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A brief profile of the Russian writer prefaces the texts of three plays characterized by their realistic portrayal of Russian life
De profundis ad te clamavi. In this phrase, with his penchant for epitome, the late James Huneker summarized the masterpiece of Russia’s single living master of the drama, Maxim Gorky, as he saw it in Berlin under the German title of “Nachtasyl” or “Night Lodging.” “Na Dnye” is the Russian—literally “On the Bottom.” Partly because “The Lower Depths” is a more faithful rendering of the original than “Night Lodging” and partly because it implies so vividly the play’s keynote as the shrewd Huneker detected it beneath a guise alien to both Russian and English, the title adopted by Laurence Irving for the British version has been preferred for its introduction to American audiences by the company which discovered it and first set it on its stage in Moscow, December 31 (our calendar), 1902. In “The Lower Depths” more than in any other single play throughout its history, the Moscow Art Theatre concentrates its dramatic ideals and methods, its esthetic theory and practice, and through the production of this play it most emphatically justifies its artistic faith in spiritual or psychological realism as a dramatic medium of expression. The plays of Tchekhoff, of course, serve the same ends, but no single one of them does so quite as richly as does Gorky’s masterpiece. At the hands of Stanislavsky and his associates, “The Lower Depths” draws much of its convincing power from its unusual use of and dependence on the channels of expression which are peculiar to the art of the theatre. It is almost wholly independent of drama as literature. Less than any play I know, is it possible to imagine its potential effect in the theatre from a reading of its printed lines. In my book, “The Russian Theatre,” I have thus analyzed this factor: “‘The Lower Depths’ is not so much a matter of utterable line and recountable gesture as it is of the intangible flow of human souls in endlessly shifting contact with one another. Awkward but eloquent pauses and emphases, the scarcely perceptible stress or dulling of word or gesture, the nuances and the shadings of which life is mostly made and by which it reveals its meaning—these, and the instinctive understanding of the vision of the playwright by those who seek to interpret him, are the incalculable and unrecordable channels through which ‘The Lower Depths’ becomes articulate at the Moscow Art Theatre.” Just as this theatre discovered or, rather, rescued Tchekhoff as a dramatist, so it first stood sponsor for the author of “Foma Gordeyeff” as a playwright. During the first half of the season of 1902-1903, two of his plays were produced—“Smug Citizens” and “The Lower Depths.” The latter was recognized at once as a work of supreme merit and moment. Tchekhoff himself had written to its youthful author five months before its première: “I have read your play. It is new and unmistakably fine. The second act is very good, it is the best, the strongest, and when I was reading it, especially the end, I almost danced with joy.” At the première, the rival dramatist’s verdict was publicly ratified, for Gorky was called before the curtain twenty times, and the press was unanimously enthusiastic. The play has held its place in the repertory of the Moscow Art Theatre ever since, and eight of its most important rôles are still played by those who created them, just two decades ago.
"The Lower Depths" by Maksim Gorky, translated by Jenny Covan and edited by Oliver M. Sayler, is a compelling drama that delves into the lives of the marginalized and downtrodden in Russian society. Set in a squalid basement, the play unfolds as a poignant exploration of poverty, despair, and the human spirit's resilience. Gorky's vivid characters come to life as they grapple with their harsh realities and their dreams of a better life. This play is a powerful commentary on social inequality and remains a classic work of Russian literature that continues to resonate with readers and theater enthusiasts.
Russia was by no means paradise at the turn of the twentieth century, but it was decidedly worse for the poor and homeless community. This play centres around a motley crew of drunkards, vagabonds, and petty criminals whose lives are forever changed by the arrival of mysterious pilgrim Luka. A pillar of Maxim Gorky’s social realism, ‘The Lower Depths’ oozes pessimism, social criticism, and alcoholism. An essential read for fans of both modern and classical Russian literature, from Leo Tolstoy to Boris Akunin. As a five-time Nobel Prize nominee, Maxim Gorky (1868-1936) rightfully holds a spot at the table of the most talented Russian writers. He led a turbulent life as an exile, a dissenter, and a Bolshevik associate. His most notable works include "The Lower Depths", "My Childhood,", "Mother", and "Children of the Sun" all of which are characterised by his realism.
Contents: Russian Drama before the Revolution; Soviet Drama 1917-1921; The Civil War in Soviet Drama; Bulgakov's^R The White Guard and Flight; Satirical Comedy and Melodrama; The Plays of Nikolay Erdman; Mayakovsky's The Bedbug and The Bathhouse; Indirect Social Comment; Towards Socialist Realism
Postindian Conversations is the first collection of in-depth interviews with Gerald Vizenor, one of the most powerful and provocative voices in the Native world today. These lively conversations with the preeminent novelist and cultural critic reveal much about the man, his literary creations, and his critical perspectives on important issues affecting Native peoples at the beginning of the twenty-first century. The book also casts new light on his sometimes controversial ideas about contemporary Native identity, politics, economics, scholarship, and literature.