A Term in Hell (In Memoriam Mikheil Kveselava)

Abstract

The present article deals with the life and works of professor Mikheil Kveselava, an outstanding literary scholar, writer and public figure whose role in bringing new trends in Soviet literary criticism to free it from established clichés, can never be overestimated. It is to his memory that the 2025 Text and Interpretation Conference and conference papers is dedicated.

Prof. Kveselava’s first major work was a two-volume book “Faustian Paradigms’’ (1961) , which studied Faustian theme diachronically started from the medieval German legend on Doctor Faustus and finished with the 20^th century authors.

The book that made Mikheil Kveselava widely popular was a three-volume opus – ‘One Hundred and Fifty’’. Formally the book belonged to a genre of memoire written from the personal experiences of the author, a participant of the Second World War and the Nuremberg Trials. However, the book discusses this dramatic historic event in a wide philosophical and cultural contexts, which constitutes the uniqueness of the book.

Mikheil Kveselava’s l74ast book was ‘Poetical Integrals’ (dedicated to the study of the poetry by Galaktion Tabidze in the context of European poetry. The author identifies three types of poems, the third group of which, termed in the book as Integral Poetry, is the main focus of the study. In this type of poem, according to Kveselava,  the meaning of the poem cannot be reduced to logical meaning and be narrated, but is perceived as music.

The article also discusses Mikheil Kveselava’s influence on Georgian theatre and cinematography.

References:

Gelashvili, M. (2012) A Term in Hell. In: Facets: Papers on Literature. Tbilisi, Publishing House Universal,

Kveselava, M. (1961) Fausian Paradigns in 2 Vols. Tbilisi, Publishing House ‘’Soviet Georgaia”

Kveselava, M. (1967-74)  One Hundred and FiFty Days. In three vols. Tbilisi, Publishing House ‘’Soviet Georgaia”

Kveselava, M.  (1977) Poetical Integrals: Galaktion Tabidze and Modern Poetry. Tbilisi, Publishing House ‘’Soviet Georgaia”