The Minneapolis journal. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn.) 1888-1939, 1905-08-09

|,14BOOK NI|.1
i - " CHAT
lF~ d.
THE UNEASY CHAIR

. COURSE IN RUSSIAN LITERATURE
FOR ENGLISH SPEAkING STUDENTS.
The study Of any civilized literature
sheds light on all literature. The reader
OF Prince Kropotkin's Russian Literal
ture will find that this is -eminently
true OF Russian letters. One cannot read
the book, following the authors thought
this way and that, as he leads from the
beginnings or his nations literature in
folklore and mythology and saga down
to the modern novel and drama, without
enriching his mind with things that lend
new value to all literature. Prince
Kropotkin is evidently reader of cos
mopolitan tastes. So he throws light on
Russian writer's by comparisons and con-
trasts with writers in. French, in Ger
man and In English. and, of course, there
is a reflection always well worth noting
in passing, upon the author used for
comparison. A good example Of this, and
one which shows how very lucid, and, we
may say, adhesively, stated, are Prince
kropotkin's views, is given In the fol-
lowing comparison of GogoIs realism
with that of Zo1a's:
Realism in art was much discussed some time
ago. in connection chiefly with the first writings
of Zoa; but We Russians, who had had Gogol,
and knew realism in it's best form, could not
fall In with the views of the French realists.
We saw In lola a. tremendous amount of the
same romanticism which he combated; and in
his realism, such as it appeared in his writings
! OF the first period. we saw step backwards
| from the realism of Balzac. For us, realism
could not be limited to mere anatomy of
society; it had to have higher background;
| the realistic description had to be made sub
servient to an idealistic aim. Still less could
we understand realism description only of
the lowest aspects of life, because, to limit one
observation b.. to the lowest aspects only,
has beside to and De within re1st owe nf' man e
| festat1ons its highest ones well. Degeneracy
| Is not the sole nor dominant feature of mod
ern society. II we look at 1t as whole. Con-
| sequently the artist who limits his observations
to the lowest and most degenerate aspects only.
and not for special purpose, does not make
us understand that he explores only small
| corner of life. Such an artist does not con-
ceive life as it is; he knows but one aspect of
1t, and this Is not the most interesting one.
There is something, and something big
| for the realist, who thinks realism means
seeing only the seamy side of things, tc
! ponder oyer. And Illuminating comment
like that is plentiful thruout the book.
| There will be a surprise for the reader
too, who has been accustomed to think
of Russian literature as in the early
stages of its development the early eff
| forts of a race speaking barbara
tongue. There is a great literature II
Russia and 1t is in tongue, which, tho
outlandish to sight and hearing fo
Americans, is exceedingly flexible AND
adaptable to the expression OF tine shade:
Of thought Prince Kropotkin says:
The richness Of the Russian language il
words is astounding. Many word which stand
alone for an expression Of a given idea in thu
language of western Europe has in Russian
three or four equivalents for the rendering O.
the various shades of the same
idea; T.. Il, 1t is especially rich in render
Ing OF the various shades of human feeling, ten
derness, love, sadness, merriment, also vari
GUS degrees Of the same action. Its pliabilit
for translation is such that in no other Ian
guage do you find an equal number Of mos
beautiful, correct and truly poetical rendering
OF foreign, authors. Poets of the most divers
, character, such as Heine Beranger, Longfellow
Schiller Shelley and Goethe to say nothing 0
, that favorite with Russian translators, Shaks
pere, are equally we'll turned into Russian
- The desperate vagueness' Of Germa
| metaphysics Is quite much at home In Rus
sian as the matter-offact style, of the eighteent
century philosophers; and the short, concret
and expressive terse sentences of the bes
f English writer's offer no difficulty to the Rus
sian translator. fJ':l =; -
Il Great value, IS gtXen the book thru 1t
= ability to open 1Sadsrs the way to sue
5 a literature as the Russian. Many piece
e of Russian literature that have not We
been translated in full into our, tongue ar
quoted by Prince Kropotkin.s; The boo
v in this respect, then; is a. pioneers openin
' up to Americans new and rich fields
. reading which are sure to be more an
t. more fully cultivated as the demand #
e literature of weight and power grows an
satisfaction with mere CONNECTIONS d
minishes. The book, therefore, is big wit
j.. facts and with promise to litera1
America
Mcclure Phillips & Co., New York. 81 net.