.

Вся строфа строится на аллитерациях.

sound stylistic device

рада, Голодной Горгоной вослед Глаголов угодливых стаду Глухая пора листопада Глядит — и ни складу ни ладу

A series of rhymes that all encode the word ад (ad, hell) (Toker, “Gamesman’s Sketches” 358).

language

Горгоной

Greek mythology. Three sisters (Stheno, Euryale, and Medusa) with snakes for hair who could transform those who saw them into stone.

Персонаж из греческой мифологии. Три сестры (Сфено, Эвриала и Медуза) со змеями вместо волос, которые могли превратить в камень встретивших их людей.

intertextuality foreign

вослед

Dated: the same as вслед — after, following.

Устаревшее: вслед.

угодливых

Eager to please everyone.

Излишне услужливый, стремящийся всем угодить.

explanatory

Глухая пора листопада

Another marker of the poem’s temporal setting: leaves falling in autumn.

time

ни складу ни ладу

Set expression: having no logic.

Разговорное выражение: об отсутствии логики.

phraseologism

ладу,

The mode (or modus) is one of the main concepts of musicology, a central notion in the study of harmony. Music plays an important role in S. Sokolov’s work.

Лад - одно из главных понятий музыкальной науки, центральное понятие в учении о гармонии. Музыка играет важную роль в творчестве С. Соколова.

explanatory music

Октябрь

A continuation of the temporal setting: autumn.

time

октябрь

A continuation of the temporal setting: autumn.

time

теплынь

Colloquial: warm weather. Possible reference to the so-called Indian summer (in Russian bab’e leto).

Разговорное: теплая погода.

мышь листопада

Metaphor: snow.

Метафора: снег.

poetic device register/style

листопада

While in Croatian “listopad” means October, in Ukrainian, Polish and Czech it means November.

По-хорватски листопад значит именно “октябрь”. А по-украински, по-польски, по-чешски листопад - это “ноябрь”.

foreign time

никудали

Neologism: никуда (nowhere) + даль (distance, horizon, expanse).

Неологизм: сочетание слов “никуда” и “даль”.

neologism

полынь

Artemisia. Common species include mugwort, wormwood, and sagebrush. Most famously, wormwood (полынь) is the name of the star that falls and poisons the waters of the world in the Book of Revelation. See Revelation 8:10–11. Plant motif.

motif religion Bible

жить

See the beginning of chapter two (R158/E17).

См. начало главы 2 (R158/E17).

intratextuality

наличьи лучины

Semi-anagram.

Квази-анаграмма.

stylistic device sound

и́чиги

A Tatar light shoe with a soft toe. Also used by peoples of the Caucasus and Central Asia. D.B. Johnson has identified more than twenty different types of shoes across Sokolov’s three novels: “bashmaki, botforty, boty, botinki (polubotinki), cheboty, chizmy, chubury, galoshi (kaloshi), gety, ichigi, kedy, klogi, lapti, mokrostupy, obuvi (obuvki), sapogi, sandalii, tapochki (polutapochki), shlepantsy, shtiblety, tapti, tufli, valenki. The list may easily be extended with appurtenances such as socks, stockings, footcloths, gaiters, skates, crutches, and artificial legs” (“The Galoshes Manifesto” 156). Regarding Between Dog and Wolf, he notes that Ilya’s last name immediately evokes Cinderella’s vair slippers. Johnson observes that “the footwear motif is Sokolov’s tribute, both conscious and unconscious, to the tradition in Russian literature represented by his predecessors – Ivan Bunin and Valentin Kataev” (179). In an interview with A. and N. Voronel’, Sokolov calls Bunin, along with Gogol, his “contemporaries, collaborators along a chain, older masters” (Voroneli, “Ia khochu” 184). Shoe motif.

Вид легкой татарской обуви с мягким носком. Также встречается у жителей Кавказа и Центральной Азии. Изображено ниже:

Мотив обуви.

motif intertextuality

и́чиги беличьи

Alliteration.

