How different poets define poetry. Analysis "Definition of Poetry" Pasternak

Boris Leonidovich Pasternak

This is a cool whistle,
This is the clicking of crushed pieces of ice.
This is a leaf-freezing night
This is a duel of two nightingales.

These are sweet stale peas
These are the tears of the universe in the shoulder blades,
This is from remotes and flutes - Figaro
Hail falls down on the garden bed.

Everything that the night is so important to find
On deep bathing bottoms,
And bring the star to the cage
On trembling wet palms.

Thicker than planks in the water - stuffiness.
The firmament is covered with alder,
These stars should laugh with laughter,
An universe is a deaf place.

Boris Pasternak

Boris Pasternak is famous for his lyrics, which have a pronounced philosophical connotation. However, his later poems in most cases have a double connotation, when in the usual description of nature one can find similarities with human life or a way of thinking. As for the poet's early poems, they are notable for their straightforwardness and rarely contain hidden meaning. The poem "The Definition of Poetry", written in 1917, also belongs to such works.

Almost every poet discusses the topic of what poetry should be and why they are created. However, such exalted interpretations of this genre of literature, like Pasternak's, are difficult to find. Indeed, in his understanding, poetry is “the clicking of crushed pieces of ice”, “the tears of the universe in the shoulder blades”, “the night chilling a leaf” and even “sweet stale peas”. Indeed, the variety literary language makes it possible to create amazing images, thanks to which poetry is so appreciated. However, if in prose to express a thought, only a flight of imagination is required, then when creating poetry, the main criterion is the brevity, capacity and accuracy of phrases. At the same time, Pasternak is convinced that it is poetry that makes it possible to find those cherished words that can turn an ordinary poem into a priceless gift, a hymn to beauty and sensuality. It is in the verses that one can find "everything that is so important to find at night on the deep, bathed bottoms."

The world of poetry is so rich and surprisingly diverse that contact with it gives many discoveries not only to readers, but also to the author himself. Young Pasternak is just beginning to discover the charm of poetry, he wants to "bring the star to the garden on trembling wet palms." But the author fears that this impulse will not find a response in the hearts of other people and will not receive their support, which the poet needs so much. That is why he bitterly states that "the universe is a deaf place." Pasternak seems to have a presentiment that his interpretation of poetry is not like literary genre but as a state of mind, it will prove difficult for other people to understand. And today, almost a century after these amazing lines were written, it is safe to say that the poet was right. Indeed, his poems are quite difficult to comprehend, but at the same time they are not devoid of special charm and accuracy of formulations. Moreover, they testify to wealth. the spiritual world a poet who very subtly feels what surrounds him.

Boris Pasternak was one of the brightest and controversial writers of the first half of the 20th century. His lyrics are philosophical. His early poems are distinguished by their straightforwardness without hidden meaning. But at the same time, in some of them the influence of symbolism is felt. "The Definition of Poetry" by Pasternak, the analysis of which is presented below, is an attempt by the author to understand the purpose of poetry.

A little about the features of creativity

It is better to start the analysis of Pasternak's "Definition of Poetry" with an acquaintance with the peculiarities of the work of this writer. Becoming him literary activity fell on difficult years for the country. At that time, many creative personalities indulged in philosophical reflections.

Boris Pasternak could not stay away from philosophical disputes. The poet wanted to understand the purpose of poetry, to determine what place it occupies in the lives of people. In the analysis of Pasternak's Definition of Poetry, it is worth noting that the author describes his thoughts with the help of lofty phrases. This poem was written in 1917, it has a philosophical direction.

Poetic size

In the analysis of "Definition of Poetry" Pasternak should define poetic meter and the way of rhyming. There are only 16 lines in this work, and in them the poet tried to determine the purpose of poetry. It is written in anapest.

Anapest is a three-foot time signature in which the stress is placed on the last syllable. The way of rhyming is cross.

The main theme of the work

In the analysis of "The Definition of Poetry" Pasternak, the main attention should be paid to the main theme of the poem. In order to define the place of poetry, the author resorts to symbolism. But some of the images he created seemed quite complicated to readers and critics, so Pasternak even had to explain their meaning.

But these somewhat pretentious images only emphasize that it is the literary language that helps to create the amazing and beautiful things for which poetry is so valuable. At the same time, in order to express your thought in poetic lines, you need to adhere to the brevity and capacity of the syllable. The poet is sure that only in poetry can you find exactly those words that will help reveal all the beauty of the world.

Also in the analysis of "The Definition of Poetry" Pasternak needs to talk about the image of the universe. It is noteworthy that the poet writes this word with a small letter. Man is part of the world around him, and he is inextricably linked with the world. All images created by Pasternak are distinguished by brightness of colors and expressiveness, which attract more attention of the reader to the lines.

