March 1917

Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn, Marian Schwartz

Description

Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn's March 1917, Book 2, covers three days of the February Revolution when the nation unraveled, leading to the Bolshevik takeover eight months later.

The Red Wheel is Nobel Prize–winner Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn's multivolume epic work about the Russian Revolution. He spent decades writing about just four of the most important periods, or "nodes.” This is the first time that the monumental March 1917—the third node—has been translated into English. It tells the story of the Russian Revolution itself, during which the Imperial government melts in the face of the mob, and the giants of the opposition also prove incapable of controlling the course of events.

The action of Book 2 (of four) of March 1917 is set during March 13–15, 1917, the Russian Revolution's turbulent second week. The revolution has already won inside the capital, Petrograd. News of the revolution flashes across all Russia through the telegraph system of the Ministry of Roads and Railways. But this is wartime, and the real power is with the army. At Emperor Nikolai II’s order, the Supreme Command sends troops to suppress the revolution in Petrograd. Meanwhile, victory speeches ring out at Petrograd's Tauride Palace. Inside, two parallel power structures emerge: the Provisional Government and the Executive Committee of the Petrograd Soviet of Workers' and Soldiers’ Deputies, which sends out its famous "Order No. 1," presaging the destruction of the army. The troops sent to suppress the Petrograd revolution are halted by the army’s own top commanders. The Emperor is detained and abdicates, and his ministers are jailed and sent to the Peter and Paul Fortress. This sweeping, historical novel is a must-read for Solzhenitsyn's many fans, as well as those interested in twentieth-century history, Russian history and literature, and military history.

Sujets

• 20th Century
• Political
• Modern
• Historical
• HISTORY
• USSR
• United States of America
• Dólar
• Saint Petersburg
• Literature
• Communism
• Modern history
• Russian Revolution
• Cold War
• General officer
• The Gulag Archipelago
• Soviet Union
• House of Romanov
• Politics
• Nobel Prize
• Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn
• General
• Révolution russe
• États-Unis
• Guerre froide
• Classics
• Communisme
• Obermodern-Zutzendorf
• US
• Soviet
• Fiction
• Saint-Pétersbourg
• Union des républiques socialistes soviétiques

Informations

• Publié par: University of Notre Dame Press
• Date de parution: 15 novembre 2019
• Nombre de lectures: 0
• EAN13: 9780268106874
• Langue: English

Extrait

REVIEWS for
March 1917
The Red Wheel, Node III, Book 1
“The February revolution, in Solzhenitsyn’s considered judgment, was a disaster of the first order and not a welcome, democratic eruption in a country ill-prepared for democracy. A reader of March 1917 (Node III of The Red Wheel . . .) would be hard put to quarrel with Solzhenitsyn’s judgment. As this great work of history and literature attests, February indeed was the root of all the evils to come and not a brief shining display of Russian democracy.”
—National Review
“ The Red Wheel and The Gulag Archipelago have been called Solzhenitsyn’s two ‘cathedrals.’ You cannot fully understand the horrors of communism and the history of the 20th century without reading them.”
—New York Journal of Books
“Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn spent many years in the latter part of his long life working on The Red Wheel , a multivolume chronicle of ‘the whirlwind of revolution in Russia.’ Until now, only two parts of this hugely ambitious work had appeared in English translation, followed by a long hiatus. Now, at last— on the centenary of the Russian Revolution—the first part of another volume has appeared in English, March 1917 , with translations of the remainder of the work promised. . . . The Red Wheel —like Solzhenitsyn’s life and work taken whole—is a testament to hope married to determination.”
—The Christian Century
“The latest Solzhenitsyn book to appear in English, March 1917 , focuses on the great turning point of Russian, indeed world, history: the Russian Revolution.”
—The New Criterion
“In March 1917 , Solzhenitsyn attempts the impossible and succeeds, evoking a fully formed world through episodic narratives that insist on the prosaic integrity of every life, from tsars to peasants. What emerges is a rich history that’s truly greater than the sum of its parts.”
—Foreword Reviews (starred review)

“Progressive historians have whitewashed the Revolution into a ‘people’s revolution,’ inspired by the benevolent and charismatic Lenin and founded on the humanitarian Marx’s principles of equality. In truth, the Revolution wasn’t even supported by a majority of the proletariat. Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn’s recently translated The Red Wheel: March 1917 . . . [is a] sobering antidote to this naïve view.”
—Claremont Review of Books
“This third installment of The Red Wheel , Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn’s narrative of the events leading to the Russian Revolution, is remarkable in its complexity. The novel presents a polyphonic kaleidoscope of people, places, and events, some real, some fictitious.”
—Society Journal
“ The Red Wheel is intimidatingly voluminous, but Solzhenitsyn’s stream-of- consciousness style—and the clarity of Schwartz’s careful translation—makes for an engaging and dynamic experience, whether reading the novel cover to cover or in individual vignettes.”
—Choice
“Only a great work of art like The Red Wheel can convey the soul of a lawless mob that has lost all sense of measure. . . . This action-packed account, beautifully translated by Marian Schwartz, tells the story of one moment in which the failure of good men to act made all the difference in the world.”
—National Review
“In the first volume of March 1917 , well translated by Marian Schwartz, many haunting passages can be found, such as Nicholas II’s confrontation with the icon of Christ following his tormented abdication.”
—Times Literary Supplement
“The fictional elements of the story pale next to the overwhelming drama of the unfolding real historical events.”
—The Russian Review
“In The Red Wheel , Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn produced a masterpiece, and proved himself a worthy companion of Dostoevsky and rival of Tolstoy.”
—Law and Liberty
THE RED WHEEL
A Narrative in Discrete Periods of Time
________________________________
NODE I August 1914 (Books 1–2)
NODE II November 1916 (Books 1– 2)
NODE III March 1917 (Books 1–4)
NODE IV April 1917 (Books 1– 2)
The Center for Ethics and Culture Solzhenitsyn Series
The Center for Ethics and Culture Solzhenitsyn Series showcases the contributions and continuing inspiration of Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn (1918 – 2008), the Nobel Prize–winning novelist and historian. The series makes available works of Solzhenitsyn, including previously untranslated works, and aims to provide the leading platform for exploring the many facets of his enduring legacy. In his novels, essays, memoirs, and speeches, Solzhenitsyn revealed the devastating core of totalitarianism and warned against political, economic, and cultural dangers to the human spirit. In addition to publishing his work, this new series features thoughtful writers and commentators who draw inspiration from Solzhenitsyn’s abiding care for Christianity and the West, and for the best of the Russian tradition. Through contributions in politics, literature, philosophy, and the arts, these writers follow Solzhenitsyn’s trail in a world filled with new pitfalls and new possibilities for human freedom and human dignity.

