{"id":14726,"date":"2021-10-19T14:32:45","date_gmt":"2021-10-19T14:32:45","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/russian\/?p=14726"},"modified":"2021-10-19T14:32:45","modified_gmt":"2021-10-19T14:32:45","slug":"koschei-the-deathless-part-i","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/russian\/koschei-the-deathless-part-i\/","title":{"rendered":"Koschei the Deathless, Part I"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>In honor of Halloween approaching, I was rewatching the <em>Grimm<\/em> TV series. It\u2019s spooky, imaginative, and nostalgic for me, since it was one of the first shows I watched in English. <em>Grimm<\/em> is a police detective story that weaves in a whole universe of fantastical creatures (<a href=\"https:\/\/grimm.fandom.com\/wiki\/Wesen\">Wesen<\/a>) from many different folktales, especially the Grimm brothers fairy tales. Last week I got to <a href=\"https:\/\/grimm.fandom.com\/wiki\/Red_Menace\">episode 9 of season 3<\/a> and enjoyed the wonderful and very creative depiction of the Russian fairy tale character <a href=\"https:\/\/grimm.fandom.com\/wiki\/Koschie\">\u041a\u043e\u0449\u0435\u0301\u0439 \u0411\u0435\u0441\u0441\u043c\u0435\u0301\u0440\u0442\u043d\u044b\u0439<\/a> (Kosch<span style=\"text-decoration: underline\">e<\/span>i the Immortal or Kosch<span style=\"text-decoration: underline\">e<\/span>i the Deathless). Today, we are putting on our own detective hats and investigating how one of the biggest Russian folklore villains is portrayed in this fantastical American TV series. Part I is all about who is Koschei in Russian folklore. Part II will be a deep dive into how Koschei is imagined in <em>Grimm<\/em>. I invite you to read on and then watch the <em>Red Menace<\/em> episode before I post Part II later this month, so we can explore how the Koschei is seen through the Hollywood lens together.<\/p>\n<p><em>*Warning: spoilers ahead*<\/em><\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_14729\" style=\"width: 360px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone post-item__attachment\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-14729\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-14729\" src=\"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/russian\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/10\/2021\/10\/pexels-ahmed-adly-1270184-350x233.jpg\" alt=\"skull\" width=\"350\" height=\"233\" srcset=\"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/russian\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/10\/2021\/10\/pexels-ahmed-adly-1270184-350x233.jpg 350w, https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/russian\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/10\/2021\/10\/pexels-ahmed-adly-1270184.jpg 640w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 350px) 100vw, 350px\" \/><p id=\"caption-attachment-14729\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Photo by\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.pexels.com\/@ahmedadly?utm_content=attributionCopyText&amp;utm_medium=referral&amp;utm_source=pexels\"><strong>Ahmed Adly<\/strong><\/a>\u00a0from\u00a0<strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.pexels.com\/photo\/grayscale-photography-of-human-skull-1270184\/?utm_content=attributionCopyText&amp;utm_medium=referral&amp;utm_source=pexels\">Pexels<\/a><\/strong><\/p><\/div>\n<h4><strong>The Red Menace<\/strong><\/h4>\n<p>I suspect that the title of this episode is an ode to the <a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Red_Scare\">Red Scare<\/a> and also the 1949 anti-communist noir drama of the same name. Every Grimm episode opens with a quote from a Grimm Brothers fairy tale but in this case, it is from the Russian fairy tale <strong>\u041c\u0430\u0301\u0440\u044c\u044f \u041c\u043e\u0440\u0435\u0301\u0432\u043d\u0430<\/strong> or <a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/The_Death_of_Koschei_the_Deathless\">Death of Koschei the Deathless<\/a>:<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center\">\u201cTo kill Koschei the Deathless<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center\">First you must find his soul, which is hidden in an egg,<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center\">In a duck in a lead chest<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center\">Buried beneath an oak tree\u201d.<\/p>\n<p>What does this tell about Koschei\u2019s character, his powers, and most importantly, his fate in the episode?<\/p>\n<h4><strong>Who is Koschei?