The Republic of the Southern Cross, and other stories

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Bryusov, Valery Yakovlevich, 1873-1924

Language:

English

Physical Description:

1 online resource : multiple file formats

Place of Publication:

Salt Lake City, UT : Project Gutenberg,

Summary:

"The Republic of the Southern Cross" by Valery Yakovlevich Bryusov is a collection of short stories written in the early 20th century. The work showcases Brussof's fascination with the thin line between reality and imagination, exploring themes of consciousness, identity, and societal structures through his narratives. The stories are characterized by a distinctive writing style that balances brevity and complexity, presenting readers with psychological explorations of human desires and fears. At the start of the titular story, "The Republic of the Southern Cross," we are introduced to a futuristic society centered around a massive settlements at the South Pole called Zvezdny. This industrial Republic boasts a population thriving under a facade of democracy while being secretly controlled by an oligarchic board of directors. As the narrative unfolds, we learn that the citizens are afflicted by a bizarre mental disease called "mania contradicens," which causes them to act in contradiction to their desires. This sets the stage for a catastrophic unraveling of societal norms and mental stability, ultimately questioning the foundations of this seemingly utopian existence. The opening portion expertly establishes both the unique setting and the central tensions of the story, inviting readers to reflect on the parallels between this fictional world and their own realities. (This is an automatically generated summary.)

Contents:

The Republic of the Southern Cross

The marble bust

For herself or for another

In the mirror

The "Bemol" shop of stationery

Rhea Silvia

Eluli, son of Eluli

In the tower.

Credits:

Produced by Chuck Greif, MFR and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net (This file was produced from images generously made available by The Internet Archive)

Notes:

Reading ease score: 68.8 (8th & 9th grade). Neither easy nor difficult to read.

Release date is 2016-10-27