One of the best works that the great lyric master Athanasius Fet created was “Night shone, the garden was full with the moon”. This poem was written already at the sunset of the poet's life and was dedicated to the happiest period in his life.
One of the sophisticated lyrics of the 19th century is Fet. "The Night Shone" - a poem that refers to the late stage of the creative path of this author. It should be said that, despite the large number of touching and sad works that the great Russian romantic created, he was quite a businesslike and quick-witted person in life. For Fet, poetry was a lifesaver to hide from the bustle and dullness of life. But whose image is present in the work "The Night Shone"? Fet, in the opinion of critics and biographers, devoted the verse to Maria Lazic, who had passed away early.
Maria Lazic
She was the daughter of a small landowner. He is an officer who is not without romance. Perhaps fate brought them together at the wrong time. This acquaintance would have happened a little later, the girl’s life would not have ended tragically. And in Russian culture there would be no great lyrics. For life, the lieutenant remembered the last meeting with Maria, when they were in the spacious living room, she played the piano, and the night shone outside the window. Fet wrote this verse many years after a memorable evening.
The young officer fell in love with the girl at first sight, but was not going to get married. Material difficulties and the desire to return the noble title turned out to be stronger than love. Some critics believe that most of the works, the poet subsequently devoted specifically to Maria Lazic. The top of his lyrics is "The Night Shone." Fet, whose analysis of creativity was the subject of a large number of literary articles, reproached himself all his life for the weakness that he had shown in his youth. Repentance formed the basis of the poem.
"The rays at our feet ..."
In the first quatrain, Fet speaks of the last evening with Mary. "The night shone ..." - in these lines he is transferred to the atmosphere of the mansion. Maria Lazic was a musically gifted girl. For her, personally, Ferenc Liszt wrote music . Fet repeatedly asked her to play one of the works of this composer.
At the first meeting, Mary told Fet that her heart was given to another. But in reality, she had long been in love with the poet and his poems. In one of the letters, Fet told his friend that he had met a girl who, perhaps, was the only one with whom he could live a happy life.
“Love you and cry over you”
Quiet romantic evenings were many. The house of Mary's father was distinguished by hospitality. Here you can often meet young officers. But Fet and Lazic behaved somehow separately, rarely participating in the general fun. He never told her about his feelings. Fet expressed his love only in verse. “The Night Shone” is a poem, in the second stanza of which the author mentally confesses love to his interlocutor. In these lines, he conveys the desire not to stop that happy moment: "live without sounds dropping."
Painful years
Mary was a dowager. To marry her meant to doom yourself and your future family to eternal poverty. To bury their future, to vegetate in the outback and to have a wife who has withered prematurely from poverty. In addition, their regiment was to go to martial law and speak to the Austrian border. About this and said Fet Maria Lazic last night. But the girl reacted restrainedly to the officer’s explanations. Maria stated that she did not intend to infringe on the poet’s freedom, but only dreamed of listening to him, talking to him.
When the situation escalated to such an extent that there was a threat to tarnish the girl’s reputation, Fet stopped all communication with her.
The life of the beloved poet ended tragically. Her father did not allow smoking in the house, but she still did not refuse herself this pleasure. Once, while reading a book, Mary lit a cigarette and took a nap. When she woke up, a flame engulfed a significant part of the dress. Frightened, the girl only aggravated the situation: she began to run around the mansion and ran out onto the balcony. Flames from a surge of air swept all over her body.
Maria Lazic died of severe burns and, according to witnesses, asked before her death to keep Fet's letters. The poet has never visited her grave. Until the end of his life, he considered himself guilty of her death.
“That you are alone - all your life, that you are love”
In the last lines, the author conveys regret about his past life. He managed to return the noble title. He married favorably and lived a prosperous life. But he could not forget about Maria Lazic. After more than a quarter of a century, he again felt the bewitching sounds of the piano and the singing of his beloved. The work uses the repetition: “To love you, hug you and cry before you.” This phrase is found in the poem twice. With the help of this artistic device, the author enhances the emotional effect.
Fet's poem "The Night Shone" is a masterpiece of Russian lyrics, once again confirming that the poet cannot become a true master of the word without knowing true love and without experiencing a sense of loss.