Because of a vast diversity of themes in Shevchenko s

Transcription

1 Dr. George Soltys An indication of the topical and psychological romantic elements in Shevchenko s poetry Dr. George Soltys professor (New York, SUNY, USA) UDC 123(45) Yo soy yo Y mis circunstancias (José Ortega y Gasset) The article is devoted to combining thematic and psychological elements of romanticism in the poetry of Taras Shevchenko. Keywords : Romanticism, Shevchenko s creativity, political poetry, works of monumental Generation. Dr. George Soltys, 2014 Поєднання тематичних та психологічних елементів романтизму в поезіях Т. Шевченкаy Солтис Дж. Received: 17 Mar 2014 Because of a vast diversity of themes in Shevchenko s poems, any critical investigations or interpretations may be in conflict with each other. At times, while studying the poet s works, it seems that we are dealing with more than one author. As a result, we envision Shevchenko as an atheist and, at the same time, as a deeply religious person. His role as a rebel or revolutionary is negated by his appeals for brotherly love and forgiveness. His optimism often turns into pessimism a pathological lack of faith or hope for a better future. Also, since every literary work reflects some autobiographical elements, Shevchenko s poetry compels us to look at him as a mythical Prometheus, a martyr, the father of Ukrainian nation and human rights. Many critics, due to their respect for him, refer to Shevchenko as a prophet, while pointing out an the epithets that were mentioned above. But, according to the definitions, which may be found in the dictionaries, a prophet foretells the future, he is the one who receives God s interpretation and who interprets God s will. 9

2 Visnyk Akademii advokatury Ukrainy 11.1 (2014) Mykhailo Drahomanov was one of those who was against exalting Shevchenko as a national prophet. He maintained that we never had any prophets in literature [3, 65]. He also criticized Shevchenko for not being firm in his religious beliefs and not having sufficient knowledge of history [3, 66]. That, by the way, makes us doubt about Shevchenko s ability to accomplish his prophetic mission. We have a tendency to look at everything through a prism of today s events or even through a filter of our expectations. It means, we want to see things that may not even exist and aren t part of reality which the poet had felt and wanted to pass on to the readers of the ХІХ century. In other words, our comprehension of Shevchenko s poetry should depend mainly on the complex social and political processes that had influenced his life. A Spanish philosopher Jose Ortega-Gasset indicated that the psychological essence of a person does not only depend on the biological code, but also on the environment everything that, in addition to nature, has on impact on the person s character. To mention some of those environmental factors let us point out the cultural revolution of the ХІХ century in Europe. It was romanticism a revolution against the ideology of the former century. The foundation on which it was built was substituted by a new world vision. Consequently, new norms were instituted in literature, as well as in other forms of cultural endeavors. Nevertheless, the main slogan at that time was liberty, which pertained to the political ideology, literary topics and poetic style. At first, it is difficult to see some common romantic trends in literature. It is only at the end of the first half of the ХІХ century, when the ideas of romantic movement finally arrive in Spain and, after analizing the variety of approaches, that one can summarize the characteristics utilized by the romantic poets. As a result, there seams to be an agreement by many to accept the following [11, 127/8): 1. The poet s feelings are often the main topic of his poetry. Also are important the poet s interactions with his environment. 2. Poetry strives to be subjective highlighting the negative attitude towards rules pertaining to literature and politics. 3. Frequently, the poet imagines himself to be a leader of society and feels that his ideas reflect the wishes and aspirations of his people. Some social and political topics become part of literature. 4. Many times, the themes presented by the poet are of a historical or legendary nature. 5. The outbursts of feelings, as well as the usual interpretations of reality, imagination and instinct seem to be more important than common sense. 6. There is a predominance of pessimism rather than optimism. 7. The poet pufers spontaneity instead of following the neoclassical rules. 8. There is an attempt to comprehend the role of nature in our lives. 9. Poets, who willingly or unwillingly live outside of the borders of their countries, express the type of nostalgia than goes hand in hand with on extreme fuling of patriotism. 10. Many legends, popular songs and other manifestations of folklore serve as a source of poetic images, stylistic expressions and vocabulary. Often, the poet intermingles 10

