NINA KOLESNIKOFF Bruno Jasieñski His Eyoíution from Futurism to Socialist Realism Bruno Jasieñski was a bilingual Polish-Russian writer who died in exile in Siberia in 1939. This volume traces his literary evolution. The introductory biographical sketch is followed by a discussion of Jasieñski's con- tribution to Polish poetry, specifically the Futurist movement which, like its parallels in Russia and Italy, revolutionized poetic language. An analysis and evalu- ation of Jasieñski's prose work sheds light on the rela- tionship between politics and literature in early twentieth-century Poland and Russia. Most of Jasieñ- ski's novéis and short stories were written in the ap- proved Soviet tradition of Socialist Realism. His Man Changes His Skin is considered one of the best Soviet industrial novéis of the 1930s. The author's comprehensive and skillful treatment of Jasieñski's literary production, the first to appear in English, also makes a valuable contribution to the knowledge of Futurism in Eastern Europe and Social- ist Realism in the Soviet Union. The volume contains numerous quotations from Polish and Russian litera- ture, both in English translation (prepared by the au- thor) and in the original. It will be of interest to stu- dents of Slavic literature, comparative literature, and the literature of ideology. Nina Kolesnikoff holds the Ph.D. degree in Comparative Literature from the University of Albería. She is currently Assistant Professor in the Department of Russian, McMaster University. Her articles have appeared in Canadian Slavonic Papers, Slavic and East European Journal, and Russian Language Journal. This page intentionally left blank BRUNO JASIENSKI HIS EVOLUTION FROM FUTURISM TO SOCIALIST REALISM Bibliothéque de la Revue Canadienne de Littérature Comparte, vol. 6 Library of the Canadian Review of Comparative Literature, vol. 6 DIRECTEUR/EDITOR: M. V. Dimic, Alberta SECRÉTAIRE DE RÉDACTION/EDITORIAL SECRETARY: E. D. Blodgett, Alberta COMITÉ DE PATRONAGE/ COMITÉ DE RÉDACTION/ ADVISORY BOARD EDITORIAL COMMITTEE J. E. Bencheikh, Paris/Alger R. Bourneuf, Laval R. K. DasGupta, Delhi P. Chavy, Dalhousie J. Ferraté, Alberta L. Dolezel, Toronto N. Frye, Toronto M. Goetz-Stankiewicz, British H. G. Gadamer, Heidelberg Columbia C. Guillen, Harvard V. Graham, Toronto G. Hartman, Yale E.J. H. Greene, Alberta T. Klaniczay, Budapest C. Hamlin, Toronto A. Viatte, Zürich/Paris E. Heier, Waterloo P. Zumthor, Montréal E. Kushner, McGill P. Merivale, British Columbia I. Schuster, McGill R. Sutherland, Sherbrooke M. J. Valdés, Toronto E. Vanee, Montréal 1 E. J. H. Greene. Menander to Mañva-ux: The History of a Comic Structure. Edmonton: University of Alberta Press, 1977. Pp. 201; $10.00 2,3 M. V. Dimic and E. Kushner, with J. Ferraté and R. Struc, eds. Proceedings ofthe Vllth Congress ofthe ICLA ¡Actes du VIP Congres de l'AILC [Montreal-Ottawa, 1973]. Budapest: Akadémiai Kiadó; Stuttgart: Kunst and Wissen, 1979. Pp. 562 and 728; DM 213.00 (prepublication subscription price $50.00) 4 Mario J. Valdés and Owen J. Miller, eds. Interpretation ofNarrative. Toronto: University of Toronto Press, 1978. Pp. 202; $15.00 5 Linda Hutcheon. Narcissistic Narrative: The Metafictional Paradox. Waterloo, Ontario: Wilfrid Laurier University Press, 1980. Pp. xii + 168; $9.75 6 Nina Kolesnikoff. Bruno Jasieñski: His Evolution from Futurism to Socialist Realism. Waterloo, Ontario: Wilfrid Laurier University Press, 1982. Pp. x + 148; $9.75 NINA KOLESNIKOFF Bruno Jasienski His Evolution from Futurism to Socialist Realism Wilfríd Lauríer University Press Canadian Cataloguing in Publication Data Kolesnikoff, Nina, 1943- Bruno Jasieñski : his evolution from futurism to socialist realism Bibliography: p. ISBN 0-88920-110-2 1. Jasieñski, Bruno, 1901-1939 - Criticism and interpretation. I. Title PG7158.J352K64 891.8'53'7 C82-094513-7 Copyright © 1982 WILFRID LAURIER UNIVERSITY PRESS Waterloo, Ontario, Ganada N2L 3C5 82 83 84 85 4 3 2 1 No parí ofthis book may be stored in a retrieval system, translated or reproduced in any form, by print, photoprint, microfilm, microfiche, or any other means, without written permission from the publisher. Cover design by Polygon Design Limited Contents Acknowledgments ix Introduction 1 CHAPTER ONE A Biographical Sketch 4 CHAPTER TWO Polish Futurism: Its Origin and Aesthetic Programme 10 CHAPTER THREE The Poetry of Bruno Jasieñski and the Futurist Quest to Renovate Poetic Language 23 CHAPTER FOUR The Lay ofjakub Szela and Folklore 59 CHAPTER FIVE / Burn París—A Utopian Novel 74 CHAPTER SIX Bruno Jasieñski and Soviet Literary Life 1929-1934 86 CHAPTER SEVEN Man Changes His Skin and the Industrial Novel 93 CHAPTER EIGHT Socialist Realism in "Bravery" and A Conspiracy of the Indifferent 110 CHAPTER NINE Grotesque Elements in TheBall ofthe Mannequins and "The Nose" 117 Conclusión 125 APPENDIX A Selection of Bruno Jasieñski's Poetry with Prose Translation of Each Poem 128 A Selected Bibliography 142 índex 146 This page intentionally left blank Acknowledgments This study of Bruno Jasieñski is based on my doctoral dissertation submitted to the University of Alberta in 1975. In the preparation of the theses I received valuable help from Professor Milán V. Dimic and Dr. Edward Mozejko, to whom I am very grateful. I also wish to thank Professor Dimic for his continued interest and encouragement. I would like to express my gratitude to Mrs. Irene Howard and Mr. Christopher F. Fortune for editing the manuscript. In addition Mr. Fortune helped me with the translation of the prose quotations that appear in the text. Professor Bohdan Czaykowski and Mrs. Mary Plotnikoff gave me many valuable suggestions on translating Bruno Jasieñski's poetry into English. My thanks also go to Mrs. Ruby Torren and Miss Patricia Goodall for their typing of the manuscript. I am grateful for permission to reprint here two chapters of the book which were published earlier as articles: "Polish Futurism: Its Origin and the Aesthetic Programme," Canadian Slavonic Papers, 18/3 (1976), 301-311; "Polish Futurism: The Quest to Renovate Poetic Language," Slavic andEastEuropeanJournal, 21/1 (1977), 64-77.1 also acknowledge with gratitude permission granted by Jasieñski's publisher, Osso- lineum, to quote from his works published by them in Polish, and by International Publishers, New York, to quote from Man Changes His Skin. Finally, I gratefully acknowledge the support from the Canadian Federation for the Humanities. This book has been published with the