“Ivan Konevskoi (1877-1901) strove throughout his tragically brief earthly life to "abolish death" by penetrating the mystic core of the universe. His earthly survival has now been notably enhanced by Joan Grossman's splendid book, a comprehensive account of the poet's life, thought, and accomplishments. Deeply sympathetic but always clear-eyed and sensible, Grossman's narrative is exhaustively researched but never pedantic, engagingly written and rich in illuminations derived from the author's lifelong study of Russian poetry, especially of the Symbolist era.”
Hugh McLean, Professor Emeritus, University of California, Berkeley “Joan Grossman’s spiritual biography of “poet-mystic-thinker” Ivan Konevskoi (Oreus) fills a large gap in the scholarship on early Russian modernism. Although never entirely forgotten, Konevskoi was largely ignored by scholars in both Russia and in the West, before the appearance of this substantial monograph. With the superb knowledge of her subject-matter that years of painstaking and engaged research have given her, Grossman guides us through the poet’s short, but intense, quest for immortality through his own brand of pantheism. As Grossman shows, Konevskoi’s spiritual journey, which ended prematurely by accidental drowning, has many intriguing stops along the way. Grossman makes this journey entertaining and informative. This is a major work by a distinguished scholar, which is bound to stimulate further research of this elusive poet.”
Irene Masing-Delic, Ohio State University "Grossman (Slavic languages and literatures, U. of California at Berkeley) offers the first study of the life, ideas, and achievements of Russian modernist poet, thinker, and mystic Ivan Konevskoi (1877-1901). Focusing on his inner life (rather than all aspects of his biography), she examines its representation in his poetry, his exploration of pantheism, mystical encounters during his European travels, the influence of painter Arnold Böcklin, his affair with Anna Nikolaevna Gippius, his friend and posthumous publisher Valerii Briusov, his poetry collection Dreams and Meditations, his desire to abolish death through mysticism, the influence of Nietzsche, and his accidental drowning at the age of twenty-three. Selected poems are provided in Russian."
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