A. S. Pushkin's Poem "Vadim": Sources, Genre, Historical and Literary Context

Student: Burlakova Viktoriya

Educational Programme: Philology (Bachelor)

Final Grade: 10

Year of Graduation: 2024

The paper examines an unfinished poem "Vadim", a lyrical-epic text written by A. S. Pushkin during the southern exile, based on the historical legend of Vadim the Brave of Novgorod. The research involves a meticulous examination of the legend in historical chronicles and its adaptations in 18th and 19th-century literature, alongside an immanent analysis of the poem's narrative and stylistic features. By comparing "Vadim" with contemporary lyrical-epic works that share thematic and motif similarities, the study reveals Pushkin's intricate engagement with byronic and ossianic motifs, as well as with the works of contemporaries such as V. A. Zhukovsky, K. N. Batyushkov, and K. F. Ryleev. Within the scope of this analysis, a historical-literary commentary on "Vadim" is developed, aiming to contextualize the poem within the 1820s historical, literary, and cultural milieu.

Full text (added May 26, 2024)

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