{"id":2648,"date":"2016-04-12T21:02:04","date_gmt":"2016-04-12T19:02:04","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.lesestunden.de\/?p=2648"},"modified":"2020-05-31T09:05:05","modified_gmt":"2020-05-31T07:05:05","slug":"das-huendische-herz-michail-bulgakow","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.lesestunden.de\/en\/2016\/04\/the-heart-of-a-dog-mikhail-bulgakov\/","title":{"rendered":"The Heart of a Dog \u2022 Mikhail Bulgakov"},"content":{"rendered":"\r\n

For quite some time now, I\u2019ve been following the program of the B\u00fcchergilde Gutenberg<\/a>. As a friend of beautiful editions, I often find something that catches my eye and can\u2019t resist adding another book from their collection to my shelf. Most recently, that was the case with The Light That Failed<\/a>, a book that is truly remarkable both in content and presentation. The Heart of a Dog<\/em> by Mikhail Bulgakov is certainly a visual highlight, and when I saw this beautiful edition \u2014 printed on two different kinds of paper \u2014 in the B\u00fcchergilde magazine, and read the intriguing blurb, I knew I had to have it immediately.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

\"The<\/a><\/figure>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

The novella\u2019s content is manageable at just under 160 pages, making it quite suitable for reading in between. The surgeon Filipp Filippovich transplants the pituitary gland and testicles of a petty criminal into a stray dog. As a result, the animal turns into a man \u2014 and not just any man, but a comrade straight out of the Soviet mold of that time. Unfortunately, the good old Sharik turns out to be quite a rascal who enjoys drinking, behaves in an uncouth manner, and \u2014 unsurprisingly \u2014 quickly climbs the bureaucratic ladder among his communist comrades, becoming more and more of a problem for his conservative creator.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

When Bulgakov wrote the story in early 1925, it immediately fell victim to censorship. During the Soviet Union\u2019s introduction of the New Economic Policy, the story did not sit well, as it delivered a veiled but biting critique of the officially promoted concept of the \u201cnew man.\u201d Contrary to what the blurb might suggest, the novella is more about society\u2019s attempt to create a new kind of human being. The relationship between science and humanity plays only a secondary role, even though the Frankenstein-like setup makes it part of the story\u2019s structure. The professor, with his conservative views and strong aversion to the proletariat, stands in stark contrast to his creation, who sympathizes precisely with the class he so despises.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

\"The<\/a><\/figure>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

Neither the story itself nor the writing style particularly impressed me. I couldn\u2019t really get into the narrative. The characters struck me as bizarre, strange, and unreal. I certainly sensed the cynical and satirical undertone \u2014 which is quite obvious \u2014 but I found it neither meaningful nor entertaining. This is probably because I lack a personal connection to that historical period and its social issues. Some exchanges between the professor and Sharik have the potential to be sharp and humorous, but from my modern perspective, they simply aren\u2019t. That\u2019s not necessarily the case with other authors; Balzac, for instance, still strikes a chord, both for his time and ours. Ultimately, the story drifts along without ever giving me the urge to find out what would happen next. The situations and characters feel too intangible \u2014 as if they were on a stage, appearing suddenly and disappearing just as quickly.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

The professor\u2019s reactions were understandable but not particularly engaging. When he sits at a table with Sharik, eats, and tries to lecture him, it feels odd \u2014 but not in a funny way, more in a dull one. These scenes seem surprisingly straightforward, unsurprising, and lack excitement. There was so much more potential here, after all \u2014 a dog suddenly becomes a thinking man! Reducing him merely to a crude caricature of a proletarian comrade felt disappointingly shallow to me.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

Linguistically, the book also failed to make an impression. The plain, almost unadorned sentences and dialogues feel abrupt and clipped. There was never really any flow while reading. The many short exchanges and the choice of words seem unnatural, leaving the impression that the story is made up of disconnected scenes.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

Books often resemble the people who write them, and so encountering a book is much like meeting a person. Some you immediately get along with, you\u2019re on the same wavelength, speaking the same language. Others, however, feel foreign, unsympathetic, or as if they came from another planet. It\u2019s often the same for me with books \u2014 a diffuse feeling that either draws me in or pushes me away. The style doesn\u2019t match your own way of thinking, and the subject matter or focus lies on something that simply doesn\u2019t resonate. That\u2019s exactly how it was for me with The Heart of a Dog<\/em>. Therefore, I can\u2019t universally dismiss the book and can well imagine that others might find these pages highly entertaining. Perhaps there\u2019s much to discover here, and the satirical cynicism might amuse some readers with its peculiar wit. But for me, this book simply wasn\u2019t the right match.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

\"The<\/a><\/figure>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

While I wasn\u2019t particularly taken with the content, I can only praise the book\u2019s design and the illustrations by Christian Gralingen. This little volume is a small work of art \u2014 a real pleasure to hold in your hands. From the color palette to the typography to the lovely illustrations, the book is beautifully executed throughout.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

\"The<\/a><\/figure>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

The illustrations fit the story perfectly, have a distinctive style, and are a pleasure to look at. The endpapers alone are a feast. The afterword is printed on blue paper, and a short section containing the assistant\u2019s notes appears on a brown background \u2014 a very elegant and creative touch. In the middle, there\u2019s even Sharik\u2019s identification card.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

\"The<\/a><\/figure>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

The footnotes are printed in the margins, just like in The Light That Failed<\/em>, which is both practical and visually neat. For books that rely on annotations to expand one\u2019s understanding of the text, it\u2019s the ideal layout.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

\"The<\/a><\/figure>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

Conclusion:<\/strong> Neither the story nor the writing style could win me over, and I never truly immersed myself in the book. The characters felt too strange and unrealistic, the satirical references didn\u2019t resonate with me, and the dialogue and descriptions seemed too plain. The book\u2019s design, however, is a delight \u2014 here the B\u00fcchergilde Gutenberg has outdone itself, creating a small masterpiece with Christian Gralingen\u2019s highly fitting illustrations.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

Book information:<\/strong> The Heart of a Dog<\/em> \u2022 Mikhail Bulgakov \u2022 Edition B\u00fcchergilde \u2022 200 pages \u2022 ISBN 9783864060625<\/p>\r\n\r\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

For quite some time now, I\u2019ve been following the program of the B\u00fcchergilde Gutenberg. As a friend of beautiful editions, I often find something that catches my eye and can\u2019t resist adding another book from their collection to my shelf. Most recently, that was the case with The Light That Failed, a book that is … <\/p>\n

Continue reading “The Heart of a Dog \u2022 Mikhail Bulgakov”<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":7713,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"slim_seo":{"title":"Das h\u00fcndische Herz \u2022 Michail Bulgakow - lesestunden","description":"Schon seit einiger Zeit verfolge ich das Programm der B\u00fcchergilde Gutenberg . Als Freund sch\u00f6ner Ausgaben werde ich auch immer wieder einmal f\u00fcndig und kom"},"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"_slim_seo_primary_term_category":0,"_slim_seo_primary_term_post_tag":0,"footnotes":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[10,20],"tags":[93],"class_list":["post-2648","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-classics","category-reviews","tag-michail-bulgakow"],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/www.lesestunden.de\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/04\/huendische_herz_beitrag_2.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lesestunden.de\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2648","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lesestunden.de\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lesestunden.de\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lesestunden.de\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lesestunden.de\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2648"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.lesestunden.de\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2648\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lesestunden.de\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/7713"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lesestunden.de\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2648"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lesestunden.de\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2648"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lesestunden.de\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2648"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}