Title of the article:

THE SYMBOLIST AESTHETICS OF VALERY BRYUSOV

Author(s):

Victor V. Bychkov

Information about the author/authors

Victor V. Bychkov — DSc in Philosophy, Professor, Chief Researcher, Institute of Philosophy of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Goncharnaya St. 12, 1 bldg., 119019 Moscow, Russia. E-mail: iph@iph.ras.ru

Section

Theory and history of culture

Year

2019

Volume

Vol. 52

Pages

pp. 20–36

Received

November 11, 2018

Date of publication

June 28, 2019

Index UDK

008+7.0

Index BBK

71.1+87

Abstract

The paper provides an analysis of aesthetic ideas and principles of Valery Bryusov, a Russian poet and one of the senior Symbolists. Although Brуusov had always identified himself as a Symbolist, the study is to show how his theoretical judgments and views about symbolism developed all along his creative path from identifying Symbolism with decadence and impressionism to revealing proper traits of Symbolism. Among them Bryusov distinguished understanding of art as a means of expressing “poetic ideas” in external forms, unconveyed otherways; a personalist understanding of the metaphysical essence of objects and phenomena of the visible world by the artist; an insight into the depths of one’s spiritual world; and an expression of the supra-sensory in the sensory. In order to achieve all this, he suggested to use the principles of hinting, partial reference, conventional sign, poetic “frenzy,” and to discern concealed myth in every word used. Bryusov encouraged an artist to become a philosopher, a sage, a saint, a hermit, and considered polysemy and irrationality as essential to an artwork.

Keywords

Bryusov, aesthetics, poetics, symbol, image, poetic idea, art, impressionism, decadence, aesthetic pleasure.

References

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