Evgeny Abramovich Baratynsky (1800-1844) - a bright Russian poet unappreciated by his contemporaries. The poem "Waterfall" belongs to the early period of his work. Baratynsky at this time creates elegiac poems filled with romance.
Brief information about the poet
Eugene Baratynsky came from a noble family of Russified Polish gentry. He was born on the estate of Vyazhlya, Tambov province. His childhood passed nearby, in the estate of Mara. The child's education included French and Italian. Later, while studying in the Page Corps, he will add German to them. The boy dreamed of military service, but one childish prank in which he participated, having read Schiller, led him and his friends to the theft. Ten-year-old Baratynsky was expelled from the corps and could only become a soldier. He began to write melancholy poems, being an outcast in society.
At 19, E. Baratynsky began to serve as an ordinary. In the same year he met with A. Pushkin, A. Delvig, In Küchelbeker,
F. Glinka, N. Gnedich. In 1820, his regiment was sent to Finland. There we will write the lyrical poem “Waterfall” that interests us. Baratynsky in this period begins to print, and his name becomes known.
The story of the creation of "Waterfall"
Finnish nature made a completely new impression on the young Baratynsky, accustomed to the flat terrain. Near the fortress of Kumen, where the non-commissioned officer served, there was the Hagfors waterfall. He was surprised at his height of eight meters and a gloomy gorge. He could be admired from the bridge, which towered above the rapidly flowing body of water. Baratynsky also visited the Imatra Falls.
This seething stream is bordered by
forests of Karelia with gray boulders. Perhaps this noisy and majestic fall of water led to the creation in 1821 of a small masterpiece - “Waterfall”. Baratynsky, as a true poet, could not pass by without reflecting in his work an extraordinary phenomenon of nature.
The general theme of the poem
The young man, standing, apparently, at the top, for the first time saw a gloomy and mysterious landscape, which, under the outbursts of aquilon, shakes the mighty firs. Let us clarify that aquilon is a very strong north wind. He is as fast as an eagle's flight.
The Romans presented this formidable deity of nature approximately as shown in the photograph above. He brought a roaring bad weather and is consonant with the noise of a powerful water stream. The roar that emits a waterfall, Baratynsky listens with trepidation and stands, fascinated by the boiling streams of wild elements. He tries to feel with his heart that he is broadcasting a seething drop of water, covered with a gray haze of spray. Observes this witchcraft attractive force, this uncontrolled unbridled creation of E. A. Baratynsky. The waterfall lives its incomprehensible life, which is in harmony with the outside world.
Poem images
The sight and sounds of the water mass make the poet many times enthusiastically and joyfully exclaim, calling her to eternal existence - “noise”, “don't be silent”. This epiphora of four stanzas will begin and end the work. This refrain will be heard by readers, it is impossible not to pay attention. The epithet "gray-haired" in relation to the stream represents, first of all, its color, beyond which antiquity is heard.
His “lingering howl” makes him see in him a living being, which is combined with the valley, which also responds lingeringly. So the forces of nature are personified in the rich imagination that Baratynsky possesses. The waterfall is alive and without words leads a conversation with the poet. His roar is not only long, but also rebellious. What he expects, Baratynsky cannot understand, since he is simply enchanted by the “smoky abyss”. His rhetorical questions increase our attention to the landscape and, without requiring an answer, make us empathize.
The lexical means of the poet
The poem is written in measured iamba with a ring rhyme. For the modern reader, archaism sounds like the mention of aquilon, and the combination of "elk scepter", which he shakes. But, perhaps, among the poet's contemporaries, they aroused a sense of eternity and primordial nature.
The alliterations that are used allow you to hear a noisy stream from the first stanza. It has three "sh". Next, “g”, “u” and “w” will be repeated many times, reinforcing the first impression. Repeated “y” four times in a row is an assonance. It allows you to more accurately transfer the mass of water flowing in a continuous stream.
The image of the lyrical hero
It shows a person’s need to understand what is enchanting power, which is created miraculously. The state of mind of the hero eagerly awaits the discovery of secrets. This is his "crazy expectation." He trembles all over.
And through an oxymoron (the lyrical hero “understands by heart”, and the mind belongs to the head) we are shown that a mystery unknown before has been revealed to the hero: he must find his place in the universe. Here we are faced with the philosophical beginning of the poet. Minutes of proximity of man and the Universe opens to the reader the poem "Waterfall". Baratynsky begins to comprehend the meaning of his being. And later, the singer in his works will reflect on life. In his early work, feelings (delight, joy, awe, expectation) caused by nature were shown by Baratynsky. "Waterfall" (the analysis of which is completed), only laid the foundation for the philosophical lyrics and elegiac reflections of the poet.
Having reached the rank of officer, E. A. Barytynsky will resign, get married and, understood only by a narrow circle of friends, will go abroad. In Naples, he suddenly dies, but will be buried in his native land, in St. Petersburg. The press did not cover this sad event.