Endnotes explained

What happens

Themes in this chapter

• Creative Transformation of Reality

  Note 29 references Sologub's philosophy of revealing the soul through external transformations, aiming to make the intimate universal.

• Revolution and Social Upheaval

  Notes reference political parties (Cadets, Social Democrats, Social Revolutionaries), the Black Hundred, and the 1905 revolution as background.

• Mysticism and the Supernatural

  Note 24 references the Greek Fates Aisa and Ananke as recurring symbols in Sologub's philosophy, representing chaos and necessity.

• Death and Resurrection

  Note 27 describes Queen Ortruda's death by suffocation in a volcanic eruption, with a parallel to her later existence as Elisaveta.

Characters to notice

• Trirodov

  Referenced in note 27 as Prince Tancred, consort of Queen Ortruda in a previous existence.

• Elisaveta

  Referenced in note 27 as Queen Ortruda of the United Isles in a previous existence.

• Peredonov

  Referenced in note 30 as an old acquaintance from The Little Demon, identified as Ardalyon Borisovitch.

• Prince Davidov

  Referenced in note 42 as a modern symbol of Christ or Christ's teachings, with name meaning 'son of Joseph' and 'of David'.

Key passages

• “This word, which is the Russian equivalent for Ham of the Bible, describes a man in a state of serfdom. Since the abolition of serfdom in Russia, it has come to define the plebeian; and is a sort of personification of the rabble.”

  The Russian term 'Kham' originally referred to a serf, but after serfdom was abolished, it came to mean a commoner or member of the lower classes, often used to represent the mob.

  Explanation of the term 'Kham' and its evolution after the abolition of serfdom.

• “Bossiak literally means 'a barefooted one,' but may be more freely translated a 'tramp.' This type has come very much into vogue since Gorky has put him into his stories.”

  The word 'Bossiak' literally means 'barefooted' but is often translated as 'tramp,' a character type popularized by the writer Gorky.

  Definition of 'Bossiak' and its literary association with Gorky.

• “The second of the novels under the general head of 'The Created Legend' deals with the previous existence of Elisaveta when she was the Queen Ortruda of the United Isles in the Mediterranean, and her consort was Prince Tancred, now Trirodov. She died from suffocation in a volcanic eruption, after a vain effort to help her people.”

  In the second novel of 'The Created Legend' series, Elisaveta is revealed to have been Queen Ortruda in a past life, ruling the United Isles with her husband Prince Tancred (now Trirodov). She died by suffocation during a volcanic eruption while trying to aid her subjects.

  Explanation of the parallel between Elisaveta's past life as Queen Ortruda and the 1905 Russian Revolution.

• “In a poem in prose which serves as an introduction to his Complete Works, Sologub says: 'Born not the first time, and not the first to complete a circle of external transformations, I simply and calmly reveal my soul. I reveal it in the hope that the intimate part of me shall become the universal.'”

  Sologub writes in his introduction that he has been born many times and undergone many transformations, and he calmly reveals his soul with the hope that his personal experiences will resonate universally.

  Sologub's philosophy of transformation and the universalization of the intimate self.

• “There is an evident effort here to identify 'Immanuel Osipovitch Davidov' as a modern symbol of Christ, or more properly of Christ's teachings. 'Osipovitch' means the 'son of Joseph'; 'Davidov,' 'of David.'”

  The name 'Immanuel Osipovitch Davidov' is intended to symbolize Christ or Christian teachings, as 'Osipovitch' means 'son of Joseph' and 'Davidov' means 'of David.'

  Explanation of the symbolic meaning behind the character's name.