Chapter 77: Founding a Sect and Establishing a School

On the first reading of the poem "I Came into This World to See the Sun," Nadya could not help but recite it aloud as she read; though the poem seemed to clash with the current poetic mainstream, Nadya was nonetheless left dizzy with shock by the vital tension, the resounding rhythm, and the intense longing for light and ideals within it.

How could there be such powerful and forceful poetry?

There were no overly complex words, nor excessively cumbersome forms; instead, it sang out a melody as brilliant as the sun using a quite simple structure.

Beyond that, this Miss also saw in the poem the unrestrained passion and proud personality of that youth with the deep eyes; with such intense vitality, how could he be brought down by others' gossip and discussion?

With such lofty spirit, how could he easily accept others' money?

After seeing this poem, some of the doubts this Miss had previously held suddenly cleared up all at once; while feeling suddenly enlightened, she could not help but recite the poem once more.

But no matter how she adjusted her tone and rhythm, she still seemed unable to find the unique feeling of this poem; for a moment, this Miss truly wanted to rush straight to Mikhail's residence and ask him to recite the poem for her personally.

But after looking at her rather unattractive casual clothes and her somewhat messy hair, this Miss ultimately restrained this idea and hurried off to wash up instead.

Even so, the poem continued to echo constantly in her mind.

And while she restrained her thoughts, some people truly could not restrain themselves.

On the day "The Petersburg Anthology" was released, although he was indeed concerned about the matter in his heart, Mikhail still slept very soundly.

The accommodation environment was a bit poor, but Mikhail's sleep quality was truly quite good; perhaps this was just talent.

Just as Mikhail was still immersed in a sweet dream, several rough knocks on the door suddenly woke him.

Then Turgenev's familiar and excited voice came from outside the door: "Dear Mikhail! Open the door quickly! I have something to ask of you!"

One might think someone was coming to check my water meter.

Although he was slightly grumpy from waking up, since they were buddies, Mikhail could not really leave Turgenev outside, so he could only run to open the door while yawning; but as soon as the door opened, Turgenev grabbed Mikhail's hand and shouted:

"Write more poetry! Have mercy, Mikhail, just write a little more. I have always felt that our Russia has not many great poets, and great poets with original spirit are even rarer. You have only written two poems so far, but for some reason, especially this one, I can feel a hidden, unknown new trend within it!"

Hearing Turgenev's words, Mikhail was indeed a little surprised.

Strictly speaking, what Turgenev felt was indeed correct; the poem "I Came into This World to See the Sun" can be called a masterpiece of Russian Symbolist poetry, and when was the artistic concept of Symbolism first formally proposed?

It was in 1886 in the artistic capital, Old Paris, when the poet Jean Moréas published the "Manifesto of Symbolism" and first proposed this name.

An artistic concept, on one hand, is a summary of a new artistic trend, and on the other hand, it marks the emergence of a new artistic form; this is just like Victor Hugo's "Preface to 'Cromwell'" becoming the theoretical program of French Romanticism.

And in any field, founding a school or sect is often the highest honor; even if the writer or poet who proposed the concept does not have excellent works corresponding to it, as long as he proposes it first, it means his name will absolutely appear in literary history.

Similarly, if one proposes it in one's own era and gains recognition from many writers and artists, it undoubtedly means mastering the greatest discourse power of that school, and one will mostly possess huge prestige and influence in the art world.

Besides, speaking of which, in Russia during this period, Mikhail actually felt that Symbolism was indeed quite effective.

For example, if I want to praise the sun, the sun probably has different meanings in different people's eyes; in Belinsky's eyes, the sun undoubtedly means the pursuit of democracy, revolution, and a bright future.

But in the eyes of those old conservatives in Russia, interpreting the sun as Your Majesty the Tsar does not seem impossible; perhaps some among them might even praise:

"Look! With how noble a feeling this poet writes! He mentions that brilliant sun every two lines, and in our Russia, who else could be the one this poet always keeps in mind?"

Of course, the premise is to master a certain amount of discourse power; one cannot let others interpret and explain freely, otherwise merely mentioning a certain word might be a crime.

In short, at the right moment, Mikhail would naturally choose to stand out and propose an artistic concept; this is both a way to accumulate prestige and might also become a means to preserve himself.

But to be honest, if Mikhail were a bit insane, proposing all those artistic concepts that would later cause huge influence, then without exaggeration, literary history would write:

"The entire nineteenth and twentieth centuries are Mikhail Romanovich Raskolnikov's centuries; all influential artistic concepts and forms can find their source in him."

He was fantasizing; at this very moment, standing in his small room where he could accidentally hit his head, Mikhail started fantasizing again.

Fortunately, before he started drooling in his fantasy, Turgenev's excited voice pulled Mikhail back.

And facing the excited Turgenev, Mikhail just waved his hand, then calmly smiled and said: "Yes, Ivan, your feeling is correct; I do have some ideas about the new artistic trend, but now is not the time. When I have thoroughly perfected my ideas, I will tell you."

"God! It is really true! My feeling was correct!"

Turgenev had already vaguely felt it; after hearing Mikhail's words, he immediately shouted out: "Just tell me first, Mikhail! I swear to God, I absolutely will not tell a second person!"

Mikhail: "..."

Should I believe you or believe I am Peter the Great?

It would be strange if a chatterbox like you could keep a secret.

Just as Mikhail was pondering how to politely refuse, the familiar voice came from outside the door again.

"Mikhail! Our anthology is estimated really going to sell out!"

Accompanied by a frantic shout, Nekrasov hurriedly walked in, and behind him followed a somewhat shy but equally excited young man with blond hair.

Mikhail: "?"

Are you guys forming a group to do team building at my house?

It was supposed to be five chapters, which is ten thousand words, but some parts were hard to split, so they were compressed into three chapters, ahem.

But I have seen everyone's comments; truly thank you all for your subscriptions. I do not plan to go out during the May Day holiday either; I will just stay home and write well, striving to produce more.

The monthly tickets are also very powerful; there are already one thousand, so I am releasing this chapter first. During the day, I will come back with two more chapters; if I can write more, I will definitely release more. Thank you all for your support (heart gesture).

I will work hard (fist clench).

Also, seeing that some masters are asking, let me give a group number; you can chat and brag, but do not type too harshly, ahem.

Those interested can add it; group number: 307658483.

Finally, thank you all again for your support; I will continue to work hard!

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(End of this chapter)