Alexander Pushkin's Little tragedies : the poetics of brevity

Alexander Pushkin's four compact plays, later known as The Little Tragedies, were written at the height of the author's creative powers, and their influence cannot be overestimated.

Yet Western readers are far more familiar with Pushkin's lyrics, narrative poems, and prose than with his drama.

Setting out to reclaim a cornerstone of Pushkin's work, Evodokimova and her contributors offer the first thorough critical study of these plays.

They examine the historical roots and connective themes of the plays, offer close readings, and track the transformation of the works into other genres.

Included are new translations by James Falen of the plays The Covetous Knight, Mozart and Salieri, The Stone Guest, and A Feast in Time of Plague.