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Iosif BrodskiyPoet, Nobel laureate
Date of Birth: 24.05.1940
Country:  USA |
Content:
- Biography of Joseph Brodsky
- Early Struggles and Self-Education
- Emerging Talent and Turbulent Times
- Meeting Anna Akhmatova and Marina Basmannaya
- Persecution and Exile
- Emigration and International Recognition
- Legacy and Final Years
Biography of Joseph Brodsky
An Unusual Childhood in LeningradJoseph Brodsky, a poet and Nobel laureate, was born on May 24, 1940, in pre-war Leningrad. His father, Alexander Ivanovich Brodsky, was a photographer, and his mother, Maria Moiseevna, née Volpert, was an accountant. The family lived in a house on the Obvodny Canal. During the war, Alexander became a military correspondent, while Joseph and his mother endured the hardships of the siege, their home being damaged by bombing. They were eventually evacuated to Cherepovets and returned two years later. In 1948, Alexander returned from the army and continued his service at the Naval Museum. The family was allocated a small apartment in the famous "House of Muruzi" on Liteyny Prospekt, where legends of the "Silver Age" such as Merezhkovsky and Gippius once lived.
Early Struggles and Self-Education
In 1950, as part of the "struggle against cosmopolitanism," Alexander was discharged from the army, and the family's financial situation deteriorated. Joseph also struggled academically, repeating the seventh grade and failing to get into naval school. In 1955, he dropped out of school and began working as an apprentice machinist at the Arsenal factory. However, his time as an apprentice was short-lived, as he decided to pursue a career in medicine and became a morgue orderly at the famous Leningrad "Kresty" morgue. During this time, Brodsky dedicated himself to self-education, learning foreign languages and reading poetry, especially the works of Baratynsky, which greatly influenced his own poetic style.
Emerging Talent and Turbulent Times
In 1957, Brodsky went on a geological expedition to the White Sea, where he wrote his first serious poem, "Goodbye, Forget." For several years, he earned money in geological parties while devoting autumn and winter to his creativity and self-education, sometimes getting into trouble. In 1958, he caused discontent among the university's leadership by quoting Trotsky during a student scientific society meeting. In 1959, his poem "Jewish Cemetery" received sharp criticism after being performed at a poetry tournament. Despite this, his poems from this period were recited at literary evenings, circulated in lists, and published in samizdats.
Meeting Anna Akhmatova and Marina Basmannaya
In 1961, Brodsky had a conflict with his expedition leader, leading to his dismissal. He began earning a living through translations and met the renowned poet Anna Akhmatova, who foresaw his great fame. He dedicated several poems to her. During a New Year's celebration, he met the elegant beauty Marina Basmannaya, the daughter of a well-known artist. Their romance became the subject of much gossip, including rumors of Marina's relationship with Brodsky's friend Dmitry Bobyshev. However, the young poet refused to believe it. Nearly a thousand of Brodsky's poems, including the cycle "Songs of a Happy Winter," were dedicated to Marina, identified by the initials M.B.
Persecution and Exile
Brodsky's public performances at the Technological Institute angered the authorities. In November, he was accused of idleness in a satirical article titled "Literary Wobbler," written by Lerner. The Leningrad branch of the Writers' Union distanced itself from him, and he was arrested and confined to a psychiatric hospital. On January 5, he escaped and returned to Leningrad, where he heard rumors about Marina and Dmitry Bobyshev spending New Year's together. This led to another arrest, and Brodsky began experiencing severe bouts of angina. He was sentenced to five years of exile in the village of Norinskoye in the Arkhangelsk region under the charge of "idleness." The writer F. Vigdorova transcribed the court proceedings and sent the transcript to the West. Despite the circumstances, Brodsky considered his time in exile as happy. He continued writing poetry, and campaigns for his release were gaining momentum both in the USSR and abroad.
Emigration and International Recognition
In 1965, thanks to a petition by Jean-Paul Sartre, Brodsky was released and officially employed as a translator. However, his book "Winter Mail" never saw publication in the Soviet Union, although his poems were published in English abroad. In 1967, Brodsky's son was born, and Marina registered him as Andrei Osipovich Basmannov. Their relationship gradually deteriorated. In 1972, the ballerina Mariana Kuznetsova gave birth to Brodsky's daughter, Anastasia. For 23 years, she did not know who her real father was. The KGB continued to harass Brodsky, and in May 1972, he was given an ultimatum - emigration or a psychiatric hospital. Brodsky chose to renounce his citizenship and flew to Vienna. True to his principles, he did not portray himself as a victim and participated in the London Poetry Festival. He later taught at the University of Michigan and various other universities. In 1977, Brodsky became a US citizen. He continued writing poetry and essays in both Russian and English, receiving numerous literary awards. In 1987, he was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature.
Legacy and Final Years
Unfortunately, Brodsky's health deteriorated sharply. He underwent a complex operation, and his parents were prohibited from visiting him in the US. Furthermore, they did not allow him to attend their funerals. However, starting in 1987, his works began to be published in the USSR, and his case was eventually rehabilitated. Despite invitations to return to his homeland, Brodsky declined. In 1990, he married his former student, Maria Sozzani, and in 1993, they had a daughter named Anna. On January 27, 1996, the poet passed away from a heart attack in his office. In accordance with his wishes expressed in one of his poems, his metallic coffin was temporarily placed in a vault at a cemetery near the Hudson River. In 1977, he was buried in the cemetery of San Michele in Venice.
