A Russian psyche: the poetic mind of Marina Tsvetaeva

304 Pages·1.214 MB·English

by  TSvetaeva, Marina, Dinega, Alyssa W

A Russian Psyche

A RUSSIAN PSYCHE
The Poetic Mind of Marina Tsvetaeva
Alyssa W. Dinega
THE UNIVERSITY OF WISCONSIN PRESS
TheUniversityofWisconsinPress
1930MonroeStreet
Madison,Wisconsin53711
www.wisc.edu/wisconsinpress/
3HenriettaStreet
LondonWC2E8LU,England
Copyright©2001
TheBoardofRegentsoftheUniversityofWisconsinSystem
Allrightsreserved
5 4 3 2 1
PrintedintheUnitedStatesofAmerica
LibraryofCongressCataloging-in-PublicationData
Dinega,AlyssaW.
ARussianpsyche:thepoeticmindofMarina=EBT=ECSvetaeva/AlyssaW.Dinega.
304pp. cm.
Includesbibliographicalreferencesandindex.
ISBN0-299-17330-5(cloth:alk.paper)
ISBN0-299-17334-8(pbk.)
1.=EBT=ECSvetaeva,Marina,1892–1941—Criticismandinterpretation.
2.CupidandPsyche(Tale)inliterature. I.Title.
PG3476.T75Z636 2001
891.71'42—dc21 2001001945
ThisbookismadepossibleinpartbyasubsidyfromtheInstitute
forScholarshipintheLiberalArts,CollegeofArtsandLetters,
UniversityofNotreDame.
Formyowntwotinymalemuses,
AntonandKirill
AndforEvan,whoisrealatlast

Canaunity(anywhatsoever)reallygiveasum?Aforeignessence.Adifferentdivision
ofatoms.Atranscendenttruthcannotbebrokenupintoparticlesablemerelytoexist.
—MarinaTsvetaeva,lettertoBorisPasternak,10July1926
Inanotherhumanbeingonlytheforeheadandsomeofthechestcavitybelongtome.
Irelinquishthehearteasily,Iwon’trelinquishthechest.Ineedanechochamber.The
heartringshollow.
—MarinaTsvetaeva,lettertoRainerMariaRilke,14August1926
Ifearmethis—isLoneliness—
TheMakerofthesoul
—EmilyDickinson,‘‘TheLonelinessOnedarenotsound...’’

Contents
Preface xi
Acknowledgments xv
Introduction:WalkingthePoeticTightrope 3
1.BattlingBlokandAkhmatova:InPursuitofaMuse 35
2.ConjuringPasternak:ADividedPsyche 90
3.LosingRilke:TheDarkLureofMra 129
4.RuingYoungOrphans:TheEndoftheLine 177
Postscript 226
Notes 233
Index 277
ix