Description
In 1833 Alexander Pushkin began to explore the topic of madness, a subject little explored in Russian literature before his time. The works he produced on the theme are three of his greatest masterpieces: the prose novella The Queen of Spades, the narrative poem The Bronze Horseman, and the lyric "God Grant That I Not Lose My Mind." Gary Rosenshield presents a new interpretation of Pushkin's genius through an examination of his various representations of madness.
Pushkin brilliantly explored both the destructive and creative sides of madness, a strange fusion of violence and insight. In this study, Rosenshield illustrates the surprising valorization of madness in The Queen of Spades and "God Grant That I Not Lose My Mind" and analyzes The Bronze Horseman's confrontation with the legacy of Peter the Great, a cornerstone figure of Russian history. Drawing on themes of madness in western literature, Rosenshield situates Pushkin in a greater framework with such luminaries as Shakespeare, Sophocles, Cervantes, and Dostoevsky providing an insightful and absorbing study of Russia's greatest writer.
Author: Gary Rosenshield
Publisher: University of Wisconsin Press
Published: 11/05/2003
Pages: 272
Binding Type: Paperback
Weight: 0.82lbs
Size: 9.32h x 6.04w x 0.63d
ISBN13: 9780299182045
ISBN10: 0299182045
BISAC Categories:
- Literary Criticism | Russian & Soviet
About the Author
Gary Rosenshield is professor of Slavic languages and literature at the University of Wisconsin-Madison and the author of Crime and Punishment: The Techniques of the Omniscient Author and numerous scholarly articles on Slavic studies.