THE POETICS OF THE NOVELS "LEVIN’S MILL", "LITHUANIAN CLAVIER": LANGUAGE AND SPEECH OF CHARACTERS (ON THE BASIS OF THE WORK BY GERMAN WRITER OF THE MID-XXTH CENTURY JOHANNES BOBROWSKI)

Research article
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.18454/RULB.7.19
Issue: № 3 (7), 2016
PDF

Abstract

The article is devoted to the analysis of the poetics of novels of I. Bobrowski: the principal structuring of artistic elements in the apparent fragmentation, free installation of graphic means. From the first sight, construction of works is spontaneous, there is no internal unity. But, in fact, «building» of each novel is thought out, there is a core around which all work is centered. Such a core in the novels by Bobrowski (and it was taken in his stories), the narrator speaks, as the author defines, “the master of narration”, who determines the internal unity of the novel: he freely connects time, space, country, people, and events. The main characters in his novels behave freely, openly say, sing, and dance. This is the main principle of Bobrowskii’s poetics, which defines the system of narration. People's conversational element is transferred to the writer using the wrong forms, the dialectal word formations due to which he achieves a special capacity, juiciness and imagery of artistic speech, accuracy, truthfulness, historical context.

Introduction.
The study discusses the importance of understanding of the authors’ system analysis. The poetics of Bobrowski’s novels is revealing a true, deep truth about German history and life, with a special rhythmic organization of the describing material makes it possible to talk about a variety of visual techniques of the author. The particular narrative technique, the images, the words make his novels extremely original and unique.
Alfred Kurella says about the novel " Levin’s Mill" (the events of the novel are attributed to 1874): "Using language skills and his creative imagination, J. Bobrowski draws a real picture of the life of Western Prussia in this novel, before the onset of a new century and the example of a simple story brings us to the tragic events that occurred in the recent past». [2]
Poetics bears the stamp of genre specificity of Bobrowski’s prose, contains and shows a conceptual plan of works, his historical views and understanding of history (such elements as the people's life, his work, his spirit, his creativity, language and so on). Labour Germany comes alive on the pages of the writer's novels, he is giving the word to the common people, those who, in his opinion, are true representatives of its "voice". The element of folk life defines the element of people's spiritual life, folk art, folk language, speech, song, and so on. "I need to read and speak correctly on the grass-roots language, to the help of which I come in writing of my stories," – was thinking a writer in his memoirs [2].
Undoubtedly, one of the most important aspects in the characterization of the poetics of novels J. Bobrowski is the works’ language and characters’ speech.
Theoretical Background of Study.
One of the structural features of the novel "Levin’s Mill" is that the author is hiding behind the fact that he depicts, then intervenes in the story, calling to the stage one or the other hero, telling them: "Tell me so that I could see you. Tell me so that we would see you"(And this is directly reflected in the design of the text that statement comes from the third, then from the first person). The writer reveals his attitude to the characters sometimes directly through the author's characteristic, sometimes with a change of intonation, sometimes with a change in the selection of lexical units.
For example, "In general, nothing can be stopped. As there is no restraint kontrdancing of my grandfather, who was still in a rage taps with his "henchmen" and when he doesn’t already know what to think out, is showing to a gypsy gang a tongue or a fig or back side and shouting obscene words. Nothing, nothing can be stopped. And there are staying, I mean, dancing, together those who are hungry and holy, German Baptists, whose have full cup all – land, livestock, and all good ". These lines indicate that the writer's language changes sometimes in direct relation to what, or rather whom he speaks. "Bobrowski sought to dialogue between the narrator and the reader, he used not only to form a monologue but a conversational form, message, sought understanding ... Bobrowski believed in the power of word...» [2].
Language in the writer's novels is imaginative, emotional, rich of metaphorical colors:
"For the Tshanekom trees end so that lined the road, and on top of the horse head overlooking the valley. From here the road leads to the village headlong, at first it fits between the left ear and right ear of right horse. To the left of the right ear of the bay, that is, the left horse, there is a church tower, but now between the two ears Pegashki, therefore, the right horse, you can distinguish the village inn, and next to it, closer to the left ear, tiled roof of the school, as well as the time between a house of Gustav, ... converging groups of chestnut and linden trees, hedges and orchards, lilac and elder. But it is no longer fit into the space between the horse's ears "[1].
These lines are striking with the originality comparisons and building themselves demonstrative suggestions: author gives a detailed description of a specific panorama, and the reader begins to see through the eyes of the author the described.
