DUBIA TEXTS IN THE ACADEMIC EDITION OF TARAS SHEVCHENKO’S WORKS: THE PROBLEM OF AUTHORSHIP

Abstract

The paper assesses the validity of including several works in the “Dubia” section of the academic edition. Th ere are grounded doubts regarding Shevchenko’s authorship of the poem “I am bored, it is hard — what should I do?” from the manuscript “Kobzar” of 1861, which belonged to Ivan Levchenko. The main warning is that the poem “Polubotok” was also copied into the same manuscript “Kobzar”, but Shevchenko’s authorship in this case has long been disproven. Therefore, Ivan Levchenko cannot be considered an authoritative expert on the poet’s works. It is plausible that an unknown epigone took “Ballad” (“Weary-dreary lags and drags”) as a model for imitation. There is no doubt that the poem-dedication “Tribute to Shternberg” on the now unknown copy of “Kobzar” of 1840 belongs to Shevchenko. The sole known text of the poem “I do not grieve, but do not sleep...” was cited by Oleksandr Afanasiev-Chuzhbynskyi in his memoirs about Shevchenko. Since there is no reason to doubt the reliability of this memoirist, who is known for his accuracy and thoroughness, Shevchenko’s authorship should be definitively confirmed. As for the quatrain “Drink the first, you’ll be aroused...”, despite the compelling testimonies of Shevchenko’s authorship, there is still insufficient certainty to include this poem in the main body. As a result of the analysis, it is proposed that the poem “I am bored, it is hard — what should I do?..”, as well as the note “Picturesque Ukraine” from the newspaper “Northern Bee” of 1844, be removed from the edition of Shevchenko’s works as not belonging to the poet. The impromptu “Drink the first, you’ll be aroused...” must be left in the “Dubia” section, while the poems “Tribute to Shternberg”, “I do not worry, but do not sleep...” should be unconditionally transferred to the main body.