Writer Uladzimir Mikalaevic Dubouka (Уладзімір Мікалаевіч Дубоўка; Uładzimier Duboŭka) (July 15, 1900 - March 20, 1976)

Go to the Belarusian Writers Web page     Go to the Famous Belarusians Web page     Go to the A Belarus Miscellany Topic List

The following summary is compiled from several sources (see Notes):

Uladzimir Dubouka (Uładzimier Duboŭka) was born on July 15, 1900, in the village of Aharodniki (Vicebsk province). He was educated at a teachers’ training college, and, after graduation, taught for a time in a village school. Following demobilization from the Red Army, in 1922, he continued his literary studies in the Russian Federated Republic.

Dubouka began to publish his poems in 1922, and was a leading figure in the literary movements of the twenties. Prominent among these movements was Uzvyshsha' (Excelsior), which was formed in the spring of 1926 by Dubouka, Pushcha, and Zarecki. Uzvyshsha' aimed to restore some of the literary values and standards that were in danger of being lost in the buranpentisty's ("stormy foam") cultural revolution.

Uzvyshsha' emphasized more human, individual topics, laying particular emphasis on specifically Belarusian questions and problems. During its existence, it received intense, official hostility as a result of its continuing, and at times remarkably open, opposition to the policies of Russification and later, collectivization.

The group's stated aims included development of the following aspects of writing: (a) the cultural development of the Belarusian language; (b) the symbolism of social value in a literary work; (c) its concentration of imagery; (d) the dynamism of its composition; (e) the cultivation of typically Belarusian genres; (f) unity of the creative idea; (g) variety of formal realities; and (h) 'acquitism' (akvityzm). The authorities saw in the group's apolitical or nationalist attitudes a conspiracy and threat, and its members were for a time barred from writing in official journals. In 1927, the group started the periodical, Uzvyshsha' in reaction, and it became more popular than the other literary periodicals of the time and made important contributions to Belarusian culture of the period. By 1931, Uzvyshsha' was under a great deal of pressure from the authorities and was dissolved (McMillin, p. 221-23).

During the years of Stalinism, he was exiled to the Urals and a number of his works became unobtainable, but since the 'thaw' and his return to Belarus, the true value of his work has been fully appreciated once more.

Dubouka's works include There, Where the Cypresses Are (1925), Credo (1926), The Purple Sails Unfurled (I purpurovych vietraziau uzhvivy; 1927), Nalla (1927), and Palessian Rhapsody (1961).

Dubouka is also a noted prose writer and had translated the works of a number of western European writers into Belarusian, notably Byron and Shakespeare. He died on March 20, 1976.

In Like Water, Like Fire (1971), he is represented by three poems on pages 114, 294, and 298.

Photograph: Writers Maksim Harecki and Uladzimir Dubouka, about 1928

Photo Credit: Literature Museum of Maksim Harecki [Літаратурны Музэй Максіма Гарэцкага (Кароткі Даведнік)], 1997 (unnumbered page).

Notes

The preceding summary is compiled from the following sources:
• From the "Notes on Authors" section in Like Water, Like Fire (Vera Rich, translator and editor; 1971; pp. 335).

• A History of Byelorussian Literature (Die Literatur der Weissrussen): From its Origins to the Present Day, by Arnold B. McMillin; Giessen, W. Germany, 1977; pages 221 ff.

• From his entry (including photograph) in Belaruskaya Mova: Entziklapediya (edited by Mikhevich, A. Ya. et.al.; 1994; pp. 182-85). (in Belarusian)

See the following examples of his poetry:

• Poem: "O Bielarus', My Briar-Rose Cherished. . ."   (О, Беларусь, Мая Шыпшына)
  • Belarusian & English Versions. (English version published in Like Water, Like Fire, p. 114.)

Other Web Links:

• Also see Arnold McMillin's article, Aesopic Language in Belarusian Literature of the 1920s: The Poetry of Duboŭka and Pušča.

• Also see Д. Бугаев's book, Уладзімір Дубоўка (Выдавецтва "Беларуская навука", Minsk; Серия: Беларуская народная творчасць; ISBN: 985-08-0643-5).