Discovering Russian Literature discussion

Spoilers may be posted here. Happy reading!

So far of to a good start. Solzhenitsyn's writing style is a bit...abrupt? It follows the general style of Russian writing of this type, but to me the syntax and style is more enjoyable. Also, I prefer this type of descriptive plot over utopian/dystopian plots for books focused on the Soviet era. What do y'all think?

Abrupt...? That's one way of putting it. This is the first modern Russian book I have read. I am surprised at how quickly it reads versus, say, Crime and Punishment.

I can say that I`m reading a lot in Russian (Russian authors) and for me it`s harder to read the more earlier authors, for example V.Pelevin was much more "easy" than Dostojevsky.

I read this book a while back, and I have to say that my impression was that while I will say that I do not find Solzhenitsyn to be a great writer all in all particularly when compared to some of the other Russian literary giants, for all that I still very much enjoyed many aspects of this story and all in all I really did like it, even if at times I found the prose to be somewhat awkward or lacking.

I did rather enjoy the portrayal which he offered of the life of people within the working camps during this period of time in the Soviet Era and I think it is a book that is easily relatable and can still really connect with the reader even if their knowledge of Soviet History and Politics is somewhat lacking.

After reading this I would be interested in reading more of Solzhenitsyn's work.

Let me note only that Solzhenitsyn did not generally suffer from the problem of excessive brevity. :)

I last read this book in college, so I can't say much. But I definitely remember being struck by the raw honesty of the writing and the harrowing emotions it evoked. I saw it as a masterpiece of understatement. It's hard to imagine portraying the Gulag any other way. The truth is too horrifying to bear.

I agree with Rachel about the "abruptness" of the prose. I think it goes incredibly well with the subject matter. This is exactly how you feel after months and months of sub-zero temperatures - everyone who experienced Russian winters will know what I mean. You have no time for ruminations and high emotion, you're just trying to get through the day and numb yourself to the constant physical discomfort that's always at the back of your mind.

Comparing Solzhenitzyn's realism to the dystopian/ symbolist writing of other Soviet dissidents raises an interesting point. I'm from Russia and have always loved Soviet-era magic realism and science fiction - the masked political discourse in the works of Bulgakov, Zamyatin, brothers Strugatsky, etc. is startling in its subtlety. The protest is all in the detail, between the lines, like a code. However, I've always wondered how well that detail "translated" to the western reader, as so much of it references the cultural specifics of Soviet reality. Perhaps Solzhenitsyn's descriptive style is more universally accessible, more relatable? This may explain why, in western literary circles, he became a "poster boy" for Russian dissident writing, while many of his peers remained relatively unknown.

By the way, in Russia he remains a highly controversial figure - not least due to accusations of anti-semitism...

Silver wrote: "I do not find Solzhenitsyn to be a great writer all in all particularly when compared to some of the other Russian literary giants, for all that I still very much enjoyed many aspects of this story and all in all I really did like it, even if at times I found the prose to be somewhat awkward or lacking. ..."

Rachel wrote: "So far of to a good start. Solzhenitsyn's writing style is a bit...abrupt? It follows the general style of Russian writing of this type, but to me the syntax and style is more enjoyable. Also, I p..."

Solzhenitsyn wrote in a few different genres, so his writing style varies. Early in his career he wrote a number of "prose poems," which are very short (like a paragraph) impressionistic pieces. At the end of his life he wrote what he called "binaries," which are short stories in two parts with something in common -- like characters at different times in their lives, a geographic setting at different times, etc. In his earlier novels (Ivan Denisovich, First Circle, Cancer Ward) he frequently uses very classical, even archaic, Russian mixed with authentic prison camp slang. In his "Red Wheel" epic (the novels August 1914, November 1916, and two more volumes that haven't been translated into English yet) he mixes chapters of conventional narrative with sections that are laid out like film scripts and other sections written in the style of newspaper headlines. He is very intentional about the styles he chooses. May be that's why readers feel that way. He is a writer worth reading.

Im "One Day in the Life..." Solzhenitsyn uses third-person direct speech here for the purpose of examining the Soviet life through the eyes of a simple Everyman.

I agree with those who point out Solzhenitsyn had many different styles and the starkness of this work is completely appropriate to the subject matter. Someone used the word 'raw' which seems to strike the right note. There were also passages that were quite tedious - I'm thinking of the brick-laying scene - and that seemed right too. When people suffer long years without hope little things must take on enormous significance.

Does anyone know a good Russian composer/score that would fit the starkness of "One Day in the Life..."? I'm listening to Shostakovich at the moment. Not quite the fit I'm looking for.

Nick wrote: "Does anyone know a good Russian composer/score that would fit the starkness of "One Day in the Life..."? I'm listening to Shostakovich at the moment. Not quite the fit I'm looking for."

If Shostakovich: String Quartet no. 15 doesn't work.. oh dear

Tchaikovsky - Meditation de Souvenir d'un lieu cher
Schoenberg's Verklaerte Nacht
Glinka - Zhavoronok (or 'The Lark') - it's a Russian romance, meaning, Russian art song with voice.

I'm sure there's something out there if you like to consider a non-Russian.

Thanks, Shanez. I had not yet heard String Quartet no. 15. It's perfectly bleak. I'll be listening to the others as well. I'm also curious if anyone has read different translations of this book. I am reading the Max Hayward and Ronald Hingley translation rather than Willetts's unexpurgated one, and I was wondering how different they are from one another.

I agree with Silver's comment that Solzhenitsyn can connect with readers who are not very familiar with Soviet History and Politics, since I am one of those people. :) I enjoy his writing style. As Laurie and Maria stated, it was appropriate for this work. His writing helped me visualize what it was like to be imprisoned in a gulag and touch on the feelings and emotions of a human being trying to live day-to-day, not knowing if there will be a next day.