lets discuss Russian literature

Talk about books and writers here.

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Tora
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Post by Tora »

Cypress wrote:
mamuta wrote: I've read many classic Russian writers and poets: Lev Tolstoi, Alexy Tolstoi, Dostoievsky, Gorky, Pushkin, Mayakovsky etc., ...
Wow, I’m trully impressed. BTW, right now, I’m reading Aleksey Tolstoy’s book about Peter the Great. Very interesting and freighting too. What barbarian traditions and customs we used to have back then.
So many nice people advised me this book but my dog ate the first volume in her early childhood! :lol: :(
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Post by Vega »

I read most of russian classic authors when I was at school. "Crime and Punishment" is a good book, I liked it. My favorite writer was F. Dostoevsky.
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Post by **Elena** »

I meant that maybe if its possible you can post here something by Najeeb Mahfooz, Taha Hussain, Hanna Meena…etc and we will recieve opportunity to read and learn Arabic literature
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Post by Tora »

illusion wrote:"crime and Punishment focuses on the mental anguish and moral dilemmas of Rodion Romanovich Raskolnikov, an impoverished St. Petersburg student who formulates and executes a plan to kill a hated, unscrupulous pawnbroker for her money, thereby solving his financial problems and at the same time, he argues, ridding the world of evil... " (wikipedia ;))
I also had to read it at school and if I had known such a nice description given in wikipedia I wouldn't have puzzled myself writing a composition that time :D

but on the whole a foreign guy I know was much interested in russian names given in that very novel - he found most of them quite specific and was curious how to make short form from "Rodion" and "Dunya" and all the others :wink:
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**Elena**
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Post by **Elena** »

For these who want to read Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy
http://www.classic-library.org.ua/tolst ... -karenina/

OR
War and Peace also by Leo Tolstoy

http://www.classic-library.org.ua/tolst ... and-peace/
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Post by illusion »

Cypress wrote:
illusion wrote:The only book I read that was written by a Russian author was "Crime and Punishment" and I must say I did enjoy it a lot :)))
But what about Bulgakov’s The Master and Margarita? Haven’t you read it?

ohh good GOD! of course I have!!!! It's one of my favourite books of all time!!!! How could I forgot that it was written by a Russian??? my bad... :( But the book is simply fantastic! I've not read it, I've swollen it completely the first time I read it...an absolutely wonderful reading ;)
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Post by Hardi »

I can only remember 12 stools from Ilja Ilf and Jevgeni Petrov. I'm lazy about read books.. I'm sure have read some more books, but..
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Post by iamvitaly »

My favorite autor is Sholohov... I like also Ilf and Petrov, Pushkin's novels and many many others. But I dislike read lyrics. I think that on the whole it's boring...
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Post by Tora »

about new translations of "War and piece"
The Bromfield War and Peace, first published in Britain earlier this year, runs to just 886 pages, does away with the French and the philosophical digressions, and boasts a happy ending. In the words of the shorter version's Russian publisher, Ecco, it is "twice as short, four times as interesting ... more peace, less war".
http://books.guardian.co.uk/news/articl ... 89,00.html

I have read an original version at school, complete and unabridged as it's said. I suppose it is the only way we should meet the classical literature. I am talking this not because I have a special feeling towards Tolstoy as my compatriot, but as I feel that the publishers' and the "cutters'" names will be swallowed by the years as the outstanding writers will left for centuries ahead.
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Post by Vega »

Dostoevsky rocks.
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Post by sweets »

hi
i do not know how to thank u about this wonderful topic :) ,i like russian literature so much,and i read almost of the novel that u menthion before of course not in russion but in mother tonuge language :o

thank u agine

cheeeeeeers
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Re: lets discuss Russian literature

Post by Tora »

Silvio, I'm impressed! Your words are very sincere as I feel. I have always thought that enjoying poetry is only available in it's original language. This is what I have discovered reading Robert Burns, the music of the words rarely can be saved if translated. And actually I suppose poetry is something for "internal use", I mean it loses half of it's admiration when it's not the author's masterpiece but a translator one's.
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Re: lets discuss Russian literature

Post by Cypress »

Silvio wrote:One thing I'd be interested in knowing from anyone who has
read these writers and poets in Russian, how do the translations of them compare.
I’ve read Dostoevsky’s “Crime and Punishment” both in Russian and English. I can say that it was much easier to read it in English. In his writing, Dostoevsky often used very long complicated sentences. Such long sentences are not common in English, so the translator often broke long sentences into few shorter ones, which made it easier to read. Also, in English translation Dostoevsky’s gloomy and depressing style is not as vivid as in the original.
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