The Illustrious Mourner
In Russia, when a blind beggar is laid to rest even the Emperor knows for whom the bell tolls.
before 1856
In Russia, when a blind beggar is laid to rest even the Emperor knows for whom the bell tolls.
before 1856
Olga Novikova came to London in 1868. In 1916, when she published Russian Memories, the Russians were our allies in the Great War, and our pro-German, anti-Russian politics of the last fifty years was looking a little stale. Novikova told us a touching anecdote of the late Emperor Nicholas I, whom we knew only as the Russian leader we had fought in the Crimean War of 1854-56.
The Emperor Nicholas I was undoubtedly a superior man in many respects. Imperious he was, no doubt — it is an Imperial fault! — but he was not only disinterested,* he was generous and noble in the highest degree. Books could be written about his kind actions.
He was once driving on a cold winter’s day, when he perceived a poor hearse, and a still poorer coffin. There were no followers, but the young driver, almost a child, was sobbing bitterly, and evidently overwhelmed with his grief. The Emperor stopped his horse and asked who the departed was.
“It was my father,” answered the boy, through a new torrent of tears. “He was a blind beggar, and I had him under my care.”
The Emperor left his sledge and followed the humble coffin to the burial ground. Naturally, many people followed His Majesty’s example, and the procession became a strange sight. Strange, but fine — paternal, showing once more the link between the great autocrat and his people — a link based on devotion and trust. As a very young child I have myself experienced the kindness of his smile, and felt the protection of his powerful hand.
From ‘Russian Memories’ (1916) by Ogla Alekseeva Novikova (1840-1925).
* The similarity of this word to ‘uninterested’ may cause misunderstandings. The word ‘disinterested’ means without vested interests, that is, fair and unbiased.
1. What is the author aiming to achieve in writing this?
2. Note any words, devices or turns of phrase that strike you. How do they help the author communicate her ideas more effectively?
3. What impression does this passage make on you? How might you put that impression into words?
Based on The English Critic (1939) by NL Clay, drawing on The New Criticism: A Lecture Delivered at Columbia University, March 9, 1910, by J. E. Spingarn, Professor of Comparative Literature in Columbia University, USA.
Suggest answers to this question. See if you can limit one answer to exactly seven words.
Why was the driver of the hearse weeping?
Because the dead man was his father.
Express the ideas below in a single sentence, using different words as much as possible. Do not be satisfied with the first answer you think of; think of several, and choose the best.
Nicholas walked behind the hearse. People saw him. They began to walk behind the hearse too.
See if you can include one or more of these words in your answer.
IGrow. IIJoin. IIIProcession.