Аллитерация.

sound stylistic device

беличьи

Made out of squirrel fur. Clothing and animal motif.

explanatory motif

шить

Шитьем в романе занимаются разные герои. В восьмой записке Якова, иволга “перешивала день на ночь” (R172/E39). Шитье также упоминается в Записке XVI (R200/E92). Яков шьет тапки (R274/E219).

intratextuality theme

неизбежна. Небрежно

Alliteration (ne, b, zhna).

Аллитерация (не, б, жна).

sound stylistic device

удода

Мотив животных.

intratextuality motif intertextuality foreign

Потрещи

Colloquial: stay for a bit.

Разговорное: ненадолго остаться.

покукуй, потатуйка

Alliteration.

Аллитерация.

sound stylistic device

потатуй

Colloquial: an indulgent, compliant, obliging person.

Разговорное: потакальщик, уступчивый, сговорчивый человек

потатуйка

Same as удод (hoopoe). The hoopoe appears several times throughout the novel, mostly in Yakov’s poems (R167, 168, 169, 233, 236, 262, 280/E31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 145, 149, 199). Animal motif.

То же, что и удод. Удод несколько раз упоминается в романе, в основном, в стихах Якова: (R167, 168, 169, 233, 236, 262, 280/E31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 145, 149, 199). Мотив животных.

intratextuality motif

Берендейка

A belt-like object used to hold ammunition and other tools for guns.

Часть военного снаряжения для хранения амуниции и прочих боеприпасов, похожая на пояс. Изображено ниже:

explanatory

пусто́шка

Same as удод (hoopoe). The hoopoe appears several times throughout the novel, mostly in Yakov’s poems (R167, 168, 169, 233, 236, 262, 280/E31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 145, 149, 199). Animal motif. Also: the administrative center of Pustoshkinsky District in the Pskov Oblast. A diminutive for a wasteland.

Удод несколько раз упоминается в романе, в основном, в стихах Якова: (R167, 168, 169, 233, 236, 262, 280/E31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 145, 149, 199). Мотив животных. Также: административный центр Пустошкинского района в Псковской области.

intratextuality Russia location motif

пусто́шка, пустышечка

Figura etymologica.

Этимологическая фигура речи.

stylistic device sound

There shouldn’t be any space between this line and the following stanza!

бубном

Бубен — инструмент, напоминающий тамбурин. Основное отличие от тамбурина заключается в том, что у бубнам обычно подвешены металлические кольца или колокольчики. Упоминается Ильей в главе 1 (“брюзжи себе под дугою хоть до Валдай-пристани — литье бубенчиков” [R150/E2]) и в конце главы 2 (“некто нетрезво бьет в бубен” [R163/E25]). Изображено ниже:

intratextuality music

перелесками

Hepatica. Plant motif.

motif

Бурусклень, бересклет, бересдрень, Бересква, бредо́вник, будьдерево

Названия растений Euonymus europaens (бересклет европейский) and Solanum dulcamara (паслен сладко-горький). Отражение того, как подобным образом меняются имена героев. Дж. Смит сравнивает этот отрывок со стилем В. Хлебникова (185-1922) и его литературных последователей, включая поэтов ОБЭРИУ (Smith, “The Verse” 334). Мотив растений.

motif intertextuality

Бурусклень, бересклет, бересдрень, Бересква, бредо́вник, будьдерево.

Alliteration (bere, b, r, skl, v, d).

Аллитерация (бере, б, р, скл, в, д).

sound stylistic device

Козьих ножек

A homemade papirosa (cigarette), rolled up in the form of a funnel and bent in half.

Самодельная папироса (сигарета), скрученная в трубочку и согнутая пополам.

explanatory

Частью речи, известной под именем кашель

Metaphoric description of the cough.

