Anna Akhmatova. A Critical Analysis of her Poetry

Studienarbeit aus dem Jahr 2012 im Fachbereich Literaturwissenschaft - Vergleichende Literaturwissenschaft, Note: 2, Universität Wien, Sprache: Deutsch, Abstract: 'You will hear thunder and remember me, and think: she wanted storms...', Anna Akhmatova once said herself. And indeed, this predication became a reality: she is still remembered today, and not only remembered as some poet of the 20th century, but as an outstanding artist and an extraordinary woman. Without doubt she is to be considered as one of the most acclaimed writers in the Russian canon, and her work still has an impact today. Not only being a representative of the Silver Age and of Acmeism, but also living and writing under the shadow of Stalinism, her poetry is characterized by its very distinct style and has to be viewed in that special context. The major part of my essay will focus on Akhmatova's writing style and the significant character of her works. After giving a brief survey of her biography, as well as a short summary about her work and style in general, I am going to analyze some parts of her poetry in particular, using selected pieces of work. The following questions are going to lead me throughout the whole essay: what is so specific about Akhmatova's poetry? In what way is her work representative of Acmeism? To what extent did her biographical circumstances and, even more importantly, the political situation in Russia influence her writing? How is her early work different from her later work? And why are her poems still so interesting for today's reading public?