Confession of the son of the century

The melancholy Russian officer exiled to the Caucasus, contemporaries, not without reason, considered the "replica" octave de T. - the hero of the novel Alfred de Musset (1810-1857) "Confession of the son of the century". It is time to give up a literary duty - we will introduce Octava to today"s Russian reader as a French Pechorin. Roman Musse, dedicated to the tragic love of young octave to Brigitte, like the brilliant Lermontov romance, is much wider than the personal experiences of heroes - this is a confession of the disappointed generation, so well -known to us "extra people". Yes, they lived not only in Russia. And not only in France. It is interesting to think at all where they come from from time to time. "Where the politics and social attitudes of the authorities deprive youth of prospects, and its energy is directed to maintain their own survival, where the enthusiasm of creating culture is destroyed by money and the very opportunity to sell, where religion turns into formal rituals, and morality is only an occasion For dentisting, there is enough insignificant occasion, a slight outbreak, some unhappy love, so that the insignificance of being gains universal proportions" (Mikhail Yasnov).

Translation from the French Deborah of Livshits and Ksenia Ksanina. The accompanying article by Mikhail Yasnov

Mikhail Davidovich Yasnov (b. 1946) - Russian poet and translator. He graduated from the philological faculty of Leningrad University. The author of the ten books of the lyrics, recognized master of poetic translation (P. Verlaine, A. Rimbo, G. Apolliner, J. Perever) and poetry for children. Laureate of numerous literary awards, in particular. Maurice Vaxmamer, which is awarded by the French government and the French embassy for the best translation of French fiction, and the Government of the Russian Federation for contribution to culture