Alexander Petrovich Sumarokov (; , Villmanstrand – ) was a Russian poet and playwright who single-handedly created classical theatre in

Russia Russia, or the Russian Federation, is a country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia. It is the list of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the world, and extends across Time in Russia, eleven time zones, sharing Borders ...

, thus assisting Mikhail Lomonosov to inaugurate the reign of

classicism Classicism, in the arts, refers generally to a high regard for a classical period, classical antiquity in the Western tradition, as setting standards for taste which the classicists seek to emulate. In its purest form, classicism is an aesthe ...

in Russian literature.

Life and works

Alexander Sumarakov was born in 1717 into a family of Muscovite gentry. He was born in Villmanstrand (now Lappeenranta) in Swedish-ruled Finland, where his father was most likely serving in the

Great Northern War In the Great Northern War (1700–1721) a coalition led by the Tsardom of Russia successfully contested the supremacy of the Swedish Empire in Northern Europe, Northern, Central Europe, Central and Eastern Europe. The initial leaders of the ant ...

against Sweden. Sumarokov was educated at the Cadet School in

Saint Petersburg Saint Petersburg, formerly known as Petrograd and later Leningrad, is the List of cities and towns in Russia by population, second-largest city in Russia after Moscow. It is situated on the Neva, River Neva, at the head of the Gulf of Finland ...

, where he became closely familiar with French learning. Neither an aristocratic dilettante like Antiokh Kantemir nor a learned professor like Vasily Trediakovsky or Mikhail Lomonosov, he was the first gentleman in

to choose the profession of letters. He consequently may be called the father of the Russian literary profession. His pursuits did not undermine his position in the family; indeed, his grandson was made a count and, when the Sumarokov family became extinct a century later, the title eventually passed to Prince Felix Yusupov, who also held the title of Count Sumarokov-Elston. Sumarokov wrote much and regularly, chiefly in those literary genres neglected by Lomonosov. His principal importance rests in his plays, among which ''Khorev'' (1749) is regarded as the first regular Russian drama. He ran the first permanent public theatre in the Russian capital, where he worked with the likes of Fyodor Volkov and Ivan Dmitrevsky. His plays were based on the subjects taken from Russian history (''Dmitry Samozvanets''), proto-Russian

legend A legend is a genre of folklore that consists of a narrative featuring human actions, believed or perceived to have taken place in human history. Narratives in this genre may demonstrate human values, and possess certain qualities that give the ...

s (''Khorev'') or on

Shakespeare William Shakespeare ( 23 April 1564 – 23 April 1616) was an English playwright, poet and actor. He is widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's natio ...

an plots (''Makbet'', ''Hamlet''). In his evaluation of Sumarokov's plays, literary historian D. S. Mirsky writes: Sumarokov also wrote non-dramatic works. He was the first Russian author to write

fable Fable is a literary genre defined as a succinct fictional story, in prose or verse, that features animals, legendary creatures, plants, inanimate objects, or forces of nature that are anthropomorphized, and that illustrates or leads to a parti ...

s, a genre which subsequently flourished in Russia. His satires, in which he sometimes imitates the style of popular poetry, are described by Mirsky as "racy and witty attacks against the government clerks and officers of law." He wrote love songs intended for popular consumption, which brought him fame and made him chief among a group of songwriting poets who followed him. Mirsky praises Sumarokov's songs for their "prodigious metrical inventiveness (which was not so much as imitated by any of his successors) and a genuine gift of melody." Sumarokov was also one of the earliest Russian journalists and literary critics. He edited the journal ''Yezhemesyachnye sochineniya'' (Monthly compositions) from 1759 to 1764. According to Mirsky, Sumarokov's literary criticism is "usually carping and superficial" but played a significant role in teaching Russian readers the rules of classical taste. He was a follower of

Voltaire François-Marie Arouet (; 21 November 169430 May 1778), known by his ''Pen name, nom de plume'' Voltaire (, ; ), was a French Age of Enlightenment, Enlightenment writer, philosopher (''philosophe''), satirist, and historian. Famous for his wit ...

and was proud of having exchanged several letters with him. Amanda Ewington has argued that Sumarokov was not only influenced by Voltaire as such but accessed a wide variety of European influences, from Shakespeare to

Lope de Vega Félix Lope de Vega y Carpio (; 25 November 156227 August 1635) was a Spanish playwright, poet, and novelist who was a key figure in the Spanish Golden Age (1492–1659) of Spanish Baroque literature, Baroque literature. In the literature of ...

, through the conduit of Voltaire. Mirsky describes the playwright's personality as follows: His daughter

Ekaterina Ekaterina is a Russian feminine given name, and an alternative transliteration of the Russian Yekaterina. Katya and Katyusha are common diminutive forms of Ekaterina. Its Western counterpart is Catherine (Katherine). Notable people with the na ...

, an 18th-century poet, is often considered to be the first Russian woman writer, as she, together with and were the first women to see their works printed in Russian journals.

Opera libretti

Sumarokov wrote the first Russian-language

libretto A libretto (From the Italian word , ) is the text used in, or intended for, an extended musical work such as an opera, operetta, masque, oratorio, cantata or Musical theatre, musical. The term ''libretto'' is also sometimes used to refer to th ...

for an opera: that of '' Tsefal i Prokris'' (''Cephalus and Prokris''), by Francesco Araja, an Italian composer in the Russian court. The opera was staged in

on 7 March .S. 27 February1755. He also wrote the libretto for the second opera set to a Russian text, ''Altsesta'' (''Alceste'', 1758), by German composer Hermann Raupach (1728–1778), also serving in the Russian court.

Editions in English

* *

References

Notes

External links

Poems by Alexander Sumarokov

Biography and works of Alexander Sumarokov
on the Russian Virtual Library {{DEFAULTSORT:Sumarokov, Alexander 1717 births 1777 deaths People from Lappeenranta Nobility from the Russian Empire Dramatists and playwrights from the Russian Empire Male poets from the Russian Empire Male writers from the Russian Empire Opera librettists from the Russian Empire 18th-century poets from the Russian Empire 18th-century dramatists and playwrights Russian male dramatists and playwrights 18th-century male writers from the Russian Empire Recipients of the Order of St. Anna