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At times Sashka wished to give up what is called living: to cease to wash every morning in cold water, on which thin sheets of ice floated about; to go no more to the grammar school, and there to have to listen to every one scolding him; no more to experience the pain in the small of his back and indeed over his whole body when his mother made him kneel in the corner all the evening. But, since he was only thirteen years of age, and did not know all the means by which people abandon life at will, he continued to go to the grammar school and to kneel in the corner, and it seemed to him as if life would never end. A year would go by, and another, and yet another, and still he would be going to school, and be made to kneel in the corner. And since Sashka possessed an indomitable and bold spirit, he could not supinely tolerate evil, and so found means to avenge himself on life. With this object in view he would thrash his companions, be rude to the Head, impertinent to the masters, and tell lies all day long to his teachers and to his mother—but to his father only he never lied. If in a fight he got his nose broken, he would purposely make the damage worse, and howl, without shedding a single tear, but so loudly that all who heard him were fain to stop their ears to keep out the disagreeable sound. When he had howled as long as thought advisable, he would suddenly cease, and, putting out his tongue, draw in his copy-book a caricature of himself howling at an usher who pressed his fingers to his ears, while the victor stood trembling with fear. The whole copy-book was filled with caricatures, the one which most frequently occurred being that of a short stout woman beating a boy as thin as a lucifer-match with a rolling pin. Below in a large scrawling hand would be written the legend: "Beg my pardon, puppy!" and the reply, "Won't! blow'd if I do!"
- Published on: 2015-08-05
- Released on: 2015-08-05
- Format: Kindle eBook
Language Notes
Text: English (translation)
Original Language: Russian
About the Author
Between the two Revolutions of 1905 and 1917 Leonid Andreyev was without a doubt the foremost writer in Russia. His name was always spoken with veneration, in mysterious whispers, as a grim portentous magician who descended into the ultimate depths of the nether side of life and fathomed the beauty and tragedy of the struggle. Leonid Nickolayevitch was born in the province of Oryol, in 1871, and studied law at the University of Moscow. Those were days of suffering and starvation; he gazed into the abyss of sorrow and despair. In January 1894 he made an unsuccessful attempt to kill himself by shooting, and then was forced by the authorities to severe penitence, which augmented the natural morbidness of his temperament. As a lawyer his career was short-lived, and he soon abandoned it for literature, beginning as a police-court reporter on the Moscow Courier. In 1902 he published the short story "In the Fog," which for the first time brought him universal recognition. He was imprisoned during the revolution of 1905, together with Maxim Gorky, on political charges. Such are the few significant details of his personal life, for the true Andreyev is entirely in his stories and plays.
Most helpful customer reviews
10 of 11 people found the following review helpful.
DEPRESSING STORIES BUT GEMS OF LITERATURE
By LINDA LEVEN
THIS BOOK OF SHORT STORIES WILL CERTAINLY NOT BE FOR EVERYONE - ESPECIALLY THOSE SEEKING LIGHT, PLEASANT ENJOYMENT.
THESE STORIES BY RUSSIAN AUTHOR L ANDREYEV ARE BEAUTIFULLY WRITTEN, NOT NECESSARILY HEAVILY PLOTTED, BUT VERY MUCH MOOD PIECES - DEPRESSING MOOD PIECES!
THE STORIES DEAL WITH LOVE, LONELINESS, MADNESS, LOSS OF A SIGNIFICANT OTHER, AND VARIOUS AFFAIRS OF THE HEART. GENERALLY, ALL OF THE STORIES ARE SAD, MELANCHOLY, DEPRESSING, AND DISHEARTENING. NOT A LOT HAPPENS IN EACH STORY, BUT THE AUTHOR CONVEYS HIS VERY PESSIMISTIC OUTLOOK ON LIFE. ALTHOUGH THE STORIES PORTRAY UNHAPPY, ANGRY PEOPLE,AND DISTRESSING LIFE CIRCUMSTANCES, I DO RECOMMEND READING THESE BEAUTIFULLY WRITTEN GEMS OF LITERATURE.
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful.
Rare Short Stories in an Expressionist Vein, but the Translations are Weak
By Hexameron
My review refers to the Dedalus edition published in 1989, although I believe Dedalus merely reprinted a 1915 translation. I am surprised that Dedalus, renowned for its roster of excellent translators, would reprint this spotty translation that is brimming with typos, bad grammar, and awkward sentences. I know Andreyev is not at fault. A comparison of Olga Andreyev Carlisle's (Visions: Stories and Photographs) translation of "At the Station" with the 1915 translation of it here is demonstrative; Carlisle's is gorgeous and lucid while the latter is a clunky half-hearted mess. Nevertheless, most of the short stories here are remarkable and, with the exception of "At the Station," I haven't seen them in any other translated versions.
As other reviewers noted, the majority of these short stories are pessimistic and despondent with occasional tragedy and madness thrown in. Despite what the back cover description says, there is no sex in these stories and nothing perverse or erotic that would befit a French decadent writer. Andreyev is provocative, instead, by assaulting the reader with messages of hopelessness, madness, and quasi-existentialist despair. The plots in these stories are simple, the characters are solitary, and the climaxes are jarring and profound in their sadness. Only a few of these pieces could be considered classics from Andreyev's oeuvre, but they do not rank with his greatest short stories such as "The Thought", "The Thief", and "The Abyss".