<\/strong><\/h4>\n<p><strong>\u041a\u043e\u0449\u0435\u0301\u0439<\/strong> (Koschei) must be the most popular mythical figure of Russian folklore, right after <strong>\u0411\u0430\u0301\u0431\u0430-\u042f\u0433\u0430\u0301<\/strong> (Baba Yaga). He is an evil and immortal old wizard, a typical anti-hero. There have been many interpretations of this character in animations, movies, plays, and books but my favorite has to be the iconic portrayal of Koschei by Oleg Tabakov in <strong>\u041f\u043e\u0301\u0441\u043b\u0435 \u0434\u043e\u0301\u0436\u0434\u0438\u0447\u043a\u0430 <\/strong><strong>\u00a0\u0432 \u0447\u0435\u0442\u0432\u0435\u0301\u0440\u0433<\/strong> (<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/After_the_Rain,_on_Thursday\">After the rain on Thursday<\/a>), where Koschei not only wasn\u2019t a skeleton but a rather jolly fella with an impeccable sense of style and delightfully golden hair.<\/p>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"\u041a\u0430\u0449\u0435\u0439 \u0422\u0430\u0431\u0430\u043a\u043e\u0432\" width=\"500\" height=\"281\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/EA3xP222TbM?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/p>\n<h4><strong>Origins<\/strong><\/h4>\n<p>Some fairy tales say that Koschei can transform into a raven (<strong>\u0432\u043e\u0301\u0440\u043e\u043d<\/strong>) but his name or powers are not connected to that bird in any other way. It\u2019s more likely that the name <strong>\u041a\u043e\u0449\u0435\u0301\u0439<\/strong> comes from the word <strong>\u043a\u043e\u0301\u0441\u0442\u044c<\/strong> (bone), therefore he is most often portrayed as a mean looking skeletal man. <a href=\"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/russian\/caesars-and-pushkins-proper-names-used-to-describe-a-person\/\">Pushkin\u2019s<\/a> Koschei in <strong><a href=\"http:\/\/pushkin-lit.ru\/pushkin\/text\/ruslan-i-lyudmila\/pesn-pervaya.htm\">\u0420\u0443\u0441\u043b\u0430\u043d \u0438 \u041b\u044e\u0434\u043c\u0438\u043b\u0430<\/a><\/strong>\u00a0(<em>Ruslan and Ludmila<\/em>) is proof to his withered state, only there the poet uses the old spelling <strong>\u041a\u0430\u0449\u0435\u0301\u0439<\/strong> and refers to him as \u2018tsar\u2019:<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center\"><strong>\u0422\u0430\u043c \u0441\u0442\u0443\u0301\u043f\u0430 \u0441 \u0411\u0430\u0301\u0431\u043e\u044e-\u042f\u0433\u043e\u0439 <\/strong><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center\"><strong>\u0418\u0434<span style=\"text-decoration: underline\">\u0451<\/span>\u0442, <\/strong><strong>\u0431\u0440\u0435\u0434<span style=\"text-decoration: underline\">\u0451<\/span>\u0442 \u0441\u0430\u043c\u0430\u0301 \u0441\u043e\u0431\u043e\u0439;<\/strong><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center\"><strong>\u0422\u0430\u043c \u0446\u0430\u0301\u0440\u044c \u041a\u0430\u0449\u0435\u0301\u0439 \u043d\u0430\u0434 \u0437\u043b\u0430\u0301\u0442\u043e\u043c \u0447\u0430\u0301\u0445\u043d\u0435\u0442;<\/strong><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center\"><strong>\u0422\u0430\u043c \u0440\u0443\u0301\u0441\u0441\u043a\u0438\u0439 \u0434\u0443\u0301\u0445&#8230; \u0442\u0430\u043c \u0420\u0443\u0441\u044c\u044e \u043f\u0430\u0301\u0445\u043d\u0435\u0442!<\/strong><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.poetryintranslation.com\/PITBR\/Russian\/RuslanAndLudmilaI.php\">While, with Baba Yaga inside,<\/a><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.poetryintranslation.com\/PITBR\/Russian\/RuslanAndLudmilaI.php\">A mortar gives that witch a ride;<\/a><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.poetryintranslation.com\/PITBR\/Russian\/RuslanAndLudmilaI.php\">As King Koschei grows ill with gold.<\/a><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.poetryintranslation.com\/PITBR\/Russian\/RuslanAndLudmilaI.php\">It\u2019s Russia! \u2013 Russian scents unfold!<\/a><\/p>\n<p>In the <em>Red Menace<\/em> episode, Koschei is a Russian healer, a man by the name of Boris Myshkin, whose wife, Olga, is a <em>Malin Fatal<\/em>, a loyal but aggressive boar-looking <a href=\"https:\/\/grimm.fandom.com\/wiki\/Wesen\">Wesen<\/a> when she undergoes a metamorphosis. From what I understand about the <em>Grimm<\/em> universe, <em>Malin Fatals<\/em> are not specifically Russian Wesen since their name is more French than anything. However, when the detectives are trying to learn more about the two, they read about Stalin having <em>Malin Fatal<\/em> bodyguards since they are famous for their loyalty. So, it\u2019s possible that the French name is a reference to the importance of the French language on the Russian culture. As far as Koschei, the series suggests that <a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Grigori_Rasputin#Controversy\">Rasputin<\/a> was a Koschei, most likely since he was (supposedly) a powerful healer. The mystery around Rasputin\u2019s death is further explained by making it a part of the Grimm universe. They suggest that a member of British intelligence who was actually a Grimm (a person who can see Wesen) assassinated Rasputin.