Jump to content

Alexander Volkov (writer): Difference between revisions

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Browse history interactively
← Previous editNext edit →
Content deleted Content added
VisualWikitext
(43 intermediate revisions by 24 users not shown)
Line 1: Line 1:
{{Short description|Soviet writer}}
{{For|other people named Alexander Volkov|Alexander Volkov (disambiguation)}}
{{For|other people named Alexander Volkov|Alexander Volkov (disambiguation)}}
{{Family name hatnote|Melentyevich|[[Volkov (surname)|Volkov]]|lang=Eastern Slavic}}
{{Infobox writer <!-- for more information see [[:Template:Infobox writer/doc]] -->
{{Infobox writer <!-- for more information see [[:Template:Infobox writer/doc]] -->
| name = Alexander Volkov
| name = Alexander Volkov
| image = Александр Волков в 1917 году.jpg
| image = A M Volkov.gif
| imagesize = 200px
| imagesize = 200px
| caption =
| caption = Russian writer Alexander Melentyevich Volkov, 1914
| birth_name = Alexander Melentyevich Volkov
| birth_name = Alexander Melentyevich Volkov
| birth_date = {{birth date|1891|6|14}}
| birth_date = {{birth date|1891|6|14|df=y}}
| birth_place = [[Ust-Kamenogorsk]], [[Semipalatinsk Oblast, Russia|Semipalatinsk Oblast]], [[Russian Empire]]
| birth_place = [[Oskemen|Ust-Kamenogorsk]], [[Semipalatinsk Oblast, Russia|Semipalatinsk Oblast]], [[Russian Empire]]
| death_date = {{death date and age|1977|7|3|1891|6|14}}
| death_date = {{death date and age|1977|7|3|1891|6|14|df=y}}
| death_place = [[Moscow]], [[Soviet Union]]
| death_place = [[Moscow]], [[Soviet Union]]
}}
}}
'''Alexander Melentyevich Volkov''' ({{lang-ru|Александр Мелентьевич Волков}} {{IPA-ru|ɐlʲɪˈksandr mʲɪˈlʲenʲtʲɪvʲɪtɕ ˈvoɫkəf|}}; June 14, 1891 &ndash; July 3, 1977) was a [[Soviet Union|Soviet]] [[novelist]], [[playwright]], university lecturer. Аuthor of novels, short stories, plays and poems for children, mostly remembered for Magic Land series of books based on [[L. Frank Baum]]'s ''[[The Wonderful Wizard of Oz]]''.
'''Alexander Melentyevich Volkov''' ({{lang-ru|Александр Мелентьевич Волков}} {{IPA-ru|ɐlʲɪkˈsandr mʲɪˈlʲenʲtʲjɪvʲɪtɕ ˈvolkəf|}}; 14 June 1891 &ndash; 3 July 1977) was a [[Soviet Union|Soviet]] [[novelist]], [[playwright]], university lecturer. He was an author of novels, short stories, plays and poems for children, mostly remembered for the ''Magic Land'' series of books, based on [[L. Frank Baum]]'s ''[[The Wonderful Wizard of Oz]]''.


== Biography ==
== Biography ==
Volkov was born in [[Ust-Kamenogorsk]], [[Semipalatinsk Oblast, Russia|Semipalatinsk Oblast]], [[Russian Empire]] (now Oskemen, [[Kazakhstan]]). At the age of 12 he graduated from the Ust-Kamenogorsk town school as top student, where he later began his pedagogical activity.
Volkov was born in [[Ust-Kamenogorsk]], [[Semipalatinsk Oblast, Russia|Semipalatinsk Oblast]], [[Russian Empire]] (now Oskemen, [[Kazakhstan]]). At the age of 12 he graduated from the Ust-Kamenogorsk town school as valedictorian, where he would later teach. In 1907 he entered the [[Tomsk State Pedagogical University|Tomsk Teachers Institute]]. In 1909 he graduated with right to teach all subjects of the school curriculum, except for the [[Law of God]].


