Orest Mikhailovich Somov (; – ) was a Russian
romantic writer.
He studied at
Kharkiv University
The V. N. Karazin Kharkiv National University (), also known as Kharkiv National University or Karazin University, is a public university in Kharkiv, Ukraine. It was founded in 1804 through the efforts of Vasily Karazin, becoming the second old ...
, where he became an admirer of
Romantic literature and
Gothic fiction
Gothic fiction, sometimes referred to as Gothic horror (primarily in the 20th century), is a literary aesthetic of fear and haunting. The name of the genre is derived from the Renaissance era use of the word "gothic", as a pejorative to mean me ...
.
In 1817 he moved to
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 continued his literary career. In addition to being a writer and translator, he established himself as a critic, editor and publisher, thus becoming one of the first professional men of letters in the Russian Empire. Somov was drawn to the folklore of his native Ukraine and much of his writing refers to Ukrainian history and
folklore
Folklore is the body of expressive culture shared by a particular group of people, culture or subculture. This includes oral traditions such as Narrative, tales, myths, legends, proverbs, Poetry, poems, jokes, and other oral traditions. This also ...
.
Somov was a popular writer during his lifetime. His works on Ukrainian themes made a big impact on the literary canon of the 1820s. His literary works were widely read and his critical opinion was highly regarded. After his death, although Orest Somov's works were included in anthologies of 19th-century Russian literature, he was forgotten by the general public. Only in 1984 that Orest Somov returned to the Russian reader. The publishing house "Soviet Russia" has published a collection of works by Orest Somov: Byli i nebylitsy. The compiler of the collection: Nina Petrunina. She is the author of the introductory article to the book: "Orest Somov and his prose."
In 1989
Yuriy Vynnychuk translated several of Somov's works into Ukrainian and included them in
[Vynnychuk, Yuriy 1989, (compl.) ''Ohnianyi Zmii: Ukrainska hotychna proza XIX st.'' he Fire-Breathing Dragon: Ukrainian Gothic Prose of the 19th Century Molod, Kyiv] collection Ukrainian Gothic prose.
He is distantly related to the American actor
René Auberjonois; Auberjonois' maternal grandfather's mother was a Russian noblewoman, Eudoxia Michailovna Somova (1850–1924), a collateral cousin of Somov's.
Famous works
* 1825-1830 – ''Haidamaka''
* 1827 — ''God’s Fool'' ()
* 1827 — ''Order from the other World'' ()
* 1829 — ''Kikimora''
* 1829 — ''Rusalka''
* 1829 — ''The Werewolf'' ()
* 1830 — ''Tales of Buried Treasures'' ()
* 1830 — ''Strange Duel'' ()
* 1830 — ''Self-murderer'' ()
* 1831 — ''Kupalo Eve'' ()
* 1832 — ''Wandering Light'' ()
* 1833 — ''The Witches of Kyiv'' ()
* 1833 — ''The Evil Eye'' ()
* 1833 — ''Mommy and Sonny'' ()
English translations
*''Mommy and Sonny'' (story), from
*''Tales of Buried Treasures'', ''The Werewolf'' and ''The Witches of Kyiv'' were included in ''Russian 19th Century Gothic Tales: Anthology'',
Raduga Publishers, 1984.
*''The Witches of Kyiv'', ''Rusalka'', ''The Evil Eye'', ''Wandering Light'', ''Kupalo Eve'' and ''God’s Fool'' comprise
References
Further reading
*
*Charles Moser, ''The Cambridge History of Russian Literature''.
Cambridge University Press
Cambridge University Press was the university press of the University of Cambridge. Granted a letters patent by King Henry VIII in 1534, it was the oldest university press in the world. Cambridge University Press merged with Cambridge Assessme ...
: 1992.
*N. Petrunyna, ' (Orest Somov and His Prose
1793 births
1833 deaths
People from Vovchansk
19th-century writers from the Russian Empire
Literary critics from the Russian Empire
Translators from the Russian Empire
19th-century translators
Male writers from the Russian Empire
National University of Kharkiv alumni
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