Samarin’s List of Lermontov’s Poem “Valerik” (1840): History and Meaning

Abstract

Aim. To reconstruct the history of the appearance of the list of M. Yu. Lermontov’s poem “Valerik” from the archive of Yu. F. Samarin, identify its features, disclose its value for establishing the definitive text and understanding Lermontov’s work.

Methodology. The article compares the draft autograph of M. Yu. Lermontov’s poem “Valerik”, its first publication and the so-called Samarin's list, provides a description and clarifies the attribution of the list related to its origin and the history of its introduction into scientific circulation. A comprehensive methodology is used that synthesizes textual tools with biographical and cultural-historical methods.

Results. Comparison of the Samarin’s list and the first publication of the poem “Valerik” with Lermontov’s autograph revealed semantic changes that appear in the published text, while in Lermontov’s draft and the Samarin’s list they coincide. Returns in the list to the earlier drafts, reproduction of crossed-out episodes allow us to state that the text was reproduced directly from the draft of Lermontov’s autograph.

Research implications. The necessity of freeing Lermontov’s text from the edits imposed by the editors is substantiated; the publication of the poem considering the Samarin’s list allows us to clarify the semantic accents of the poem “Valerik”.