The poetics of the carnation: The word and the image in Russian poetry from Trediakovsky to Brodsky (in the context of European tradition). Part 2

The article outlines the use of the word gvozdika [eng. ‘carnation’] ('flower of the genus Dianthus’) in the language of Russian poetry. Part Two of the article demonstrates that the Russian poetry of the 18th - early 19th centuries features carnations sporadically and only within certain lyrical contexts borrowed from Western lyrical poetry, mostly as an element of an idyllic floral catalogue or as part of the antithesis that opposes wild and noble decorative flowers. In the second quarter and mid-19th century, the flower emerges in new poetic circumstances: since the traditional connection of floral imagery to the erotic theme is renewed, the carnation begins to epitomize passionate love. The article dwells on the poetic representations of the carnation in the poetry by Vasily Trediakovsky, Mikhail Muravyov, Aleksandr Sumarokov, Yermil Kostrov, Vasily Pushkin, Semen Bobrov, Vasily Zhukovsky, Anton Delvig, Aleksey Merzlyakov, Pyotr Vyazemsky, and others. Both the antique and the decorative-garden connotations of the carnation are brought together in Pyotr Vyazemsky’s poem “K podruge” (1815), based on a playful alternation between an Epicurean-Horatian and “domestic” tones. The poet combines two planes - that of the real and the symbolic/poetic garden, and if the carnation can refer to both, then the myrtle - only to the second. The author also examines a variety of contexts where the carnation is adjacent to the rose in poetic texts. This juxtaposition is not accidental, since the flowers are united by common attributes (colour, fragrance, expressive beauty), which also suggests a motif of rivalry between the rose and the carnation in many poems. The similarity of the two flowers also explains the fact that the carnation appears in poetic contexts as a substitute for the rose. Since the second quarter - the middle of the 19th century, the carnation is associated with love and erotic motifs, typical of the rose. This symbolism in poetry is consistent with the main meaning of the carnation in the “language of flowers”, where the wild carnation is a sign of love languor, although the process of transferring the traditional meanings of the rose to the carnation is still more important. Finally, the author analyses the rhyme gvozdika: diko and shows that it, together with its variations (gvozdika/gvozdik: dikiy/dik, etc., also in the reverse order), belongs to the set of exceptionally stable rhyme pairs in the Russian poetic tradition. The author declares no conflicts of interests. The author expresses her deep gratitude to A.S. Belousova, A.A. Dobritsyn, A. Shele, N.V Pertsov, and I.A. Pilshchikov, who read the manuscript for inaccuracies and made valuable suggestions. Many thanks to M.V. Oslon for advice and assistance.

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