He began to work as a teacher in Ust-Kamenogorsk. Starting in 1910, he worked as a mathematics teacher in the village of Kolyvan. In the 1920s he moved to [[Yaroslavl]], where he worked as a school principal. He graduated in absentia from the mathematical faculty of the [[Yaroslavl State Pedagogical University|Yaroslavl Pedagogical Institute]].
In 1907 he entered the [[Tomsk State Pedagogical University|Tomsk Teachers Institute]]. In 1909 he graduated from it with right to teach all subjects of the school curriculum, except for the [[Law of God]].


In 1929 he moved to Moscow, where he worked as the [[head teacher]] of the [[rabfak]]. He completed coursework and passed the external examinations at the Physics and Mathematics Faculty of [[Moscow University]] in seven months.
⚫
The first of these books, ''[[The Wizard of the Emerald City]]'',<ref>Drew, Bernard A. (2010). [https://books.google.com/books?id=c91Vrl20Y4sC&pg=PA197 ''Literary Afterlife: The Posthumous Continuations of 325 Authors' Fictional Characters''], p. 197. McFarland & Company, Inc.</ref> is a loose translation of the first Oz book, with chapters added, altered, or omitted, some names changed (for example, Dorothy becomes "Ellie", Oz is renamed "Magic Land", and Toto can talk when in Magic Land), and several characters given personal names instead of generic ones. Baum's name is mentioned in the first of Volkov books but the Soviet Union paid no royalties to the Baum estate. First published in 1939 in the [[Soviet Union]], the book became quite popular; and in the 1960s Volkov also wrote his own sequels to the story. He liberally borrowed from some of the originals, such as using the "Powder of Life" idea from ''[[The Marvelous Land of Oz]]'', but mostly created a divergent universe. From 1963 to 1970, four more books in the series were published, with the sixth and final story published posthumously in 1982. Other authors such as Yuri Kuznetsov, Sergei Sukhinov, and Leonid Vladimirsky (Volkov's original illustrator) have recently written additional sequels in Russian, creating in effect an alternative series of [[The Oz books|Oz books]].

Starting in 1931 he worked as teacher, and later as [[Docent]] of the Department of Higher Mathematics of the Moscow Institute of Non-Ferrous Metals and Gold.

== Writings ==
⚫
=== Magic Land series ===
⚫
The first of these books, ''[[The Wizard of the Emerald City]]'' ({{lang-ru|Волшебник Изумрудного города}}),<ref>Drew, Bernard A. (2010). [https://books.google.com/books?id=c91Vrl20Y4sC&pg=PA197 ''Literary Afterlife: The Posthumous Continuations of 325 Authors' Fictional Characters''], p. 197. McFarland & Company, Inc.</ref> is a loose translation of the first Oz book, with chapters added, altered, or omitted, and some names changed (for example, Dorothy becomes "Ellie", Oz is renamed "Magic Land", and Toto can talk when in Magic Land), and several characters given personal names instead of generic ones.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Haber |first1=Erika |title=Oz Behind the Iron Curtain |date=2017 |publisher=University Press of Mississippi |url=https://archive.org/details/ozbehindironcurt0000habe/page/2/mode/2up |access-date=4 March 2024}}</ref> Baum's name is mentioned in the first of Volkov's books, but the publisher paid no royalties to the Baum estate. First published in 1939 in the [[Soviet Union]], the book became quite popular;<ref>[http://chitaem-vmeste.ru/reviews/articles/kak-sozdavalsya-izumrudnyj-gorod We read together (Читаем вместе)] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200125060142/http://chitaem-vmeste.ru/reviews/articles/kak-sozdavalsya-izumrudnyj-gorod |date=2020-01-25 }} How the Emerald City was created.(Как создавался Изумрудный город)</ref> and in the 1960s Volkov also wrote his own sequels to the story. He liberally borrowed from some of the originals, such as using the "Powder of Life" idea from ''[[The Marvelous Land of Oz]]'', but mostly created a divergent universe. From 1963 to 1970, four more books in the series were published, with the sixth and final story published posthumously in 1982.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Simpson |first1=Paul |title=A Brief Guide to Oz |date=2013 |publisher=Constable & Robinson Ltd |isbn=978-1-47210-988-0 |pages=212–213 |url=https://archive.org/details/briefguidetooz0000simp/page/212/mode/2up |access-date=10 February 2024}}</ref> Other authors such as Yuri Kuznetsov, Sergei Sukhinov, and Leonid Vladimirsky (Volkov's original illustrator) have recently written additional sequels in Russian, creating in effect an alternative series of [[The Oz books|Oz books]].


