Demyan Bedny
Encyclopedia
Demyan Bedny, ( — May 25, 1945) was the pen name
of Soviet Russia
n poet
, Bolshevik
and satirist Yefim Alekseevich Pridvorov .
in Ukraine
. He attended the village school followed by a feldsher
training college in Kiev
. This was followed by 4 years of military service. In 1904, he entered the philological and historical faculty of Petersburg University. His university years coincided with the heady times of the 1905 Revolution, and Pridvorov, like most students, became an ardent supporter of the revolution. From 1911 he began to be published in Communist newspapers, such as Pravda
and in 1912 he joined the Russian Social Democratic Labour Party
(Bolshevik
s). Also in 1911, he published the poem Of Demyan Bedny, which led to him being known by the name, and began a private correspondence with Vladimir Lenin
which was said to develop into a long-lasting personal friendship. His first collected works were published in Basni (Fables) in 1913. During World War I
, he once again saw service as a feldsher and was decorated.
He was a steadfast supporter of the Bolshevik cause throughout the Russian Revolution
and Civil War
, writing agitprop
from the frontlines. For this he was decorated with the Order of the Red Banner
in 1923, followed by the Order of Lenin
in 1933. In the 1920s and 30s, he was very popular and variously supported by the Soviet regime. The town of Spassk, Penza Oblast
was even renamed Bednodemyanovsk in his honour. After the civil war, Bedny became a writer of ardent anti-religious verse. In 1938, Bedny was stripped of membership in the Communist Party and the Union of Soviet Writers, but slowly he regained the favour of Stalin through the years of World War II
. His poem commemorating the Soviet victory was published in Pravda on May 9, 1945. Bedny died two weeks later, on May 25.
Pen name
A pen name, nom de plume, or literary double, is a pseudonym adopted by an author. A pen name may be used to make the author's name more distinctive, to disguise his or her gender, to distance an author from some or all of his or her works, to protect the author from retribution for his or her...
of Soviet Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
n poet
Poet
A poet is a person who writes poetry. A poet's work can be literal, meaning that his work is derived from a specific event, or metaphorical, meaning that his work can take on many meanings and forms. Poets have existed since antiquity, in nearly all languages, and have produced works that vary...
, Bolshevik
Bolshevik
The Bolsheviks, originally also Bolshevists , derived from bol'shinstvo, "majority") were a faction of the Marxist Russian Social Democratic Labour Party which split apart from the Menshevik faction at the Second Party Congress in 1903....
and satirist Yefim Alekseevich Pridvorov .
Life
Efim Pridvorov was born to a poor family in Gubovka, in what is now Kirovohrad OblastKirovohrad Oblast
Kirovohrad Oblast is an oblast of Ukraine. The administrative center of the oblast is the city of Kirovohrad.-Geography:The area of the province is , its population is 1.1 million....
in Ukraine
Ukraine
Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It has an area of 603,628 km², making it the second largest contiguous country on the European continent, after Russia...
. He attended the village school followed by a feldsher
Feldsher
Feldsher is the name of a health care professional who provides various medical services in Russia and other countries of the former Soviet Union, mainly in rural areas...
training college in Kiev
Kiev
Kiev or Kyiv is the capital and the largest city of Ukraine, located in the north central part of the country on the Dnieper River. The population as of the 2001 census was 2,611,300. However, higher numbers have been cited in the press....
. This was followed by 4 years of military service. In 1904, he entered the philological and historical faculty of Petersburg University. His university years coincided with the heady times of the 1905 Revolution, and Pridvorov, like most students, became an ardent supporter of the revolution. From 1911 he began to be published in Communist newspapers, such as Pravda
Pravda
Pravda was a leading newspaper of the Soviet Union and an official organ of the Central Committee of the Communist Party between 1912 and 1991....
and in 1912 he joined the Russian Social Democratic Labour Party
Russian Social Democratic Labour Party
The Russian Social Democratic Labour Party , also known as Russian Social Democratic Workers' Party or Russian Social Democratic Party, was a revolutionary socialist Russian political party formed in 1898 in Minsk to unite the various revolutionary organizations into one party...
