SERGEI YESENIN AND FOLKLORE: "RITUAL CHAOS" IN THE POEM "ANNA SNEGINA"
This article discusses Sergei Yesenin's poem “Anna Snegina” in the context of folk tradition. The images of the main characters are revealed in close connection with folklore, in particular with the tradition of buffoonery. The ritual pattern of the poem is linked to archetypal models. This paper pays much attention to the archetypes of Moon and Path, as well as considers colour semantics in the poem. The lunar myth is reflected both in the early and later works by Yesenin: in his poems “Anna Snegina” and “The Black Man”, which in the context of folk tradition and ritual reality are perceived as a whole. Historical poetics allows us to take a new look at Yesenin's texts in terms of inner interpretation of folk tradition. This issue has been studied by the scholar V.A. Smirnov. Turning to folk tradition, we can clarify the issue of imagery and poetics of this poem. The images of the poet and his beloved Anna are connected not only with the love line in the poem, but also with the philosophical problem of the hero's work to improve himself: his memories are of sacred, ritual nature. Thus, his Path is being formed, which archetypal components point to as well. The persona is led to the village to meet Anna by Pron, whose image is also associated with folk tradition, namely the clown archetype, though trickster qualities are somewhat transformed in his image. A similar ritual situation we can find in the poem “Land of Scoundrels” with its travesty complex and Moon archetype important for Yesenin's artistic world.