Literary trails and artistic means of expression

In the analysis of Pasternak's poem "The Definition of Poetry", it is necessary to determine what literary techniques the poet used to write the work. Boris Leonidovich did not skimp on artistic means of expressiveness, so that his creation turned out to be sonorous and poetic.

He resorted to the favorite technique of the Symbolists - alliteration. In some lines there is an increase in the rolling sound "P", while in others, a sound effect is created due to hissing and sibilant consonants. Another melodiousness to words is imparted by personifications and comparisons. Boris Leonidovich also used anaphora: the word "this" is repeated several times in the work. This technique gives additional expressiveness to the images.

In this poem, Pasternak prefers short and impersonal sentences. This underlines his opinion that it is important in poetry to be concise and succinct. Also, with such a syntax, he emphasized a certain spontaneity of the unpredictability of poetry: after all, the poet does not know what kind of poem he will eventually get. This creation is also distinguished by fanciful metaphors that make the poem much more expressive.

"The Definition of Poetry" Boris Pasternak

This is a cool whistle,
This is the clicking of crushed pieces of ice.
This is a leaf-freezing night
This is a duel of two nightingales.

These are sweet stale peas
These are the tears of the universe in the shoulder blades,
This is from remotes and flutes - Figaro
Hail falls down on the garden bed.

Everything. that the night is so important to find
On deep bathing bottoms,
And bring the star to the cage
On trembling wet palms.

Thicker than planks in the water - stuffiness.
The firmament is covered with alder,
These stars should laugh out loud,
An universe is a deaf place.

Analysis of Pasternak's poem "The Definition of Poetry"

Boris Pasternak is famous for his lyrics, which have a pronounced philosophical connotation. However, his later poems in most cases have a double connotation, when in the usual description of nature one can find similarities with human life or a way of thinking. As for the poet's early poems, they are notable for their straightforwardness and rarely contain hidden meaning. The poem "Definition of Poetry", written in 1917, also belongs to such works.

Almost every poet discusses the topic of what poetry should be and why they are created. However, it is difficult to find such lofty interpretations of this genre of literature as in Pasternak's. Indeed, in his understanding, poetry is “the clicking of crushed pieces of ice”, “the tears of the universe in the shoulder blades”, “the night chilling a leaf” and even “sweet stale peas”. Indeed, the diversity of the literary language makes it possible to create amazing images, thanks to which poetry is so valued. However, if in prose to express thoughts only a flight of imagination is required, then when creating poetry, the main criterion is the brevity, capacity and accuracy of phrases. At the same time, Pasternak is convinced that it is poetry that makes it possible to find those cherished words that can turn an ordinary poem into a priceless gift, a hymn to beauty and sensuality. It is in the verses that one can find "everything that is so important to find at night on the deep, bathed bottoms."

The world of poetry is so rich and surprisingly diverse that contact with it gives many discoveries not only to readers, but also to the author himself. Young Pasternak is just beginning to discover the charm of poetry, he wants to "bring the star to the garden on trembling wet palms." But the author fears that this impulse will not find a response in the hearts of other people and will not receive their support, which the poet needs so much. That is why he bitterly states that "the universe is a deaf place." Pasternak seems to have a presentiment that his interpretation of poetry, not as a literary genre, but as a state of mind, will be difficult for other people to understand. And today, almost a century after these amazing lines were written, it is safe to say that the poet was right. Indeed, his poems are quite difficult to comprehend, but at the same time they are not devoid of special charm and accuracy of formulations. Moreover, they testify to the richness of the poet's spiritual world, who very subtly senses what surrounds him.

"The Definition of Poetry" Boris Pasternak

This is a steep whistle, This is the clicking of crushed pieces of ice. This is a leaf-chilling night, This is a duel between two nightingales.

These are sweet stale peas, These are the tears of the universe in the shoulder blades, This is from the consoles and from the flutes - Figaro Hills down on the garden bed.

Everything that the night is so important to find On deep bathing bottoms, And bring the star to the cage On trembling wet palms.

Thicker than planks in the water - stuffiness. The firmament is covered with alder, These stars will laugh to face, And the universe is a deaf place.

