Sergei Sergeyevich accidentally opened the file under the name "Bunin Ivan. Volume 9. Tolstoy's path to freedom. About Chekhov. Articles".
It is an interesting ... Why not glance this file?
For example, what does Jack London and Ivan Bunin have in common? What are their habits, what do they think of food, what are their behavior manners, styles of clothing?
It is natural that even if and there is any private coincidence, then not this coincidence "unites" Jack London and Ivan Bunin.
What unites them is that both are writers.
They are writers - and that's the main thing. Their manners of behavior, styles of clothing, etc., in general, do not much matter.
What can the writer tell about himself - as about the writer?
Writers create works. But what it is possible to tell about it?
Sergei Sergeyevich comes across statements by Ivan Bunin on this subject.
For example.
""The Light Breath" I wrote in the village, in Vasilyevskoye, in March 1916... And here I suddenly remembered, that I came once in the winter absolutely accidentally to a one small cemetery at Capri and saw a cross on a grave with a photographic portrait on a convex porcelain medallion of some very young girl with unusually bright, joyful eyes. I immediately made mentally this girl a Russian, Meshcherskaya Olya, and, dipping the pen in the inkwell, began to invent a story about her with the delightful speed that was in some of the happiest moments of my creativity".
Delightful speed ...
It sound! But not much is said.
""Dark avenues" ("Dark Alleys") ... ... all somehow came together - by itself, was created very easily, unexpectedly - as the majority of my stories".
"Easily", "unexpectedly". It sounds well. But there's not a lot of information, again.
"" " ... wrote always somehow non-stop, forgetting about everything ...
How does the decision to write arise in me?.. Most often quite unexpectedly. This urge to write always comes to me out of a feeling of some excitement, sad or joyful feeling, most often it is connected with some picture that unfolded in front of me, with some separate human way, with a human feeling... This is the very initial moment...But this does not mean that, taking the pen, I already know in advance everything in General that I have to write. It's rare. I often begin my work, not only not having a ready-made plot in my head, but also somehow still not having a full understanding of final purpose. Only a some a very general sense dawns to (for) me when I start it. Not a ready-made idea, but only the most General sense of the work owns me at this initial moment - only the sound of it, so to speak. And I often do not know how I will reach a finish of a novel: it happens that you end your thing in a very different way, as you thought at first and even in the process of work. Only, I repeat, most importantly, some General sound of the whole work is given in the very initial phase of the work...
... I repeat - the mystery of the origin of the initial feeling, which encourages the writer to creativity, is very difficult to catch. ... ... somehow you immediately hear that a call sound from which all the work is born...'.
From the "a call sound" ("invocation sound") - "a whole work is born". Again - a minimum of information.
Ivan Bunin looks into himself, analyzes own creativity - and not a lot he can tell about his creative process.
There's a writer. There are works written by him. About the process of their appearance Ivan Bunin can not tell much.
Sergei Sergeyevich begins to read the work by Ivan Bunin, "About Chekhov".
Anton Chekhov assured Bunin that Bunin would live "until a ripe old age." (It's come true).
"Tell Bunin to write and write. He will be a great writer". (It's come true).
There are fragments which it is possible to call jokes, anecdotes.
There are some valuable biographic details - about Chekhov's life.
Bunin's work about Anton Chekhov did not make a strong impression on Sergei Sergeyevich. These are not the famous Bunin works. To a large extent, Bunin's work "About Chekhov" is a stream of everyday (household) insignificant and low-informative trifles. To emphasize that Bunin's statements are subjective? Or is that clear, understandable?
"Sometimes took out the notebook (Scrap-book) off a table and, having raised a face and gleaming by glasses of pince-nez, shook it in the air:
- Exactly a hundred plots! Yes, monsieur [милсдарь]! [Yes, milsdar [милс+дарь = мил'остивый + госу'дарь]!] Not to you, young people, a similarity! Workers! You want, I will sell a couple!"...
Sergei Sergeyevich decided to look through the text of the 9th volume a little.
"Autobiographical notes.
(...)
Soon after the our acquaintance (meeting), Bryusov read to me, barking in a nose, awful nonsense:
Oh, cry,
Oh, cry
To joyful tears!
Highly on a mast
The sailor flashes!".
Sergei Sergeyevich comes back to Bunin's work about Chekhov.
"However, Olga Leonardovna is an actress, will hardly leave a scene, but nevertheless a lot of things have to change. There will be heavy relations between the sister and the wife, and all this will affect the health of Anton Pavlovich, who, of course, as in such cases happens, will sharply suffer for that [sister], for another [wife], and even for both together. And I thought: "Yes this suicide! worse than Sakhalin" - but kept silent, of course.".
Sergei Sergeyevich felt some confusion.
The "channel" under the name "Olga Belan always with You" had placed on the Internet a "content" "Chekhov was killed by the sister and the wife".
In this "content" almost same text - except for the finishing phrase:
Here the certificate of Bunin who should be trusted "... Olga Leonardovna is an actress, will hardly leave a scene... There will be heavy relations between the sister and the wife, and all this will affect health of Anton Pavlovich who, of course, as in such cases happens, will sharply suffer for that, for another, and even for both together. And I thought: yes this suicide is worse than Sakhalin... They, hotly and selflessly are loving him, will lay him into a coffin in the sweetest way".
As we see, endings of texts "from Bunin" and from "channel" under the name "Olga Belan always with You" - differ a little.
Sergei Sergeyevich decides to carry out a small inspection. He finds other file. It is not a volume number 9 . It is the separate publication of Bunin's work "About Chekhov" with Mark Aldanov's preface.
In the publication "from Aldanov" the final phrase is:
"And I thought: yes this suicide! worse than Sakhalin, - but kept silent, of course."
From where, from what source the words "THEY, HOTLY AND SELFLESSLY ARE LOVING HIM, WILL LAY HIM INTO A COFFIN IN THE SWEETEST WAY" were taken?
Yes ...
Sergei Sergeyevich continues to read "the 9th volume by Ivan Bunin".
""From records"
Story by my tutor about Gogol: (...)
I heard only one his phrase - a very rounded a saying about laws of a fantastic in art... But the sense of the phrase was such is that supposedly it is possible to write about an apple-tree with gold apples, but not about pears on a willow".
Sergei Sergeyevich's thoughts went to Gogol.
It is possible to remember also Hlestakov: "With Pushkin is on a friendly leg" ...
"Difficult process - literary creativity", - Sergei Sergeyevich drew a conclusion. - "Nikolay Gogol knew about it" ...
On July 24, 2019 22:23
Translation from Russian into English: July 26, 2019 20:55.
Владимир Владимирович Залесский 'Эссе о двух законах Гоголя'.