Information about the author:
Eugenia V. Ivanova
Evgeniia V. Ivanova, DSc in Philology, Leading Research Fellow, A.M. Gorky Institute of World Literature of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Povarskaya 25A, bld. 1, 121069 Moscow, Russia.
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Abstract:
The article explores the artistic theories of two major figures in Russian Symbolism: Valery Bryusov and Alexander Blok. A comparison of their concepts highlights a significant feature of Russian Symbolism—its ability to encompass diverse views on the role and purpose of poetry. The article is structured in two parts. The first part examines the development of Bryusov’s theory in the 1890s, a period during which, influenced by French Symbolism, he published three issues of the almanac Russian Symbolists (1894–1895). In the prefaces to these issues, Bryusov made his first attempts to articulate his understanding of Symbolism, developing his ideas on an ad hoc basis. Hostile criticism and a wave of negative reviews compelled Bryusov to clarify his artistic credo. His theory was influenced by the poet Alexander Dobrolyubov and Maurice Maeterlinck’s book Le Trésor des humbles (“The Treasure of the Humble”). However, theory itself was not a decisive factor in Bryusov’s artistic evolution and played a relatively minor role in his development. For Bryusov, the poet’s primary task was perfecting form, cultivating verse, and mastering poetic technique.
The second part of the article examines Alexander Blok’s conception of art, shaped by the ideas of the philosopher Vladimir Solovyov. For Blok, poetry had mystical origins, serving as a voice from another reality. The poet’s role was to extract sounds from primordial chaos and, by giving them form, bring them into the world. Blok largely rejected the connection between Russian and French Symbolism, a view he debated with Nikolai Gumilev, who continued the Symbolist tradition initiated by Bryusov. These divergent concepts of Bryusov and Blok’s work can be seen as two poles of Russian Symbolism, which coexisted peacefully within the movement.
Keywords: Valery Bryusov, history and origin of the theory of Russian Symbolism, influence of French Symbolism, Bryusov’s poetry collections Chefs d’oeuvre (“Masterpieces”, 1895), Me eum esse (“This is Me”, 1896).