The context and situations found in the Volkov version are notably different from the original Baum version in their political tones. The situations, while still maintaining a childlike clarity of good versus evil, often involve the characters encountering very mature political and ethical decisions. The heroes are repeatedly called upon to defend Magic Land against invasions or topple feudalistic or aristocratic governments to free the populace. Both themes are often found in Soviet sci-fi and adventure literature (see the [[Arkady and Boris Strugatsky|Strugatsky brothers]]' novels ''[[Hard to be a God]]'' and ''[[Prisoners of Power|Inhabited Island]]'').
The context and situations found in the Volkov version are notably different from the original Baum version in their political tones. The situations, while still maintaining a childlike clarity of good versus evil, often involve the characters encountering very mature political and ethical decisions. The heroes are repeatedly called upon to defend Magic Land against invasions or topple feudalistic or aristocratic governments to free the populace. Both themes are often found in Soviet sci-fi and adventure literature (see the [[Arkady and Boris Strugatsky|Strugatsky brothers]]' novels ''[[Hard to be a God]]'' and ''[[Prisoners of Power|Inhabited Island]]'').


Volkov had faith in the omnipotence of the man-made technique, so the wizardry of his heroes was usually won with the help of various technical inventions (a cannon designed by Charly Black, a mechanical drill, and Tilly-Willy; a super-robot).
⚫
Volkov's ''Magic Land'' series was translated into many languages and was popular with children all over the [[Eastern bloc]]. Volkov's version of Oz seems to be better known than Baum's in some countries, for example in China, in Germany (especially former [[East Germany]]), and also in [[Arab world|Arab countries]] such as [[Syria]]. In Germany, one author has written his own set of sequels to Volkov's books. The books in the series have been translated into English — or retranslated, in the case of the first book — by Peter L. Blystone, and were published by Red Branch Press in three volumes (two books a volume) in 1991 (revised edition 2010), 1993, and 2007.

⚫
Volkov's ''Magic Land'' series was translated into many languages and was popular with children all over the [[Eastern bloc]]. Volkov's version of Oz seems to be better known than Baum's in some countries, for example in [[China]], in Germany (especially former [[East Germany]]), and also in [[Arab world|Arab countries]] such as [[Syria]]. In Germany, two authors have written their own set of sequels to Volkov's books.

The books in the series have been translated into English by Peter L. Blystone, and were published by Red Branch Press in three volumes (two books per volume) in 1991, 1993, and 2007. A revised edition of the first two-book volume was published in 2010.<ref>Volkov, Alexander Melentyevich, translation by Peter L. Blystone. ''Tales of Magic Land 1'' (2nd revised edition). Red Branch Press, 2010. {{ISBN|978-0-557-44825-8}}</ref>


==Bibliography==
⚫
==Volkov's Magic-Land books==
=== Magic Land books ===
*''[[The Wizard of the Emerald City]]'' (Волшебник Изумрудного города, 1939)
*''[[The Wizard of the Emerald City]]'' (Волшебник Изумрудного города, 1939)
*''[[Urfin Joos and his Wooden Soldiers]]'' (Урфин Джюс и его деревянные солдаты, 1963)
*''[[Urfin Joos and his Wooden Soldiers]]'' (Урфин Джюс и его деревянные солдаты, 1963)
Line 32: Line 45:
*''[[The Secret of the Deserted Castle]]'' (Тайна заброшенного замка, 1975, published in 1982)
*''[[The Secret of the Deserted Castle]]'' (Тайна заброшенного замка, 1975, published in 1982)


