I.S. TURGENEV, A.A. BLOK, M.A. VOLOSHIN AND “THE LEGEND OF ST JULIAN THE HOSPITALIER” BY G. FLAUBERT

Abstract

Flaubert’s “The Legend of St Julian the Hospitable” was first translated into Russian by I.S. Turgenev, and more recently - in beginning of the 20th century - by M.A. Voloshin and A.A. Blok. The paper addresses Voloshin’s “Preface to the translation of Flaubert’s ‘The Legend of St Julian the Hospitable’”, which he wrote in polemics with Turgenev’s translation. The analysis of the reason of Voloshin’s interest in the text by Flaubert shows that “The legend of St Julian” attracted the poets of the Silver Age with its unusual content, peculiar mysticism and particular - Flauberian - style of presentation. Each of the writers who translated the legend tried to keep the balance between content and style as much as possible. The paper also raises the question of romantic tendencies in Flaubert’s novels on religious subjects.