The Twelve by Aleksandr Blok
"The Twelve" is a powerful poem by Russian poet Aleksandr Blok, written during the tumultuous period of the Bolshevik Revolution in 1918. The narrative unfolds on a cold, snowy night as twelve revolutionaries march through the streets of Petrograd, embodying the fervor and chaos of a society in upheaval. The marchers, undeterred by the blizzard, evoke a mix of fear and incomprehension among bystanders, who represent a cross-section of Russian society, including an elderly woman, a bourgeois man, and a group of prostitutes, each responding to the revolutionary fervor in their own way.
Central to the poem is the tension between the revolutionary zeal of the marchers and the despair of those who witness their advance, highlighting the profound uncertainty of the times. Personal conflicts also emerge among the revolutionaries, particularly through the tragic love triangle involving Vanka, Katya, and Petrukha, which culminates in violence and loss. As the poem progresses, a mystical vision of Jesus Christ appears, seemingly guiding the marchers and adding a layer of spiritual significance to their mission.
Blok's "The Twelve" intertwines themes of revolution, personal struggle, and divine intervention, offering a complex portrayal of a society on the brink, inviting readers to reflect on the implications of the tumultuous changes occurring in Russia.
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The Twelve by Aleksandr Blok
First published:Dvenadtsat, 1918 (English translation, 1920)
Type of work: Poetry
Type of plot: Ballad
Time of plot: 1917
Locale: Petrograd, Russia
Principal characters
Vanka , a former revolutionaryPetrukha (Petka) , a revolutionaryKatya , their girlfriend
The Poem:
On a cold, snowy night, twelve revolutionaries march together down a Petrograd street at the beginning of the Bolshevik Revolution in Russia. A blizzard is blowing at full strength, but it does not slow their advance. As the revolutionaries march in the middle of the street, several bystanders on sidewalks look on with fear and incomprehension etched on their faces. An old woman trembles, afraid of the marchers; she declares that the Bolsheviks will be the death of her and people like her. Looking at the revolutionaries’ poster made of canvas, which declares “All the Power to the Constituent Assembly,” she complains about waste, noting that all that material could have been used to supply children with foot-clouts. Also watching the marchers are a bourgeois, standing alone with his face buried in the collar of his coat, and a long-haired writer, who curses at the traitors and laments that Russia is dead. A fat “comrade priest” comes slinking through the snow in a black and bulky cassock, with a pendant cross on his belly. A woman wrapped in a Persian fur, confiding to a companion that she has cried and cried, falls flat on her back on the slippery ice. A group of prostitutes at the scene, plying their trade, also look at the canvas poster and declare that they, too, have an assembly that debates how much to charge for their services. All these onlookers are horrified by the uncertainty of the future and by the ferocious looks and behavior of the marching revolutionaries.
The revolutionaries pay little attention to them, however, marching on inexorably, shouting revolutionary slogans, shooting off their guns, singing rowdy revolutionary songs, killing and burning whatever stands in their way, and striking fear into bystanders. Some of them are clad in prison garb. Vanka, a member of the revolutionary group, has run off with Katya, a girlfriend of another revolutionary, Petrukha. In the distance Vanka can still be seen frolicking and dancing with Katya, a woman with a shady past. A shot is heard, and all see Petka shooting at Vanka in a fit of jealousy. He hits Katya instead, killing her, which throws him into inconsolable despair. His comrades try to comfort him, but they also chide him, saying that the times are too serious for little personal matters like that. Petka finds little consolation in their comradely admonition; he tries to explain plaintively to anyone who will listen how good Katya was and how much he loved her.
As the Bolsheviks march on, they suddenly see an apparition in the distance. At first they think it is only a mangy mongrel and they shoot at it, but as they peer into the darkness they see someone with a garland of white roses on his head, waving a red flag. They finally realize that it is Jesus Christ. Immune to their bullets, he seems to take over leadership of the revolutionaries as they continue to march into the snowy night.
Bibliography
Berberova, Nina. Aleksandr Blok: A Life. Translated by Robyn Marsack. New York: George Braziller, 1996. Not as comprehensive as Pyman’s biography (below), but provides informative firsthand accounts of the poet and the times in which he lived.
Briggs, A. D. P. A Comparative Study of Pushkin’s “The Bronze Horseman,” Nekrasov’s “Red-Nosed Frost,” and Blok’s “The Twelve”: The Wild World. Lewiston, N.Y.: Edwin Mellen Press, 1990. Compares three of the best-known Russian long poems, with excerpts in both Russian and English translation. As part of his analysis of The Twelve, Briggs demonstrates how rhyme functions as a way to link seemingly unrelated lines.
Hackel, Sergei. The Poet and the Revolution: Aleksandr Blok’s “The Twelve.” New York: Oxford University Press, 1975. Offers one of the best analyses available of the content and the form of The Twelve.
Mochulskii, Konstantin. Aleksandr Blok. Detroit, Mich.: Wayne State University Press, 1983. Perceptive study of Blok is provided by an émigré critic of spiritual orientation. Emphasizes Blok’s relationship to the Bolshevik Revolution.
Pyman, Avril. The Life of Aleksandr Blok. 2 vols. New York: Oxford University Press, 1979-1980. One of the most exhaustive treatments available in English of Blok as a man and a writer, written by a prominent former Russian scholar of Russian literature. Includes in-depth discussion of The Twelve.
Rylkova, Galina. The Archaeology of Anxiety: The Russian Silver Age and Its Legacy. Pittsburgh, Pa.: University of Pittsburgh Press, 2007. Analyzes the work of Blok and other writers of the Silver Age, demonstrating how this literature reflects the social, political, and cultural anxiety that accompanied the Russian Revolution, civil war, and Joseph Stalin’s terrorist government.
Vickery, Walter, ed. Aleksandr Blok Centennial Conference. Columbus, Ohio: Slavica, 1984. Collection of twenty-one articles addresses various aspects of Blok’s life and works. Of special interest regarding The Twelve is “The Polyphonic Structure of Blok’s Dvenadtsat,” by Edward Stankiewicz.