When Vladimir Nabokov’s translation of Pushkin’s masterpiece Eugene Onegin was first published in 1964, it ignited a storm of controversy that famously resulted in the demise of Nabokov’s friendship with critic Edmund Wilson. While Wilson derided it as a disappointment in the New York Review of Books, other critics hailed the translation and accompanying commentary as Nabokov’s highest achievement. Nabokov himself strove to render a literal translation that captured ‘the exact contextual meaning of the original, ‘ arguing that, ‘only this is true translation.’ Nabokov’s Eugene Onegin remains the most famous and frequently cited English-language version of the most celebrated poem in Russian literature, a translation that reflects a lifelong admiration of Pushkin on the part of one of the twentieth century’s most brilliant writers. Now with a new foreword by Nabokov biographer Brian Boyd, this edition brings a classic work of enduring literary interest to a new generation of readers.
Sobre o autor
Vladimir Nabokov (1899–1977) was a Russian-American writer known for his unique blend of erudition and playfulness. His novels in English include
Lolita,
Pale Fire, and
Ada. He also wrote poetry, short stories, translations from Russian, and a memoir,
Speak, Memory.
Brian Boyd is professor of literature at the University of Auckland. He is the author of
Vladimir Nabokov: The Russian Years and
Vladimir Nabokov: The American Years (both Princeton).