For those curious to know a little about the premise of each short story:
"The Little Angel" (1899) - The longest story in this anthology. It's about a young boy, inherently cruel and rotten, who is bewitched by a Christmas tree ornament of a little angel. After acquiring the ornament, the boy's personality changes. He and his father find reason for hope through this little angel ornament... but the hope may be temporary and illusory.
"At the Roadside Station" (1903) - The narrator observes people at a train station and specifically focuses on the dreary and banal job of a policeman. There is something sad about the policeman whose peak of excitement is accosting a passenger without a ticket. When the policeman decides to help some bricklayers and struggles with it, his impotency as a man is revealed. Although the story is short, I recommend Olga Carlisle's poignant translation of it.
"Snapper" (1901) - Before Jack London made a dog a protagonist, Andreyev explored the idea in this harrowing and sad tale of the dog, Snapper, a filthy homeless mutt with a distrust of people. When a family moves into a nearby house, he meets a small girl who takes him as her pet and is cared for. This story convey's the pain one feels, even a dog, when good things end.
"The Lie" (1900) - The darkest and most disturbing story here. A young man descends into madness by believing everything his lover tells him is a lie. The ending is amazing in its portrayal of a man's insanity and vulnerability.
"An Original" (1902) - A strange fable of a man with the singular perversion of "loving negresses" because they are exotic. When he finally marries a negress, he ends up hating her. The whole concept could be symbolic and the story has elements of racism, but Andreyev ultimately suggests that the protagonist, obviously white, was unique for desiring black women.
"Petka at the Bungalow" (1899) - Similar to "Snapper," a boy knows only drudgery and the visceral gloom of city life as he is tasked to assist his cruel father in a barbershop. When his mother allows him to visit her country house, the boy finds respite and happiness, but it doesn't last.
"Silence" (1900) - Perhaps the second darkest tale here and Andreyev's first famous work. A priest loses his daughter and wife in different ways. There is nothing to help him cope and the only answer to his misery is silence all around him. The priest flirts with madness as the total silence he feels becomes an oppressive entity.
"Laughter" (1901) - A remarkable little vignette in which Andreyev turns something innocuous like laughter into a hostile force. A young man attends a costume party and wears a mask with a stupid expressionless face. At the party, he is greeted only by laughter, even from the woman he loves; this drives him to the brink of insanity.
"The Friend" (1899) - The saddest and most touching story of all, especially for dog lovers. A lonely man comes home every day to his aunt and dog, the latter of which he calls his "only friend." The man falls in love with a woman, which keeps him away from the dog and leads to a tragic conclusion.
"In the Basement" (1901) - One of the few optimistic and heart-warming stories here, even though it takes place in a dank basement with thieves and prostitutes. A deteriorating drunkard takes refuge in a basement with a quartet of lowlife characters. When a young woman brings her newborn infant to the basement, the lowlifes are influenced in a positive way by the presence of the baby, a symbol of hope. But for the protagonist drunkard, hope may not be able to save him...
"The City" (1902) - This is my favorite story from this anthology. Andreyev is a philosopher here as his protagonist loses his mind in the labyrinth of streets and human faces in a city. Hundreds of people pass by whom will never be seen again. If they aren't seen again or if hundreds more are never seen, do they exist?
"The Marseillaise" (1903) - Only 5 pages long, this story takes place in a prison where a young man, generally disliked by the inmates, falls ill from starvation. The inmates who once laughed at him come to see him as their comrade.
"The Tocsin" (1901) - I found this one a little confusing. The protagonist witnesses a wild fire spreading through a town and tries to escape while the town's church bells toll endlessly. The end introduces the protagonist's doppelganger who enjoys the burning and chaos.
"Bargamot and Garaska" (1898) - This story concerns a callous policeman and a miserable drunkard. On Easter day, the policeman encounters the drunkard and they both form a momentary bond of brotherhood.
"Stepping-Stones" (1900) - A short little piece that moves from a melancholy perspective on a cemetery to the glorifying vision of the resurrected dead.
Bottom line: Any fan of Dostoevsky should appreciate these lesser-known short stories. Andreyev is no optimist: the ideas he explores and the messages he convey are predominantly bleak. As for this Dedalus edition, keep in mind that the translations are lackluster and not of the quality one would expect from Dedalus, who simply reprinted an old 1915 edition. Until new translations are offered, this book may be the only means for English speakers to acquaint themselves with these short stories.
1 of 2 people found the following review helpful.
Worth reading them
By Guillermo Maynez
As a good Russian, Andreiev's writing is about strange characters, sad and depressing situations, and mad fantasies of doom and despair. So, why would you read them? Because the man is a very good writer, espcially good at conveying dark moods and states of mind. The story I like the best is "Dies Irae", a wonderful tale of Judgement Day to come. He also wrote a novel, "Sachka Yegulev" which is about a strange revolutionary fighting against the Czar. Andreiev accurately portraits the depressing state of mind of pre-Revolutionary Russia, which led to Bolshevism. Reading him, is to enter a world of despair and dreams of revenge. Not for the light-hearted.
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