En
Ru
Birthday of the outstanding Russian poet, playwright, critic, translator Alexander Blok
On November 28, 1880 Alexander Alexandrovich Blok, an outstanding Russian poet, playwright, critic and translator, was born into the family of a law professor at the University of Warsaw, Alexander Lvovich Blok (1852–1909), and the daughter of the rector of St. Petersburg University, translator Alexandra Andreevna Beketova (1860–1923).
A. Blok’s parents separated soon after the birth of their son. He stayed to live with his mother, who married guards officer F. F. Kublitsky-Piottukh (1860–1920). In childhood and youth, he often lived in Shakhmatovo, the estate of his grandfather, A. N. Beketov (1825–1902), near Moscow. In 1891–1898 he studied at the 9th St. Petersburg gymnasium, in 1898–1906 - at the Faculty of Law and then at the Faculty of History and Philology of St. Petersburg University. In 1903 he married the daughter of Dmitri Mendeleev - Lyubov Dmitrievna (1881–1939).
At the age of 18, a serious passion for poetry began, although Blok began writing poetry at the age of 5. The poetic cycle “From Dedications” is considered his creative debut (New Path magazine, 1903, № 3). In 1904, the first book of poems, “Poems about a Beautiful Lady” dedicated to his wife, was published. During this period, the poet met Z. N. Gippius and D. S. Merezhkovsky, and attended literary meetings with Vyach. I. Ivanov, on “Saturdays” at the V. F. Komissarzhevskaya Theater. A. A. Blok becomes one of the leaders of Russian symbolism
In 1907 he published his second book, “Unexpected Joy”. The work of this period was greatly influenced by the revolution of 1905–1907. Actively participates in literary life, writes literary criticism, journalistic articles (“About Realists” (1907); “On Lyrics” (1907); “People and Intelligentsia” (1908); etc.). Published poetry collections: “Unexpected Joy” (1907), “Earth in the Snow” (1908). Gives presentations at the St. Petersburg Religious and Philosophical Society (“Russia and the Intelligentsia” (1908), “Elements and Culture” (1909). In his publications and speeches, A. A. Blok raises the question of the public service of the artist, the connection between the people and intelligentsia.
Having received an inheritance after the death of his father at the end of 1909 and being freed from the need to earn literary income, he concentrated on his artistic plans. After the release of the collection “Night Hours” (1911), he revised his 5 books of poetry into a 3-volume collection of poems (vols. 1–3, 1911–1912). From that time on, Blok’s poetry began to be perceived as a single “lyrical trilogy”, a “novel in verse”. In 1912–1913 works on the play “Rose and Cross”, in 1915 publishes the poem “The Nightingale Garden”, in 1916 publishes the collection “Poems of Apollo Grigoriev”. In 1916 he was drafted into the army, served as a timekeeper of the 13th engineering and construction squad of the Zemstvo and City Unions near Pinsk.
After the February Revolution of 1917, as an editor of verbatim reports, he became a member of the Extraordinary Investigative Commission to investigate the activities of senior officials of the tsarist government. Part of the commission’s materials was published in the magazine “Byloye” (№ 15, 1919), then it was published as a separate publication - “The Last Days of Imperial Power” (Petrograd, 1921). After the October Revolution, he considered it his duty as a representative of the intelligentsia to cooperate with the Bolsheviks. He worked in the publishing house "World Literature", headed by Maxim Gorky, served in the Theater Department of the People's Commissariat for Education and the directorate of the Bolshoi Drama Theater. In 1918 he published the poems “The Twelve” and “Scythians”. Revolution in the perception of A. A. Blok is an all-conquering element, a cleansing fire in which the old world will perish. In the last years of his life, he became disillusioned with the real implementation of revolutionary ideas. A. Blok’s artistic testament was the article “On the Appointment of a Poet” and the poem “To the Pushkin House” (1921).
The difficult physical and moral living conditions in hungry and cold Petrograd undermined the poet’s health. Alexander Blok died on August 7, 1921 at the 41st year of his life. He was buried at the Smolensk Orthodox Cemetery; in 1944, the ashes were reburied on the Literary Bridge at the Volkovsky Cemetery.
Лит.: Блок Александр Александрович // Литература и язык. Современная иллюстрированная энциклопедия. М., 2006; Магомедова Д.М. Блок Александр Александрович // Большая российская энциклопедия; Минц З.Г. Блок и русские писатели. СПб., 2000.
Based on the Presidential Library's materials: