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Xerox University Microfilms 300 North ZM b Row! Ann Aibor, Michigan 40100 76-3529 PRUITT, Donald Blnford, 1934- ^ L I T E R A R Y ACTIVITY OF SERGEJ o f TSX g u n k ?LEVSKIJ: ™ e discovery The Ohio State University, Ph.D., 1975 Literature, modem Xerox University Microfilms, Ann Arbor, Michigan 46100 i © Copyright by Donald Binford Pruitt ’ 1975 THIS DISSERTATION HAS BEEN MICROFILMED EXACTLY AS RECEIVED. THE LIFE AND LITERARY ACTIVITY OF SERGEJ ALEKSANDROVlfi SOBOLEVSKIJ: THE DISCOVERY OF A HISSING LINK DISSERTATION Presented in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree Doctor of Philosophy in the Graduate School of The Ohio State University By Donald Binford Pruitt, B. A., M. A. The Ohio State University 1975 Reading Committee: Approved by Prof. J.R. Krzyftanowski Prof. H. Oulanoff Prof. G. Kalbouss Adi Department of Slavic mguages and Lite­ ratures ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I want to express my very deep gratitude to Professor Jerzy R. Krzyianowski of The Ohio State Uni­ versity. Since I first worked with him in the fall of 1972 Professor Krzyfeanowski has been for me a constant source of knowledge and inspiration. He has, in the preparation of this work, given me more assistance’ than he can ever appreciate. His presence has been a great comfort; and his knowledge and achievements in the field of literary history have always stood before me as a goal for my own poor research and presentation to emulate. X also wish to thank Professor Hongor Oulanoff, Professor George Kalbouss, and Professor Mateja Matejic for their assistance in the preparation of this dissertation. Professor Walter Arndt and Professor Walter Vickery have shown kind interest in the topic and have given me of their time and knowledge. I express to them my thanks. Mrs. Clara Goldslager and her knowledgeable and pleasant colleagues in the William Oxley Thompson Memorial Library's Inter-Library Loan section have always been of the greatest help to me in tracking down elusive or rare sources. For their patience and fore- bearance they have my deepest gratitude. Most of all, however, I must thank Jeralyn, who does not really understand, but whose constant presence has made it all worthwhile. ii VITA September 15, 1934 Born, Richmond, Virginia 1956 B. A., Middle Tennessee State University, Murfrees­ boro, Tennessee 1959 Certificate, Army Language School, Monterey, California 1961 Certificate, The Army Foreign Area Specialist Training Program (Russian) , Oberammer- gau, Germany 1966-1969 Instructor and Assistant Professor, Department of Foreign Languages, United States Military Academy, West Point, New York 1967 M. A., Russian Area Studies, Georgetown University, Washington, D. C. 1969-1972 Instructor, Department of Foreign Languages, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, Blacksburg, Virginia 1972-1975 University Fellow, Department of Slavic Languages and Literatures, The Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio iii TABLE OF CONTENTS Page ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ii VITA ill CHAPTER 1: Introduction X CHAPTER 2: Biography of S. A. Sobolevskij 11 CHAPTER 3: Sobolevskij and PuSkin 72 CHAPTER 4: Sobolevskij and Mickiewicz 161 CHAPTER 5: Sobolevskij and M^rimde 210 CHAPTER 6: The Epigrams and Humorous Verse of Sobolevskij (Annotated) 243 CONCLUSION 313 BIBLIOGRAPHY 315 iv CHAPTER I: INTRODUCTION In the history of Russian literature one can name not a few persons who brought to that history little (sometimes even nothing) of their own crea­ ting, but who at the same time, thanks to their personalities, were famous in the world of litera­ ture, who played leading roles in literary circles, and who were not without influence on the course of contemporary literary life. One of these people is Sergej Aleksandrovid Sobolevskij, famous in his day as bibliographer, bibliophile, and humorist. * With these words V. Grekov introduced his single­ page appreciation of Sobolevskij on the one hundredth anniversary of the latter's birth. Grekov later mentions Sobolevskij 1 s close and long-lasting friendships with two of the great literary figures of the first half of' the Nineteenth Century in Europe: Aleksandr Sergeevid PuSkin and Adam Mickiewicz. He does not, however, mention Sobolevskij1 s equally great friendship with a third figure: Prosper Mdrimde. Sobolevskij was indeed an intimate of all three. In fact, his is the personality which links all three authors together, but which is completely unknown to Western scholarship. He is indeed a "missing link" in the chain of literary associations among the three. It is in this light that this study examines his life, his literary associations, and his contributions, both creative and auxiliary. Such a study has never been made in the West. Indeed, nothing has been written at all about 2 Sobolevskij in the West except for passing references to him in biographies of PuSkin or Mdrimde or Mickiewicz, or for brief mentions in footnotes. Further, there is very little about him in western European sholarship, with exceptions similar, to those listed above. Still further, although there have been attempts in Russian and Soviet scholarship to present Sobolevskij to the public, such attempts are either brief biographical sketches with no attention paid in detail to his literary contributions, or mere reproduction of his correspondence, or finally publications of portions of his output of witty epigrams and humorous poems with no attempt to connect them with his everyday life and his society. Sobolevskij' s chief distinction during his lifetime was that of erudite and efficient bibliophile as well as composer of witty epigrams. In the last-named guise he was considered brilliant by his contemporaries. Indeed, many of his epigrams and humorous poems were often attributed to PuSkin. Yet Sobolevskij did not himself publish any of these trifles: all that we have of them today are the result of efforts by his friends and literary associates that they not be lost. Primary among these efforts were those of P.I. Bartevev, who published many of Sobolevskij1 s works during his forty years as editor of the journal Russkij arxiv; and of V. KallaS, whose 1912 collection is mentioned in many sources but is very rarely found today. Sobolevskij also wrote a large number of articles on bibliographical affairs, which appeared primarily in Russkij arxiv and Biblioqraflfteskie zapiski. These articles are of no literary interest but serve to cast light upon the character of their author. From a literary standpoint most significant of all his writings is his sketch 11 Tainstvennye primety v iizni PuSkina," in which he discusses the influence of superstition on PuSkin's actions. It is in this brief article that Sobolevskij describes the lamentably accurate prediction by a German fortune-teller of the poet's death in his thirty-seventh year. Finally there is Sobolevskij' s extensive corres­ pondence with such figures as PuSkin, MdrimSe, S. P. Sevyrev, M. N. Longinov, the brothers Ivan and Petr Kireevskij, and others, which gives a valuable picture of the times. In the correspondence one finds prolonged discussions of such interesting affairs as Sobolevskij' s business dealings on behalf of PuSkin, especially with reference to the poet's participation in the publica­ tion of the journal Moskovskij vestnik (Sobolevskij was one of the founders of this journal), and also with reference to Sobolevskij's financial assistance to PuSkin. There one finds much of interest regarding Sobolevskij's contributions to Petr Kireevskij1s collections of folk songs; his trip through Italy with Mickiewicz in the summer of 1831 (and perhaps even— although this would be very difficult to prove— ‘his aid to the Pole in the establishment of the Polish Legion in Italy in 1848); and his long-standing and intimate friendship with the French author and Russophile scholar Prosper Mdrimde. It may be in the area of this last consideration— his association with Mdrimde— that Sobolevskij' s ultimate importance to the literary world of the Nineteenth Century lies.