Published by the University of Notre Dame Press Notre Dame, Indiana 46556 www.undpress.nd.edu
All Rights Reserved
English Language Edition copyright © University of Notre Dame Translated from book 2 of books 1– 4:
“Maрт Семнадцатого” (1) © A. I. Solzhenitsyn, 1986, 2008
“Maрт Семнадцатого” (2) © A. I. Solzhenitsyn, 1986, 2008
“Maрт Семнадцатого” (3) © A. I. Solzhenitsyn, 1987, 2008
“Maрт Семнадцатого” (4) © A. I. Solzhenitsyn, 1988, 2008
Published in the United States of America
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Names: Solzhenitsyn, Aleksandr Isaevich, 1918 – 2008, author. | Schwartz, Marian, 1951– translator. Title: March 1917 : The Red Wheel, node III (8 March/31 March), book 2 / Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn ; translated by Marian Schwartz. Other titles: Krasnoe koleso. Mart semnadtsatogo. Kniga 1. English | Red Wheel, node III (8 March/31 March), book 2 Description: Notre Dame, Indiana : University of Notre Dame Press, 2019. | Includes index. Identifiers: LCCN 2019030194 | ISBN 9780268106850 (hardcover : alk. paper) | ISBN 0268106851 (hardcover : alk. paper) Subjects: LCSH: Russia—History—February Revolution, 1917—Fiction. Classification: LCC PG3488. O4 K67613 2017 | DDC 891.73/44—dc23 LC record available at https:// lccn.loc.gov/ 2019030194 ∞ This paper meets the requirements of ANSI/NISO Z39.48-1992 (Permanence of Paper).
This e-Book was converted from the original source file by a third-party vendor. Readers who notice any formatting, textual, or readability issues are encouraged to contact the publisher at [e-mail] .
Publisher’s Note
March 1917 (consisting of books 1– 4) is the centerpiece of The Red Wheel , Aleksandr Solzhenitysn’s multivolume historical novel on the roots and outbreak of the Russian Revolution, which he divided into four “nodes.” March 1917 is the third node.
The first node, August 1914 , ends in the disastrous defeat of the Russians by the Germans at the Battle of Tannenberg in World War I. The second node, November 1916 , offers a panorama of Russia on the eve of revolution. August 1914 and November 1916 focus on Russia’s crises, revolutionary terrorism and its suppression, the missed opportunity of Pyotr Stolypin’s reforms, and the souring of patriotism as Russia suffered in the world war.
March 1917 tells the story of the beginning of the revolution in Petrograd, as riots go unchecked, units of the army mutiny, and both the state and the numerous opposition leaders are incapable of controlling events. The present volume, book 2 of March 1917 , is set during March 13 –15. It will be followed by English translations of the next two books of March 1917 , describing events through March 31, and the two books of April 1917 .
The nodes of The Red Wheel can be read consecutively or independently. All blend fictional characters with numerous historical personages, usually introduced under their own names and with accurate biographical data. The depiction of historical characters and events is based on the author’s extensive research in archives, administrative records, newspapers, memoirs, émigré collections, unpublished correspondence, family records, and other contemporary sources. In many sections the historical novel turns into dramatic history. Plots and subplots abound.
The English translations by H. T. Willetts of August 1914 and November 1916 , published by Farrar, Straus and Giroux in 1989 and 1999, respectively, appeared as Knot I and Knot II. The present translation, in accordance with the wishes of the Solzhenitsyn estate, has chosen the term “Node” as more faithful to the author’s intent. Both terms refer, as in mathematics, to discrete points on a continuous line.
In a 1983 interview with Bernard Pivot, Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn described his narrative concept as follows: “The Red Wheel is the narrative of revolution in Russia, its movement through the whirlwind of revolution. This is an immense scope of material, and . . . it would be impossible to describe this many events and this many characters over such a lengthy stretch of time. That is why I have chosen the method of nodal points, or Nodes. I select short segments of time, of two or three weeks’ duration, where the most vivid events unfold, or else where the decisive causes of future events are formed. And I describe in detail only these short segments. These are the Nodes. Through these nodal points I convey the general vector, the overall shape of this complex curve.”
Dates in the original Russian text were given in the Old Style, according to the Julian calendar used in Russia until 1918. In the English translations these dates have been c