3 Dr. George Soltys poetry and prose for a more vivid presentation of the topic. It seems that all the above mentioned statements may be applied to Shevchenko s poetry without them it would be indeed difficult to comprehend the variety of themes and their historical, political and psychological interpretations. We can maintain, without a doubt, than Shevchenko is one of the most representative poets of the romantic period. Whereas even the most known poets of the romantic era show only some of the listed characteristics, Shevchenko s world view embraces all the nuances of romanticism. A very important event occurs in Shevchenko s life in the year After being a serf for 24 years, he becomes a free man. He begins to study at the academy of arts and prepares some verses for his first Kobzar publication in Then, due to the positive recognitation by his friends for these undertakings, we notice an increase in his creative abilities and a demonstration of self confidence. In a letter to his brother Mykyta, Shevchenko writes: So here I live, study and don t bow to anybody. I am not afraid of anyone it s great to be a free man. You do whatever you want and nobody can stop you [1, 18]. Because of expressing these thoughts, Shevchenko becomes some what arrogant. In other words, he feels he can not be a subject to any restrictions. So, in the years , he publishes his first political poems that show a series of harsh critical comments with regard to the tsarists on to cratic policies. In addition, while being only 31 years old, Shevchenko writes his Testament ( Zapovit ) in which he appeals to brake the chains and gain liberty by spinning enemy s blood. We are not talking here about following the idealogical premise of the Cyril and Methodius brotherhood of panslavism with its aim to only a federation of the Slavic status [2, 138]. In his Testament Shevchenko calls for a popular uprising in Ukraine. Hence, it is hard to believe that, being only 31 years old, Shevchenko expresses, in this manner, his selfrighteousness by proposing that his poetry may have such power to influence people. In the year 1844 Shevchenko publishes his monumental work, a satirical poem entitled A dream ( Son ). In it we find an extremely negative position against the tzar and his autocratic rule. It is also a satirical portrayal of tzar s and his wife s ridiculous appearance and behavior. A year later, in Caucasus ( Kavkaz ), there is a sarcastic depiction of tsarist government as a prison of nations. Both of these poems are the cause of Shevchenko s arrest in 1847 and the subsequent exile or banishment to an unfriendly and desolate part of the country. To underscore the difference between the deplorable political situation of the XIX century and prior historical events Shevchenko reminds us of the old legends mentioned in the ballads that showed the cossacks who, at one time, were the masters of their own land. In Shevchenko s poetry we see a romantic fascination with the cossack history to such a degree that some historical figures may be unjustly idealized [6, 23]. The poet himself admits that perhaps some historical leaders of the bloody wars were not described realistically [9, 120]. Ivan Pidkova, Taras Triasylo, Yarema Halayda and Ivan Honta, according to Shevchenko, were the true national heroes and avengers who brought punishment upon those that caused injustice and harm. Thus, even though achieving their goal meant spilling, sometimes, some innocent blood, for Shevchenko the aim justified 11

4 Visnyk Akademii advokatury Ukrainy 11.1 (2014) its means. Therefore, in spite of the fact that Honta kills his two sons, Shevchenko does not consider him to be a romantic anti-hero. He justifies Honta s action in his poem The cold ravine ( Kholodniy yar ) and attacks his critics by calling them sharks, crows and good-for-nothings. Again, in a short poem To Hohol ( Hoholu ), Shevchenko complains that now everything is lost there are not fighters for freedom for nobody would dare to kill his son, his only child [9, 210]. The guilt of Honta s two sons was that they were brought up as catholics by their mother. So, by looking at this solution to a religious problem by Honta, it seems that hetman Bohdan Khmelnytski should also be perceived as a national hero. He did attack the catholic Kingdom of Poland and completely destroyed the polish army. Yet, Shevchenko calls him in his poem the plundered grave ( Rozryta mohyla ) a mentally deficient child who should have been suffocated in his cradle [9, 185] for not being able much later to defend and preserve the short lived independence of the cossack state. It is obvious, sometimes, that, as for as religion is crucevned, Shevchenko comes to some unclear and conflicting conclusions. We also observe this uncertainty and hesitation when Shevchenko assumes the role of a teacher, who intends to enlighten his people, criticize then and point out to them the righteous way into the future. This attitude appears in one of Shevchenko s poems with a rather long title For those who had died, to those who are still alive and to those who have not been born yet, in Ukraine and outside of Ukraine, my friendly epistle. Here, we are faced with Shevchenko s definition of the word nation. It transcends time and space. In other words, he understands all past, present and correct them. While analyzing The epistle ( Poslaniye ), it becomes clear that Shevchenko is ready to accept the role of a spokesman for his nation and attain an important place in the Ukrainian history and literature. These thoughts differ categorically from the ones that Shevchenko had prior to his becoming a known literary personality. In the poem Perebednya, Shevchenko comes out with a different picture of a poet he is a creator of verses, someone who is always lonely. He is a person who seems to know everything and for that is being shunned by everyone [9, 26]. This, incidentally, coincides with the definition of the word poet during the romantic period. Thus, poetry is a conversation with nature. It is God s word. Poets feel that which is unclear and incomprehensible for an ordinary person. By the way, during his exile, Shevchenko s former optimism that his word, once sown in the fertile soil world bring the expected results and glorify those insignificant and silent slaves [9, 455], transforms itself into a complete pessimism, while serving time there, Shevchenko does not see any positive results of his work and in his short poem Perhaps I should send a note to myself he complains My God!.. For whom do I write and for what purpose? [9, 416]. Although some romantic poets had to live outside of their countries, none of them ever expressed such intensive feelings of loneliness as Shevchenko. His poetic writings are saturated with nostalgia and sadness. In many verses the main topic is Shevchenko himself, as well as his recollections of childhood and the wasted year of his youth. There is also a preoccupation with death, complaints about some wicked people and the worst thing of all, while living in 12

