Selected Poetry

by Sergei Yesenin, Peter Tempest (Translator), Yuri Prokushev (Contributor)

During his brief lifetime, Sergei Yesenin gained recognition as one of the better poetic voices of the revolutionary period in Russia. Born of peasant parents, he received very little formal education, and although he later traveled quite extensively it was the pre-revolution countryside of his youth that served as inspiration for most of his poetry. Yesenin initially supported the Bolshevik revolution, thinking that it would prove beneficial to the peasant class, but he became disenchanted when he saw that it would lead only to the industrialization of Russia. A longing for a return to the simplicity of the peasant lifestyle characterizes his work, as does his innovative use of images drawn from village lore. He is credited with helping to establish the Imaginist movement in Russian literature, which was distantly related to the Imagist movement associated with American poet Ezra Pound. Yesenin led an erratic, unconventional life that was punctuated by bouts of drunkenness and insanity. Before hanging himself in a Leningrad hotel (1925), Yesenin slit his wrists, and, using his own blood, wrote a farewell poem.

Genres: Poetry, Russia, Russian Literature, Fiction, Classics

383 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1925

About the author

Sergei Alexandrovich Yesenin [Сергей Александрович Есенин], 1895-1925, sometimes spelled as Esenin, was a Russian lyric poet. He is one of the most popular and well-known Russian poets of the 20th century, known for "his lyrical evocations of and nostalgia for the village life of his childhood - no idyll, presented in all its rawness, with an implied curse on urbanisation and industrialisation."

Born of peasant parents, he received very little formal education, and although he later traveled quite extensively it was the pre-revolution countryside of his youth that served as inspiration for most of his poetry. Yesenin initially supported the Bolshevik revolution, thinking that it would prove beneficial to the peasant class, but he became disenchanted when he saw that it would lead only to the industrialization of Russia. A longing for a return to the simplicity of the peasant lifestyle characterizes his work, as does his innovative use of images drawn from village lore. He is credited with helping to establish the Imaginist movement in Russian literature.

Yesenin led an erratic, unconventional life that was punctuated by bouts of drunkenness and insanity. Before hanging himself in a Leningrad hotel, Yesenin slit his wrists, and, using his own blood, wrote a farewell poem.

Associated Names:
Сергей Есенин (Russian)
Sergej Jessenin (German)

Reviews

[Lukáš Palán · Rating 5 out of 5]

Jelikoz mam od malicka rad Jesenku, rozhodl jsem se, ze si konecne prectu neco od zakladatele tovarny, pana Jesenina.

Basnicky to byly dobry a to ja poznam, protoze v poznavani veci jsem docela dobrej. Obecne poznam docela dost veci kdyz mi je ukazete, auto, lednicku, okurek, koroptev a tak dale. Ale o tom vas, obycejny lidi, tady nebudu presvedcovat.

Nejvic me fascinovalo, ze me Jesenin dokazal vykouzlit diru do palice i kdyz psal basnicky o zviratech u nich na dvorku, slavne flaky jako treba Krava, nebo Pes. Taky potesila dlouha basnicka o vynalezci puku Pugacevovi, ten je uz od Kapitanovy dcerky od Puskina muj oblibeny rebel, spolecne se Sagvanem Toffife. No a v neposledni rade musim pochvalit fakt, ze Jesenin psal tak dobre, ze jsem na par mikrosekund dokonce pomyslel, ze je Maticka Rus mozna opravdu skvela zeme (oslavne basne na pole a louky tu zabiraji tak 50%) -zeme to mozna hezka je, ale skoda, ze v ni ziji Rusove a ne treba Belgicani.

8,5/10

EDIT: Az v doslovu jsem se docetl, ze kdyz Jeseninovi na hotelovym pokoji dosel inkoust, rozrizl si ruku a zacal psat basnicky vlastni krvi - tak to musim zvednout na 10/10.

[Francis · Rating 4 out of 5]

I loved watching his progression from younger nature/landscape poet to the loving poems in later years. I especially liked the latter. Normally I am not a fan of rhyming poems, but there were a few pieces in here that really grabbed me. A wonderful poet to read, and I'm very thankful for my colleague who lent me the book.

[Rita · Rating 5 out of 5]

“Ja nisam sam što ovim svijetom luta,
što svijetom skiće.”

“Vjetri, vjetri, o vi snažni vjetri,
moju prošlost zametite snijegom.
Hoću da sam opet dječak svijetli,
ili cvijet na livadi pod brijegom.”

“Posljednji sam pjesnik sela,
skroman kao most drveni.”