== Other books ==
=== Other books ===
*''Wonderful balloon (The first aeronaut)'' (1940)
*''Wonderful balloon (The first aeronaut)'' (1940)
*''The Two Brothers'' (1950, rewritten in 1961)
*''The Two Brothers'' (1950, rewritten in 1961)
*''The Architects'' (1954)
*''The Architects'' (1954)
*''Astern trace'' (1960)
*''Astern trace'' (1960)
*''The Wandering'' (1963)
*''The Wandering'' (1963) (about childhood and youth of [[Giordano Bruno]])
*''Prisoner of Zargrad'' (1969)
*''Prisoner of Zargrad'' (1969)
*''Land and Sky'' (1972)
*''Land and Sky'' (1972)


==References==
== References ==
{{Reflist}}
{{Reflist}}


Line 51: Line 64:
[[Category:1891 births]]
[[Category:1891 births]]
[[Category:1977 deaths]]
[[Category:1977 deaths]]
⚫
[[Category:20th-century Russian novelists]]
[[Category:20th-century Russian male writers]]
[[Category:Russian children's writers]]
[[Category:Russian children's writers]]
[[Category:Soviet children's writers]]
[[Category:Soviet children's writers]]
[[Category:Russian fantasy writers]]
[[Category:Soviet fantasy writers]]
[[Category:Russian science fiction writers]]
[[Category:Soviet science fiction writers]]
[[Category:Russian male novelists]]
[[Category:Russian male novelists]]
[[Category:Soviet novelists]]
[[Category:Soviet novelists]]
[[Category:Soviet male writers]]
[[Category:Soviet male writers]]
⚫
[[Category:20th-century male writers]]
[[Category:Russian historical novelists]]
[[Category:Russian historical novelists]]
[[Category:Tomsk State Pedagogical University alumni]]
[[Category:Tomsk State Pedagogical University alumni]]

Revision as of 21:25, 9 April 2024

For other people named Alexander Volkov, see Alexander Volkov (disambiguation).
In this name that follows Eastern Slavic naming customs, the patronymic is Melentyevich and the family name is Volkov.
Alexander Volkov
Russian writer Alexander Melentyevich Volkov, 1914
Russian writer Alexander Melentyevich Volkov, 1914
BornAlexander Melentyevich Volkov
(1891-06-14)14 June 1891
Ust-Kamenogorsk, Semipalatinsk Oblast, Russian Empire
Died3 July 1977(1977-07-03) (aged 86)
Moscow, Soviet Union

Alexander Melentyevich Volkov (Russian: Александр Мелентьевич Волков [ɐlʲɪkˈsandr mʲɪˈlʲenʲtʲjɪvʲɪtɕ ˈvolkəf]; 14 June 1891 – 3 July 1977) was a Soviet novelist, playwright, university lecturer. He was an author of novels, short stories, plays and poems for children, mostly remembered for the Magic Land series of books, based on L. Frank Baum's The Wonderful Wizard of Oz.

Biography

Volkov was born in Ust-Kamenogorsk, Semipalatinsk Oblast, Russian Empire (now Oskemen, Kazakhstan). At the age of 12 he graduated from the Ust-Kamenogorsk town school as valedictorian, where he would later teach. In 1907 he entered the Tomsk Teachers Institute. In 1909 he graduated with right to teach all subjects of the school curriculum, except for the Law of God.

He began to work as a teacher in Ust-Kamenogorsk. Starting in 1910, he worked as a mathematics teacher in the village of Kolyvan. In the 1920s he moved to Yaroslavl, where he worked as a school principal. He graduated in absentia from the mathematical faculty of the Yaroslavl Pedagogical Institute.