It should be noted that the language novels combines the finest artistic sketches, perfect structure and imagery with coarse expressions, and sometimes just cutting hearing speech elements. The general tone of the novel "The Mill Levin," like his other works, close to the spoken language and conversational tone, the writer seeks to refresh it using folklore – an inexhaustible source of true literature. The story of its construction is as an oral tale, a fantastic profit.
But Bobrowski is not epic narrator, removed from the narrated events, he now and then enters into a conversation with the characters, then merges them, then stepped aside, it encourages, condemns, laughs and does not specify these transitions. Narrator – a simple peasant and saying simple and uncomplicated, and sometimes an educated man, he expounded difficult and surprisingly affordable when it comes to one thing: the assertion of truth, the development and strengthening of relations between the peoples of the net of different cultures.
"Coarseness" of his tongue, reminiscent talk of ordinary people, the language of popular books, comes from a deep knowledge of their national life, a careful reading of their works of folk. The writer was able to eavesdrop on the people of that language with an admixture of jargon, which arises from the merger of the rural and urban slang speech. How, for example, is expressed by an old man from Bobrowski "Mills Levin":
"– Crawl to your Brizensky court, you lanky oaf. They don’t give a damn, we are here, for your information, all Germans".
Not only the main character, an old man Bobrowski, roughly speaks of Jew Levin, but the narrator is also not far behind him and echoed:
"And so my grandfather could tell in advance who will do it and who will be there. My right, he says, "[1].
In his novels Bobrowski uses jargon and vocabulary of German:
"Here he is, Satan, and hoarse, anxious cackles. Another step, Feller, and Glinsky exalt his trumpet voice – so much so invitingly that slut sheep reared back behind the barn, ... while the turkeys ... burst into the yard with saber-like shells on them from chains... "[1].
People's conversational element is transferred to the writer using the wrong forms, the dialectal word-by which he achieves a special capacity, juiciness and imagery of artistic speech, accuracy, truthfulness, historical context.
In a conversation, a dialogue, just the description of a writer used short sentences: "My grandfather. The church "oral speed that fits freely in the author's speech. Introduced Lithuanian sounds – «the wolf, canis lupus», «goes to heaven or ksiezyk la lune», language disorders «– rozumien, – says Vayzhmantel, therefore, said, understood" [1], made of mixed German and Polish elements.
Bobrowski was concerned about the literary German and spoke about this in an interview with the Berlin Radio: "I fear for the current state of the language, I find certain stagnation in its development. I try to include the age-old literary German folk expressions, turns of speech, peoples’ voices by jargon, just to spice up the German standard language, make it freer, more colorful. I enter short form offerings, commonly used infrequently in German design. I need to correctly read and speak well in the vernacular, to the help of which I seek refuge in writing my stories» [2]. As can be seen from the examples we have given the language setting Bobrowski was true, and when writing his novels. It becomes clear why the author sometimes may be, to a certain extent and abuses vernacular expressions: a lot of them, not only in the dialogue, in the speech of individual characters, but also in the proposals of the narrator. "We have to work on the word" – is often said Bobrowski your friends [2] – that's where the comparisons are rare in novels ("A grandfather, all red in the face as beetroot ..."), infrequent revolutions ("At this Joseph immediately throws: – Grud watery
– Habedank down the violin and bows, he was a proud, the Gypsies ") and others.
It is impossible not to notice some differences in the design of speech elements (compared to the first) in the novel "The Lithuanian piano scores." In terms of proximity to the people's spoken language, of course, "Lithuanian Clavier" occupies the second position. This is quite natural, because the main characters of the novel are two German intelligentsia – a philologist, Professor Voigt, and musician Gaven. Recall one branch of the storyline: Voigt and Gaven are in spiritual opposition to Hitler's order, which is established in their country, to his racist and nationalist propaganda. Continuing a long tradition – it goes back to the days of Herder and Goethe – they are highly revered history and culture of the neighboring Lithuanian people. His feelings they want to express in an opera devoted to the life of the great Lithuanian poet Donelaitis. The main theme of this novel is art, music, poetry, history of neighboring peoples, etc. All this resulted in a more cautious, an exquisite selection of phrases, verbal expressions, as in the story of the narrator and in the dialogues and monologues of the main characters.
"Mr. Voigt, – says scientist Gaven exquisite tone (of course, titles and titles are irrelevant), – at your service ...
– So, the opera – Gaven says, tilting his head to one side as if listening "[1].
It is also appropriate to the frequent use of this novel many rhyming, singing elements, it unites the novel I.Bobrovskogo with Lithuanian culture, namely, its great representative, Kristijonas Donelaitis. The eighth chapter "Lithuanian Clavier" and part of the seventh (a few pages) – are fragments of the idyllic poem "The Seasons" Lithuanian poet, only in the interpretation of the writer, and his autobiography.
