Konstantin Batyushkov; presented and translated by Peter France. Writings from the Golden Age of Russian poetry

Abstract

The English-language project Russian Library [Russkaya biblioteka] presents a book devoted to the life and work of Konstantin N. Batyushkov (1787—1855): a poet, writer, literary and art critic, translator, and member of the Arzamas literary society. The book is introduced and translated by Peter France (b. 1935), Professor Emeritus and Honorary Fellow of the University of Edinburgh, fellow of the British Academy and the Royal Society of Edinburgh. His idea of Batyushkov was largely shaped by the scholars Vyacheslav Koshelev and Ilya Serman. The review speaks about the author’s very thorough approach, his skillful translations of Batyushkov’s poems, letters, and prose, expertly woven into the story of the poet’s life; a broad, European, context for analysis of Batyushkov and his time, and an authentic English sound of his poems.