ISSN: 2158-7051 ==================== INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF RUSSIAN STUDIES ==================== ISSUE NO. 3 ( 2014/1 ) |
“SHAPES OF APOCALYPSE Arts and Philosophy in Slavic Thought” ,. By Ayse Dietrich*,
Published by: Academic Studies Press, Boston. Edited by Andrea Oppo, Year of Publishing: 2013. Subject Area: Arts,
Literature and Philosophy. Book Type: Reference Book. Total Number of Pages: 285. ISBN:
978-1-61811-174-6.
This book is comprised of a collection of essays that treat the topic of
the apocalypse in Slavic thought. It investigates the philosophical, literary
and aesthetic idea of apocalypse in the Slavic world from the nineteenth to the
twentieth centuries. This book conveys the various approaches which have been
taken toward the theme of the apocalypse in Slavic culture.
The book contains three sections: the first is dedicated to philosophy, the
second to literature and the third to music and visual arts.
The philosophy section consists of three studies: an introduction by Andrea
Oppo, the articles “The Titled Pillar: Rozanov and the Apocalypse by Giancarlo Baffo and
“Salvation Without Redemption: Phenomenology of (Pre-) History in Patočka’s Late Work” by Riccardo Paparusso.
Oppo’s introduction provides a general introduction to apocalypse as a
philosophical concept and discusses two basic
approaches to understanding the myth of the apocalypse philosophically. The
first approach views the apocalypse historically, the final event in a
sequential passage of
time which brings everything to an end. The second approach, on
the other hand, views the apocalypse as an instant whose accomplishment is possible
in the present. Based on these two perspectives Oppo,
among the Russian thinkers of the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, analyses
N. Berdjaev’s views.
The article “The Titled Pillar: Rozanov and the
Apocalypse” written by Giancarlo Baffo examines Vasilij Rozanov’s conception of
apocalypse. Baffo begins his analysis with Merežkovskij’s belief that Rozanov
was the first to comprehend the way in which the beginnings of the Russian
Revolution had been influenced by the relationship between Judaism and
Christianity in Russia. Additionally, the article examines Rozanov’s
critique of a purely spiritual Christian faith and the link between artistic
creation and renunciation of the world.
Riccardo Paparusso’s article “Salvation Without Redemption: Phenomenology of (Pre-) History in Patočka’s Late Work” examines the idea of the ‘End of
History’ put forward by Jan Patočka. According to Paparusso, in Patočka’s view
history has already come to an end, since the current technical-scientific era
has satisfied humanity’s empty desires, but has also demonstrated the utter
non-sense of life. Patočka’s “Post-History” paradoxically presents a return of
pre-historical reality, but also shows the apocalypse to be a force for
destruction without redemption.
The Literature section contains four articles: “The Sacrament of End. The
Theme of Apocalypse in Three Works by Gogol” by Vladimir Glyantz,
“Apocalyptic Imagery in Dostoevskij’s The Idiot and The Devils” by William J. Leatherbarrow,
“Black Blood, White Roses: Apocalypse and Redemption in Blok’s Later Poetry” by
Irene Masing-Delić and “Apocalypse and Golgotha in Miroslav Krleža’s Olden Days: Memoirs and Diaries
1914-1921/1922” by Suzana Marjanić.
The article “The Sacrament of End. The Theme of Apocalypse in Three Works by Gogol” by
Vladimir Glyantz examines The Portrait, The Nose and The Government Inspector by Gogol for
their religious apocalyptic symbolism. The article discusses Gogol’s personal life,
expectation of the apocalypse, and the hidden meanings and relationships in
Gogol’s writings.
William J. Leatherbarrow’s article “Apocalyptic
Imagery in Dostoevskij’s The Idiot and The Devils”
examines the use of biblical motifs from the St. John’s Book of Revelation in
The Idiot and The Devils by F.M. Dostoevskij. The
article not only analyzes the parallels between sections of these novels and
the Book of Revelation, but the socio-political context of nineteenth century
Russia and Europe.
Irene Masing-Delić’s article “Black Blood, White
Roses: Apocalypse and Redemption in Blok’s Later Poetry” deals with Aleksandr Blok’s lengthy poem The Twelve and his later
poetry. In particular, Blok’s use of illness as metaphor is examined. The
author sees ‘syphilis’ in Blok’s poetry as a symbol of the decadence of the old
world; only a Revolution can purify the world from evil and bring about a new
birth of life and culture.
The final article in this section, Suzana Marjanić’s “Apocalypse and Golgotha in Miroslav
Krleža’s Olden Days: Memoirs and Diaries
1914-1921/1922” examines Krleža’s
literary diaries about the First World War and their apocalyptic thinking.
The Music and Visual Arts section includes four articles: “The Apocalyptic
Dispersion of Light into Poetry and Music: Aleksandr Skrjabin in the Russian Religious Imagination” by Polina Dimova, “From the Peredvižniki’s Realism to Lenin’s Mausoleum: The Two Poles
of an Apocalyptic-Palingenetic Path” by Chiara Cantelli, “Theatre at the Limit: Jerzy Grotowski’s
Apocalypsis cum Figuris”
by Andrea Oppo and “On Apocalypse, Witches and
Desiccated Trees: A Reading of Andrej Tarkovskij’s The Sacrifice” by Alessio
Scarlato.
Polina Dimova’s article “The Apocalyptic Dispersion of
Light into Poetry and Music: Aleksandr Skrjabin in the Russian Religious Imagination” examines the
influence of Aleksandr Skrjabin’s
synesthetic concept of light found in his music on Russian religious
philosophy.
The article “From the Peredvižniki’s Realism to
Lenin’s Mausoleum: The Two Poles of an Apocalyptic-Palingenetic
Path” written by Chiara Cantelli concerns about
figurative arts and the Peredvižniki’s Realism of the
end of the nineteenth century and socialist art from the Stalinist era in
Russia.
In Andrea Oppo’s article “Theatre at
the Limit: Jerzy Grotowski’s Apocalypsis cum Figuris” his apocalyptic vision of
theatre is analyzed.
The article “On Apocalypse, Witches and Desiccated Trees: A Reading of
Andrej Tarkovskij’s The Sacrifice” written by Alessio Scarlato examines Andrej Tarkovskij’s
last work The Sacrifice and his idea
of apocalypse.
For anyone concerned with or interested in the topic of the apocalypse
in arts, literature and philosophy in Slavic culture this book would be
invaluable and it is
likely to become a primary reference source for future research in the study of
religious concepts in general, and the apocalypse in particular.
*Ayse Dietrich - Full Professor at Middle East Technical University, Department of History. Editor and the founder of the International Journal of Russian Studies.
e-mail: dayse@metu.edu.tr, editor@ijors.net, dietrichayse@yahoo.com
© 2010, IJORS - INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF RUSSIAN STUDIES