- DOI:
- УДК / UDK: 821.161.1.0
- Issue:
- Abstract:
The present article analyzes a playful collective poem “Commemoration” (“We have to commemorate certainly and for sure..”, 1833) which was co -authored by Petr Vyazemsky, Alexander Pushkin and Ivan Myatlev and addressed to their friend, one of the founders of Russian nonsense poetry, Vasily Zhukovsky. The article focuses on the name of “the former poet Panzerbitter, the venerable elder of our parish,” which opens the epistle, and argues that it serves as the interpretative key to the entire text. Who was this poet who has been left unnoticed by all compilers of dictionaries of Russian writers of the 18th century? Was he a real person? What does his name signify and why did the authors of the playful epistle start their commemorative missive to Zhukovsky with the reference to this “Herr”? The author recontructs the “corpus of literary works” attributed to Panzerbitter, including the text of the unpublished play Five Thousand Roubles, and analyzes the allusive semantics and the pragmatics (a mischievous poetic consolation of Zhukovsky and parodic “wake” for ultra -royalism) of the “Commemoration,” considering the latter in the context of Russian frivolous “underground” poetry of the late 18th and early 19th centuries.
- Keywords: collective poetry; 18th century frivolous (“underground”) poetry; literary mystifications; Petr Viazemskii; Alexander Pushkin; Ivan Miatlev; Vasily Zhukovsky; Nikolai Karamzin; Fedor Glinka; Dmitry Gorchakov.
- For citation:
Vinitsky, I.Yu. “Herr Panzerbitter: An Episode From the History of Russian Collaborative Poetry From the Late 18th Through the First Third of the 19th Century.” Literaturnyi fakt, no. 4 (18), 2020, pp. 260 –298. (In Russ.)
- References:
1. Akel'ev, E.V. Gorodskaia prestupnaia sreda i opyt bor'by s nei v Rossii i Frantsii pervoi poloviny XVIII veka: dis. … kand. ist. nauk. [The Urban Criminal Environment and the Attempt of Fighting Against It in Russia and France in the First Half of the 18th Century: PhD Thesis]. Moscow, RGGU Publ., 2009. 366 p. (In Russ.)
2. Vinitsky, I.Iu. “Zhukovskii i Gogol'. (Iz istorii odnogo mesta)” [“Zhukovsky and Gogol. (From the History of a Place)”]. Unacknowledged Legislators. Studies in Russian Literary History and Poetics in Honor of Michael Wachtel, ed. by Lazar Fleishman, David M. Bethea and Ilya Vinitsky. Berlin, Peter Lang Publ., 2020, pp. 171 –183. (In Russ.)
3. Vinogradov, V.V. “Neizvestnye zametki Pushkina v ‛Literaturnoi gazete’ 1830 g.” [“Unknown Notes by Pushkin in the ʽLiteraturnaya Gazeta’ of 1830”]. Pushkin. Vremennik Pushkinskoi komissii [Pushkin. Chronicle of the Pushkin Commission], issue 4 –5. Moscow, Leningrad, 1939, pp. 453 –476. (In Russ.)
4. Viazemskii, P.A. Polnoe sobranie sochinenii [Complete Works], published by Count S.D. Sheremetev. St. Petersburg, 1878 –1896.. (In Russ.)
5. Gardzonio, St. “‛Tsikl ob Ivane Daniloviche’ v issledovanii M.M. Nikitina: (Zamechaniia k predvaritel'noi publikatsii sochinenii A.V. Olsuf'eva)” [“ʽCycle About Ivan Danilovich’ in of M.M. Nikitin’s Study: (Notes on the Preliminary Publication of A.V. Olsufiev's works)”]. Study Group on Eighteenth Century Russia. Newsletter, no. 20, 1992, pp. 44 –60. (In Russ.)
6. Zhukovskii, V.A. Polnoe sobranie sochinenii i pisem: v 20 t. [Complete Works and Letters: in 20 vols.], vol. 13, comp. and ed. by O.B. Lebedeva, A.S. Yanushkevich. Moscow, Yazyki slavianskoi kul'tury Publ., 2004. 608 p. (In Russ.)