“Nekad smo prava djeca,
i plač i smijeh odjednom:
dok neki vječito jeca,
radost je suđena jednom.
O, glupo srce, ne tuci!”

“Što sam? Tko sam? Ja sam samo sanjar,
čiji pogled gasne u magli i memli,
živio sam usput, ko da sanjam,
kao mnogi drugi ljudi na toj zemlji.”

[Tatyana]

The poetry of one of my beloved poets in a poor, criminal translation !
I stopped reading on the page 96. I couldn't. This is simply outrageous.

Example:

“ Как снежинка белая, в просини я таю
Да к судьбе-разлучнице след свой заметаю. “

Is translated as:
"Like а white snowflake I melt into blueness, hiding
Traces of my passage from Fate, the great divider."

When Yesenin clearly says "to" the Fate-divider, but not from and no "great".
It changes the meaning quite a bit ! And how ugly and primitive the whole translation sounds in comparison with a stream-like lines of Yesenin ...

One more:
"Со снопом волос твоих овсяных
Отоснилась ты мне навсегда. "

is translated as:
" With your hair а sheaf of golden oatstraw
You have vanished from my dreams for good. "

"for good " !?!

One more:
"Зерна глаз твоих осыпались, завяли,
Имя тонкое растаяло, как звук,
Но остался в складках смятой шали
Запах меда от невинных рук."

is translated as:

"Now the seed grain of your eyes has scattered, shriveled,
Your delicate name has melted like а sound,
Though the scent of your pure honey fingers
In the folds of а creased shawl is found."

HUH !?! You made the beauty of the Yesenin's language sound like some cheap pornography !

I am not even talking about the total lack of the rhyme anywhere !


Vladimir Nabokov wrote brilliantly about such "translators":

"Three grades of evil can be discerned in the queer world of verbal transmigration. The first, and lesser one, comprises obvious errors due to ignorance or misguided knowledge. This is mere human frailty and thus excusable. The next step to Hell is taken by the translator who intentionally skips words or passages that he does not bother to understand or that might seem obscure or obscene to vaguely imagined readers; he accepts the blank look that his dictionary gives him without any qualms; or subjects scholarship to primness: he is as ready to know less than the author as he is to think he knows better. The third, and worst, degree of turpitude is reached when a masterpiece is planished and patted into such a shape, vilely beautified in such a fashion as to conform to the notions and prejudices of a given public. This is a crime, to be punished by the stocks as plagiarists were in the shoebuckle days."
(Vladimir Nabokov. "Lectures on Russian literature")

[Noi pe cine citim? · Rating 5 out of 5]

Pe drept cuvânt spune Lucian Raicu în prefața cărții "Cu câtă viață moare Esenin!", căci deși în repetate rânduri acesta își resimte sfârșitul, niciunul nu e lipsit de o puternică dorință de a trăi, de a iubi oamenii și de a-i înțelege. Visând la streang și la cuțit, el întrevede în același timp neputința de a mai găsi pe alta lume cele ce se găsesc aici:

"Acolo știu că nu foșnește-n zări
Cu gâturi lungi de lebădă secara...
De asta-n preajma tainicei plecări
Eu mă-nfior și-mi simt adânc povara.

Acolo, știu că nu vor mai fi fagi,
Nici holdele cu aur viu pe nume...
De asta poate mi-s așa de dragi,
Toți oamenii cu care trec prin lume."

Dar lumea asta nu îl poate mulțumi căci tainele ei îi rămân ascunse iar iubirea nu reușește să-l scape de neliniști:

"Poartă-n ochi seninul. Poartă noaptea-n păr.
Nu i-am spus iubitei nici un adevăr.

M-a-ntrebat: “Afară viscolu-i buimac?
Să-ncălzesc căminul, patul să ţi-l fac?”

Am răspuns iubitei: “Azi, prin vînt şi ger,
Cineva flori albe leapădă din cer.

Poţi aşterne patul şi sufla-n cămin,
Eu şi fără tine sunt de viscol plin."

Chiar și-ajuns prin cei mai mari poeți ai Rusiei, această ultimă armă îl descumpănește căci nu pare să schimbe nimic, iar Esenin refuză să se iluzioneze în privința artei, alegând să moară de boala adevărului și de propria mână:

"Ah! Mi-s foarte dragi poeţii!
Şleahtă de caraghioşi.
Eu îmi amintesc povestea cunoscută şi banală
Cum unei studente,
Pline pe obraz de coşi,
Din mers
O hâzănie pletoasă, ros de poftă sexuală,
Îi vorbeşte prins de vervă
Tocmai despre univers."