5 Dr. George Soltys captivity, is to think about freedom [9, 314]. Comparing the landscape of Ukraine with the environment in exile, a Ukrainian village for Shevchenko is like a colorful Easter egg whereas the sky of island of Kos-Aral dirty and unwashed [9, 369]. Fur there more, poetry that at one time was the essence of Shevchenko s being is now a waste of time [9, 340]. Everything is useless and it is not worth living any more [9, 336]. As a matter of fact, beside some criticism of the policies of tzar s government, the idealized description of Cossack history and some attempts to assert his ego as a teacher, a predominant motif in Shevchenko s poetry is pessimism. We witness the same attitude in other romantic poets in France, this expression of spontaneous or long term pessimism is called mal du siècle. It pertains to a psychological malady that afflicted the XIX century romantic heroes. It is a blend of melancholy, a feeling of desolation and inability to accept reality [12, 110]. This feeling of not being part of society and, at the same time, being insulted as a result of the loss of human dignity leads in Shevchenko s ballads to many illogical conclusions, namely insanity, killing and suicide. In Maryna [9, 361], a newly wed woman stabs her master to death because trying to seduce her, he sends her husband to serve in the army. One should mention that both the woman and her husband were serves and under the total control of their master. In the poem A crazy woman ( Prychynna ) a Cossack, after having found out that his girlfriend was killed by mermaids, commits suicide. In the poem A drowned woman ( Utoplena ) the girl s mother, jelous of her daughter beauty, causes death of both of them. This type of exotic romanticism is filled with imagination and illogical happenings. We can also encounter in the ballad The poplar tree ( Topola ). The heroine s death is represented as something supernatural. In order not to get married to someone whom she doesn t love, the girl transforms herself into a tree. A similar situation can be found in the short poem entitled Lily ( Lileya ) where a girl, after being tormented throughout her life by others, upon her death, is soon resurrected as a flower. It may also be indicated that in many other poems or ballads Shevchenko tries to show our interaction with nature. Many of his verses start with a description of some natural phenomena. The intention, without a doubt, is to create a certain mood and to influence our reaction to what is written. The personified forces of nature are often identifiable with the heroes of Shevchenko s poems. In Hamaliya, for instance, nature reflects the mood of Hamaliya and his Cossacks before and after their battles. Same as in the case of other romantic poets, folklore serves for Shevchenko as a source of symbolic expressions, multiple metaphors, vocabulary and stylistic diversity. Furthermore, since Shevchenko was well acquainted with many existing collections of popular songs and ballads [5, 177], he repeatedly assimilates their themes in his own works. At times, so as to convey the complexity of ideas Shevchenko employs a type of polyphony whereby two or more people express their contradictory views. This often comes up whenever the poet mixes poetry and prose which we observe in his dramatic poems. In the presented dialogues Shevchenko has a chance to deal with many opinions and not to adhere to the old classical rule of maintaining the unity of time, place and action. A good example of this approach, of mixing poetry and prose, 13