Boris Pasternak is one of the brightest writers of the first half of the 20th century. His creative potential began to take shape at a very difficult time for Russia, at the turn of historical eras. In those days, representatives of the literary elite paid serious attention to questions of philosophy. They constantly argued about the role of personality in history, the purpose of creativity, the civic position of the masters of the word. Boris Pasternak did not stay out of these processes either. Like many of his contemporaries, he tried to comprehend and express his understanding of poetry. In this regard, the poem "Definition of poetry"written by Pasternak in 1917 can be considered programmatic. The author at that time was only twenty-seven, and quite naturally, his views on the poetic word have undergone some changes over time. The poem "Definition of Poetry" is clearly influenced by symbolismwho dominated Russian literature silver age... However, sprouts are also noticeable. futurism - the trend to which Pasternak was close at that time. The poem "Definition of Poetry" raises the theme of poetry, an attempt is made to define its nature. Trying to give a definition of poetry, the lyrical hero covers everything around him with his eyes, hearing and touch. Poetry appears as an expression of all being in its unity and infinity. In order to express the essence of art, the lyrical hero finds nothing more capacious and accurate than an appeal to the phenomena of the surrounding world. The poem can be conditionally divided into 2 parts. In the first part, predominantly sound images predominate: “a steep whistle,” “the clicking of crushed pieces of ice,” “two nightingales duel,” “Figaro," falls like hail into the garden. " ", And a quiet firmament," overwhelmed with alder. "And in the finale - an explanation:" An universe is a deaf place. "" Definition of poetry "- a short poem, only 16 lines. anapest. Rhyme in all stanzas the cross is ABAB. The poem begins with an anaphora, the word "this" is used underlined at the beginning of each line. It was especially important for the lyric hero to fill the inner part of the poem with extraordinary power, to breathe his own emotional charge into each line. The reader's attention is attracted by the brightness of the colors and the loudness of the sounds with which poetry, according to the lyrical hero's conviction, is called upon to shake this world. Objects and phenomena of the work come to life, they are inextricably linked. The image of the universe (this is written with a small letter in the poem) is not only mediated, but also specifically mentioned in the middle and end of the poem. Man is a part of nature, like trees, stones, stars, raindrops. The lyrical hero has no regrets expressive means to spark the reader with your idea. The poem very subtly uses the popular symbolist technique - alliteration, when several repetitive consonants give the poem a special expressiveness. So, in the design "Figaro falls like hail into the garden" the sound "p" is constantly growing, and in phrases: "Cool whistle" "Snapping of crushed pieces of ice", Leaf-chilling night - the sound effect is created by hissing and sibilant consonants. Nicely enhance the melody of the text impersonations and comparisons: "The firmament is covered with alder", "To face the stars laughing", "It is so important to find the night." Analyzing the morphological features of the poem, we notice that the most used part of speech is the noun, which is characteristic feature Symbolist poetry. It is necessary to pay attention to the original syntax of the poem. Short, impersonal sentences are preferred. Words seem to spontaneously break out of the abyss. This kind of randomness is inherent in the wild. If in a prose work you can use complex sentences, then in the poetic genre everything should be precise, capacious, figurative. The hero is deeply convinced that only poetry knows such "magic" words. The language of symbols is not always understood and not by everyone. The fifth and sixth lines of the poem are especially difficult to understand:

"These are sweet stale peas, These are the tears of the universe in the shoulder blades."

In the old days, the pods of young peas were called shoulder blades. Sooner or later they will open, and the peas will crumble, they will be wept out. There is a lot of contrast in the poem: Figaro and the garden, the firmament and alder, that is, the high is inseparable from the low. They can switch places at any time. This is the literary framing of the philosophical concept of the unity and struggle of opposites. Such is the ending of the poem, where the "universe" of the lyric hero turns out to be a deaf place.

In my opinion, the author managed to very subtly and figuratively convey the peculiarities of his understanding of the nature of poetry and the purpose of creativity. In the center of it poetic universe the high and the low “coexist” beautifully: flutes, Figaro, a star and a bed, bathing bottoms, boards. Poetry for him is a combination of audible and visible, sounds and images.

"Definition of poetry" 1917
This is a cool whistle,
This is the clicking of crushed pieces of ice.
This is a leaf-freezing night
This is a duel of two nightingales.

These are sweet stale peas
These are the tears of the universe in the shoulder blades,
This is from remotes and flutes - Figaro
Hail falls down on the garden bed.
Everything. that the night is so important to find
On deep bathing bottoms,
And bring the star to the cage
On trembling wet palms.

Thicker than planks in the water - stuffiness.
The firmament is covered with alder,
These stars should laugh out loud,
An universe is a deaf place.

Philosophical lyrics, n consecrated to the comprehension of such a concept as creativity.
The theme of the poem is included in the title.

In this poem, the imaginary arbitrariness of the definitions of poetry is striking: it seems that one of the definitions can be replaced by another without prejudice, and the choice of words is not due to semantic, but, rather, sound proximity. Indeed, at first glance, a strange series: "the whistle, the clicking of ice, the icy night leaf, the duel of nightingales, peas, tears of the universe, Figaro."

