A tutorial of a writer s success. Part II. Ch 6

http://proza.ru/2021/08/31/121 A tutorial of a writer s success. Part II. Chapter 1. http://proza.ru/2021/08/31/121

http://proza.ru/2021/08/31/124 A tutorial of a writer s success. Part II. Chapter 2. http://proza.ru/2021/08/31/124

http://proza.ru/2021/10/05/100 A tutorial of a writer s success. Part II. Chapter 3. http://proza.ru/2021/10/05/100

http://proza.ru/2021/12/11/148 A tutorial of a writer s success. Part II. Chapter 4. http://proza.ru/2021/12/11/148

http://proza.ru/2021/12/20/176 A tutorial of a writer s success. Part II. Chapter 5. http://proza.ru/2021/12/20/176



Chapter 6. A destiny (a mission). A setting of goals

Both Heinrich Schliemann and Nikolai Gogol understood and accepted their destiny (mission).

Probably, the statement that the purpose (the destiny, the mission) [a purpose, an originally planned, established suitability] of Heinrich Schliemann was to excavate the walls of ancient Troy will not be perceived by everyone as indisputable. Some dear Readers may accept this version as a working one. Another part may perceive the stated judgments as biographical information about Heinrich Schliemann.

Ernest Schliemann, according to Heinrich himself, bought him as a gift a book "The World history for children" with a picture of the Trojan War and an image of the walls of Troy.

Ernest Schliemann, approved of the intention of his son Heinrich to excavate Troy. If you are not familiar at least partially with the biography and subsequent archaeological successes of Heinrich Schliemann, then the little boy's plan ("to dig up Troy"?! ) and the approval of this plan by the father looks very strange (especially for the conditions of their - Schliemann family - provincial life).

Time will pass, the world-famous Heinrich will write in his Autobiography about his father's approval of the plans for the excavation of Troy: "... at last we both agreed that I should one day excavate Troy" (Ilios. The city and country of the Trojans. By Dr. Henry Schliemann. NY. 1881. P. 3.)

At the age of ten (after the death of his mother and his departure from Ankershagen), Heinrich wrote and sent as a gift (for Christmas 1832) to his father, Ernest Schliemann, "a badly written Latin essay on the main events of the Trojan War".

The organization of the excavations of Troy was not only a difficult financial and organizational task, but also a difficult psychological problem.

To gain a worldwide fame… A mysterious, unusual, distant country… Will there be success? And the role of a strange eccentric is guaranteed…

The psychological problem was formulated by Heinrich Schliemann as follows; in 1876, he wrote to his son Sergei: "... You [my son] probably consider as the madmen - of those people, who, risking their lives and spending their means, have been working tirelessly for a number of years to dig up an ancient city that only Homer knew about." [Богданов И. А., 2008 б. С. 131] [Bogdanov I. A., 2008 b. P.131].

Until the beginning of the 60s (of XIX century), Heinrich Schliemann did not have the fortune, wealth, the size of which would allow him to decide on excavations.

It is clear that he was hiding away from other people his thoughts and plans regarding the excavations of Troy (maybe even from himself).

Throughout his life, Heinrich Schliemann had doubts; he had intentions to remain a merchant, to become the owner of an estate (that is, to turn into a kind of landowner), to try his hand as an owner of a factory (see, for example: [Богданов И. А., 2008 а. С. 335-336] [Bogdanov I. A., 2008 a. P. 335-336]).

Perhaps the attractiveness of other people's "cherry orchards" for him did not seem indisputable.

One way or another, he "held on" to his destiny (the mission) [a purpose, an originally planned, established suitability], and turned out to be a winner in life.

Ernest Schliemann died in November 1870; by this time the excavations of Troy (already) had begun.

On August 22, 1868, Heinrich Schliemann categorically wrote to his father about his firm intention to excavate Troy.

On April 1, 1870, Heinrich Schliemann without waiting for permission, at his own risk hired a dozen workers from the surrounding villages and began excavations  (Ilios. The city and country of the Trojans. By Dr. Henry Schliemann. NY. 1881. P.  20, 21).

Heinrich had the moral support of his father (this support was probably expressed in different ways at different periods) from the moment his father approved the intention to dig up Troy (in Heinrich's childhood) and almost until the discovery of the"treasure of Priam".

