Metamorphoses in Russian Modernism

Book excerpt: Examines metamorphoses in the works of prominent representatives of the divided Russian intelligentsia: the Symbolists; the most famous emigre writer, Nabokov; Olesha, the 'fellow traveller' attempting to find his place in the Soviet state; the enthusiastic poet of the Bolshevik movement, Mayakovsky; and finally, Russia's greatest film director, Sergei Eisenstein. It is futile to try to understand Russian civilisation let alone predict its future without considering the intellectual, social and emotional reasons why it is not at rest with itself. It is to this end that this volume hopes to make a contribution.