A couple of weeks ago we read famous passages from Russian literature (see Part I and Part II here). These works were mostly realist novels written by male authors well known abroad. I would like to wrap up this series with something a little different — poetry by authors lesser known internationally, one of whom is a woman.

Мне нра́вится, что вы больны́ не мной

Marina Tsvetaeva (Мари́на Цвета́ева), along with Anna Akhmatova (Анна Ахматова), is one of the two perhaps best known female poets in Russia. The poem below was made into a song, and that song was featured in the classic film Irony of Fate (“Иро́ния судьбы́”), which runs on TV in Russia pretty much every year around New Year time.

If the video below looks like a lip synch, it is — the Polish actress Barbara Brylska played the female lead Nadya, and the singer Alla Pugacheva (А́лла Пугачёва) recorded the song.

Here is a translation to guide you along.

Больна́ is the short for больна́я (sick). This word is followed by a noun in the instrumental case. This is also true about the verb боле́ть (to be sick), for example, он боле́ет гри́ппом (he has the flu), дети заболе́ли ветря́нкой (the children caught chickenpox).

Земно́й шар is a poetic way of saying the globe.
Note the use of the instrumental case after быть (to be) – быть смешно́й (be funny), быть распу́щенной (be promiscuous/imprudent). При мне is in my presence.

Никогда́ в церко́вной тишине́/ Не пропою́т над на́ми: аллилу́йя! refers to a church wedding. Another religious reference is всу́е — in vain (as in, taking God’s name).

The last verse is a good memory aid for “спаси́бо за” + noun in the accusative (thank you for…). Увы́ is alas, and changes the tone of the poem from ostentatious carelessness to wistfulness.

Ива́н Топоры́шкин

Иван Топорышкин is a fairly well-known poem by the absurdist/avant-garde writer Daniil Kharms (Дании́л Хармс). Kharms is also known for his works for children.

This poem plays with the conventional collocations in Russian by mixing them up in unexpected ways. The first stanza presents the “normal” word combinations.

Пошёл на охо́ту means went hunting. Перепры́гнуть забор is jump over the fence. What ends up happening to Ivan is that he как бревно́, провали́лся в боло́то (fell into/sank in the bog like a log), while his poodle в реке́ утону́л, как топо́р (sank/drowned in the river like an axe). Both бревно́ (log) and топо́р (ax) are traditional metaphors for something heavy and unwieldy.

The next two stanzas mix up these familiar phrases in unexpected ways:

вприпры́жку пошёл, как топо́р – came jumping like an ax

повали́лся бревно́м на боло́то – fell on top of the bog like a log

в реке́ перепры́гнул забо́р – jumped over the fence in the river

в реке́ провали́лся в забо́р – fell into the fence in the river

как бревно́, перепры́гнул боло́то – jumped over the bog like a log

вприпры́жку попа́л на топо́р – jumping, ran into the ax

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5Dvm9edKLno