The Silver Age of Russian Poetry

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The Futurists

Vladimir Mayakovsky

Velemir Khlebnikov

Futurism

The futurists did not innovate and build on past tradtions. They wanted to destroy all that came before and start anew, embracing technology and the revolution. Futurism began in 1909 in Italy. It was tied with the avant garde art movement and artists such as Malevich. Two of the major figures of Russian Futurism were Vladimir Mayakovsky and Velemir Khlebnikov.

Vladimir Mayakovsky

Vladimir Mayakovksy (1893-1930) wrote and painted, celebrating the revolution, and looking with optimism to the new era that was dawning. He wrote inspirational poems about the revolution, such Our March. He ridicules the symbolists with the line "See, the starry heaven is bored! We weave our songs without its help." He does not need an otherworldly mystical muse. He is inspired by the revolution.

Unfortunatley, by the late 1920's, Mayakovsky was becoming disillusioned with the outcome of the revolution. On April 12, 1930, he became so desperate, that he shot himself in the heart.

Mayakovsky is popular on the Web. Click here to link to an entire site in English devoted to the poet.

Translation of Mayakovsky's poem: Our March

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Velemir Khlebnikov

Velemir Khlebnikov (1885-1922) is well known in Russian circles for his zaum poetry. Zaum means he went to the roots of the Russian language, composing poems that were based on sounds alone. Obviously these poems are practically impossible to translate, though attempts have been made. His poem, Incantation by Laughter, consists essentially of multiple forms of the word smekh (laughter) repeated one after another.

My favourite poem by Khlebnikov, in which he uses one of those forms of smekh, is actually about love. It begins Once again, once again... Like Mayakovsky, Khlebnikov takes all the symbolist mysticism out of the traditional symbolism of a star. It is actually quite a bitter poem. In a typically futurist manner, he relates a nebulous concept like love to the science of navigation.

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