| Derzhavin |
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Information AboutDerzhavin |
| CATEGORIES ABOUT GAVRILA ROMANOVICH DERZHAVIN | |
| 1743 births | |
| derzhavin, gavrila romanovich | |
| 1816 deaths | |
| russian poets | |
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Gavrila Romanovich Derzhavin (Гаври́ла Рома́нович Держа́вин, July 14 , 1743 – July 20 , 1816 ) was the greatest Russian poet before Alexander Pushkin . Although his works are traditionally assigned to the literary Classicism , his best verse is full of antitheses and conflicting sounds in the way reminiscent of John Donne and other Metaphysical Poets . LIFE Born and educated in Kazan , he rose from the ranks as a common soldier to the highest offices of state under Catherine The Great . He was the governor of Olonets (1784) and Tambov (1785), personal Secretary to the Empress (1791), President of the College of Commerce (1794), and Minister Of Justice (1802). He retired in 1803 and spent the rest of his life in the country estate at Zvanka near Novgorod , writing idylls and Anacreontic Verse . He was buried in the Khutyn Monastery near Zvanka, reburied by the Soviets in the Novgorod Kremlin and then reinterred at Khutyn. WORKS Derzhavin is best remembered for his Ode s, dedicated to the Empress and other courtiers. He paid little attention to the prevailing system of Genre s, and many a time would fill an ode with elegiac, humorous or satiric contents. In his grand ode to the Empress, for instance, he mentions searching for fleas in his wife's hair and compares his own poetry with lemonade. Unlike other Classicist poets, Derzhavin found delight in the carefully chosen details, like a colour of wallpaper in his bedroom or a poetical inventary of his daily meal. He believed that the French was a language of harmony, the Russian was a language of conflict. Although he relished harmonious Alliteration s, sometimes he would deliberately instrument his verse to the effect of Cacophony . Derzhavin's major odes were the impeccable "On the Death of Prince Meschersky" (1779); the playful "Ode to Felicia" (1784); the lofty "God" (1785), which was translated into all languages of Europe; "Waterfall" (1794), occasioned by the death of . In the 19th century, Nikolai Nekrasov professed to follow Derzhavin rather than Pushkin, and Derzhavin's line of broken rhythms was continued by Marina Tsvetaeva in the 20th century. MEMORABLE LINES
LINES FOUND AT DERZHAVIN'S TABLE AFTER HIS DEATH
FURTHER READING
SEE ALSO Let The Sound Of Victory Sound! EXTERNAL LINKS |
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