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PREFACE The Russian poet Aleksandr Vvedenskii (1904-1941), with his more famous colleague Daniil Kharms (1905-1942), formed the nucleus of a group of Leningrad poets and philosophers generally known as the OBERIU. The work of the oberiuty discards the naive optimism of the avant-garde and occupies itself with the illogical and the absurd. If some Russian Futurists, Khlebnikov first and foremost, dreamt of developing a universally comprehensible sound language (zaum'), the oberiuty refine Futurist techniques of breaking down and recombining lexical, syntactical, and narrative units and sequences, in order to present rupture as the most fundamental level of being. The first generation of writers to be born in the twentieth century, they are the first to obliterate any distinction between the tragic and the comic. Calling himself "the auto-rity of nonsense" (avto-ritet bessmyslitsy), Vvedenskii once claimed to have conducted "a poetic critique of language, more fundamental than that of Kant." He asked how we know that, for instance, an apartment building, a tower, and a villa belong to the same species. Maybe they don't. Maybe an apartment building really goes together with, say, happiness and the number seven. The oberiuty supported themselves by writing for children's magazines. Their "adult" poetry did not get published; their readings were reviled by the establishment. First arrested in 1931, Kharms and Vvedenskii spent two years in internal exile. Their experience in the late thirties is marked by great isolation and poverty. When Germany invaded the Soviet Union, they were arrested again, this time for having been arrested earlier. Kharms starved to death in a prison asylum for the mentally insane, whereas Vvedenskii appears to have died of dysentery en route to Siberia."The Demise of the Sea" dates from 1930. The original is in iambic tetrameter, rhymed but with no consistent stanzaic pattern.
—Eugene Ostashevsky
THE DEMISE OF THE SEA SEA DEMON and the sea too means nothing and the sea too is a round o and in vain does man hop into the deep from guns and blades and in the sea as well the fishies go dogs run around violins play and seaweed sleeps like aunts and boats skip up and down like fleas and in the sea there is as little sense it obeys the same numbers it is deserted and dark maybe o sea you are a window? maybe o sea you are a widow? HUNTER I too stood waist-deep in the woods I was a student of game wisdom sometimes bathing in strong vodka I experienced death and boredom beasts spun before me various raw but I shut the doors of the wood to find other worlds here I stand upon these cliffs and hear the growling of dead waves and the words of farewell are displayed on my arms folded like two locks farewell mountains and woods farewell badger farewell fox I a dignitary saunters in wild rose squeals in his hand he looks at everything in high-society manner he hiccups chronically in german and so majestic and disdainful he halts his walking on the strand the pine-tree rustles the plum-tree babbles the insane wave glistens the boat dreams and the deep suddenly says to him: o man and you with state affairs laden knowing the forked paths of public service knowing the flummery of epaulets could you have grown disgusted with ballet and life appeared homicidal and here you stand suicidal DIGNITARY here I am before you my dear deep I see that people still desire to purchase real estate on your bottom so they can dine with mermaids in these sea houses so they can sample sea cognac in these watery bars we believe that we won't die that life has a continuation fish glimmers with silver we love beer we love spirits with ladies play at procreation my fiancée durdina loved my medals but for four seasons like Vivaldi did not leave the water closet and I despaired extinguished said to myself you're not a rooster not a digestive tract item the duck and the extension of the stomach continuation of the belly at this point nothing appeared and I saw everything is gorgeous but smarmy distressing nauseating and I incline myself to you, o sea on documents the letters plight behold are writ in every quarter and I see hundreds of categories like fish swim in the water The servants bring in a large sofa on the sofa people birds thoughts mice and bushes they wear mournful faces they wear empty eyes birds walk on the grass like dreams on the head people lie around yellow boats shine clang thoughts steal into the grave across rain and across might mice walk along houses as if they were attic nouses and transparent and light bushes sleep under the flag VOICE come here all of you and light your candles demon vegetable and knight our guests shall be this night sea shore and star we shall hold a boundless feast a dark angel flutters out of the deep the nest ANGEL is everyone everyone gathered here has everyone sat on the floor the musicians have assembled like penguins on a cliff the sea went out on the town arm in arm with a star and the sea said: stop thinking running taradiddle think think think think run around jump complain death will extend its morose arm too late the doctors will alight like swans, relations will flock to the bed and other labors will ensue flies will fly around in the body but what help can I offer you children people in this night HUNTER sea sea lady you are our only hope we come to you trembling dignitary shut up ignoramus! dear sea o sea we cannot see anything accept us o darling second and watery divinity like beasts we run around in darkness bared of rapiers thoughts tuxedoes in our hand a jar of light smokes look at this o mighty one on our head a halo clatters our end is coming it is come SEA I can't SEA DEMON and what did I say? HUNTER I think, I cry SEA I too mean nothing 1930
(Translated By Eugene Ostashevsky) |
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