Prohvet Maltsvet

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Prohvet Maltsvet ( The Prophet Maltsvet ) is the title of a novel by the Estonian writer Eduard Vilde (1865–1933). It was published in the Estonian-language original in 1908 .

Appear

Eduard Vilde planned his novel, like the two previous ones, as a sequel to the feature section of a newspaper, this time the Uudised ('News'), of which he had been an editor since the summer of 1904. At the beginning of September 1904, Vilde had advertised in the newspaper asking for material to be sent to him on emigration to the Crimea (see below), whereupon he received numerous letters. In addition, he himself traveled to Crimea in the fall of that year, which is why the research dragged on. Originally the novel was to appear from January 1905, but now the printing of the first delivery was postponed to April 1 (14) 1905. In the features section of the newspaper, which was published three times a week at the time, only about two-fifths of the novel could appear because it was in It was closed on January 1st, 1906 as a result of the revolution and Vilde had to move abroad.

As a result, work on the novel was interrupted for about a year. It was only in Copenhagen , where Vilde had fled after stopping off in Switzerland and Helsinki in the autumn of 1906 , that he was able to continue work. He had signed a contract with the publisher Gustav Pihlakas, on the basis of which Vilde received a fee of 40 rubles for each finished printed sheet that he immediately sent to the printing works in Tallinn . Not least because of this, the novel became so extensive, because Vilde "wrote" his daily bread with it, as the author himself says in the afterword to the second edition.

The first edition of the novel was then published in 1908 (the cover is incorrectly printed in 1906) by Pihlakas in Tallinn and comprised 740 pages. New editions followed in 1929, 1951, 1954 and 1985.

Historical background

Mid-19th century, in Estonia the serfdom indeed been canceled (unlike the rest of the Russian empire ), but the rural population lived in poverty and was economically dependent on the landlords. Hence emigration movements arose, as many peasants hoped for a better future outside the reach of the Baltic German nobility. In 1855 the first group of Estonians received permission to settle in Samara . At the same time, the religious background plays an important role. In addition to the ruling Lutheran church (the upper class), a Christian revival movement like the Moravians , who were quite important in Estonia, flourished . The Moravians were comparatively recognized, and their following extended to the Baltic German upper class.

Much more radical, on the other hand, was the revival movement of Juhan Leinberg , who named himself “Prophet Maltsvet” and soon came into conflict with the church and the authorities. In 1860 he advocated emigration to the Crimea among his supporters, for which they should be picked up by a “white ship” in Tallinn. In fact, in 1861, a number of families were waiting for this ship on the outskirts of Lasnamäe , but it did not arrive. They then went on foot to the Crimea, where various Estonian settlements emerged from 1861. At the end of the 19th century, over 2,000 Estonians were still living there.

action

In a wide-ranging panorama from the start, Vilde first describes in detail the people and families at the center. Above all, these are poor Estonian farmers who, in their hopeless situation, turn to Juhan Leinberg's revival movement. He himself also appears as the central actor in the novel, which emphasizes the documentary features of the book. In addition, a number of fictional people appear, some of whom are explicitly against the religious fanaticism of the "Maltsvetians". The central figure here is Taavet Lõhmus, who, as a skilled and hard-working farmer, does not believe in bigotry. However, he also shows human weaknesses in that he has a penchant for alcohol and sometimes even steals. He is supported by his hunchbacked friend Aadu Vikerpuur, who cheers the people up with ventriloquism.

Taavet's wife Anu, on the other hand, completely subordinates herself to the religious principles of her religiously strict father and gradually succumbs to religious fanaticism. This includes almost incessant prayer, avoiding colored clothes, loose hair, no consumption of pork, regular Bible reading and the like. Her marriage to Taavet ultimately threatens to perish, especially since she whistles at the estate after he has stolen something again. As a result, he has to go to jail, and when he returns from there after a while, his father-in-law won't let him into the house. At the same time Anu's fun-loving sister, Elts, escaped her pious parents' house by taking a job as a housemaid on the estate. There she is increasingly fulfilling the role of the lover of the young landlord - and soon also of the old landlord. When she becomes pregnant and then logically rejected by the gentlemen, Aadu Vikerpuur takes care of her and marries her.

At the same time, the situation of the rural population is described, who see the revival movement as their last resort. Both the actions of the authorities against Juhan Leinberg and the rebellion of the farmers against the arbitrariness of the landlords are discussed in detail. The corporal punishment of peasants, which was used in Estonia into the 20th century, is poignantly described, even for minor offenses. The documentary character of the novel is emphasized by the fact that the author himself refers in a footnote to his two other novels, Mahtra sõda (1902) and Kui Anija mehed Tallinnas käisid (1903), and extensively quotes from contemporary reports in the Postimees newspaper . The long, hard-hitting hike to the Crimea and the efforts to buy a good there are also presented in detail. Once again, fiction and historical truth are interwoven when the financial commitment (and its failure) of the painter Johann Köler is described.

In the end, Taavet, who despite everything still loves his wife, and Anu emigrate, but find disappointing conditions in the Crimea. Anu becomes increasingly doubtful and leaves the fanatical faith of the Malsvetians.