Hexameter, in which the poem is manifested in the following lines from the "Lithuanian Clavier" was written by:
"God, have mercy, shorn like sheep,
we have good bar.
Groshik last of them ready
peasant knock.
. . . . .
Brothers, you are at the mercy of the landlords'
They know their own skin "[1].
The ideological content of the poem and poetics Donelaitis – there is indisputable evidence of its impact on the work of J. Bobrowski: special description serfs – Burasov that operate in a typical environment of serfdom; labor scene; kind of a rich household and ethnographic flavor; colorful and yet ethnographically accurate description Burasov wedding; nature as a single organic background work and activities. The work shows the care of the poet to the national culture (concerns about the language, customs, administration of folklore, ethnography). G. Fence follows characterizes the art form works of I.Bobrowski : "Language is allocated strict order, reminiscent of the lyrics: Greek ode stanza. But, at the same time, he breaks the order of the internal dynamics of the Baroque, while avoiding chaos» [2].
Language of "The Seasons" – simple and easy-to-understand. K. Donelaitis consciously relied on the tonic versification, i.e. foot hexameter consists not depending on the length of syllables, and one stressed syllable to another, without taking into account the number and type of syllables in between. For example:
"Radiates rays, kindling the fire draws light.
But gradually the earth dry out and wither wreaths" [1].
"I think of free rhythm, which he owes to his mentor Klopstock» [2]. The above, in our opinion, explains the reason for the use of national Bobrowski spoken language, national folklore and folklore of the Slavic peoples, finally, stop hexameter (in conversation of Voigt and Storostas) in his novels.
"Poshka leafs through his collection ... Voigt grabs one of the sheets and translates Gaven" (presumably, verse Lithuanian folk songs in the German language), "right-hand man, he beats the rhythm, trying to counter a kind of melody language the ancient rhythms, unusual stretching vowels ... such as the word "sand" sound "a" – there, under the oak, on white sa-a-and "[1].
But I.Bobrowski not only introduces rhyming of song Lithuanian elements, but also gives a description of the national Lithuanian dress:
"Festive dress women, scarves and Lithuanian bonnets, decorated with ribbons aprons" [1].
So much influence Donelaitis poetry in the work of Bobrov that the main characters, and Storostas Professor, and Professor Voigt, improvise in hexameter style. We started with the famous lines edifying digressions included Donelaitis in the poem. Storostas freely recites hexameters, intonation combining modesty and Dobronravov preacher who had undergone many trials, with concealed sarcasm rustic sage:
"Hog, you're kind of, how do you live! Shameless! recently
past the yard of your passing, I dirtied it terribly.
Suddenly my light chestnut whinnied and rafters fell down from the top,
shattered windows. And three striped pigs
to brood over the huts of striped screeched rushed,
if they are cut, – the hair stood on end from the horror "[1]!
On Storostas’ offer simplify the last line of retreat edifying Voigt is responsible in the same style:
"No, I know not how, but I believe: it is in opera,
and depart only when the gods – and all! – We leave "
That is, Voigt has no intention to depart from the text to the side, he hopes that at this point:
" – Maybe Gaven wil do a magic here as a small orchestral accompaniment" [1]
They convinced Voigt, helps music.
Continuing in the spirit of improvisation, Voigt adds:
"It is a pity that Poshka is not here, he could, he was so musical!" [1]
Storostas picks:
"So, we must search the bushes
Honourable colleague.
We need to find him, we even
in the arms of the bride "[1].
In other words, our professors improvise hexameters of his contemporaries, who simply can not find.
In an interview, when asked about individual style, Bobrowski said, "Spiritual ... lives in the language. All language and writing style – it works, poetics, which interact sensuality and spirituality, poetics, which attracts the nation, the society – this expression of the personality of the author» [2].
Thus, the poetics of novels I. Bobrowski, their analysis is a confirmation and continuation of the philosophical and historical views of the writer, who was born on the land border, which is understood as the history of the life and work of the true representatives of the German, Lithuanian and Polish people – artists, poets, priests, teachers, and masters. Johannes Bobrowski seizes rough East Prussian dialect of peasants, knows the language of the people, it goes from the childhood (his knowledge of folk songs of life). I. Bobrowski based on folk tradition. The "Levin's Mill" and "Lithuanian Clavier" the reader is presented identity of national, free from all imitation, folk art: works of ancient peoples, modern folklore. [2]
Being an expert in the history of the German language and literature, he comes to a very important conclusion that true poetry is powered life-giving juices of folk art – it teaches the ability to deeply and truthfully convey feelings, thoughts, experiences, people, and their lives. [1].

References

  • Bobrovskij I. Izbrannoe [Selected works]. – M.: Molodaja gvardija, 1971. – 447 p. [in Russian]