In March 1934, a fateful encounter took place between Russian poets Osip Mandelstam and Boris Pasternak on Tverskoy Boulevard in Moscow. Mandelstam recited a poem to Pasternak, not expecting the dangerous consequences it would entail. At a time when Stalinist repression was rapidly escalating, this seemingly innocent exchange between friends was a perilous act of defiance.
Pasternak, sensing the gravity of Mandelstam’s words, responded with fear: “I heard nothing, you recited nothing.” He was acutely aware of the perilous times they lived in, with people disappearing and the ever-present possibility of surveillance. Pasternak’s apprehension was justified as the secret police of the NKVD eventually discovered the subversive content of Mandelstam’s poem and arrested him. Mandelstam, known for his meticulousness, even corrected the imperfect copy of his poem while imprisoned in the notorious Lubyanka. Miraculously, he was released with the official instruction to be “isolated but preserved”.
Mandelstam’s exile to Voronezh, a provincial Russian city, became a period of prolific creativity overshadowed by the specter of death. Despite writing over 100 poems, he was rearrested in 1938 and ultimately perished in a transit camp. His powerful poem, the “Epigram Against Stalin,” continues to reverberate as a scathing critique of a dictator and a testament to the horrors of that era:
“We live, deaf to the land beneath us
Ten steps away no one hears our speeches
All we hear is the Kremlin mountaineer,
The soul-corrupter and peasant-slayer
His fingers are fat as grubs
And the words, final as lead weights, fall from his lips,
His cockroach whiskers leer
And his boot tops gleam.”
Osip Mandelstam’s untimely death became an integral part of his legacy, solidifying his status as a legendary literary figure. Poet and translator Ralph Dutli masterfully delves into Mandelstam’s life, capturing both his immense love for life and his unwavering commitment to artistic truth. Mandelstam once wrote, “I cannot be silent,” encapsulating his fearless determination.
Dutli also explores Mandelstam’s lasting literary impact and fully justifies Joseph Brodsky’s assertion that he is the greatest Russian poet of the 20th century, representing global civilization in defiance of Stalinist tyranny. In his essay, “The Child of Civilization,” Brodsky illuminates the essence of Mandelstam’s poetry, describing it as a “nervous, high-pitched, pure voice shot through with love, terror, memory, culture, faith.”
Mandelstam’s journey began in 1891, born into a Jewish family in Warsaw. Educated in St. Petersburg and well-traveled, he quickly gained recognition for his lyrical verse. While Dutli’s biography offers a comprehensive look into Mandelstam’s life, it falls short in capturing the luminosity of his poetry through the accompanying English translations. For a better glimpse of Mandelstam’s magic, Thomas de Waal’s recent translation of Tristia provides a more compelling experience.
Mandelstam’s life was marked by the tumultuous events of the Russian Revolution and the ensuing civil war. He faced arrests and accusations from both sides, constantly thrust into the chaos. Notably, three influential women shaped his creative path: poets Marina Tsvetaeva and Anna Akhmatova, and his wife Nadezhda Khazina. Nadezhda, a fierce and devoted partner, became Mandelstam’s human Dictaphone, faithfully preserving his poems in her memory. Even as she moved between obscure provincial cities with his manuscripts hidden in saucepans, Nadezhda remained resolute in protecting her husband’s legacy.
“Poetry is a power, because people are killed for it,” Mandelstam once prophesied to Akhmatova. Despite Stalin’s attempts to erase his work and memory, the power of Mandelstam’s poetry persevered. This was evident at Nadezhda’s funeral in 1981, where mourners spontaneously recited his poems by heart. Mandelstam’s longing for freedom and his struggle against the constraints of his time are eloquently captured in his words: “Oh for an inch of blue sea, for just enough to go through the eye of a needle!”
Osip Mandelstam: A Biography by Ralph Dutli, translated by Ben Fowkes Verso £25, 432 pages
John Thornhill is the FT’s innovation editor and a former Moscow correspondent
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