critic quotes her letter to Viazemsky concerning the 1856 edition of her
works: “These are leaves from the secret diary of my heart, which up to
this time were hidden and not shown to anyone” (Ranchin, editor’s in-
troduction, 9 ). Still another also “proves” Rostopchina’s novel in verse,
Dnevnik devushki,to be in fact an autobiography, citing her brother’s as-
sertion that some episodes are based on her experiences as a girl (Ro-
manov, editor’s introduction, 22–23). It is doubtful that any of these crit-
ics would discuss Lermontov’s Geroi nashego vremeni (A Hero of Our Time)
purely as autobiography. Or consider that Byron’s work should not be
taken seriously because he self-deprecatingly titled one of his poetry
collections Hours of Idleness.Or that Evgenii Oneginshould be disre-
garded because Pushkin referred to it in his dedication as
,
&
,
[.. .]h
(The careless fruit of my amusements
The light inspiration of my insomnia).Or, indeed, that they would take literally anything men poets modestly
wrote about their work. Rostopchina, however, has been considered in-
capable of metaphor or topos.^40
Critics have further trivialized Rostopchina’s work by going to greatlengths not to describe it as original or influential, despite evidence to
the contrary. Belinsky, for example, criticized Rostopchina for making
up the word oblistannyi(unleafed, that is, with fallen leaves) in “Posled-
nii tsvetok.” One critic described her startlingly modern-sounding
poem, “Moia Igrushka,” as a “reverse anachronism.” Another described
her poem “Kholod serdtsa” (The heart’s coldness, 1829 ), which Ler-
montov probably read and which is echoed in a later poem, as an “an-
ticipation” of the Lermontov poem rather than an influence on it.^41
In several cases critics have simultaneously sexualized and trivialized
Rostopchina’s work by attributing her success in the 1830 s and 1840 s
only to her looks, connections, and social position. This variation on
“she slept her way to the top” does not appear in relation to such well-
connected men poets as Pushkin, Del’vig, Baratynsky, Zhukovsky, Fet,
and others, whom a male network of mentors, editors, and critics helped
to achieve literary success:
The verses of a beautiful woman, not to mention one who is well
known in high circles for her beauty, magnificence, and con-Evdokiia Rostopchina 101