Atât. Esenin nu e de analizat, e ce citit și simțit. E unul dintre poeții pe care, dacă vreun Dumnezeu există, chiar aș vrea să-l odihnească-n pace.

[~ · Rating 3 out of 5]

An excellent collection of poems, but I really dislike some of the translations. Take Esenin's final poem, the one he wrote in blood:

(Tempest's translation)

Aurevoir, my friend, aurevoir.
Dear fellow, you're here in my breast.
We have to part now, but this hour
To a forthcoming meeting attests.

Aurevoir, friend, no comment is due.
Your gaze let no sorrow obscure--
In this life of ours dying's not new,
Nor is living, of course, any newer.

(Wikipedia translation, not sure of the translator)

Farewell, my good friend, farewell.
In my heart, forever, you’ll stay.
May the fated parting foretell
That again we’ll meet up someday.
Let no words, no handshakes ensue,
No saddened brows in remorse, –
To die, in this life, is not new,
And living’s no newer, of course.

I believe the second translation is much more beautiful. Perhaps the translator here is more fluent in Russian than English -- this collection was published with a Russian press -- and strove for greater accuracy in the translation. I don't know any Russian so I can't comment about this, but I share Ezra Pound's view that capturing the aesthetic properties of the original poem (in Esenin's case, their lyrical qualities) is vastly more important than literal accuracy. It might be a good idea to search alternate translations online when reading through these.

[loventti · Rating 4 out of 5]

Despite occasional critiques regarding translation accuracy (one example is provided above), 'Esenin's Selected Poetry' remains an essential read for enthusiasts of Russian literature.

Undoubtedly, Esenin's poetry showcases emotional depth, yet there's one piece that melted my heart. Even if you don't want to read the entire book, I highly recommend reading “Letter to a Woman." Yes, you remember.
You certainly remember.
The way I listened
Standing at the wall
As you walked to and fro about the chamber
Reproving me
With bitter words and all, (this is a translation that, in my opinion, suits better.) In this book, we can see another version: You remember, of course, how I stood with my back to the wall while you paced the room in temper, and many a sharp word: let it fall.

[Sinan Öner]

Soviet Russian Poet Sergei Yesenin's "selected poems", we see Yessenin's "lyricism" and "romanticism" in his poetry. Yessenin was feeling Russia's changes in 20. Century in his soul deeply. Yessenin was a peasant Poet who wrote poetry of peasants and peasantry during the revolutions in Russia. Yessenin saw 1905 Revolution in Russia, 1. World War, 1917 February Revolution in Russia, 1917 Soviet October Revolution and Civil War in Russia between 1918 and 1921. These terrible and complex events - although they brought positive changes- created the aesthetical and philosophical ground of Yessenin's Poetry.

[Tim · Rating 3 out of 5]

Difficult to accurately rate this collection. All the poems regarding Persian themes are undoubtedly 10/10. While it’s interesting to read Esenin’s progression in writing, this is supposed to be a selected collection which necessarily infers that this text should solely include his greatest poems. It’s not that his early poems are bad, they just seem predictable. Regardless, still an enjoyable read:)

[Laura N · Rating 4 out of 5]

Sergei Ysenin is a must read for Russian Poetry during the turn of the 20th century. I am not really a poetry person, but you get the feel and essence of the Russian tragic mindset. I would highly recommend watching some of his poems read by professional Russian actors. It really brings his work to life.

[cosmina · Rating 4 out of 5]

My review of this book was so long and detailed but somehow goodreads managed to delete it 🙂🔫

[Hadrian · Rating 4 out of 5]

8/10

[runum · Rating 5 out of 5]

actually not bad considering it's a translation

[Yakov · Rating 5 out of 5]

Esenin is probably my favorite poet of all time, I've adored him since I was a kid and I loved this selection too

[vorona · Rating 5 out of 5]

very fond

[James Dempsey · Rating 3 out of 5]

Lovely in parts.

[whoopie pie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Genius in so many ways…
There was no place for him in this world, but there’s plenty of space for his poetry in our hearts.

[teodora · Rating 4 out of 5]

,,Nemoj više biti brižna lica!
Tlapnjom samo strašno mučiš sebe.
Nisam tako teška pijanica
Da bih umro ne videvši tebe."

[Emilia K · Rating 5 out of 5]

looove love love

[Ani · Rating 5 out of 5]

I revisit Yesenin's poems ritually every night before bed– I don't think I have ever read anything half as beautiful.