Метафорическое описание кашля.

poetic device

уключин кряхтеньем

The device used to hold an oar in place on a boat. Ilya mentions “rowlocks crying” in chapter 8 (R206/E105). Boat motif.

Приспособление на борту лодки для удерживания весла при гребле. Изображено ниже:

Илья описывает, как “уключины плачут” в главе 8 (R206/E105). Лодочный мотив.

intratextuality motif

кряхтеньем, Похожим на кряквы

Alliteration (kryak-).

Аллитерация.

sound stylistic device

кряквы

Mallard. The duck has been seen as a symbol of sex and constancy (Rowland, Birds 49). Animal motif.

motif

шобла

Colloquial: gang, company, band.

Разговорное: компания, банда, шайка.

шобла волшебных

Alliteration (sh, b, l).

Аллитерация.

sound stylistic device

волшебных стрелков

Отсылка к русскому переводу (“Волшебный стрелок”) оперы Der Freischütz Карла Марии фон Вебера. Посмотреть выступление (с английскими субтитрами) можно здесь.

foreign Russia intertextuality

Падеспанец

Падеспань (“Pas D’Espaigne”) — знаменитый трехдольный бальный танец, напоминающий испанский. Написан русским артистом балета А. Царманом. Посмотреть выступление можно здесь.

Russia foreign intertextuality music

Падеспанец

Amf3. ABAB.

Амф3. ABAB.

metrical pattern rhyme scheme

Музы́ка Моцáрта

The (non-normative) accents are indicated to clarify that the meter is amphibrachic. The meter apparently mimics the rhythm of the Pas d’Espagne.

(Ненормативные) ударения указаны, чтобы уточнить что метр амфибрахический. Метр видимо подражает ритм Падеспанца.

metrical pattern rhythm

Моцáрта

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756–1791) — composer born in Salzburg. Before dying at 35, he wrote more than 800 varied works.

Вольфганг Амадей Моцарт (1756–1791) — композитор родом из Зальцбурга. Перед своей смертью в 35 лет написал более 800 различных произведений. Изображен ниже:

intertextuality foreign music

звучала Однажды в саду городском

In A School For Fools an orchestra plays in the grass and their music is carried by the wind (ch. 1)

В “Школе для дураков” оркестр играет на поляне, и его музыка уносится ветром (глава 1).

self-reference music intertextuality

Там дама беспечно скучала

A possible reference to this passage from D. Eremin’s Before the Jump: “Жена мужа в Рязань провожала, / говорила ему — «не скучай», / а сама с казачком танцевала /падеспань, падеспань, падеспань.” Read the original here.

Возможная отсылка к отрывку из “Перед прыжком” Д. Еремина: “Жена мужа в Рязань провожала, / говорила ему — «не скучай», / а сама с казачком танцевала /падеспань, падеспань, падеспань”.

intertextuality

Пока неизвестно по ком

Paronomasia (poka - po kom).

Парономазия (пока - по ком).

stylistic device sound

ком

Dated/poetic: whom.

Устаревшее/поэтическое: по кому.

проезжий корнет

According to Ostanin, a reference to Nikolai Nekrasov’s 1846 poem “The Troika”: “Загляделся проезжий корнет” (32). Read the original poem here. Read an English translation here. This figure also appears in chapter 12 (R246/E169).

Согласно Останину, отсылка к стихотворению Н. Некрасова 1846 года “Тройка”: “Загляделся проезжий корнет” (32). Прочитать оригинал стихотворения можно здесь. Прочитать английский перевод можно здесь. Этот персонаж также появляется в главе 12 (R246/E169).

intertextuality intratextuality

буфет ресторанта Пригласил посидеть tête-à-tête

Alliteration (t).

Аллитерация (т).

sound stylistic device

French spelling of ресторан (restaraunt). This spelling may be chosen to stress the alliteration of the “t” sound in these two lines (bufet, posidet’, tete-a-tete).

