Memoria e finzione tra continuità, interruzioni e cesure: il (macro)testo-vita nel ciclo pseudoautobiografico Legenda o samom sebe di A.M. Remizov: Memory and Fiction between Continuity, Interruptions and Breaks: The (Macro)Text-Life in A.M. Remizov’s Pseudo-Autobiographical Cycle Legend about Myself.

Abstract

This paper aims to investigate the complex relationship between life and literature, reality and fiction in the work of Aleksei Mikhailovich Remizov (18771957), a multifaceted and prolific prose writer, graphic artist, and calligrapher. Despite a solitary and isolated creative journey, long overlooked by critics, Remizov is now recognized as one of the most original figures in twentiethcentury Russian culture. The analysis focuses on his pseudo-autobiographical cycle Legend about Myself [Legenda o samom sebe], written during his emigration. The cycle includes eight ‘memoir’ texts which, despite their complete temporal misalignment, cover the period from 1877 to 1954. In these texts, Remizov retraces, reinterprets, and reinvents his own human and creative journey in a uniquely original way, filtered through the fantastical categories of childhood and fairy tale. The continuous intertwining of fantasy, dream, and reality imparts a magical and irrational quality to Remizov’s autobiographical work.