Philosophical Library would like to wish a happy 126th birthday to Russian poet and writer Boris Pasternak. Born in Moscow, Russia on February 10, 1890, Boris was brought into the world by his father, a painter and professor at the Moscow School of Painting, and his mother, a concert pianist. His family was close with well-known novelist Leo Tolstoy and Boris wrote in a 1956 essay of how his father worked to create illustrations for one of Tolstoy’s novels.
In his early years, Boris first aspired to be a musician and briefly attended the Moscow Conservatory until 1910 when he left to study under philosophers at the University of Marburg. He went on to write an assortment of poems, likely inspired by his tumultuous love life that spanned from one rejection to the next. He eventually published a book of poems in 1921 titled My Sister, Life in which his poetry skillfully concealed his engrossment at the time with the philosophy of Immanuel Kant and his favorite poets by using hidden allusions. His artistic style influenced younger poets and made Boris a model of inspiration. As the years passed, he began to feel as if his work was somewhat exclusive and only comprehensible to those with a higher education; thus, he strove to edit his writing to be more understandable to a broader range of readers. He published a collection of poems titled The Second Birth which, consequently, caused a divide with his more cultured audience. Still, he continued to reshape his poetry by utilizing a more simple vocabulary and style.
Among his poetry, Boris Pasternak also wrote works of fiction such as his Nobel Prize winning piece Doctor Zhivago, several short stories and other fictional pieces such as The Adolescence of Zhenya Luvers. In the latter title, the author captivates the reader with a story about a young girl who comes of age in Russia just before the Communist Revolution. The story’s use of themes such as nature and how people are able to shape the world around them unfold as the reader follows the main character. Pasternak’s signature use of prose and imagery fill the pages of this novel and gives readers the opportunity to savor every word of his unique style. To read more about and purchase The Adolescence of Zhenya Luvers, please click here.