“Memoirs in Tsarskoye Selo” (1814) is one of the most famous poems by Alexander Sergeyevich Pushkin. He wrote it at the age of 15. The poem is known not only for its content, but also for the fact that it earned the praise of the famous poet of that time - Gabriel Derzhavin, who recognized the talent of the young poet.
The content of the poem
The poem "Memoirs in Tsarskoye Selo" (1814) bears the features of two genres at once : odes and elegy. His lyrical hero lists the monuments of Tsarskoye Selo that float before his eyes. This is the Chesmenskaya column, erected in memory of the successful victory of the Russian fleet over the Turkish army in 1770, a monument that appeared after the success of the Rumyantsev armada again over the Turks. This time at the place of Cahul in the same 1770. In the text of the poem, the author recalls the glorious and great commanders of those times, their successes and poets who sang them.
In the poem "Memoirs in Tsarskoye Selo" (1814), the hero thinks about a new century, which began very recently. And it already happened a lot of events that shocked Russia: the invasion of Napoleon’s troops, burned Moscow, the conquest of Paris.
At the end of his work, the poet, as it were, turns to the poet of the new time, Zhukovsky, whom he calls the skald of Russia. He calls on everyone to praise the future successes of the Russian people.
Analysis of the poem "Memoirs in Tsarskoye Selo" (1814) is always aimed at the high role of the poet in society, which the author notes. Pushkin bluntly states that each era requires not only military leaders and brave soldiers, but also poets who will inspire heroes to their exploits.
Create poem
The poem "Memoirs in Tsarskoye Selo" (1814) was written by Pushkin in the autumn of 1814. He did this out of necessity - he needed to read his own work on an exam at the Tsarskoye Selo Lyceum, where the poet studied.
An open public exam was conducted during the transition from junior to senior course. His participation in the exam was confirmed by the famous poet of the time Gabriel Derzhavin. Having learned about this, the teacher of literature of lyceum students Galich suggested to Pushkin, who had already repeatedly published his lyrics, to write some worthy poem for this event.
A rehearsal took place shortly before the exam. Such a demand was put forward by the Minister of Education under the Government Alexei Razumovsky. He himself was present at her. It was then that Pushkin first introduced his work. “Memoirs in Tsarskoye Selo” (1814) made a great impression on everyone.
Pushkin exam
The exam itself at the Tsarskoye Selo Lyceum took place at the very beginning of 1815. Arriving Derzhavin felt unwell. He was old, and the exam lasted too long. He came to life only when they evaluated Russian literature.
Lyceum students read and memorized poems by Derzhavin himself. He listened carefully and with pleasure.
Pushkin later wrote that he had read the poem Memoirs in Tsarskoye Selo (1814), a few steps from Derzhavin. As soon as he finished reading, he immediately ran away, not remembering where. Derzhavin was delighted; he demanded that a poet be brought to him in order to hug him. He immediately declared that this poet would be able to replace him.
The fate of the text
After the exam, Derzhavin asked Pushkin to send him a handwritten text of the poem. The second copy was his uncle Vasily Lvovich. So the text became famous and popular.
In 1815, the poem was published in the journal Russian Museum, or the Journal of European News. In 1819, while working on the first collection of his poems, which never came out, Pushkin revised the text. From it, he removed references to Alexander I as the savior of Europe.
It was possible to include it in the collection only in 1825. He was sent to the censor; as a result, he was not in the book that appeared. It is believed that the censor drew attention to the fact that Pushkin removed the stanza dedicated to the emperor. And the text was well known in its original form. This fact could not remain unnoticed.
By the way, in 1829, the poet created another poem of the same name. It begins with the words "Confused by the memory ...". It is not worth confusing these two texts.
The significance of the poem in the work of Pushkin
In the fate of the poet, this poem played a big role. The fact that Derzhavin, who died a year later, publicly called Pushkin his successor, made a great impression on his contemporaries. And when the genius of Pushkin revealed in all its glory, the event began to be considered symbolic. It saw the transfer of the creative relay race from the 18th to the 19th centuries.
Derzhavin himself had a great influence on Pushkin. The poet has repeatedly addressed him in his works.
For example, in "Eugene Onegin" the phrase "Old Man Derzhavin noticed us / And, going down to the coffin, blessed" soon became winged.
Poem Analysis
Where to start the analysis? “Memoirs in Tsarskoye Selo” (1814) is a work in which the poet moves from the successful years of the 18th century, when the country was led by Empress Catherine II, to a very recent past. He talks in detail about the events of the war against the French, noting the main ones: the burning of Moscow and the Battle of Borodino. Describes the victorious procession of the Russian army in Europe to the very heart of Europe.
The poet compares the victory over Napoleon with the deliverance from the "scourge of the universe." The appeal at the end of the poem to Zhukovsky made a particularly strong impression on him.
Text Features
What else can be included in the analysis? "Memoirs in Tsarskoye Selo" (1814) by Pushkin is a poem that contains clear signs of classicism, which the 18th century was so famous for. For example, among other texts of Pushkin he is distinguished by the solemn syllable with which it is written.
At the same time, Pushkin does not shy away from using archaisms. So, describing what happened during the war against Napoleon, he mentions the clang of swords and chain mail. But it is obvious that neither one nor the other was used in the 19th century. But Pushkin intentionally uses precisely these images to give his text more elevation and solemnity. In reality, the so-called battle music of that time was artillery.
At the same time, Alexander Sergeyevich Pushkin in his poem focuses not only on examples of classicism. In the text, obvious romantic and sentimental features are clearly visible.
The most striking example is the description of the landscape at the very beginning of the poem, which sets the mood for the whole text.
At the same time, it is worth recognizing the obvious fact that the poem itself is clearly imitative. In it, Pushkin collects the best that the older generation of poets produced at that time, the most significant representative of which was just Derzhavin. Based on their works, Pushkin at the same time forms his own, unique, individual and unique style.
That is what Derzhavin, who was present at the Pushkin exam, appreciated and praised so highly.