Speaking about common interests with the high school student Vysotsky (who was five years older than Nikolai Gogol), Gogol adds in a letter dated October 3, 1827: "... we together were reflecting on the plan of our future life " [Манн Ю. В. С. 79-81] [Mann Yu. V. P. 79-81].

Nikolai Gogol was thinking about his destiny. These reflections are reflected in some of his letters.

"...This mind must have an iron will and patience  until he reaches his purpose [destination, intention]; he must not be afraid of a steep, long (almost endless) and slippery stairs; should not lose sight of the slightest circumstance that seems to be outsiders, insignificant, but contributes in any way to his rising (elevation) upward; he must reject the desire for early brilliance... (...) No desire for distraction, for fun and no the entertainment of any kind should stop him; he may seem to be engaged in them, but not in reality" (Из письма Н. Гоголя М. И. Гоголь от 3 июня 1830 года) (From a letter from Nikolai Gogol to M. I. Gogol dated June 3 1830) [Гоголь Н. В. Письма 1820—1835 гг.] [Gogol N. V. Letters of 1820-1835].

(I recall from the correspondence of Heinrich Schliemann with his first wife Ekaterina "a heart (out) of stone that is not afraid of anything").

"He did not immediately embark on the path of fulfilling his destiny, in any case, the positive results of his literary efforts did not appear immediately.

Gogol's confidence in his vocation, as well as his mother's confidence in Nikolai's genius — all this contrasted with the real course of affairs." [Манн Ю. В. С. 173] [Mann Yu. V. P. 173].

"Maybe Marya Ivanovna remained the only person who believed in Nikolai's extraordinary destiny" [Манн Ю. В. С. 172] [Mann Yu. V. P. 172].

"...Since my very situation is somewhat unusual and does not resemble the situation of other people, then I must act somewhat unusually" (Н. В. Гоголь — Смирновой А. О., 18 июля 1850 года) (Nikolai Gogol - Smirnova A. O., July 18, 1850) [Гоголь Н. В. Письма. 1848—1852.] [Gogol N. V. Letters. 1848-1852.]. The sense [the feeling] of purpose [destination, intention] does not yet mean its unambiguous identification (its precise definition).

""In one of the letters included in his "Selected places from correspondence with friends" (it is marked by 1846), he wrote: "God created me and did not hide my purpose from me. I was not born at all to create an epoch in the field of literature. My business [task] is simpler and closer: my business [task] is something that every person, not just me, should think about first of all. My business [task] is the soul and the reliable business of life. And therefore, my way of action must be durable [responsible, reliable] and I must to compose firmly [I must compose by the responsible, by the reliable manner]" [Котляревский Н. А.] [Kotlyarevsky N. A.].

Perhaps this conclusion may seem strange, but the understanding of the one's destiny dramatically simplifies life; some biographical details allow us to draw such a conclusion in relation of Gogol's fate.

"I am sure," he said to Smirnova [Smirnova-Rosset]— " when I have served my service and have finished what I am called [was called] to, I will die. And if I release the immature [works] into the light [world] or I share [issue] the little [unfinished] that I do, I will die before I fulfill what I was called into the light [world] for.“ This feeling that he fulfilled what, for [in favour of] which he was called into the light, prevails in Gogol in 1851" [Золотусский И. П.] [Zolotussky I. P.].

When the destiny [purpose, destination, intention] was fulfilled, then the earthly path of Nikolai Gogol ended.

The purpose [the destination, the intention] of Nikolai Gogol was to inform, warn, bring to society the information, which "someone paints in front of him with a powerful rod".

"Indeed, it is not my business to teach by preaching. Art is already a lesson without that. My business is to speak using a living images, not with reasoning." (Из письма Н. Гоголя В. А. Жуковскому, 10 января 1848 / 29 декабря 1847 года) (From a letter from Nikolai Gogol to V. A. Zhukovsky,  January 10, 1848 / December 29, 1847) [Гоголь Н. В. Письма. 1848—1852] [Gogol N. V. Letters. 1848—1852].

"Whole generations are being cruelly punished when, forgetting that they are in the world in order to earn bread by their labors and to cultivate the land by the sweat of their brow, they will bring themselves into the state of white-handeds [shirkers, white-gloves]. The whole world then  goes topsy-turvy — and executions begin, the scourge of heavenly wrath lashes [carries out a punishment] " (Н. В. Гоголь — Гоголь М. И., А. В. и Е. В., 3 апреля 1849 года) (Nikolai Gogol to Gogol M. I., A.V. and E. V., April 3, 1849) [Гоголь Н. В. Письма. 1848—1852.] [Gogol N. V. Letters. 1848-1852.].