However, let us remember that "the more randomly, the more faithfully the poems are composed sobbing." In addition, the sound portrait of poetry in the first stanza should not surprise ("whistle", "clicking"), and "night" and "nightingale singing" are generally an indispensable attribute love lyrics... Considering Pasternak's remark that “... in pre-revolutionary Moscow pods of green peas were called shoulder blades ... Under the tears of the universe, the shoulder blades meant the image of stars, as if holding on to the inner wall of the burst pod, it should be noted the originality and accuracy of the poet's associative thinking. Figaro - Mozart's opera The Marriage of Figaro.

In the second stanza, peas, stars, and music are identified with poetry - everything that the world is rich in ... As a result of this perception of reality, the whole world reveals an extraordinary wholeness: all objects of being are interconnected, turn into one another, so that music turns into hail ( "Is thrown down by hail into the garden"), and the star - by the fish ("and the star is brought to the cage"). In this romantic poem, the ending is unexpected - the universe is deaf to poetry. But the main thing, in my opinion, is not this, but that poetry is and it is the embodiment and unity of everything that only exists in the world.

All the images in the poem are not only visual, but are also combined according to the principle of contiguity, metonymically. Pasternak seeks to define the essence of poetry repeatedly and in many ways. Diverse concepts united in one row: "tight whistle", "clicking of crushed pieces of ice", "leaf-freezing night", "sweet stale peas", "tears of the universe in the shoulder blades", etc. create a multifaceted picture of reality, activate different types perception. Seven-time repetition of constructions (anaphora) with the keyword "this" does not leave an impression poetic reception, but it seems quite understandable desire of the poet to define poetry most fully.

In the poem, the poet discovers the unity of not only lofty, but actually poetic themes: nature, love and art - they constantly enter, they are permeated by everyday realities ("night", "ice floes", "nightingale singing", "music" and "beds" , "Peas", "cage"). Usage colloquial and everyday vocabulary("Scapula", "fell over", "laugh") in a poetic context against the general background of interstyle and book vocabulary ("overthrow", "find", "donyakh", etc. enhances) expressiveness, unexpected perception.

Pasternak spares no expressive means to ignite the reader with his idea, actively uses tropes. The poet very subtly applies the popular symbolist technique - alliteration, when several repetitive consonants give the poem a special expressiveness. So, in the design "Figaro falls like hail into the garden" the sound "p" is constantly growing, and in phrases: "Cool whistle", "Snapping of crushed pieces of ice", Leaf-chilling night- the sound effect is created by hissing and sibilant consonants.

Nicely enhance the melody of the text impersonations and comparisons: "The firmament is covered with alder", "The stars to face b to laugh", "It is so important to find the night".

Literary critics often pay attention to the original syntax of the poem. The author prefers short, impersonal sentences. Words seem to spontaneously break out of the abyss. This kind of randomness is inherent in the wild. If complex sentences can be used in a prose work, then in a poetic genre everything should be precise, capacious, figurative. Boris Pasternak is deeply convinced that only poetry knows such "magic" words.

The influence is still clearly felt here. symbolism that dominated Russian literature of the Silver Age. However, sprouts are also noticeable. futurism- the trend to which Pasternak was close at that time. Unfortunately, the language of symbols is not always understood and not by everyone. The fifth and sixth lines of the poem turned out to be especially difficult for perception:

These are sweet stale peas
These are the tears of the universe in the shoulder blades.

Pasternak even had to explain to the readers the essence of such pretentious metaphor... The fact is that in the old days the pods of young peas were called shoulder blades. Sooner or later they will open, and the peas will crumble, they will be wept out.

There is a lot of contrast in the poem: Figaro and the garden, the firmament and alder, that is, the high is inseparable from the low. They can switch places at any time. This is the literary framing of the philosophical concept of the unity and struggle of opposites. Such is the ending of the poem, where Pasternak's universe turns out to be a deaf place.

The poem is written dolnik , which makes the poem more rhythmic and focuses on especially meaningful words... Rhyme - cross , in the first and third lines - truncated.

Thus, poetry, according to B.L. Pasternak, is not something artificial, opposed to life, but - a part of life, a component of human existence. The identification of the poet and nature, the transfer of copyright to the landscape - all this, in essence, serves one single purpose. Poems composed by nature itself cannot be fake. So the author confirms the authenticity of the written. Authenticity, reliability, according to B. Pasternak, - main feature true art. How is this authenticity achieved? The most important thing here is “not to look for the voice of life that resounds in us”. Therefore, heightened impressionability, heightened susceptibility to all sensations, to all movements of the surrounding world is the main feature of genuine poetry. This is exactly what B.L. Pasternak in his poem "The Definition of Poetry".