6 Visnyk Akademii advokatury Ukrainy 11.1 (2014) some flashbacks and speculation about the future can be found in the poem entitled The witch ( Vidjma ). The dialogue between the gypsy and the witch indicates two distinct ways of thinking a mixture of illogical songs and narrations point to her tragedies and the subsequent life of misery and irrational behavior. This becomes even more vivid once the witch is compared to the gypsy s common sense which he expresses by using a series of simple questions and statements [9, 288]. A similar exchange of ideas, while combining poetry and prose, can be found in other dramatic poems of Shevchenko. However, the most representative example of this approach is the poem Haidamaky. Not only do we see the case of mixing poetry and prose but also many other elements of romanticism. Thus, we encounter twenty popular songs [5, 177] and a multitude of new types of versification. We also notice the influence of historical events with their heroes and antiheroes expressing their bravery, despair and cruelty. While analyzing the poem, one could state that one of the actors in the drama is Shevchenko himself. He describes the uprising of 1768 against the Polish domination as if he himself were the witness to the bloody battles. While remembering the fighting that took in the city of Chyhyryn, the poet introduces a group of citizens hromada that, in a way, plays the role of a chorus in an ancient Greek drama. It is a ploy to have this group assure Shevchenko s participation and voice his justification for the ruthless deeds of haidamaks. For Shevchenko, the uprising was a just retribution for the many decades of suffering and degradation. Hromada also reminds everyone to study history and never forget the good leaders or hetmans that Ukraine used to have. The poem Haidamaky is published as a separate work in December of 1841 [4, 109]. It means, it is one of the exaruples of Shevchenko s works. After excluding the fantastic or exotic appearances of mermaids and changing people into trees or flowers, the poem contains, partially or completely, all known characteristic traits of romanticism. One may ask How was it possible for Shevchenko in only three years, after becoming a free man, to acquire the ability to comprehend the multilateral approaches to romanticism. Let us not forget that the powerful romantic revolution undermined all cultural and political processes. Without a doubt, intuitively Shevchenko accepts some of these new ideas. In addition, while living in Petersburg, even before being liberated from serfdom, Shevchenko participates in the city s social and cultural life. He gets to know some important people in the literary circles and, according to Pantaleymon Kulish, he tries to get hold of any book so that he can read [10, 12]. His knowledge of Russian, Polish and French enabled Shevchenko to read in the original or translation almost all the masterpieces of the important European authors [4, 2]. One has to admit that the influence of these writers can be seen in some of Shevchenko s verses. Nevertheless, it should be emphasized that the borrowed topic usually assumes a different form due to its interpretation or back ground. The reason for this is obvious. The reworked topic depends on the circumstances that influenced Shevchenko s life. For some poets whose life was, more or less, normal or comfortable, writing poetry was sort of a fashionable entertainment. In order to see how the lowest classes of society lived they had to 14

7 Dr. George Soltys climb down the social ladder [8, 25]. One feels, therefore, that they were only observers and not true participant of the processes of romantic revolution. For Shevchenko wasn t necessary to see the down trodden people. He was born, grew up and, while in exile, a member of the most disadvantaged people on earth. Shevchenko, as it has been stated before, is one of the most representative poets of romanticism. It is not only due to his poems expressing the topical and psychological ideology of the romantic era. He is also a tragic romantic figure, a true creation of mal du siècle, with his hesitations, despair and frustration for nor being quite able to overcome the abstacles in his life. References: 1. Біленко В. Основні дати життя і творчості Т. Г. Шевченка : Путівник / В. Біленко, Я. Данилов. К. : Державне видавництво художньої літератури, С Івченко Р. Шевченко і Драгоманов. Мюнхен, Ч. 5. С Кедрин І. Шевченко і українська політична думка / І. Кедрин // Альманах УНС. Нью-Джерсі : Свобода, С Кедрин І. Актуальний Тарас Шевченко / І. Кедрин // Наше життя. Нью-Йорк, Ч. 3. С Ковалів П. Вплив народної поезії на поетичну мову Шевченка / П. Ковалів // Альманах УНС. Нью-Джерсі :Свобода, С Лесько І. Постаті національних провідників в поемах Шевченка / І. Лесько. Нью- Джерсі, С Середа С. Портрет / С. Середа // Нова газета Березень ( 219). 12 с. 8. Скуратовський В. Шевченко в контексті світової літератури. Батькові Тарасові / В. Скуратовський ; [ред. З. Снилик]. Нью-Джерсі : Свобода, С Шевченко Т. Кобзар. К. : Держ. вид-во худож. літератури. 537 с. 10. Boyko I. Taras Shevchenko and west European literature. London : association of Ukrainians of Great Britain, р. 11. Sellese N.F. / Perej I.A. El romanticism en España: Vida y literatura / American Book Co, Р Zulli Floyd Jr. European literature / Ken Publishing Co. New York, р. 15

8 Visnyk Akademii advokatury Ukrainy 11.1 (2014) Поєднання тематичних та психологічних елементів романтизму в поезіях Т. Шевченка Солтис Дж.(Юрій) Резюме: Стаття присвячена питанням об єднання тематичних і психологічних елементів романтизму в поезіях Т. Шевченка. Ключові слова: романтизм, творчість Т. Шевченка, політичні поезії, монументальність праць, генерація. Сочетание тематических и психологических элементов романтизма в поэзии Т. Шевченко Солтис Дж. Резюме: Статья посвящена вопросам объединения тематических и психологических элементов романтизма в поэзии Т. Шевченко. Ключевые слова: романтизм, творчество Т. Шевченко, политические стихи, монументальность работ, генерация. 16