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Re: Jules Verne and Baron Klim Avidov
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Alexey Sklyarenko: "Baron Klim Avidov is a namesake of the hero of Gorky's novel "The Life of Klim Samgin." One of its many characters mentions Gleb Uspensky's article on Tolstoy: "Восемьдесят тысяч вёрст вокруг самого себя" ("80000 Versts* Around Himself"). The article's title blends Vingt mille lieues sous les mers ("Twenty Thousand Leagues under the Sea") with Le tour du monde en quatre-vingts jours ("Around the World in Eighty Days")** by Jules Verne.// *four versts = one league (approximately); **Benten is mentioned in this novel
JM: Since I ignore the contex of Gorky's novel, Uspensky's article and times (and a lot more, of course), I wonder if we couldn't associate to the title of "80000 Versts Around Himself" another possible reference, now to Xavier de Maistre,. who wrote "Voyage autour de ma chambre"*
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* Following wikipedia "lived largely as a military man, but is known as a French writer ...and eventually took a commission in the Russian army. He served under Alexander Suvorov...the new monarch Paul I dismissed the victorious general ...Xavier de Maistre shared the disgrace of his general, and supported himself for some time in St. Petersburg by miniature painting, particularly landscapes.In 1803, Joseph de Maistre was appointed as Piedmont-Sardinia's ambassador to the court of Alexander I, Tsar of Russia. On his brother's arrival in St. Petersburg, Xavier de Maistre was introduced to the Minister of the Navy, and was appointed to several posts including director of the Library, and of the Museum of Admiralty. He also joined active service, and was wounded in the Caucasus, attaining the rank of major-general. In 1812 he married a Russian lady, related to the Tsars, Mrs. Zagriatsky. He remained in Russia even after the overthrow of Napoleon and the consequent restoration of the Piedmontese dynasty.His "Voyage autour de ma chambre" (1794),a parody set in the tradition of the grand travel narrative, is an autobiographical account of how a young official, imprisoned in his room for six weeks, looks at the furniture, engravings, etc., as if they were scenes from a voyage in a strange land. He praises this voyage because it does not cost anything, for this reason it is strongly recommended to the poor, the infirm, and the lazy. His room is a long square, and the perimeter is thirty-six paces. "When I travel through my room," he writes, "I rarely follow a straight line: I go from the table towards a picture hanging in a corner; from there, I set out obliquely towards the door; but even though, when I begin, it really is my intention to go there, if I happen to meet my armchair en route, I don’t think twice about it, and settle down in it without further ado." Later, proceeding North, he encounters his bed, and in this way he lightheartedly continues his "Voyage". This work is remarkable for its play with the reader's imagination, along the lines of Laurence Sterne, whom Xavier admired. Xavier did not think much of Voyage, but his brother Joseph had it published. ..For a time, he lived at Naples, but eventually he returned to St. Petersburg and died there in 1852."
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JM: Since I ignore the contex of Gorky's novel, Uspensky's article and times (and a lot more, of course), I wonder if we couldn't associate to the title of "80000 Versts Around Himself" another possible reference, now to Xavier de Maistre,. who wrote "Voyage autour de ma chambre"*
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* Following wikipedia "lived largely as a military man, but is known as a French writer ...and eventually took a commission in the Russian army. He served under Alexander Suvorov...the new monarch Paul I dismissed the victorious general ...Xavier de Maistre shared the disgrace of his general, and supported himself for some time in St. Petersburg by miniature painting, particularly landscapes.In 1803, Joseph de Maistre was appointed as Piedmont-Sardinia's ambassador to the court of Alexander I, Tsar of Russia. On his brother's arrival in St. Petersburg, Xavier de Maistre was introduced to the Minister of the Navy, and was appointed to several posts including director of the Library, and of the Museum of Admiralty. He also joined active service, and was wounded in the Caucasus, attaining the rank of major-general. In 1812 he married a Russian lady, related to the Tsars, Mrs. Zagriatsky. He remained in Russia even after the overthrow of Napoleon and the consequent restoration of the Piedmontese dynasty.His "Voyage autour de ma chambre" (1794),a parody set in the tradition of the grand travel narrative, is an autobiographical account of how a young official, imprisoned in his room for six weeks, looks at the furniture, engravings, etc., as if they were scenes from a voyage in a strange land. He praises this voyage because it does not cost anything, for this reason it is strongly recommended to the poor, the infirm, and the lazy. His room is a long square, and the perimeter is thirty-six paces. "When I travel through my room," he writes, "I rarely follow a straight line: I go from the table towards a picture hanging in a corner; from there, I set out obliquely towards the door; but even though, when I begin, it really is my intention to go there, if I happen to meet my armchair en route, I don’t think twice about it, and settle down in it without further ado." Later, proceeding North, he encounters his bed, and in this way he lightheartedly continues his "Voyage". This work is remarkable for its play with the reader's imagination, along the lines of Laurence Sterne, whom Xavier admired. Xavier did not think much of Voyage, but his brother Joseph had it published. ..For a time, he lived at Naples, but eventually he returned to St. Petersburg and died there in 1852."
Search archive with Google:
http://www.google.com/advanced_search?q=site:listserv.ucsb.edu&HL=en
Contact the Editors: mailto:nabokv-l@utk.edu,nabokv-l@holycross.edu
Visit Zembla: http://www.libraries.psu.edu/nabokov/zembla.htm
View Nabokv-L policies: http://web.utk.edu/~sblackwe/EDNote.htm
Visit "Nabokov Online Journal:" http://www.nabokovonline.com
Manage subscription options: http://listserv.ucsb.edu/