Французское написание слова “ресторан”. Такое написание, возможно, было выбрано с целью аллитерации звука “т” в этих двух строках (буфет, посидеть, tête-à-tête).

foreign sound play

tête-à-tête

French: head-to-head, in private, face-to-face.

Французское: наедине, лицом к лицу, с глазу на глаз.

foreign

Падеспанец

The “Pas D’Espaigne” is a famous ballroom piece in 3/4 time that draws from Spanish dance. Written by the Russian ballet dancer Alexander Tsarman. Watch a performance here.

foreign Russia intertextuality music

Падеспанец хорошенький танец, Его очень легко танцевать: Два шага вперед, два шага назад, Первернуться и снова начать.

Танцевальные шаги напоминают сам роман “Между собакой и волком”: движение и ход мыслей в одну сторону, затем разворот в другие события и повтор. Четыре строки заимствованы из “Pas D’Espaigne”— знаменитого трехдольного бального танца, напоминающего испанский. Написан русским артистом балета А. Царманом. Посмотреть выступление можно здесь.

foreign Russia intertextuality structure self-reference

испанцем

Spaniard.

foreign

И лицо ее вспыхнуло вдруг

According to Ostanin, a reference to Nikolai Nekrasov’s 1846 poem “The Troika”: “Всё лицо твоё вспыхнуло вдруг” (32). Read the original poem here. In this famous poem, Nekrasov describes the typical tragic fate of peasant women of his time, while in this Note, the woman is a “dama,” and the verses suggest her encounter with a foreigner (a Spanish man) who may represent for her an escape, just like the image of a troika on the road for Nekrasov’s young woman. Read an English translation here.

Согласно Останину, отсылка к стихотворению Н. Некрасова 1846 года “Тройка”: “Всё лицо твоё вспыхнуло вдруг” (32). Прочитать оригинал стихотворения можно здесь. Прочитать английский перевод можно здесь.

intertextuality

Моцáрта

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756–1791) — composer born in Salzburg. Before dying at 35, he wrote more than 800 varied works.

intertextuality foreign music

в саду городском

In A School For Fools an orchestra plays in the grass and their music is carried by the wind (ch. 1)

self-reference music intertextuality

Почтовые хлопоты в ноябре месяце

Dak4. ABAB.

Дак4. ABAB.

metrical pattern rhyme scheme

ноябре

The first chapters of the novel frequently mention fall-winter months and settings (snow, ice, etc.), while later on spring and summer will substitute them.

В первых главах романа часто упоминаются осенние/зимние месяцы и соответствующий пейзах (снег, лед и т. п.), тогда как в последующих главах они сменяются весенними и летними месяцами.

time

Все отлетело: и листья, и птицы

A continuation of the temporal setting: autumn. Leaves have fallen. Birds have departed. Animal motif.

time motif

рукавицы, Чтобы рукам

Figura etymologica.

Этимологическая фигура речи.

stylistic device sound

сиротской зиме

Set expression: warm, snowless weather.

Устойчивое выражение: теплая, бесснежная погода.

phraseologism

час, обреченный хорее

Как замечает Богуславский, хорея здесь относится к “времени дня, когда воздух колеблется и дрожит, делая все размытым и труднораспознаваемым” (“Аннотации” 237). Илья упоминает хорею в главе 6 (R191/E74).

explanatory time intratextuality

хорее

self-reference intratextuality

суме да тюрьме

A reference to the saying “от сумы да тюрьмы не зарекайся” (meaning, no one is immune from prison or poverty).

Отсылка к выражению “от сумы да тюрьмы не зарекайся”, означающему, что никто не защищен от тюрьмы или бедности.

phraseologism

вя́занку

The stress normally falls on the second syllable.

Ударение обычно падает на второй слог.

language

Связку

Paronomasia (vyazanku - svyazku).

Парономазия (вязанку - связку).

stylistic device sound

аз есмь

Archaism from Church Slavonic: I am. A syntagm mentioned in A School for Fools and central in Sokolov’s essay “The Anxious Pupa” (1986).

