Aria “Casta Diva,” “Noise of the Spheres” and “Serene Silence” in Goncharov’s Novel Oblomov: Dante’s Context of the Musical Theme

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Belyaeva, I. A. “Aria ʽCasta Diva,’ ʽNoise of the Spheres’ and ʽSerene Silence’ in Goncharov’s Novel Oblomov: Dante’s Context of the Musical Theme.” Dva veka russkoi klassiki, vol. 7, no. 3, 2025, pp. 32–65. (In Russ.) https://doi.org/10.22455/2686-7494-2025-7-3-32-65
Abstract:
Based on the Dantean code of Goncharov’s prose, the article presents an analysis of the musical text in the novel Oblomov. Norma’s cavatina is related to another sound worlds of the novel — the “noise of the spheres” and the “serene silence” of the Vyborg side. The metaphor “noise of the spheres” represents the Pythagorean teaching about heavenly music, which sounds in the highest circles of Purgatory, but also captures the “small noise of nature.” In Dante, this happens against the backdrop of Matelda’s singing and due to the will of Beatrice, and in Goncharov it is described in the plan of a new life, on which Oblomov is working, where, against the background of the music “Casta diva,” which is not yet performed by Olga, but by an allegorical woman, ordinary life is in full swing. The “noise” of the Vyborg side can potentially overcome its earthly horizontal, but in the novel’s reality, this does not happen; there is no music there. The Crimean chapter, on the contrary, is permeated with music, harmonizing and elevating everyday life. As a result, “Casta Diva” becomes the most important musical and semantic “point” of the novel. Its sound is not reducible to the love line of Oblomov and Olga and extends to all events, suggesting the possibility of a New Life for modern man.
Keywords: I. A. Goncharov, V. Bellini, Dante, Oblomov, aria “Casta Diva,” The Divine Comedy, Russian novel, music.
Author: Irina A. Belyaeva
Information about the author:
Irina A. Belyaeva, DSc in Philology, Professor, Lomonosov Moscow State University, Leninskie Gory, 119991 Moscow, Russia; Leading Research Fellow, A. M. Gorky Institute of World Literature of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Povarskaya 25A, bld. 1, 121069 Moscow, Russia.

ORCID ID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2840-4034

E-mail: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Received: December 18, 2024
Approved after reviewing: April 06, 2025
Published: Seprember 25, 2025
Issue: 2025 Volume 7 No. 3
Department: Russian Literature of the 18th–19th Centuries
Pages: 32-65
DOI: Visit Website
EDN:
https://elibrary.ru/OGTITH
UDK: 821.161.1.09"19"
Publication Type: Research Article

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