The Life-Work of Flaubert, from the Russian of Merejowski

Merezhkovsky, Dmitry Sergeyevich, 1865-1941Project Gutenberg · United StatesDec 2019

Rating 3.5

Word count: 34K words
Chapters: 4

Summary

Project Gutenberg was the first provider of free electronic books, or eBooks. Michael Hart, founder of Project Gutenberg, invented eBooks in 1971 and his memory continues to inspire the creation of eBooks and related technologies today.The Life-Work of Flaubert, from the Russian of Merejowski by MerezhkovskyAuthor: Merezhkovsky, Dmitry Sergeyevich, 1865-1941,Language: English, Class: PQ: Language and Literatures: Romance literatures: French, Italian, Spanish, Portuguese, Release Date: Oct 12, 2010

Editor's review

This work is Merezhkovsky's critical study of Flaubert, written in Russian and later translated into English; it is a study of the author rather than a conventional biography. Its value lies in treating Flaubert's writing career as a form of spiritual labor, focusing on the tension between artistic autonomy, religious sensibility, and the modern soul, and it carries the speculative temper of a Silver Age critic. Readers can see how a Russian Symbolist thinker reinterpreted nineteenth-century French novelistic aesthetics, and gain another perspective on works such as Madame Bovary and The Temptation of Saint Anthony. The English translation is short and suitable as supplementary material for studying Flaubert's reception history or Russian-French literary exchange. It should be read as a critical text rather than a compilation of facts, and its judgments should be examined with discrimination.

Who it's for

A good fit for

Readers with a basic knowledge of Flaubert and the nineteenth-century French novel who want a deeper understanding of his artistic views
Students and scholars of Russian literary criticism, Silver Age thought, or Russian-French literary reception
General readers who enjoy authorial critical biographies and are willing to read speculative literary criticism
Literature students who need an English critical text as course supplementary material

Not a good fit for

Complete beginners who have never read Flaubert and want a plot summary first
Readers seeking only a chronological biography and factual data on Flaubert
Readers unaccustomed to English texts or speculative critical prose

Reading tips

Read a Chinese translation of Madame Bovary or The Temptation of Saint Anthony before entering this book's criticism.
Take separate notes on the book's claims about art and faith, compare them with Flaubert's letters, and examine the author's position.
Read this book alongside French Flaubert scholarship and note Merezhkovsky's Symbolist perspective.
The English text is short; after finishing each chapter, retell its argument to avoid remembering only conclusions.

About the publisher

Project Gutenberg United States · Founded in 1971

Project Gutenberg is a digital publishing project focused on public-domain ebooks. Its publishing direction centers on classic literary works whose copyright has expired, covering genres such as poetry, drama, fiction, and epic. Representative books include Lyrical Ballads by Wordsworth and Coleridge, Proust's Du côté de chez Swann, Shakespeare's Macbeth and The Complete Works of William Shakespeare, Homer's The Iliad, Dante's La Divina Comèdia: Purgatòri, Cervantes's The History of Don Quixote, Volume 2, and Grahame's The Wind in the Willows. Its author resources consist mainly of classic Western writers such as Wordsworth, Proust, Shakespeare, Homer, Dante, Cervantes, Grahame, and Tolstoy. Its publishing feature is the provision of freely accessible ebooks in EPUB and Kindle formats; it is not a traditional publisher, and publicly available information is limited.

FAQ

Is this book a biography of Flaubert or literary criticism?

It is closer to authorial literary criticism. Merezhkovsky focuses on Flaubert's writing labor, artistic beliefs, and spiritual predicaments rather than arranging life events chronologically. Readers should treat it as a critical text and look elsewhere for factual biographical information.

Can I read this book without having read Flaubert?

You can, but the benefit is limited. The discussion revolves largely around specific works and creative ideas; without prior reading, one may mistake the critic's judgments for the content of the works. It is best to read at least one Flaubert novel first.

Is the English translation difficult to read?

The translation is fairly formal, with long sentences and the speculative density of an essay. General English reading ability is enough, but slow reading is needed. When encountering abstract passages, grasp the paragraph's main point first, then return to the details.

Is this book suitable for academic citation?

It can be cited as supplementary material for studying Flaubert's reception history or the Russian critical tradition, but edition information should be verified and the author's judgments distinguished from historical fact. It does not provide full annotations or the latest research review and should not be the sole basis.

This site is an index: you start “Search all sources” in your browser, and the entries it lists all point to third-party sites; please judge their availability yourself.

About the author

Merezhkovsky, Dmitry Sergeyevich, 1865-1941 Author

Merezhkovsky, Dmitry Sergeyevich (1865–1941) was a major figure of Russian Symbolist literature, known as a novelist, poet, and critic. Four of his works are held here, spanning religious history, Renaissance art, and literary criticism. The novel The Death of the Gods is set against the late Roman Empire's clash between paganism and Christianity, while The Romance of Leonardo da Vinci, the Forerunner uses the Renaissance master to explore the tension between faith and reason; a French-language work on Leonardo and a study of Flaubert are also included. His writing often carries philosophical and religious reflection through historical narrative, with a markedly symbolic style that influenced early twentieth-century Russian letters and thought. Since public sources on his life and nationality are limited, no further inferences are made here.