Osip Mandelstam And The Modernist Creation Of Tradition Project Muse Upcc Books

If modernism marked, as some critics claim, an ''apocalypse of cultural community,'' then Osip Mandelstam (1891-1938) must rank among its most representative figures. Born to Central European Jews in Warsaw on the cusp of the modern age, he could claim neither Russian nor European traditions as his birthright. Describing the poetic movement he helped to found, Acmeism, as a ''yearning for world culture,'' he defined the impulse that charges his own poetry and prose. Clare Cavanagh has written a sustained study placing Mandelstam's ''remembrance and invention'' of a usable poetic past in the context of modernist writing in general, with particular attention to the work of T. S. Eliot and Ezra Pound. Cavanagh traces Mandelstam's creation of tradition from his earliest lyrics to his last verses, written shortly before his arrest and subsequent death in a Stalinist camp. Her work shows how the poet, generalizing from his own dilemmas and disruptions, addressed his epoch's paradoxical legacy of disinheritance--and how he responded to this unwelcome legacy with one of modernism's most complex, ambitious, and challenging visions of tradition. Drawing on not only Russian and Western modernist writing and theory, but also modern European Jewish culture, Russian religious thought, postrevolutionary politics, and even silent film, Cavanagh traces Mandelstam's recovery of a ''world culture'' vital, vast, and varied enough to satisfy the desires of the quintessential outcast modernist. If modernism marked, as some critics claim, an "apocalypse of cultural community," then Osip Mandelstam (1891-1938) must rank among its most representative figures. Born to Central European Jews in Warsaw on the cusp of the modern age, he could claim neither Russian nor European traditions as his birthright. Describing the poetic movement he helped to found, Acmeism, as a "yearning for world culture," he defined the impulse that charges his own poetry and prose. Clare Cavanagh has written a sustained study placing Mandelstam's "remembrance and invention" of a usable poetic past in the context of modernist writing in general, with particular attention to the work of T. S. Eliot and Ezra Pound. Cavanagh traces Mandelstam's creation of tradition from his earliest lyrics to his last verses, written shortly before his arrest and subsequent death in a Stalinist camp. Her work shows how the poet, generalizing from his own dilemmas and disruptions, addressed his epoch's paradoxical legacy of disinheritance--and how he responded to this unwelcome legacy with one of modernism's most complex, ambitious, and challenging visions of tradition. Drawing on not only Russian and Western modernist writing and theory, but also modern European Jewish culture, Russian religious thought, post revolutionary politics, and even silent film, Cavanagh traces Mandelstam's recovery of a "world culture" vital, vast, and varied enough to satisfy the desires of the quintessential outcast modernist Cavanagh Traces Mandelstam's Creation Of Tradition From His Earliest Lyrics To His Last Verses, Written Shortly Before His Arrest And Subsequent Death In A Stalinist Camp. Her Work Shows How The Poet, Generalizing From His Own Dilemmas And Disruptions, Addressed His Epoch's Paradoxical Legacy Of Disinheritance - And How He Responded To This Unwelcome Legacy With One Of Modernism's Most Complex, Ambitious, And Challenging Visions Of Tradition. Drawing On Not Only Russian And Western Modernist Writing And Theory, But Also Modern European Jewish Culture, Russian Religious Thought, Postrevolutionary Politics, And Even Silent Film, Cavanagh Traces Mandelstam's Recovery Of A World Culture Vital, Vast, And Varied Enough To Satisfy The Desires Of The Quintessential Outcast Modernist. Ch. 1. Introduction: The Modernist Creation Of Tradition -- Ch. 2. Self-creation And The Creation Of Culture -- Ch. 3. Making History: Modernist Cathedrals -- Ch. 4. Judaic Chaos -- Ch. 5. The Currency Of The Past -- Ch. 6. Jewish Creation -- Ch. 7. Powerful Insignificance -- Ch. 8. Chaplinesque, Or Villon Again: In Place Of An Ending. Clare Cavanagh. Includes Bibliographical References (p. [313]-357) And Index. 000_FrontMatter......Page 1 001_Chapter1......Page 15 002_Chapter2......Page 43 003_Chapter3......Page 80 004_Chapter4......Page 117 005_Chapter5......Page 160 006_Chapter6......Page 207 007_Chapter7......Page 229 008_Chapter8......Page 293 009_BackMatter......Page 319