Malwa (Gorki)

Gorky in 1889

Malwa ( Russian Мальва ) is a short story by the Russian writer Maxim Gorky , which appeared in the autumn of 1897 in the magazine Severny Westnik . A translation into German by Carl Grünfeld came out in Dresden around 1905.

content

The 45-year-old farmer Vasily Legostew has left home and yard. Out on a headland off the coast, he works as a guard for the Grebenchtschikow fishing company. The Sunday on which the story begins does not go as hoped. The rowing boat with Malwa is approaching from the coast, but her lover brings Wassili's 21-year-old son Jakow with her. The young lad wants to leave his mother at home in the completely run-down farm for three months and earn money as a sturgeon fisherman . Without a small injection of cash, the farm is most likely beyond saving.

When Jakow has been entertained, he sleeps in for a while. Wassili retires with the beautiful Malwa for a shepherd's hour. Nothing will come of it. Malwa is suddenly rebellious and is dealt with "heavy blows" for it. Since Malwa is not a wife, she does not have to put up with it and swears revenge: "How I will repay you!"

Jakow approaches Malwa. The woman who had already had a child initially turned him away. Jakow earns money as a fisherman. The tramp Sergei, an "unpleasant red-haired person" from Uglich , loitering around the fishing operation , borrows money from Jakow to drink. In the presence of Jakow, Malwa laughingly refuses the ragged drinker's marriage proposal. Malwa does not want to get involved with Jakow either.

Jakow has a new feeling. Suddenly he has a strong dislike for his father. Sergei asks his friend Vasily to beat up his son Jakow, because it is not acceptable that the greenhorn is after Malwa as well.

Wassili has to state that he is dealing with two rivals.

Malwa tells Sergei about the blows she received from Vasily. As a tramp, Sergei doesn't like the peasants. He advises Malwa that she should incite father and son against each other: "Let his son pay him back for the blows."

Said and done. Malwa keeps the advertising Jakow a little at a distance, but at the same time gives him prospects of what he fiercely wishes for her possession and he sees in father the single obstacle. During the inevitable physical confrontation between father and son, Jakow fends off the father's blows and runs away. When Vasily remains alone on the headland, he goes to himself: he ran the farm with his wife for fifteen years before he took a prostitute for running away. Vasily marches back to his wife in his village Maslo. Sergei takes over the vacant guard post on the headland. Malwa follows the tramp. Jakow, who approaches the two, has no chance against wiry Sergei with Malwa.

filming

• 1956, Soviet Union : The film Malwa by Wladimir Braun was made using the two Gorkish texts Malwa and Zwei Barfüßler (Russian Два босяка , Dwa bosjaka ). Dzidra Ritenberga appeared in the title role . Pavel Ussownitschenko played Vasily, Anatoly Ignatjew his son Jakow and Gennady Juchtin played Sergei.

German-language editions

• Malwa. Novella. Translated from the Russian by Carl Grünfeld. Max Fischer's publishing house, Dresden around 1905. 112 pages
• Malwa. Novella. Translated from the Russian by Arthur Luther . Insel-Bücherei No. 404, Leipzig 1929, 69 pages
• The tramp and other stories (also contains: The old Isergil . Malwa. Twenty-six and one . People who have been ). Translated from the Russian by Arthur Luther. With an introduction by Stefan Zweig and illustrations by Theodor Eberle. Insel Verlag, Frankfurt am Main and Leipzig 1998. 309 pages. ISBN 978-3-458-33919-9

Used edition

• Malwa. German by Irene Müller. P. 260–311 in: Maxim Gorki: Erzählungen. Third volume. 535 pages. Aufbau-Verlag, Berlin 1954

Web links

• The text
  • online at litmir.info (Russian)
  • online at e-reading.club (Russian)
  • online at maximgorkiy.narod.ru (Russian)
  • online at royallib.com (Russian)
• Malwa in the Gutenberg-DE project

Remarks

1. ↑ Grebenschtschikow Russian Гребенщиков
2. ↑ Malwa claims that she comes from Pavlish (Russian Павлиш ). That is in Serbia .
3. ↑ Maslo village, Simbirsk district, Nikolo-Lykowski district, Russian Симбирского уезда , деревня Мазло, Николо-Лыковской волости.

Individual evidence

1. ↑ Edition used, p. 531, last entry
2. ↑ Russian Zwei Barfüßler ( Memento of the original from March 12, 2016 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. 
3. ↑ Malwa in the Internet Movie Database (English)