In 1929 he moved to Moscow, where he worked as the head teacher of the rabfak. He completed coursework and passed the external examinations at the Physics and Mathematics Faculty of Moscow University in seven months.

Starting in 1931 he worked as teacher, and later as Docent of the Department of Higher Mathematics of the Moscow Institute of Non-Ferrous Metals and Gold.

Writings

Magic Land series

The first of these books, The Wizard of the Emerald City (Russian: Волшебник Изумрудного города),[1] is a loose translation of the first Oz book, with chapters added, altered, or omitted, and some names changed (for example, Dorothy becomes "Ellie", Oz is renamed "Magic Land", and Toto can talk when in Magic Land), and several characters given personal names instead of generic ones.[2] Baum's name is mentioned in the first of Volkov's books, but the publisher paid no royalties to the Baum estate. First published in 1939 in the Soviet Union, the book became quite popular;[3] and in the 1960s Volkov also wrote his own sequels to the story. He liberally borrowed from some of the originals, such as using the "Powder of Life" idea from The Marvelous Land of Oz, but mostly created a divergent universe. From 1963 to 1970, four more books in the series were published, with the sixth and final story published posthumously in 1982.[4] Other authors such as Yuri Kuznetsov, Sergei Sukhinov, and Leonid Vladimirsky (Volkov's original illustrator) have recently written additional sequels in Russian, creating in effect an alternative series of Oz books.

The context and situations found in the Volkov version are notably different from the original Baum version in their political tones. The situations, while still maintaining a childlike clarity of good versus evil, often involve the characters encountering very mature political and ethical decisions. The heroes are repeatedly called upon to defend Magic Land against invasions or topple feudalistic or aristocratic governments to free the populace. Both themes are often found in Soviet sci-fi and adventure literature (see the Strugatsky brothers' novels Hard to be a God and Inhabited Island).

Volkov had faith in the omnipotence of the man-made technique, so the wizardry of his heroes was usually won with the help of various technical inventions (a cannon designed by Charly Black, a mechanical drill, and Tilly-Willy; a super-robot).

Volkov's Magic Land series was translated into many languages and was popular with children all over the Eastern bloc. Volkov's version of Oz seems to be better known than Baum's in some countries, for example in China, in Germany (especially former East Germany), and also in Arab countries such as Syria. In Germany, two authors have written their own set of sequels to Volkov's books.

The books in the series have been translated into English by Peter L. Blystone, and were published by Red Branch Press in three volumes (two books per volume) in 1991, 1993, and 2007. A revised edition of the first two-book volume was published in 2010.[5]

Bibliography

Magic Land books

Other books

  • Wonderful balloon (The first aeronaut) (1940)
  • The Two Brothers (1950, rewritten in 1961)
  • The Architects (1954)
  • Astern trace (1960)
  • The Wandering (1963) (about childhood and youth of Giordano Bruno)
  • Prisoner of Zargrad (1969)
  • Land and Sky (1972)

References

  1. ^ Drew, Bernard A. (2010). Literary Afterlife: The Posthumous Continuations of 325 Authors' Fictional Characters, p. 197. McFarland & Company, Inc.
  2. ^ Haber, Erika (2017). Oz Behind the Iron Curtain. University Press of Mississippi. Retrieved 4 March 2024.
  3. ^ We read together (Читаем вместе) Archived 2020-01-25 at the Wayback Machine How the Emerald City was created.(Как создавался Изумрудный город)
  4. ^ Simpson, Paul (2013). A Brief Guide to Oz. Constable & Robinson Ltd. pp. 212–213. ISBN 978-1-47210-988-0. Retrieved 10 February 2024.
  5. ^ Volkov, Alexander Melentyevich, translation by Peter L. Blystone. Tales of Magic Land 1 (2nd revised edition). Red Branch Press, 2010. ISBN 978-0-557-44825-8
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Alexander_Volkov_(writer)&oldid=1218124510"