Eugene Onegin,New

Alexander Sergeyevich Pushkin, Born In 1799 In Moscow, Was The Founding Father Of Russian Literature. He Had A Simplicity And Purity Of Language, A Directness And Immediacy Of Vision, That Were Entirely And Spontaneously His Own. In Both Prose And Verse, He Was A Pioneer: Whether In Boris Godunov, A Historical Drama Of Shakespearean Grandeur; In Prose Stories Like The Queen Of Spades; Or In Eugene Onegin, A Poetic Novelin These And Other Great Works Of Literature Pushkin Broke New Ground, With The Freshness Of The Innovator But With All The Authority Of Genius.Although Pushkin Himselflike His Hero Oneginwas A Man Of Fashion And Lived In The Highest Society, His Attitude Toward The Imperial Establishment Remained Satirical And Rebellious. He Began Eugene Onegin In 1823 In South Russian, During His Banishment From St. Petersburg, And Continued It In Moscow And Various Country Houses; It Was Completed In 1831. Its Account Of Onegin'S Duel With Lensky Has A Particular Poignancy In View Of The Poet'S Fate In 1837, When He Was Killed In A Duel With An Emigre French Officer Over An Argument About Pushkin'S Wife, The Beautiful Natalya Goncharovna.It Is Useful To Say That Eugene Onegin Is Incomparable And Untranslatable. And, Since Vladimir Nabokov'S Work On This Russian Classicwhich Reproduced The Exact Meaning But Disclaimed Any Further Ambition To Bring The Verse Form To Life In Englishthe Proud Austerity Of Pushkin'S Poetry, Its Technical Virtuosity, Its Lyrical Intensity And Gusto Have Remained Behind A Soundproof Wall, As It Were, For Englishlanguage Readers.Sir Charles Johnston'S Translation Brings Out The Special Qualities Of Eugene Onegin As A Poetic Novel In The Fullest Sense: The Touching Beauty And Cynical Wit Of The Poem; The Psychological Insight, The Devious Narrative Skill, The Thrilling, Compulsive Grip Of The Novel; The Tremendous Swing And Panache Of The Whole Performance. As Peter Levi Wrote In The Sunday Times (London), 'A Translation Of Onegin Has Appeared As Near Perfect As I Think We Shall Ever Get. It Has Something Of The Technical Dash, The Swiftness And The Brilliancy And The Warmth Of Pushkin. Even The Jokes Are Still Funny. This New Translation Has Taught Me More About Pushkin Than I Had Understood By Other Means. Its Obvious Virtues Are Speed And Wit, But Its Truth Of Tone Is What Makes It A Moving And An Admirable Work. Johnston'S Onegin Is A Magnificent Achievement.'