Meaning and reception

The novel ties in with Vilde's 1896 novel Külmale maale ('After cold land'), with which critical realism prevailed in Estonian literature. Here, too, the impoverished rural population is at the center, only the plot is set half a century earlier, which is why he forms the so-called historical trilogy by Eduard Vilde together with the two previous novels Mahtra sõda (1902) and Kui Anija mehed Tallinnas käisid (1903) . More striking than with these two is the documentary aspect, which is why the novel became a school reading, as the author notes in the afterword to the second edition.

Quotes

"Where the eye of the estate discovered something that looked like labor, leisure time or modest prosperity, a new burden was imposed in the form of new obligations and the farmer was left with only despair."

“God might be mighty, the tsar might be mighty, but most powerful was the landlord. God could be gracious, the tsar could have mercy, but the landlord was strict. The peasant did not see God's power and the power of the tsar, but he saw the power of the landlord every day. He has seen it for as long as he could remember, he had felt it from generation to generation. "

"Faith showed once again how closely it is related to the stomach, how much it arises from this evil material world."

Adaptations and translations into other languages

  • In 1940 a dramatization for the stage by IP Ukukivi was published: Valge laev: Näidend neljas vaatuses. (Ed. Vilde romaani "Prohvet Maltsvet" ainetel). Tallinn: Autorikaitse Ühing 1940. 78 pp.

A translation into German is not yet available, the novel has been published in the following languages:

  • Latvian: Pravietis Maltsvets . Trad. E. Lesinš. Riga: Latvijas valsts izdevnieciba 1962. 608 pp.
  • Russian: Пророк Малтсвет . Перевод с эстонского: Б. Лийвак и Т. Маркович; под редакцией М. Кулишовой; послесловие: Ю. Кяосаар; иллюстратор: Э. Окас. Таллин: Эстонское государственное издательство 1952. 702 pp.

literature

  • Juhan Käosaar: Gustav Maltsi käsikiri “Ajalugu Maltsveti usust ja Krimmi rändamisest”, in: Keel ja Kirjandus 2/1961, pp. 75–87.
  • Herbert Salu : Eduard Vilden historialliset romaanit. Summary: Eduard Vilde's historical novels. Helsinki: Suomalaisen Kirjallisuuden Seura 1964. 314 p. (SKS Toimituksia 277)
  • Karl Mihkla: Eduard Vilde elu ja looming. Tallinn: Eesti Raamat 1972, pp. 290-304.
  • Villem Alttoa: Eduard Vilde sõnameistrina. Tallinn: Eesti Raamat 1973, pp. 154-254.
  • Riho Saard: Vilde kui maltsvetluse Konstrueerija, in: Keel ja Kirjandus 5/2015, pp. 333-350.

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Juhan Käosaar: Gustav Maltsi käsikiri "Ajalugu Maltsveti usust ja Krimmi rändamisest", in: Keel ja Kirjandus 2/1961, p. 75.
  2. ^ [1] (Estonian), first page of the first printing.
  3. ↑ Karl Mihkla: Eduard Vilde elu ja looming. Tallinn: Eesti Raamat 1972, p. 290.
  4. ↑ Quoted here from the fifth edition: Eduard Vilde: Prohvet Maltsvet. Tallinn: Eesti Raamat 1985, pp. 506-507.
  5. ↑ Karl Mihkla: Eduard Vilde elu ja looming. Tallinn: Eesti Raamat 1972, p. 291.
  6. ↑ Eesti A&O. Tallinn: Eesti Entsüklopeediakirjastus 1993, p. 108.
  7. ↑ See Voldemar Ilja: Vennastekoguduse (herrnhutluse) ajalugu Eestimaal (Põhja-Eesti) 1730–1743. Summary: The history of the Brethren (Herrnhutertum) in Estonia (Northern Estonia) 1730–1743. Helsinki: Suomen kirkkohistoriallinen seura 1995, and other titles by the author.
  8. ↑ Eesti A&O. Tallinn: Eesti Entsüklopeediakirastus 1993, p. 109.
  9. ↑ Quoted here from the fifth edition: Eduard Vilde: Prohvet Maltsvet. Tallinn: Eesti Raamat 1985, pp. 167-168.
  10. ↑ Cornelius Hasselblatt : History of Estonian Literature. From the beginning to the present. Berlin, New York: Walter de Gruyter 2006, p. 337.
  11. ↑ Quoted here from the fifth edition: Eduard Vilde: Prohvet Maltsvet. Tallinn: Eesti Raamat 1985, p. 507.
  12. ↑ Quoted here from the fifth edition: Eduard Vilde: Prohvet Maltsvet. Tallinn: Eesti Raamat 1985, p. 34.
  13. ↑ Quoted here from the fifth edition: Eduard Vilde: Prohvet Maltsvet. Tallinn: Eesti Raamat 1985, p. 79.
  14. ↑ Quoted here from the fifth edition: Eduard Vilde: Prohvet Maltsvet. Tallinn: Eesti Raamat 1985, p. 450.