Yesenin Sergey

Yesenin Sergey (1895-1925),Russian poet. Born in the village of Konstantinovo (later the village was renamed Yesenino) in the Ryazan Province, Russia. Starting from 1904 he studied at a public school; then, starting from 1909, he attended parochialeducational school. In 1913 he became a free student of historical-philosophical department of the Moscow People’s State University named after L. Shanyavsky. He visited Georgia in 1924 – 1925. He stayed in Tbilisi in September – December of 1924 and spent December – end of February of 1925 in Batumi. Yesenin’s first hosts were the members of local literary trend ‘Tsisperkantselebi’ (Blue Drinking Horn Brotherhood): Titsian Tabidze, Paolo Iashvili, Giorgi Leonidze, Valerian Gaprindashvili and others. Georgia became an inspiration to the poet. There he composed over 30 poems, among them – Ana Snegina, part of The Persian Motifs (other part was written in Baku), etc.

Yesenin was enchanted with Georgia; in Tbilisi he found himself in his element – he frequented Café ‘Qimerioni’ at the Rustaveli Theater, were Georgian men of arts congregated and ‘Tsisperkantselebi’ used to gather; it was the place where the poetic spirit prevailed. He liked picnics in the open air, where ‘poetic jousting’ was the key event of the feast. The main impressions of his stay in Tbilisi were conveyed in his poems To the Poets of Georgia and In the Caucasus (both poems were written in 1925).

S. Yesenin died in St. Petersburg (Leningrad of that time). According to the official version, he committed suicide. He was buried at the Vagankovo Cemetery.