Архаизм из церковнославянского: Я есть Сущий.

archaism register/style self-reference

Пока телеграфные зришь провода

It may allude to Tsvetaeva’s poem “Provoda” (Cables). Read it here.

Напоминает стихотворение М. Цветаевой “Провода”. Прочитать стихотворение можно здесь.

intertextuality

Аз есмь

Archaism from Church Slavonic: I am. A syntagm mentioned in A School for Fools and central in Sokolov’s essay “The Anxious Pupa” (1986).

Архаизм из церковнославянского: Я есть Сущий.

archaism register/style self-reference

врат

Archaism for “vorotа” (gate, here city gate).

Архаизм: ворота (здесь, городские ворота).

language archaism

чернила

According to Evgeny Sokolov, this verse is a varied quotation from Pasternak’s poem “Fevral’. Dostat’ chernil i plakat’” (February. Take ink and cry) (“Predislovie” 10). Read it here.

intertextuality

Сумерки

Again, twilight — the central metaphor and time of the novel.

Вновь, сумерки — центральная метафора и время действия романа.

time theme

Аз есмь

Archaism from Church Slavonic: I am. A syntagm mentioned in A School for Fools and central in Sokolov’s essay “The Anxious Pupa” (1986).

Архаизм из церковнославянского: Я есть Сущий.

китайцам

Sokolov explains: “Chinese are foreigners […] thus should be addressed accordingly, that is, in an unusual style, using inversion, as if backwards” (personal communication, June 7, 2023).

Соколов объясняет: “китайцы это иностранцы […] и к ним нужно обращаться соответственно, то есть в необычном стиле, используя инверсию, как бы задом наперед” (личное сообщение, 7 июня 2023).

foreign

Манилу

Столица Филиппин. Умышленная географическая ошибка: “китайцам, в Манилу”. Схоже с песней В. Высоцкого “Инструкцией перед поездкой за рубеж”: “Я к болгарам уезжаю в Будапешт”. Прочитать слова песни в оригинале и английском переводе можно здесь. Послушать запись можно здесь.

foreign location music intertextuality

Есмь аз

Archaism from Church Slavonic: Am I? A syntagm mentioned in A School for Fools and central in Sokolov’s essay “The Anxious Pupa” (1986).

Архаизм из церковнославянского: Есть ли Я?

archaism register/style self-reference

Bin ich

German: Am I?

Немецкое: Есть ли я?

foreign

с грифом срочно, То ли с грифоном,

A play on the semi-homonyms “grif” and “grifon.”

pun

грифом

A vulture or a signature stamp. Animal motif.

Хищная птица или штемпель с образцом подписи. Мотив животных.

motif

грифоном

Griffin —a mythological creature with a lion body and head, wings, and talons of an eagle.Animal motif.

Грифон — мифическое существо с туловищем льва и головой, крыльями и когтями орла. Изображено ниже:

Мотив животных.

motif intertextuality

грифоном

Paronomasia (grifom-grifonom).

Парономазия (грифон-грифоном).

stylistic device sound

клячей

Colloquial: an old, sick, unwell horse/nag. Animal motif.

Разговорное: старая, больная лошадь. Мотив животных.

клячей Блед

Конь Бледный, конь Четвертого всадника Апокалипсиса, Смерти, в Библии: “И когда Он снял четвертую печать, я слышал голос четвертого животного, говорящий: иди и смотри. И я взглянул, и вот, конь бледный, и на нем всадник, которому имя “смерть”; и ад следовал за ним; и дана ему власть над четвертою частью земли — умерщвлять мечом и голодом, и мором и зверями земными” (Откровение 6:7-8). Цвет происходит от греческого “khlōros” (χλωρός), что означает “зеленовато-желтый” или “бледный”. Изображено ниже:

Мотив животных.

intertextuality motif bible religion

То ль, оперируя термином почты, Просто отбить их, как пару котлет.

