Nikolai Stepanovich Gumilev - Russian poet of the Silver Age, translator, critic, who founded such a literary movement as acmeism. Acmeists cultivated the materiality and objectivity of the created images. Acmeism is considered the opposite of symbolism, which, on the contrary, is based on an element of mystery and understatement.
The authorship of the poet owns many poems, articles and translations. One of them is Gumilyov’s poem “Olga”. It tells of the great ruler of Russia - Princess Olga.
History of creation
The poem "Olga" Gumilev wrote in 1920. It was included in the collection “Pillar of Fire”, which also included “Forest”, “Word”, “Lost Tram” and other famous poems of the poet.
The collection was completely completed in 1921, in the last year of Gumilyov’s life. Critics believe that the “Pillar of Fire” is the pinnacle of the work of Nikolai Stepanovich. This collection contains all the ideas of previous periods of Gumilyov's literary career.
By the very name, the reader can already guess what the poems in the collection are dedicated to - the words “Pillar of Fire” evoke thoughts about the past and refer to various cultural and historical motives, ancient legends and traditions. It uses the poetic method created by Nikolai Gumilyov himself and called hallucinating realism.
Poem Analysis
Gumilyov’s poem “Olga” is a ballad dedicated to the distant Russian past. The poet turns to folklore genres - the influence of Russian folk poetry is felt.
It is noteworthy that in the ballad there is no plot as such. The poem consists of emotions, feelings, feelings and thoughts, the connections between which are complex and varied, which creates a feeling of integrity and completeness.
For a complete understanding of the poem, it is necessary to know several historical facts about the princess. Olga became the ruler after the death of her husband Igor at the hands of the Drevlyans, who avenged her cruelly and mercilessly.
The ballad reflects the scene of the burning of the Drevlyans in the bathhouse. Gumilev portrays this revenge vividly and expressively, using various epithets. The last line about the skull “with the intoxicated braga” refers to the “Tale of Bygone Years”, in which the Pechenegs made a cup from the skull of the murdered Svyatoslav.