<\/p>\n<p>We will continue exploring Koschei\u2019s character in Part II of this blog.<\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_14728\" style=\"width: 360px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone post-item__attachment\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-14728\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-14728\" src=\"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/russian\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/10\/2021\/10\/pexels-tom-swinnen-946344-350x221.jpg\" alt=\"raven\" width=\"350\" height=\"221\" srcset=\"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/russian\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/10\/2021\/10\/pexels-tom-swinnen-946344-350x221.jpg 350w, https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/russian\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/10\/2021\/10\/pexels-tom-swinnen-946344.jpg 640w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 350px) 100vw, 350px\" \/><p id=\"caption-attachment-14728\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Photo by\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.pexels.com\/@shottrotter?utm_content=attributionCopyText&amp;utm_medium=referral&amp;utm_source=pexels\"><strong>Tom Swinnen<\/strong><\/a>\u00a0from\u00a0<strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.pexels.com\/photo\/selective-focus-photograph-of-black-crow-946344\/?utm_content=attributionCopyText&amp;utm_medium=referral&amp;utm_source=pexels\">Pexels<\/a><\/strong><\/p><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<img width=\"350\" height=\"233\" src=\"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/russian\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/10\/2021\/10\/pexels-ahmed-adly-1270184-350x233.jpg\" class=\"attachment-post-thumbnail size-post-thumbnail wp-post-image\" alt=\"skull\" decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" srcset=\"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/russian\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/10\/2021\/10\/pexels-ahmed-adly-1270184-350x233.jpg 350w, https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/russian\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/10\/2021\/10\/pexels-ahmed-adly-1270184.jpg 640w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 350px) 100vw, 350px\" \/><p>In honor of Halloween approaching, I was rewatching the Grimm TV series. It\u2019s spooky, imaginative, and nostalgic for me, since it was one of the first shows I watched in English. Grimm is a police detective story that weaves in a whole universe of fantastical creatures (Wesen) from many different folktales, especially the Grimm brothers&hellip;<\/p>\n<p class=\"post-item__readmore\"><a class=\"btn btn--md\" href=\"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/russian\/koschei-the-deathless-part-i\/\">Continue Reading<\/a><\/p>","protected":false},"author":171,"featured_media":14729,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"content-type":""},"categories":[3,540606],"tags":[557268,557269,11284,252998],"class_list":["post-14726","post","type-post","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-culture","category-film-theater","tag-grimm","tag-koschei","tag-russian-fairy-tales","tag-russian-folklore"],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/russian\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14726","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/russian\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/russian\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/russian\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/171"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/russian\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=14726"}],"version-history":[{"count":16,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/russian\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14726\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":14744,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/russian\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14726\/revisions\/14744"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/russian\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/14729"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/russian\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=14726"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/russian\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=14726"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/russian\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=14726"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}