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"I lived a strange life of my characters…": "I" and "The Other" in the early lyrics of A.N. Vertinsky // Tomsk State Pedagogical University Bulletin. 2025. Issue 4 (240). P. 95-104

The work of A.N. Vertinsky, which became an important milestone in the development of mass art of the twentieth century and influenced the development of the genre of the author's song, attracted the attention of literary scholars only recently, which is why many aspects of the artist’s poetic heritage remain unexplored. The problem of the relationship between the "I" and the "Other" deserves special attention, conditioned by the very subjective organization of the works of the early period. In his early work (1915-1918), two artistic strategies that are fundamentally important for understanding the author’s concept are realized: interest in role-playing and autopsychological lyrics. In view of this, the purpose of this work was to consider the subjective sphere of Vertinsky’s works in the aspect of the correlation of the categories of "I" and "Other". The relevance of the study is due to the lack of works aimed at studying the aspect of creativity highlighted in this article. The implicitly revealed motive of compassion, which determines the value of the feeling of the "Other", its human beginning, becomes central to the role-playing lyrics. The role is an attempt by the author to build a dialogue with the "Other", giving a feeling of involvement, and the "little" people become the exponents of the feeling of pain and grief, which emphasizes the universal nature of the feeling of pain, equalizing all people in the face of being. Among other things, the bearers of feelings in Vertinsky’s artistic universe are animals, also acting as the "Other"; this is the author's attempt to embrace being in all its manifestations. Along with this, there are poems in which a lyrical subject is brought out, appearing as an exponent of the author's "I". The main attitude in these texts is the desire to realize oneself as a Poet, on the one hand, included in the world of his heroes, and on the other hand, capable of "fixing" the value of their experiences in the cultural space with the Word. Such a view of Vertinsky’s work allows us to see the origins of the popularity of the chansonnier's work both within his native country and among foreign audiences during his emigration.

Keywords: Vertinsky, "I", "Other", role-playing lyrics, compassion, poem