The story "The Dog's Heart": a story of creation and fate

The story "The Heart of a Dog", the history of creation of which is given in this article, is one of the most famous works of the Russian writer of the early 20th century Mikhail Afanasievich Bulgakov. The story, written in the first years of the existence of the Soviet government, very accurately reflected the mood that reigned in the new society. So precise that it was banned for printing right up to perestroika.

History of writing a work

The story "The Heart of a Dog," whose history dates back to 1925, was written by Bulgakov in a short time. Literally for three months. Naturally, as a reasonable person, he did not believe that such a work could be printed. Therefore, it differed only in the lists and was known only to his close friends and associates.

In the hands of the Soviet government for the first time, in 1926, the story "The Heart of a Dog." In the history of the creation of this mirror of the early Soviet reality, the role of the OGPU played a role, which found it during a search of the writer on May 7. The manuscript was withdrawn. The history of the creation of the "Dog Heart" has since been closely linked with the archives of the Soviet special services. All the found editions of the text are now available to researchers and literary critics. They can be found in the Russian State Library. They are kept in the department of manuscripts. If you carefully analyze them, then the history of the creation of the "Dog Heart" Bulgakov will face you personally.

The fate of the work in the West

Officially to read this work in the Soviet Union was unreal. In the USSR, it was distributed exclusively in samizdat. The history of the creation of the "Dog Heart" was known to everyone, many so eager to read it, that they sacrificed their sleep. After all, the manuscript was sent for a short time (often only for one night), in the morning it had to be given to someone else.

Attempts to print Bulgakov's work in the West were made several times. The history of the creation of the story "Dog Heart" abroad began in 1967. But everything happened not without blemish. The text was copied in a hurry and carelessly. The writer's widow, Elena Bulgakov, was generally not aware of this. Otherwise, she could control the accuracy of the text of the story "The Dog's Heart." The history of the creation of the work in Western publishing houses is such that they contain a very inaccurate manuscript.

For the first time it was officially published in 1968 in the German magazine "Granie", which was based in Frankfurt. And also in the journal "Student", which Alec Flegon produced in London. In those days, there were unspoken rules, according to which in the case of publishing a work of art abroad, its publication at home was automatically impossible. This was the story of the creation of the "Dog Heart" Bulgakov. To appear in the Soviet publishing house after that became simply unreal.

The first publication in the homeland

Only thanks to the restructuring and publicity of the Russian reader many key works of the twentieth century became available. Including "The Dog's Heart". The history of the creation and the fate of the story are such that at home the work was first published in 1987. This happened on the pages of the magazine Zvezda.

However, the basis was the same inaccurate copy from which the story was printed abroad. Later, the researchers will calculate that it contained at least a thousand gross errors and distortions. However, it was in this form before 1989 that the "Dog Heart" was published. The history of creation can be briefly only a few pages long. In fact, decades passed before the story reached the reader.

Original text

Corrected this annoying inaccuracy, a well-known researcher of Bulgakov's work, a textologist and literary critic Lydia Yankovskaya.

In the two-volume edition of selected works of Bulgakov, she first printed the original text, which we know today. So it was written by Bulgakov himself in the "Dog Heart". The history of the creation of the story, as we see, was not easy.

The plot of the story

The action of the work takes place in the capital in 1924. In the center of the narrative is the famous surgeon, the luminary of science Philip Philipovich Preobrazhensky. His main research is devoted to the rejuvenation of the human body. In this he achieved unprecedented successes. Almost the first persons of the country are registered for consultations and operations to it.

In the course of further research, he decided on a daring experiment. Transplant the dog to the human pituitary gland. As a test animal, he chooses an ordinary domestic dog Sharik, who somehow got himself to him on the street. The consequences became literally shocking. After a short time, Sharik began to turn into a real man. However, he acquired character and consciousness not from a dog, but from a drunkard and rude offender Klim Chugunkin, who owned the pituitary gland.

At first this story was spread only in the scientific circles among the professors, but soon seeped into the press. The whole city recognized her. Colleagues of Preobrazhensky express admiration, and Sharik is shown to doctors from all over the country. But Philip Philipovich first understands how terrible the consequences of this operation will be.

The Transformation of the Ball

Meanwhile, a communist activist named Shvonder begins to exert a negative influence on Sharik, who turned into a full-fledged man. From him inspires that the proletarian, whom the bourgeois oppresses, in the person of Professor Preobrazhensky. That is exactly what the October Revolution was fighting against.

It is Shvonder who issues documents to the hero. He is no longer Sharik, but Polygraph Polygraphovich Sharikov. It is arranged to work in the service for catching and destroying homeless animals. In the first place, of course, he is interested in cats.

Under the influence of Shvonder and Communist propaganda literature Sharikov begins to be rude to the professor. Requires to prescribe himself. Eventually he writes a denunciation of the doctors who turned him from a dog into a man. Everything ends in a scandal. Transfiguration, who is unable to tolerate this even further, is doing the opposite operation, returning Sharikov the canine pituitary gland. He eventually loses his human form and returns to the animal state.

Political Satire

This work is a vivid example of a sharp political satire. The most common interpretation is connected with the idea of awakening proletarian consciousness as a result of the victory of the October Revolution. Sharikov represents an allegorical image of the classical lumpen proletariat, which, having received an unexpectedly large number of rights and freedoms, begins to show purely selfish interests.

In the final story of the fate of the creators of Sharikov looks predetermined. In this, according to many researchers, Bulgakov predicted the coming mass repressions of the 30s. As a result, many loyal Communists suffered, who gained victory in the revolution. As a result of the inner-party struggle, some of them were shot, and some were exiled to camps.

The finale, invented by Bulgakov, seems artificial to many.

Sharikov is Stalin

There is another interpretation of this story. Some researchers believe that she was a keen political satire on the country's leadership, which operated in the mid-1920s.

The prototype of Sharikov in real life is Joseph Stalin. It is no accident that both have an "iron" surname. Remember that the original name of the person to whom the pituitary gland was transplanted is Clim Chugunkin. According to these literary critics, the prototype of Professor Preobrazhensky was the leader of the revolution, Vladimir Lenin. And his assistant Dr. Bormental, who is constantly in conflict with Sharikov, is Trotsky, whose real name is Bronstein. Both Bormental and Bronstein are Jewish surnames.

There are prototypes for other characters. Assistant Preobrazhensky Zina - this is Zinoviev, Shvonder - Kamenev, and Daria - Dzerzhinsky.

Soviet censorship

An important role in the history of the creation of this work was played by the Soviet censorship. The first edition of the story contained direct references to political figures of the time.

Bulgakov in the depths of his soul hoped to publish it. And even carried in the almanac "Nedra". But they decided not to send her to Glavlit, which was supposed to approve the contents of the magazine. So unreliable she seemed to the editors.

One of the copies of the manuscript fell into the hands of Kamenev, who imposed a strict ban on the publication of the story, calling it "a sharp pamphlet on modernity." In samizdat, the work began to spread only from the beginning of the thirties. Fame for the whole country acquired much later - in times of perestroika