7. Zykova, G.V. “Atributsiia nekotorykh tekstov I.I. Dmitrieva, V.A. Zhukovskogo, P.A. Viazemskogo i M.T. Kachenovskogo v ‛Vestnike Evropry’ 1800 –1810 -kh gg.” [“Attribution of Some Texts by I.I. Dmitriev, V.A. Zhukovsky, P.A. Vyazemsky and M.T. Kachenovsky from the ʽVestnik Evropy’ of 1800 –1810s”]. Vestnik Moskovskogo universiteta. Seriia 9. Filologiia, no. 2, 1994, pp. 42 –47. (In Russ.)
8. Iezuitova, R.V. “Shutlivye zhanry v poezii Zhukovskogo i Pushkina 1810 -kh godov” [“Joking Genres in the Poetry of Zhukovsky and Pushkin of the 1810s”]. Pushkin: Issledovaniia i materialy [Pushkin: Studies and Materials], vol. 10. Leningrad, Nauka Publ., 1982, pp. 22 –47. (In Russ.)
9. Ilizarov, S.S. Moskovskaia intelligentsiia XVIII veka [Moscow Intelligentsia of the 18th Century]. Moscow, Ianus -K Publ., 1999. 369 p. (In Russ.)
10. Iliushin, A.A. “Iarost' pravednykh. Zametki o nepristoinoi russkoi poezii XVIII –XIX vv.” [“The Wrath of the Righteous. Notes on Obscene Russian Poetry of the 18th –19th centuries”]. Literaturnoe obozrenie, no. 11, 1991, p. 7 –14. (In Russ.)
11. Koshelev, V.A. Pushkin: istoriia i predanie. Ocherki [Pushkin: History and Legend. Essays]. St. Petersburg, Akademicheskii proekt Publ., 2000. 359 p. (In Russ.).
12. Kukushkina, E.D. “Gustav III v russkoi literature XVIII veka” [“Gustav III in Russian Literature of the 18th Century”]. ХVIII vek [18th Century], vol. 25. St. Petersburg, Nauka Publ., 2008, pp. 64 –94. (In Russ.)
13. Levinton, G. “Zametki o ‛Pushkine’.” [“Notes on ʽPushkin’.”]. I vremia i mesto. Istoriko -filologicheskii sbornik k shestidesiatiletiiu Aleksandra L'vovicha Ospovata [The Right Time, the Right Place. Historical and Philological Collection for the 60th Anniversary of Alexander Lvovich Ospovat]. Moscow, Novoe izdatel'stvo Publ., 2008, pp. 523 –553. (In Russ.)
14. Levinton, G.A., Okhotin, N.G. “‛Chto za delo im — khochu…’: O literaturnykh i fol'klornykh istochnikakh skazki A.S. Pushkina ‛Tsar' Nikita i 40 ego docherei’.” [“ʽWhat is it to them? — I want to…’: On Literary and Folklore Sources of A.S. Pushkin’s Fairy Tale ʽTsar Nikita and his 40 daughters’”]. Literaturnoe obozrenie, no. 11, 1991, pp. 28 –35. (In Russ.)
15. “Letite, grusti i pechali…” Nepodtsenzurnaia russkaia poeziia XVIII –XIX vv. [“Fly Away, Sadness and Sorrow...” Uncensored Russian Poetry of the 18th –19th Centuries], comp. K.G. Krasukhin. Moscow, Littera Publ., 1992. 224 p. (In Russ.)
16. Martynov, I.F. “U istokov russkoi frivol'noi poezii: ‛Dekameron’ Dzh. Bokkachcho v Rossii XVIII veka” [“On the Origins of Russian Frivolous Poetry: ʽThe Decameron’ by G. Boccaccio in Russia of the 18th Century”]. Ricerche slavistiche, vol. 29/31, 1982/1984, pp. 153 –175. (In Russ.)
17. Medvedev, M.M. “Griboedov pod sledstviem i nadzorom” [“Griboyedov Under Investigation and Supervision”]. Literaturnoe nasledstvo [Literary Herutage], vol. 60: Dekabristy -literatory [Decembrists -Writers], part II, book 1. Moscow, 1956, pp. 475 –496. (In Russ.)
18. Nabokov, V.V. Kommentarii k romanu A.S. Pushkina ‛Evgenii Onegin’ [Commentary on the novel by A.S. Pushkin “Eugene Onegin”], trans. from English. St. Petersburg, Iskusstvo – SPB Publ., Nabokovskii fond Publ., 1998. 928 p. (In Russ.)
