Page 425 - Актуальные проблемы обучения русскому языку XIII

And he that was dead sat up, and began to speak. And He delivered him to his mother»
(Luke, 7: 14–15). The semantic convergence between death and sleep is also provided in the
Gospel. We have in mind the raising of Jairus’ daughter: «And all wept, and bewailed her:
but He said, Weep not; she is not dead, but sleepeth. And they laughed Him to scorn,
knowing that she was dead» (Luke 8: 52–53). Being resurrected, the laymen see death as a
kind of sleep, but also for the initiated it ceases to be the same irreversible death. Let’s note
that the Russian word deva (meaning maiden) is used in the Pushkin’s passage on
resurrection. This word is of Church Slavonic origin and so may be conceived as stylistic
allusion to the Gospel (where the similar word devitsa [meaning maid] is used). Among the
numerous appellations of the Princess in the fairy tale, the word deva (maiden) is applied
only one more time, but as folkloric one: the Moon replies «No, I have not seen the maiden»
(or, literally, «I have not seen the beautiful maiden», ne vidal ya devy krasnoy). The
permanent epithet krasnaya (meaning beautiful) and the folkloric and poetical genre of the
«element» conjuration speak for themselves, i.e. determine that the word deva is used here
in quite another context and, accordingly, has another stylistic function.
Let’s return to the scene of resurrection provided in the Pushkin’s fairy tale. This
scene is reminiscent of the Gospel, since «facts» and immediate responses on them are
primarily rendered here: «And it (the coffin. – S.V.) broke», «The maiden straight / Came to
life», «As she set her bed see-sawing / Said», «Down she stepped from out the coffin…», «O
the sighing and the sobbing!». Let’s consider the last passage; in the Russian original there is
the following line: Ah!.. i zarydali oba (literally: «Ah!.. And the both of them burst into
tears»). It should be noted that the previous version was another: vozrydali oba. This version
has the same meaning, but is different in relation to style. The form vozrydali is literary and
poetical, and, accordingly, does not allow to separate the picture from its valuation. The
resurrection scene is also interesting because of some other language features. In particular,
the word ozhila («came to life») is significant (it is used in the following context: Deva vdrug
/ Ozhila, «The maiden straight / Came to life»). This word could mean «resurrection» (it is
treated so by the «Dictionary of A.S. Pushkin’s Language») or «restoration of vital powers»
(«to be vigorous again»), as it is the case with «Ruslan and Lyudmila». Furthermore, the
word ozhila could mean «awakening» as well. In this case, the word vdrug («straight» or,
more literally, «all of a sudden») conveys Yelisey’s state of mind (unexpectedness) as well as
the fact that things happen very quickly. Also note that semantic importance of the word
ozhila is emphasized through the enjambement device (Deva vdrug / Ozhila).
A complicated artistic and semantic opposition between death and life is rendered in
the fairy tale. Let’s give some other examples: «the dead princess», «Scared to death <…>
Loud she pleaded: “Spare my life!”», «God in heaven strike me dead», «When wolves arrive
/ Let them eat the girl alive», «And the quicker she shall die!» and others. This opposition
was mainly rendered by the poet in the context of folkloric poetry stylization or, partially, in
the framework of Christian myth. Consequently, the wedding (i.e. the result of characters’
fidelity and feelings) becomes especially meaningful and can’t be regarded as an ordinary
happy end (it should be noted that the Russian original presupposes exactly church
ceremony, not just wedding, though the latter one is also mentioned at the very end of the
fairy tale).
So, the «sleeping beauty» plot is rendered by Charles Perrault as a courtly one.
Turning to this fairy plot, the Brothers Grimm find artistic «balance» between the magic and
human or everyday motivations of certain actions. V.A. Zhukovsky provides only a cursory
rendering of the imagery, but tries to picture his characters as individuals in the context of
this fairy-tale plot; at the same time, the poet focuses on artistic investigation of the magic.

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