Letters to the Future : An Approach to Sinyavsky-Tertz / Richard Lourie.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Lourie, Richard, Author.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Sini︠a︡vskiĭ, A. (Andreĭ), 1925-1997.

Sini︠a︡vskiĭ, A.

Literary Studies.

Political Science & Political History.

Local Subjects:

Literary Studies.

Political Science & Political History.

Physical Description:

1 online resource (272 p.)

Edition:

1st ed.

Place of Publication:

Ithaca, NY : Cornell University Press, [2019]

Language Note:

In English.

Summary:

To fill the void that resulted from the shattering of his Marxist beliefs, Andrei Sinyavsky invented Abram Tertz. Weaving together biography and keen literary insights, this book traces the metamorphosis of Sinyavsky, teacher and critic, into Tertz, clandestine writer of fantastical fiction. It reviews the crises in Soviet society before and after Stalin's death, and describes the loss of faith that precipitated Sinyavsky 's dual existence, ending with the writer's arrest, trial, and imprisonment in 1966.Sympathetic yet critical, Mr. Lourie treats all of Sinyavsky's pretrial writings. He discusses The Trial Begins, Thought Unaware, On Socialist Realism, The Fantastic Stories, and The Makepeace Experiment as works of art and as visible signs of complex and changing relationships. Each work is assessed in the context within which it was written, and is compared with other Russian works and with contemporary Polish, European, and American writings. Sinyavsky's literary criticism, published in Russia under his own name, is evaluated on its own terms and in the light of his fiction.In addition to all of the published writings, Mr. Lourie makes full use of the record of Sinyavsky's trial, reminiscences of his friends, and the small body of critical literature available. The book provides not only a balanced and eloquent appraisal of the life and art of a modern Russian master, but it offers an extraordinary view into the mind of a Soviet intellectual.

Contents:

Frontmatter

Contents

Preface

1. The Metamorphosis of Sinyavsky-Tertz

2. The Trial

3. On Socialist Realism

4. The Trial Begins

5. Solitaria

6. Science and Fiction: Fantastic Stories

7. History versus the People

8. Sinyavsky as a Critic

9. Epilogue: Sinyavsky for Russia and for the West

Notes

Selected Bibliography

Index

Notes:

Description based on online resource; title from PDF title page (publisher's Web site, viewed 26. Nov 2019)

Description based on publisher supplied metadata and other sources.

ISBN:

9781501744211

1501744216

OCLC:

1129174781