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Abstract:

The work of K. Batyushkov, one of the founders of Romanticism in Russia, provides an inexhaustible source of materials for scholars of Russian literature. In particular, it sheds light on the use of classical images in Russian Romanticism. This article considers the Russian Empire style — a current of Romanticism that was characterized by an interest in antiquity. It then studies K. Batyushkov’s poem “Hesiod and Omir — Rivals” to identify the motifs and characteristic images of antiquity to which the Romantic poet referred, analyse their functions and interrelations, and trace the transformation of these images by the author — from altering the spelling of names to consciously changing Greek images into Italic and Roman ones. In addition, the text is compared with the French original by C.H. Millevoye to uncover the specificity of the appeal to antiquity through the prism of translations from the French, which involved rethinking what had been read instead of direct translation. Finally, we analyse the main characters and the introduction of the author’s personal motives and experiences into their views, a feature that is generally characteristic of K. Batyushkov’s work.