The analysis of Mayakovsky’s poem “Lilichka” is not an easy task. The pearl of intimate lyrics resembles a real avalanche of feelings, sufferings and thoughts of the poet. He is so open and frank that it seems as if through the lines you can hear the voice of this lumpy man in Russian poetry. In the article we bring to your attention an analysis of the work of Mayakovsky and a brief history of its creation.
About the poet
Vladimir Mayakovsky is an ambiguous, but very outstanding figure in Russian poetry. The poet, whose growth reached almost two meters, created the effect of his power in verses. His sharp, biting syllable was strong, it seemed to show the shadow of the greatest poet, cubo-futurist, revolutionary and anarchist, actor and playwright.
Mayakovsky is known not only for his outstanding poetry, but also for his rebellious lifestyle. His biography includes years spent in prison and in war, travels, tragedies and love dramas.
The poems and poems of this giant of literature have an incomparable syllable. So wrote only the great Mayakovsky. “Lilichka instead of writing” is one of the poet’s most powerful lyrical works. It impresses with its sincerity, the open vulnerable soul of the poet, which he reveals to his beloved and to his readers.
Who is Lilichka? The story of the creation of the poem
The mysterious Lilichka is the wife of the friend of the poet Osip Brik - Lily Brik. The poet met her thanks to her sister Elsa, whom she courted. Once she invited him to visit. There he read his poems to the Brik family. The poems sunk into their souls, and Mayakovsky himself hopelessly fell in love with Lilichka ...
The poem was written in 1916, a year after meeting his muse. Without a brief history of the relationship, literary analysis will not be complete. Lilichka (Mayakovsky was madly and hopelessly in love with her) was a classic fatal woman who breaks hearts. The poet’s heart was already too exhausted and wounded. Lily kept him close, not allowing him to approach and at the same time not letting go. It is about these complex relationships that the poem was written by the poet.
Analysis of the poem "Lilichka" Mayakovsky
Poetry belongs to the golden collection of intimate lyrics of Russian poetry. The caption “Instead of writing” supplements the title, but we find no signs of the epistolary genre . Rather, it is a poet’s monologue , an attempt to calm the storm of his feelings, from which there is no salvation to a tormented heart.
The analysis of Lilichka (Mayakovsky, according to biographers, wrote this poem while in the same room as Lily) is complicated due to the emotional burden. It seems that the poet tried to pour all his pain and suffering on paper.
The poet calls his love a “heavy weight” for a woman, but it’s worth saying that it was Lily who was seeking such an impression for her, she liked to feel her power over the poet, make him suffer, and then read verses that were soaked, washed with tears of heart. But her lyrical hero compares with the sun and the sea, that is, the absolute of life and vital energy. This was the feeling that slowly killed the poet’s heart, both at a distance and next to her beloved, from whose love “we’re not crying for rest.”
Literary analysis is very complex and multifaceted. Lilichka (Mayakovsky put all this into words) evoked such a gamut of feelings in the poet’s soul that it’s hard to understand how his so-suffering heart could beat.
Antithesis and parallelism in a poem
To convey his feelings, the poet uses the antithesis, elements of parallelism and a special method of the chronotope - playing with time by alternating verbs of the past, future and present. The poet "stroked the hands" of his beloved in the past, today her "heart is in iron", and tomorrow you will "expel". Playing with temporary forms of verbs gives the impression of a real kaleidoscope of events, feelings, suffering and emotions.
The antithesis is manifested in the contrast between the poet’s inner world and feelings for her beloved woman. The severity of suffering is replaced by temporary enlightenment, from the “beloved look”, which the poet compares through the line with the “knife blade”.
The analysis of Mayakovsky’s poem “Lilichka” is complicated for any reader with his own emotions. It is difficult to read this poet's confession and to remain indifferent. Monotonous lines alternate with sudden outbursts of appeal, gentle words and requests to the beloved.
Finally
This is our analysis. “Lilichka” (Mayakovsky tried to say in poetry what he could not say out loud) demonstrates not only the poet’s ability to use linguistic means and literary devices, but also allows him to understand who the poet was. Very strong, not broken by prisons and war, he was unprotected and vulnerable in the face of love. Reading a poem creates a double impression. You sympathize with the poet, but at the same time you understand that if there weren’t such strong feelings, we wouldn’t be able to enjoy such a piercing love poem, which has never been before.