Stamping the envelopes, putting stamps on them.

Ставить марки на конверты.

explanatory

ушастый

Here: extremely drunk. Alcohol theme.

Здесь: чрезвычайно пьяный.

language theme

кожан

Dated/colloquial: waterproof outerwear made of leather or imitation leather. Also: a serotine bat. Clothing motif. Animal motif.

Устаревшее/разговорное: водонепроницаемая верхняя одежда из кожи или кожзаменителя. Также: летучая мышь. Изображено ниже:

Мотив одежды. Мотив животных.

motif

Бессонница

Kh2 + Ya2.

Х2 + Я2.

metrical pattern

На кой леший

Set expression: why? (why the heck).

Устойчивое выражение: зачем? для чего?

phraseologism

кой

Dated/poetic: which.

Разговорное/поэтическое: который.

леший

Wood sprite in Slavic mythology and folklore.

Дух-хозяин леса в мифологии восточных славян.

folklore Russia

тульи

Upper part of a hat. Clothing motif.

motif

Эдак

Colloquial: the same as этак (so, in this manner, thus).

Разговорное: этак, таким образом.

набекрень

Colloquial: tilted, aslant, cocked.

Разговорное: набок, косо, криво.

Сумрак в пущу мою вошел,

Ostanin identifies this line as a reference to the opening of Dante’s Inferno: “Midway upon the journey of our life / I found myself within a forest dark” (32).

Останин определяет эту строку как отсылку к началу “Божественной комедии” Данте: “Земную жизнь пройдя до половины, я очутился в сумрачном лесу” (32).

intertextuality foreign

приголубил

Poetic/colloquial: to caress, touch, fondle.

Поэтическое/разговорное: приласкать.

откуда бы ни возьмись

Set expression (откуда ни возьмись): out of the blue, all of a sudden

Устойчивое выражение (откуда ни возьмись): внезапно, неожиданно.

phraseologism

набекрень

Colloquial: tilted, aslant, cocked.

Разговорное: набок, косо, криво.

Ухарский

Colloquial: rakish, dashing, daredevil.

Разговорное: лихой, щегольской, бойкий.

шапокляк

An opera hat. A portmanteau from шляпа (hat) and шлепок (slap, smack). The term is in turn derived from the French “chapeau claque,” which combines “hat” and “click,” as the hat closes with a clicking sound. Ilya picks out the same style of hat in chapter 4 (R183/E59). Clothing motif.

Шляпа-цилиндр. Слово-гибрид, образованное слиянием слов “шляпа” и шлепок”. Сам термин происходит от французского “chapeau claque”, в котором объединены слова “шляпа” и “щелчок”, ведь цилиндр имеет свойство складываться со щелчком. Изображено ниже:

Илья выбирает такой же головной убор в главе 4 (R183/E59). Мотив одежды.

foreign intratextuality motif

выкрался

Colloquial: to steal out from, sneak out.

Разговорное: выйти незаметно, крадучись.

Полоз

Species of nonvenomous snake. Animal motif.

Вид неядовитой змеи: https://ru.wikipedia.org/wiki/Черный_полоз

explanatory motif

Полоз в таволгу спать уполз.

Paronomasia (poloz - upolz).

Парономазия (полоз - уполз).

stylistic device sound

таволгу

Filipendula, a flowering plant used in traditional medicine. Plant motif. The genus name Filipendula derives from the Latin words filum (thread) and pendulus (hanging); one more reference to sewing in the book.

Таволга, или Лабазник (лат. Filipendula) — растение, использующееся в народной медицине.

motif theme

Иволга

motif

Иволга

Alliteration (tavolga-ivolga).