(If) "...The nobles will not abandon their habits and  they will not abandon all these supposedly necessary decencies — their fate will be the most deplorable and sorrowful" (Н. В. Гоголь — Гоголь М. И., 2 сентября 1851 года) (Nikolai Gogol to Gogol M. I., September 2, 1851) [Гоголь Н. В. Письма. 1848—1852] [Gogol N. V. Letters. 1848—1852].

"( ... ) French society was shaken by terrible coups; it passed through fire and blood. ( ... ) But on us, thanks to God! cruel lessons have not yet been sent. Why should our literature be feverish and convulsive? ( ... ) " [Вяземский П. А.] [Vyazemsky P. A.].

"...This leads to hopeless grief, to a terrible consciousness" [Вяземский П. А.] [Vyazemsky P. A.].

" His friends followed the coffin in pairs in tears and buried him in the monastery cemetery with a huge crowd of people.

Pogodin chose an inscription from the prophecy of Isaiah: "I will laugh with my bitter laughter." ("«Горьким смехом моим посмеюся»") [Смирнова-Россет А. О. C. 67] [Smirnova-Rosset A. O. P. 67] (See: [Bunin I. A. Diaries (1881-1953)] (См.: [Бунин И. А. Дневники (1881—1953)] Entry from 18. IX. 33.). "Woe to those who call evil good and good evil ..." (Isaiah 5:20). [... since you disregard all my advice and do not accept my rebuke, 26 I in turn will laugh when disaster strikes you ...(Proverbs 1:25-26)]

It is not easy to formulate a thesis about the purpose of Maxim Gorky.

To declare that his purpose was the "not boring to live"? Such a statement would be too primitive, a not fair (partly not correct).

Maxim Gorky's memoirs show that from early childhood he was drawn to art, to talented people, to the written recording of his impressions.

The fate of Aleksey Peshkov was formed in such a way that long walking trips (a distant foot travels) occupy a special, honorable place in his biography.

Should we consider communication with talented people or writing or walking trips as the purpose of Maxim Gorky? Did M. Gorky realize his mission in this way?

Probably, it is correct to conclude the presentation of some doubts and reflections on Maxim Gorky's understanding of his destiny with the following quote from the work by Dmitry Bykov.

"Gornfeld was a talented man, an excellent translator, and in any case his testimony is reliable. So, he told the philosopher Aaron Sternberg that being a thirteen – or fourteen-year-old teenager, Gorky visited the father of Yakov Sverdlov (an influential Bolshevik, later Chairman of the Central Executive Committee of the All-Russian Congress of Soviets). Sverdlov's father, Mikhail, kept an engraving workshop in Nizhny Novgorod, a teenager Peshkov visited him on behalf of the hostess, and the master engraver suddenly said to him: "You will be a great writer."  He [Peshkov] had already dreamed then of a literary career, but he told no one about any such his thoughts - he was struck by the old man's prophetic gift, which he later attributed to all Jews. Perhaps this is why Gorky's famous judophilism, his hatred of the slightest manifestations of anti-Semitism, his emphasized respect for Jewish purposefulness, national solidarity, which is so little among Russians, etc. By the way, the official version of Gorky's acquaintance with the Sverdlov family dates back to the time of the All-Russian Economic Exhibition, to 1896. Subsequently, Gorky was the godfather of older brother Sverdlov — Zinovy — and Gorky gave Zinovy the surname [Peshkov]" [Быков Д. Л.] [Bykov D. L.].

("This "mechanistic" quality much  hurt to him as a writer. A big book you will not build using such a maneuver, therefore he was best sucessful in a stories, based on a single (one), often physiological or scary episode" [Быков Д. Л.] [Bykov D. L.]."

Maxim Gorky in his work raised the question of his destiny. For example, he himself — showing great inner strength-quotes the words of Leo Tolstoy about himself: "Gorky is an evil person. He looks like a seminarian who was forcibly tonsured as a monk. So this angered him towards everything. He has the soul of a spy, he came from somewhere to a foreign land, Canaan, looks at everything, notices everything and reports everything to some god of his own. And his god is a freak, like a goblin or a water peasant woman" (Maxim Gorky "A. P. Chekhov") (Горький М. "А.П. Чехов").

Yes, "Human R" is still not a literary, but a human rights organization.