Vasily Andreevich Zhukovsky is a wonderful poet of the 19th century. However, many people know him not only as a wonderful poet and writer, but also as a good translator. Zhukovsky loved to translate the poets of England, Germany, France and Greece.
Due to the fact that Zhukovsky possessed an outstanding art of translation, the culture of the Russian-speaking population increased significantly. He introduced his readers to the outstanding poets of England, France, Germany and Greece. Usually Zhukovsky chose those poets and those works that were close to him in spirit. As a rule, preference was given to romantics.
Poets of Germany
From 1807 to 1833 Zhukovsky worked on translations of Schiller's works. In his works, a humanist appears before the reader who is submissive to God and saturated with a religious mood. Over the years, Vasily Andreevich managed to translate such works: "Achilles", "The Maid of Orleans", "Triumph of the Winners" and "Complaint of Ceres". Thanks to Zhukovsky's diligent translations, Schiller became a poet close to Russia.
In parallel with this, Zhukovsky began to work with the works of Gebel. He translated such works of his: "Red Carbuncle", "Morning Star", "Sunday Morning in the Country" and "Unexpected Date". Vasily Andreevich stopped translating Gebel in 1836.
Another German poet, romantic L. Uhland, Zhukovsky did not leave without his attention. The interests of the two poets turned out to be consonant in the embodiment of the aspirations for the other world and the glorification of the eternally existing feeling of love. Zhukovsky translated such works of his: "Dream", "Consolation", "The arrival of spring", "Norman custom" and some others.
English poets
One of the poets whom Zhukovsky honored with his attention was J. Byron. For example, in 1822 he translated his work The Prisoner of Chillon. This translation made a rather strong impression on both readers and writers. Paradoxically, Byron was one of those poets who simply is not compatible with Zhukovsky, namely with his ideology and views. Until the 30s, Byron's name disappears from the diaries of Vasily Andreevich. And after it appears, the attitude towards the English poet becomes sharply critical.
Zhukovsky, being a first-class translator, opted for another English poet: Thomas Gray. This poet was characterized by a melancholic perception of reality, the cult of solitary sadness and the thought of death. "An Elegy Written in a Country Cemetery" by Thomas Gray brought national fame to Zhukovsky as a poetic translator.
In 1813 Zhukovsky introduced Russian readers to the English poet Goldsmith. The ballad "Edwin and Angelina" was published in the "Bulletin of Europe" under the title "The Hermit". Even earlier, Vasily Andreevich began a free translation of the poem "Abandoned Village".