19. “Neizdannaia stat'ia A.A. Feta o romane N.G. Chernyshevskogo ‛Chto delat'?’.” [“Unpublished Article by A.A. Fet About N.G. Chernyshevsky’s Novel ʽWhat Is to Be Done?’.”], published and comm. by G. Volkov. Literaturnoe nasledstvo [Literary Heritage], vol. 25 –26. Moscow, 1936, pp. 477 –544. (In Russ.)
20. Peretts, V.N. Pamiatniki russkoi dramy epokhi Petra Velikogo [Monuments of Russian Drama From the Era of Peter the Great]. St. Petersburg, Imp. AN Publ., 1903. 24 p. + 570 p. (In Russ.)
21. Poety -satiriki kontsa XVIII — nachala XIX veka (Biblioteka poeta) [Poets -Satirists of the Late 18th — Early 19th Century], prep. by G.V. Ermakova -Bitner. Leningrad, Sovetskii pisatel' Publ., 1959. 754 p. (In Russ.)
22. Pushkinskaia entsiklopediia: Proizvedeniia [Pushkin Encyclopedia: Works], issue 3. St. Petersburg, Nestor -Istoriia Publ., 2017. 640 p. (In Russ.)
23. Russkaia demokraticheskaia satira XVII veka [Russian Democratic Satire of the 17th Century], 2nd ed., prep. by V.P. Adrianova -Peretts. Moscow, Nauka Publ., 1977. 254 p. (In Russ.)
24. Saitov, V.I. Fedor Grigor'evich Karin, odin iz maloizvestnykh pisatelei vtoroi poloviny ХVIII v. [Fyodor Grigorievich Karin, One of the Little -Known Writers of the Second Half of the 18th Century]. St. Petersburg, Tipografiia Shteina Publ., 1893. 23 p. (In Russ.)
25. Samover, N.V. “‛Ne mogu pokorit' sebia ni Bulgarinym, ni dazhe Benkendorfu...’ Dialog V.A. Zhukovskogo s Nikolaem I v 1830 godu” [“ʽI Cannot Conquer Myself Neither by Bulgarin, Nor Even by Benckendorff...’ V.А. Zhukovsky’ Dialogue with Nicholas I in 1830”]. Litsa. Biograficheskii al'manakh [Faces. Biographical Almanac]. Moscow, St. Petersburg, Feniks Publ., Atheneum Publ., 1995, pp. 87 –119. (In Russ.)
26. Serkov, A.I. Russkoe masonstvo. 1731 –2000: Entsiklopedicheskii slovar' [Russian Freemasonry. 1731 –2000: Encyclopedic Dictionary]. Moscow, ROSSPEN Publ., 2001. 1224 p. (In Russ.)
27. Serman, I.Z. “Iz istorii literaturnoi bor'by 60 -kh godov XVIII veka (Neizdannaia komediia Fedora Emina ‛Uchenaia shaika’)” [“From the History of Literary Struggle of the 1760s (Fyodor Emin’s Unpublished Comedy ʽThe Scientific Gang’)”]. XVIII vek [18th Century], vol. 3. Moscow, Leningrad, Izdatel'stvo AN SSSR Publ., 1958, pp. 207 –225. (In Russ.)
28. Slovar' russkikh pisatelei XVIII veka [Dictionary of Russian Authors of the 18th Century], issue 1. Leningrad, Nauka Publ., 1988. 358 p. (In Russ.)
29. Smirnova -Rosset, A.O. Dnevnik. Vospominaniia [Diary. Memoirs], prep. by S.V. Zhitomirskaya. Moscow, Nauka Publ., 1989. 790 p. (In Russ.)
30. Stepanov, V.P. “Neizdannye proizvedeniia D.P. Gorchakova” [“D.P. Gorchakov’s Unpublished Works”]. XVIII vek [18th Century], vol. 16. Leningrad, Nauka Publ., 1989, pp. 110 –129. (In Russ.)
31. Stepanov, V.P. “Polemika vokrug D.I. Fonvizina v period sozdaniia ‛Nedoroslia’.” [“The Controversy Around D.I. Fonvizin During the Creation of ʽThe Minor’.”]. XVIII vek [18th Century], vol. 15. Leningrad, Nauka Publ., 1986, pp. 204 –229. (In Russ.)
