“There are speeches - meaning... ” by M.Yu. Lermontov: variations as a form of lyrical cycle

The article examines three texts by M.Yu. Lermontov, which begin with the line “There are speeches - meaning...”. The sequential publication of several semantic versions on the topic of “speeches” eventually forms a number of variations that are perceived as a reader’s cycle. But unlike other cyclic forms, for example, the 1918 book of poems by B.L. Pasternak “Themes and Variations” or his cycle “Theme with Variations”, Lermontov did not set out to create a cycle. A significant part of the first text remains unchanged in the second and subsequent cases, which is typical for the author’s draft, but unlike the draft, they are published. The novelty of the article lies in the fact that the usual attitude towards these three texts as different editions of the same poem changes if we take into account the phenomenon of reader cyclization. The co-presence in the world of works of the double outlook of the aiming (divine) and the shattering (demonic), which is noted by S.N. Broitman, requires reflection in the form, namely, variations are predisposed to reflect such situations. We believe that the folk origins of the declension of the word “flame”, used by Lermontov, refer the reader to the folk origins of the form of musical variations. The very opposition of magical sounds and mundane noise makes the reader think of music. We come to the conclusion that it is impractical to consider these Lermontov texts in isolation from each other, each of them becomes clearer when referring to the other two.