(Bolshevik
Bolshevik
The Bolsheviks, originally also Bolshevists , derived from bol'shinstvo, "majority") were a faction of the Marxist Russian Social Democratic Labour Party which split apart from the Menshevik faction at the Second Party Congress in 1903....
s). Also in 1911, he published the poem Of Demyan Bedny, which led to him being known by the name, and began a private correspondence with Vladimir Lenin
Vladimir Lenin
Vladimir Ilyich Lenin was a Russian Marxist revolutionary and communist politician who led the October Revolution of 1917. As leader of the Bolsheviks, he headed the Soviet state during its initial years , as it fought to establish control of Russia in the Russian Civil War and worked to create a...
which was said to develop into a long-lasting personal friendship. His first collected works were published in Basni (Fables) in 1913. During World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
, he once again saw service as a feldsher and was decorated.
He was a steadfast supporter of the Bolshevik cause throughout the Russian Revolution
Russian Revolution of 1917
The Russian Revolution is the collective term for a series of revolutions in Russia in 1917, which destroyed the Tsarist autocracy and led to the creation of the Soviet Union. The Tsar was deposed and replaced by a provisional government in the first revolution of February 1917...
and Civil War
Russian Civil War
The Russian Civil War was a multi-party war that occurred within the former Russian Empire after the Russian provisional government collapsed to the Soviets, under the domination of the Bolshevik party. Soviet forces first assumed power in Petrograd The Russian Civil War (1917–1923) was a...
, writing agitprop
Agitprop
Agitprop is derived from agitation and propaganda, and describes stage plays, pamphlets, motion pictures and other art forms with an explicitly political message....
from the frontlines. For this he was decorated with the Order of the Red Banner
Order of the Red Banner
The Soviet government of Russia established the Order of the Red Banner , a military decoration, on September 16, 1918 during the Russian Civil War...
in 1923, followed by the Order of Lenin
Order of Lenin
The Order of Lenin , named after the leader of the Russian October Revolution, was the highest decoration bestowed by the Soviet Union...
in 1933. In the 1920s and 30s, he was very popular and variously supported by the Soviet regime. The town of Spassk, Penza Oblast
Spassk, Penza Oblast
Spassk is a town and the administrative center of Spassky District of Penza Oblast, Russia. Population: -History:In 1648, an uncultivated field was discovered in Shatsky Uyezd and was given to a nearby Savior monastery. In 1663, a village was established there, called Bogdanovo. In 1779, it was...
was even renamed Bednodemyanovsk in his honour. After the civil war, Bedny became a writer of ardent anti-religious verse. In 1938, Bedny was stripped of membership in the Communist Party and the Union of Soviet Writers, but slowly he regained the favour of Stalin through the years of World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
. His poem commemorating the Soviet victory was published in Pravda on May 9, 1945. Bedny died two weeks later, on May 25.
Trivia
- Bedny's caustic anti-religious poem New Testament without defects (Новый Завет без изъяна) may have inspired Mikhail BulgakovMikhail BulgakovMikhaíl Afanásyevich Bulgákov was a Soviet Russian writer and playwright active in the first half of the 20th century. He is best known for his novel The Master and Margarita, which The Times of London has called one of the masterpieces of the 20th century.-Biography:Mikhail Bulgakov was born on...
's The Master and MargaritaThe Master and MargaritaThe Master and Margarita is a novel by Mikhail Bulgakov, woven around the premise of a visit by the Devil to the fervently atheistic Soviet Union. Many critics consider the book to be one of the greatest novels of the 20th century, and one of the foremost Soviet satires, directed against a...
as a rebuttal. In addition, his character was a prototype for Mikhail Berlioz and Bezdomny (Homeless) was a parody on Bedny's pseudonym. - Bedny withnessed Fanni Kaplan's execution.
- Bedny amassed one of the largest private libraries in the Soviet Union (over 30 000 volumes), from which Stalin was known to borrow books on occasion.
- According to Nikita KhrushchevNikita KhrushchevNikita Sergeyevich Khrushchev led the Soviet Union during part of the Cold War. He served as First Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union from 1953 to 1964, and as Chairman of the Council of Ministers, or Premier, from 1958 to 1964...
's memoirs, Bedny was his favourite poet.