Shakespeare, W. [The Tragedy of Othello, The Moor of Venice] Otello, venetsianskiy mavr. Inscribed by Boris Pasternak to female poet.

Shakespeare, W. [The Tragedy of Othello, The Moor of Venice] Otello, venetsianskiy mavr. Translated by Boris Pasternak.

Moscow: OGIZ, 1945. 8vo (195 x 125 mm). 140 pp.

In publishers original wrappers. Overall wear, small loss and tears to wrappers, title page and spine. Inscribed by the translator on the title page. In good condition.

Signed and inscribed by the translator: Miloi Soph'e Zakharovne Fedorchenko, filosofu i  khudozhnitse, qui fait la meme bonne mine au même mauvais jeu. B. Pasternak. 28 apr. 1946 г. [To dear Sofya Zakharovna Fedorchenko, a philosopher and an artist, a person that keeps a straight face with a bad hand. B. Pasternak. 28 april 1946.].

Second edition of Otello in Pasternak's translation. First edition was a collotype edition and unofficial (300 copies only). One of 25 000 copies printed.

A renowned translation of Shakespeare’s Othello made by Boris Pasternak (1890-1960), a Nobel laureate; translated eight of Shakespeare's play into Russian: Hamlet, Romeo and Juliet, Antony and Cleopatra, Othello, two parts of Henry IV, King Lear, and Macbeth. This was a way for him to work as a man of letters and avoid repression. His main goal as a translator was to make Shakespeare a Russian poet. In 1943, the British Embassy wrote a letter to Pasternak expressing gratitude for his work on the translations.

This translation was intended for production in the Maly Theatre in Moscow ('which put spurs to me and hurried up'). Pasternak finished the translation in July 1944. Olga Freudenberg, philologist and Pasternak's cousin, wrote that he translated Othello 'not only in the Russian language but on the meaning of language'. Nevertheless, Pasternak translated Othello against his will: It seems to me as a former member of the family... and I terribly simplified it. In a scene where Othello stifles Desdemona, Pasternak added the remark 'poniard her'.

To this day it is considered the best translation of The Tragedy of Othello into Russian language. Inscribed by Pasternak for S. Fedorchenko.

Sofya Zakharovna Fedorchenko (1880-1959), a poet, writer and an originator of Russian documentary prose. Worked as a Sister of Mercy during the First World War and in 1917 published the first part of The People at War which included short stories and reflections of soldiers during the war. In his essay Literature and Cinema (1928) Sergei Eisenstein speaks highly of her book, comparing it to the works of Babel and Joyce, and even calling it a more approachable, yet less edition of [Ulysses].

In the 1920s Fedorchenko became a well-known children’s author and became the first chairwoman of the Children's Books Division of the Union of Soviet Writers. At the same time she held a notable literary salon in Moscow, which was frequented by many renowned authors of the time, including Boris Pasternak.

At the time the inscription was made, Pasternak had known Fedorchenko for over 20 years. Their mutual respect is evident in their letters and diary entries, and it can be seen that they maintained a close friendship despite the years apart, respective illnesses, and personal tragedies. Inscribing the translation of The Tragedy of Othello to Fedorchenko, Pasternak uses two languages: Russian and French, most likely referencing her childhood years spent in Paris. It is also notable that he calls her a philosopher and an artist, highlighting the nature of her art, instead of simply calling her a writer or a poet. The inscription is warm and informal, a dedication not just to a colleague, but to an old and dear friend.

Zakharenko, 1995 # 115.