Аллитерация (таволга-иволга).

sound stylistic device

Иволга перешивала вечер на ночь

theme

перешивала

Шитьем в романе занимаются разные герои. Мария (одна из форм Орины, бобылка) ассоциируется с шитьем (R161/E21). В восьмой записке Якова, иволга “перешивала день на ночь” (R172/E39). Шитье также упоминается в Записке XVI (R200/E92). Яков шьет тапки (R274/E219). Тема шитья.

intratextuality theme

вечер на ночь

So, the moment of twilight between evening and night.

То есть, период сумерек между вечером и ночью.

time explanatory theme

набекрень

Colloquial: tilted, aslant, cocked.

Разговорное: набок, косо, криво.

журавль

motif

камышах

Club-rush. Plant motif.

motif

канотье

From the French canotier. A straw boating hat. Clothing motif.

От французского canotier. Соломенная шляпа для гребли. Изображено ниже:

foreign motif

Кряквы

Mallard. The duck has been seen as a symbol of sex and constancy (Rowland, Birds 49). Animal motif.

motif

осоки

Sedge. Plant motif.

motif

набекрень

Colloquial: tilted, aslant, cocked.

Разговорное: набок, косо, криво.

Записка IX

author theme structure

Как будто солью кто…

In such a Pushkinian Note, even the meter echoes Pushkin’s masterpiece, Onegin: Я4. ABAB.

В такой пушкинской Записке даже метр перекликается с шедевром Пушкина: Я4. АБАБ.

metrical pattern rhyme scheme intertextuality

Пушкина

Александр Сергеевич Пушкин (1799–1837), отец современного литературного языка и ключевой источник подтекстуальности в романе “Между собакой и волком”. Более того, сама фраза “пора меж волка и собаки” взята из знаменитого Евгения Онегина — написанного Пушкиным романа в стихах (гл. 4, строфа 47).

intertextuality

Пушкина перелистаешь, То Пущина

Paronomasia.

Парономазия.

stylistic device sound

Пущина

A Decembrist poet, who was friends with Pushkin (1798-1859).

Поэт декабрист, друг Пушкина (1798-1859).

Russia intertextuality

боле

Archaic: no more.

archaism

сбруи

Horse tack.

explanatory

Поля отъезжие

A reference to Pushkin’s poem “Autumn”: (“and my neighbor hastens / to his far-flung fields with all the members of his hunt”). Read the poem (in Russian and in English translation) here.

Отсылка к стихотворению Пушкина “Осень”: “сосед мой поспешает / В отъезжие поля с охотою своей”. Прочитать стихотворение на русском и английском можно здесь.

intertextuality

И тошно так, сказать по чести, Что не поможет верный эль. Чубук ли несколько почистить, Соседа ль вызвать на дуэль?

This poem merges different lines of Pushkin’s oeuvre and biography (duels, spleen, etc.). In particular, this poem seems to creatively rewrite Pushkin’s “Zima. Chto delat’ nam v derevne?”. Read the original here.

В этой строфе соединены раличные фрагменты жизни и творчества Пушкина (дуэль, тоска, и т. п.). В частности, здесь творчески перефразировано стихотворение “Зима. Что делать нам в деревне?” Пушкина.

intertextuality

Чубук

A long-stemmed Turkish pipe.

Длинная турецкая табачная трубка. Изображено ниже:

foreign

Шлафрок

German: Schlafrock. A long nightgown. Clothing motif.

Немецкое: Schlafrock. Длинная ночная рубашка. Изображено ниже:

foreign motif

Задать ли в город лататы

Set expression (zadat’ lataty): to run away swiftly, without a backward glance, without remembering oneself. But “latka” is also a synonym for “patch,” that is, a piece of cloth stitched on a torn place.

“Задать лататы” - устойчивое выражение: стремительно убегать, без оглядки, не помня себя. Но “латка” это тоже синоним “заплата”, то есть кусок ткани, нашиваемый на прорванное место.

phraseologism

совея

Colloquial: to become sleepy, drowsy, fall into sleep.

Разговорное: впадать в полусонное, дремотное состояние.

Нагуливаешь аппетит

Set expression (to stimulate one’s appetite).

