The beginning of the new twentieth century was marked in the history of Russia by severe upheavals. Wars, revolution, famine, emigration, terror ... The whole society was divided into warring parties, groups and classes. Literature and poetry, in particular, reflected, like a mirror, these ebullient social processes. New poetic directions arise and develop.
Analysis of Mayakovsky’s poem “Listen!” one cannot begin without mentioning when it was created. It was first published in one of the collections in March 1914. The entire literary process of that time was marked by parades of manifestos of literary movements and groups in which the word artists declared their aesthetic and poetic principles, distinguishing features, as well as programs. Many of them went beyond the declared framework and became iconic poets of their time. Without their work, it would be difficult to imagine Soviet literature.
Vladimir Mayakovsky was an active participant in the first avant-garde literary movement called Futurism. He was a member of the Gilea, a group of the founders of this movement in Russia. A complete analysis of Mayakovsky’s poem “Listen!” impossible without resorting to theoretical foundations. The main features of futurism are: the denial of previous literary dogmas, the creation of new poetry, looking to the future, as well as experimental rhyme, rhythm, orientation to the sounding word, pathos and shocking.
When analyzing Mayakovsky’s poem “Listen!”, It is necessary to dwell on its topic. It begins with an appeal, which is no coincidence made in the name. This is a desperate call. The storyteller observes the actions of another active hero who cares. In an effort to make life easier for someone, he “rushes” into heaven, out of class, to God himself and asks him to light a star in the sky. Perhaps in punishment for the fact that people stopped noticing them, the stars went out?
The theme is connected with the desire of the lyrical hero to draw the attention of ordinary people living a vain, monotonous life to the beauty of the vast night sky. This is an attempt to force them to raise their heads, weighed down by problems, and to look up, having joined the secrets of the Universe.
Analysis of Mayakovsky’s poem “Listen!” showed that the poet used such artistic means as a non-rhyming verse with a rhythmic pattern, sound recording and alliteration to reveal the topic.
The first observing hero does not have a portrait in the poem, but the second has very vivid characteristics expressed by a number of verbs: analysis of Mayakovsky’s poem “Listen!” draws the reader's attention to the fact that the verbs “breaks in” and “is afraid” have explosive consonants “c” and “b”. They reinforce the effect of negative emotions of pain and torment. The consonants “p” and “c” create the same effect in the verbs “crying” and “late”, “asking” and “kissing”, “swearing” and “will not bear”.
The poem resembles a small play, full of drama, which Mayakovsky put into it. “Listen!” analysis makes it possible to conditionally divide into four parts. The first part is an introduction (the main question, from the first to the sixth line); the second part is the development of the plot and the culmination (a “prayed out” star, from the sixth to the fifteenth line). The third part is the denouement (receiving confirmation from the one for whom the hero tried, from sixteenth to twenty-second line); the fourth part is an epilogue (repetition of the question of introduction, but with an affirmative intonation, from the twenty-third to the thirtieth line).
The poem "Listen!" the poet wrote at the beginning of his career, at the stage of formation, the development of his own literary style. But already in this small work, the young Mayakovsky proved himself as an original and very subtle lyricist.