32. Tri veka poezii russkogo Erosa: publikatsii i issledovaniia [Three Centuries of Russian Erotic Poetry: Publications and Studies], comp. A. Shchuplov, A Iliushin. Moscow, Piat' vecherov Publ., 1992. 160 p. (In Russ.)
33. Tynianov, Iu.N. Poetika. Istoriia literatury. Kino [Poetics. Literary History. Cinema]. Moscow, Nauka Publ., 1977. 574 p. (In Russ.)
34. Tynianov, Iu.N. Pushkin. Moscow, Kniga Publ., 1984. 430 p. (In Russ.)
35. Uspenskii, B.A. Izbrannye trudy [Selected Works], vol. II. Moscow, Gnozis Publ., 1994. 688 p. (In Russ.)
36. Fraiman, T. Tvorcheskaia strategiia i poetika V.A. Zhukovskogo (1800 -e – nachalo 1820 -kh godov) [Creative Strategy and Poetics of V.А. Zhukovsky (1800s – early 1820s)]. Tartu, 2002. Available at: https://www.ruthenia.ru/document/532393.html (Accessed 03 May 2020). (In Russ.)
37. Sharypkin, D.M. Skandinavskaia literatura v Rossii [Scandinavian Literature in Russia]. Leningrad, Nauka Publ., 1980, 322 p. (In Russ.)
38. Shil'nikova, I.V. “Kak fabrikami nuzhno upravliat': deiatel'nost' upravliaiushchego Iaroslavskoi Bol'shoi Manufakturoi A.F. Griaznova (1898 –1917 gg.)” [“ʽHow Factories Need to Be Managed’: the Activities of the Manager of the Yaroslavl Big Manufactory A.F. Gryaznov (1898 –1917)”]. Ekonomicheskaia istoriia. Obozrenie [Economic History. Review], issue 12. Moscow, MGU Publ., 2006, pp. 56 –70. (In Russ.)
39. Shapir, M.I. “Iz istorii russkogo ‛balladnogo stikha’: Perom vladeet kak eldoi” [“From the History of Russian ʽBallad Verse’: He Wields the Pen As Good As His Prick”]. Russian Linguistics, vol. 17, no. 1, 1993, pp. 57 –84. (In Russ.)
40. Shruba, M. “Barkov i Maikov” [“Barkov and Maykov”]. Novoe literaturnoe obozrenie, no. 14, 1996, pp. 139 –144. (In Russ.)
41. Shruba, M. “‛Devich'ia igrushka’ i frantsuzskie sborniki frivol'noi poezii XVIII veka” [“ʽGirl's Toy; and French Collections of Frivolous Poetry of the 18th Century”]. Novoe literaturnoe obozrenie, no. 60 (2), 2003, pp. 407 –424. (In Russ.)
42. De Michelis, С.G. La satira ai Vecchio -credenti nel ciclo di Olsufev. Le minoranze corne oggetto di satira, vol. 1. Padova, 2001, pp. 94 –105. (In Italian)
43. Morin, N. Bestiaire poitevin: expression traditionnelle, expression contemporaine. Prahecq: Edition U.P.C.P. Geste paysanne, 1984. 352 p. (In French)
44. Schruba, M. “K spetsifike barkoviany na fone frantsuzskoi pornografii” [“On the Specifics of Barcovianism Against the Background of French Pornography”]. Eros and Pornography in Russian Culture. Eros i pornografiia v russkoi kul'ture, ed. by M. Levitt and A. Toporkov. Moscow, Ladomir Publ., 1999, pp. 200 –218. (In Russ.)
45. Schruba, M. “Russkaia obstsennaia epigramma ХVIII veka (perevody s frantsuzskogo)” [“Russian Obscene Epigram of the 18th century (Translations from French)”]. Russian Literature, vol. 52, no. 1 –3, 2002, pp. 161 –180. (In Russ.)
46. Stewart P., Barron William, M. Engraven Desire: Eros, Image & Text in the French Eighteenth Century. Duke University Press Publ., 1992. 380 p. (In English)
47. Sulpasso, B. Una “confessione di Fede” nella letteratura libertina russa: la satira ai vecchi credenti nel ciclo di Olsufev. Roma, 2005. 340 p. (In Italian)
48. Zitser, Ernest A. A Full -Frontal History of the Romanov Dynasty. The Russian Review, vol. 70, no. 4, 2011, pp. 557 –583. (In English)