Устойчивое выражение.

phraseologism

дворнею

Domestic servants.

Домашняя прислуга.

language

серсо

От французского “cerceau”. Детская игра в обруч, при которой движение обруча поддерживается палкой или другим предметом. Изображено внизу в центре картины Брейгеля 1560 года Детские игры:

Останин также замечает, что Серко — собачье имя из украинской сказки “Серко” (33).

intertextuality foreign

à petit

French: a little.

Французское: немного.

foreign

à petit

Paronomasia (appetit - à petit).

Парономазия.

stylistic device sound

прослыть

This verb, followed by the instrumental case, means “to have the reputation for.”

Прослыть + существительное в творительном падеже: заслужить определенную репутацию.

phraseologism

шарабан

Сhar-à-banc, a horse-drawn vehicle.

Сhar-à-banc, конная повозка. Изображено ниже:

explanatory foreign

аглицкого клоба

“English club” according to archaic (and here: stylized) orthography. A member of the “Aglitsky Club” was Famusov, a character in Griboyedov’s comedy Woe from Wit. Pushkin himself was a regular member of the English Club.

Архаичная орфография “английского клуба” (здесь и в стилизации). Членом «аглицкого клоба» был Фамусов, персонаж комедии Горе от ума А.С. Грибоедова. Сам Пушкин был постоянным членом Английского клуба.

explanatory intertextuality archaism

День, разумеется, осенен,

Fall is the season traditionally associated with A.S. Pushkin.

Осень как пора года часто ассоциируется с А. С. Пушкиным.

intertextuality time

лесу вечер волчьей пастью Зевнет на первые огни

The transition from day to night.

Переход дня в ночь.

time theme

напасти

Paronomasia (past’ju - napasti).

Парономазия (пастью - напасти).

stylistic device sound

гони

Anagram (ogni - goni).

Анаграмма (огни - гони).

stylistic device sound

мухи белой масти

Another metaphor for “snow” (see Note V).

Очередное метафорическое описание снега.

poetic device register/style

масти

Colloquial: color. Used at the beginning of the chapter in Note I (R164/E28).

Разговорное: цвет. Употребляется в начале главы в Записке I (R164/E28).

intratextuality register/style

няня

Отсылка к няне Пушкина, Арине Родионовне Яковлевой (1758–1828). Ей посвящено несколько произведений Пушкина. Изображена ниже:

В романе в стихах Пушкина Евгений Онегин, главная героиня Татьяна трижды повторяет: “Ах, няня…” (гл. 3, строфы 19, 34, 35). Также упоминается в Записке XXV (R234/E146).

intertextuality intratextuality

Очаровательно, снег выпал!

Leona Toker identifies this line as a reference to the seventh stanza of Alexander Pushkin’s 1833 poem “Autumn” (“Gamesman’s Sketches” 382). Read the original and a translation here.

intertextuality

зима

This set of poems deals with the time between fall and winter. Here, we move onto winter and the next batch of Notes.

Этот цикл стихов относится к межсезонью между осенью и зимой. Здесь, мы переходим к зиме и следующему циклу Записок.

time

Notes of a Binging Hunter / Записки запойного охотника

Note I

Impression

Note II

Preparation of Cartridges

Note III

The Time Between

Note IV

The Grinder

(A Conversation with a Critic)

Note V

October

Note VI

Pas d’Espaigne

(Recollection of the City)

Note VII

Postal Chores in the Month of November

Note VIII

Insomnia

Note IX

As If One Salted . . .

Записка I

Впечатление

Записка II

Снаряженье патронов

Записка III

Между собакой

Записка IV

Точильщик

(Разговор с критиком)

Записка V

Октябрь

Записка VI

Падеспанец

(Воспоминанье о городе)

Записка VII

Почтовые хлопоты в ноябре месяце

Записка VIII

Бессонница

Записка IX

Как будто солью кто…

/

Postal Chores in the Month of

патронов