Acmeism in literature is a trend that arose at the very beginning of the 20th century and became widespread among all poets who created their masterpieces in this period of time. Mostly he hooked on Russian literature, and also became a kind of retaliatory move towards symbolism. This direction is characterized by clarity, extreme clarity and earthiness, but at the same time, there is no place for everyday problems in the poems of acmeist poets .
A small description of the style
Acmeism in literature has always been distinguished by sensuality, a penchant for analyzing human feelings and experiences. Poets who wrote their works in this style were quite specific, did not use metaphors and hyperbolas. According to modern writers, such characteristics appeared, as it were, in contrast to the pre-existing symbolism, which, in turn, was famous for the ambiguity of images, the complete lack of specificity and accuracy. At the same time, Acmeists attached importance only to the highest human needs, that is, they described the spiritual world. They were alien to political or social issues, aggressiveness and the like. That is why their poems are so easily perceived, because they write about complex things very simply.
What acmeism was based on
As such, a philosophy that would define acmeism in Russian literature at that time was not. Such a fulcrum formed only in the process of the existence and prosperity of the style, when the first verses of its representatives began to appear on the basis of which it was possible to determine the essence of the writing. Thus, acmeism in literature was distinguished by a realistic view not only of the general picture of life, but also of rather “unearthly” problems that are associated with feelings and emotional experiences. The key role in any work, according to the authors, was to play the word. It was with his help that all thoughts and events that were described should be expressed with extreme accuracy.
The inspiration that poets of this era drew
More often than not, symbolism, which was the precursor of acmeism, is compared to music. It is the same mysterious, multi-valued, can be interpreted in any way. Thanks to such artistic techniques, this style became a concept in the art of that time. In turn, acmeism as a current in literature has become a very significant antithesis to its predecessor. Representative poets of this trend themselves compare their work more with architecture or sculpture than with music. Their poems are incredibly beautiful, but at the same time accurate, collapsible and extremely understandable for any audience. Each word directly conveys the meaning that was originally laid down in it, without any exaggeration or comparison. That is why acmeist poetry is so simple to teach to all schoolchildren as a keepsake, and so simple to understand their essence.
Representatives of Acmeism in Russian Literature
A distinctive feature of all representatives of this literary movement was not just solidarity, but even friendship. They worked in the same team, and at the very beginning of their career they loudly declared themselves, having founded the so-called “Workshop of poets” in Leningrad. They did not have a specific literary platform, the standards by which it was necessary to write poetry, or other production details. We can say that each of the poets knew what his work should be, and he knew how to present each word so that it was extremely understandable to others. And among such geniuses of clarity, one can distinguish famous names: Anna Akhmatova, her husband Nikolai Gumilev, Osip Mandelstam, Sergey Gorodetsky, Vladimir Narbut, Mikhail Kuzmin and others. The verses of each of the authors differ from each other both in their structure, and in character, and in mood. However, each work will be understandable, and a person will not have unnecessary questions after reading it.
Glory to Acmeists during their existence
When acmeism appeared in literature, people read the first reports about it in the journal Hyperborea, which was published under the editorship of poets we knew. By the way, in this connection, Acmeists were often called hyperboreans, who fought for the novelty and beauty of Russian art. This was followed by a series of articles written by almost every member of the “Workshop of poets”, which revealed the essence of this literary direction, washed away existence and much more. But, despite the zeal for work and even the friendship of all poets who became the founders of a new trend in art, acmeism in Russian literature began to fade. By 1922, the "Workshop of poets" had already ceased to exist, attempts to renew it proved futile. As the then literary critics believed, the reason for the failure was that the Acmeist theory did not coincide with practical intentions, and they still failed to break away from symbolism.