Codex manuscriptus

2949-0510 2949-0502

IWL RAS

https://doi.org/10.22455/CM.2949-0510-2025-6-150-165

Research Article

Articles

The Creative History of the Book “Herbert Wells” by E.I. Zamyatin

Marina Iu. Liubimova codeximli@yandex.ru

12 03 2025

6 150 165

E.I. Zamyatin H.G. Wells publishing house “Epoch” publishing house “World Literature”

2026

The article for the first time examines the book “H.G. Wells” by E.I. Zamyatin, published by the publishing house “Epoch” in 1922, in the context of its author’s activity in another publishing house — “World Literature”. For the latter, Zamyatin edited translations of seven volumes of Wells’ works: “War in the Air”, “Love and Mr. Lewisham”, “Time Machine”, “Mr. Polly”, “Invisible Man”, “Un- quenchable Fire”, “Stories about Time and Space”, and “The Sleeper Awakens”, and wrote four prefaces to four of them and an article. Editorial work on translations by various authors, constant participation in discussions of experts of the Eastern and Western boards of the publishing house “World Literature” opened up a new range of literary and historical sources that Zamyatin used in this book. In turn, Wells’ work and personal acquaintance with him had a significant impact on the worldview and on the structure of Zamyatin’s own artistic thinking. The author’s analysis of the book “H.G. Wells” and Zamyatin’s articles of 1919–1920 proves that Zamyatin’s perception and interpretation of Wells’ work have undergone a significant transformation. For Zamyatin, this book became a kind of result of studying and understanding the life and creative experience of the English writer.

Aksenova, N.V., Khatiamova, M.A. “G. Uells v retseptsii E.I. Zamiatina” [“H.G. Wells in the Reception of E.I. Zamyatin”]. Sibirskii Filologicheskii Zhurnal, no. 1, 2014, pp. 117–124. (In Russ.)

Bystrova, O.V. “Berlinskie izdatel’stva” [“Berlin Publishing Houses”]. Literaturnaia Entsiklopediia Russkogo Zarubezh’ia (1918–1940), gl. red. A.N. Nikoliukin [Literary Encyclopedia of the Russian Diaspora (1918– 1940), ed.-in-chief A.N. Nikolyukin]. Moscow, [s. n.], 1995–. vol. 2, issue 1. 1996, pp. 37–60. (In Russ.)

Vainberg, I.I. “Beseda” [“Conversation”]. Literaturnaia Entsiklopediia Russkogo Zarubezh’ia (1918–1940), gl. red. A.N. Nikoliukin [Literary Encyclopedia of the Russian Diaspora (1918–1940), ed.-in-chief A.N. Nikolyukin]. Moscow, [s. n.], 1995–. vol. 2, issue 1. 1996, pp. 60–81. (In Russ.)

Evgenii Zamiatin i kul’tura XX veka: Issled. i publ., sost. M.Iu. Liubimova [Yevgeny Zamyatin and the Culture of the 20th Century: Research and Publications, comp. by M.Yu. Lyubimova]. St. Petersburg, Izd-vo Ros. Nats. b-ki Publ., 2002. 475 p. (In Russ.)

Kaznina, O.A. Russkie v Anglii: Russkaia emigratsiia v kontekste russko- angliiskikh literaturnykh sviazei v pervoi polovine XX veka [Russians in England: Russian Emigration in the Context of Russian-English Literary Ties in the First Half of the 20th Century]. Moscow, Nasledie Publ., 1997. 413, [2] p. (In Russ.)

Liubimova, M.Iu., Chechnev, Ia.D. “Izdatel’stvo ‘Vsemirnaia literatura’ v tvorcheskom diskurse E.I. Zamiatina” [“‘World Literature’ Publishing House in the Creative Discourse of E.I. Zamyatin”]. Russkaia literatura, no. 4, 2022, pp. 206–217. (In Russ.)