Jurgis Baltrušaitis is a poet of whom very little is known. His name is found in anthology or is mentioned in the memoirs of contemporaries. Baltrushaitis' works are rarely included in poetic anthologies. A small selection can be found in the book "Poets of the Silver Age." Meanwhile, Jurgis Baltrushaitis is an extraordinary figure in literature. The biography of the poet, translator and diplomat is the topic of the article.
Jurgis Kazimirovich Baltrushaitis was born in 1873, not far from the Lithuanian city, now called Kaunas. His whole life was filled with contradictions. The mother tongue of Baltrušaitis was Lithuanian. Nevertheless, in literature he is known as a Russian symbolist poet.
early years
A boy from a poor peasant family independently learned to read and write. Jurgis showed an extraordinary desire for teaching. At the age of twelve he entered the gymnasium, and after three years he began to earn his bread in the lessons.
In 1893, Jurgis Baltrushaitis decided to continue his education in Moscow. He entered the university at the Faculty of Physics and Mathematics, but during his studies he found time for writing. In addition, Baltrušaitis attended lectures on history, philology, and studied foreign languages. Among the students of Moscow University already in those years, fame was heard about him as an incredibly gifted linguist.
In 1899, a young Lithuanian poet met with representatives of symbolism - Balmont and Bryusov. Together, the Scorpio Publishing House was created. In the same year, Jurgis Baltrushaitis secretly married the millionaire’s daughter Maria Olovyashnikova.
Critic
Baltrusaitis at the beginning of the twentieth century was widely known in literary circles. And above all, his critical articles. He collaborated with magazines such as Rus, Pravda, and Russian Thought. Baltrušaitis was extremely demanding of himself, and therefore published only two books of poetry ("Mountain Road", "Earth Steps").
The poet took an active part in literary life. Despite this, he was extremely modest, reserved man. For calmness and reliability Baltrushaitis was appreciated by colleagues. He maintained warm friendly relations with famous cultural figures, among whom were such celebrities as Stanislavsky, Scriabin, Komissarzhevskaya.
After the revolution
Baltrusaitis assisted many writers by arranging for them to travel abroad. After the revolution, he served as chairman of the All-Russian Union of Writers. Since 1939 he was an employee of the Lithuanian Embassy in France. Baltrušaitis did not stop his literary activity in Paris either. But the last collection, the preparation of which took several years, was published after the death of the author. The Lithuanian poet created over four hundred poems, subsequently translated into German, Polish, Latvian, English and other languages.
Symbolist Poet
At the end of the nineteenth century, a trend in art arose in France, which subsequently penetrated into poetry. We are talking about such a literary movement as symbolism. But it is worth saying that in Russian poetry this direction had unique distinctive features.
One of the most prominent representatives of Russian symbolism is Jurgis Kazimirovich Baltrushaitis. “Moon Wings” is a work whose hero personifies tranquility and sadness. This is the only poem of the Lithuanian poet included in the school curriculum. What thoughts and experiences did Jurgis Baltrushaitis bestow upon the lyrical hero of the work “Moon Wings”?
Poem Analysis
The author describes a moonlit night. Everything calms down, but somewhere in the distance is a day reality. With the moonlight compares the lyrical hero in the poem "Moon Wings" Jurgis Baltrushaitis. An analysis of the work of the symbolist poet is not easy. To do this, you need to have an idea of the author himself. Probably Baltrushaitis devoted a poetic composition to the illusory nature of being. The author contrasts the "slave of dreams" with the "fall of all shackles." But at the same time, after overcoming all sorts of obstacles, the lyrical hero disappears along with the moonlight. The poem is filled with sadness. As an artistic tool that enhances the emotional effect of the work, the poet uses repetitions of the union “and”.
Features of poems
Baltrusaitis sought to find a poetic form in which feelings and thoughts would merge. Among critics, there is no consensus on the style of this poet. Some researchers see mystery in his creations. Others are abstract philosophies. A characteristic feature of Baltrushaitis' work is nevertheless proximity to symbolism.
It is noteworthy that although he was of Lithuanian origin, he wrote poetry mainly in Russian. Jurgis Baltrushaitis translated poetry into Lithuanian Linas Brog. In his native language, the poet published three collections.
Poems in Lithuanian
The first work was published in 1927. Over the next ten years, the poet wrote poetry in Lithuanian. But to unite them in the collection was possible only in Paris. The books “Wreath of Tears”, “Smoke of the Altar” were published in the French capital. In the forties, Baltrushaitis also created the poem "Housewarming".
Transfer
The hero of this article made a significant contribution to linguistics. His name is associated not only with the poetry of symbolism, but also with literary translation. He was not just a polyglot. Baltrušaitis translated the works of the classics of world literature, which at the beginning of the century were famous throughout Europe.
The Lithuanian linguist worked mainly on dramatic works, poems and poems. Thanks to the work of Jurgis Baltrushaitis, the repertoire of Russian theaters included the works of Byron, Ibsen, Knut Hamsun. He also translated works by Oscar Wilde, Herman Suderman, Maurice Meterlink, Gunnar Geberg. Russian-speaking readers also became acquainted with the work of the Indian poet and writer Rabindranath Tagore thanks to the translations of Jurgis Kazimirovich Baltrushaitis.
In 1916, an anthology of Armenian poetry was published under the editorship of Bryusov. In the translation of the poems included in the collection, Jurgis Baltrūšaitis took not the last part.
Diplomat
Since 1920 Baltrushaitis served as the representative of the Republic of Lithuania in Russia. Then he was an ambassador to Turkey, Persia. Since 1932, the poet and translator received the title of Honorary Doctor of the University of Kaunas. The last years of Baltrusaitis passed in Paris. The poet went to France on duty. Jurgis Baltrushaitis died in 1944, was buried in the Monruž cemetery.