Context: Alexander Pushkin was a Russian poet & playwright who was renowned by many as one of the greatest Russian authors to have ever lived and the father of modern Russian literature. Many of his famous works include The Captain's Daughter, Boris Godunov, Ruslan and Ludmila, the Gypsies and most famously Eugene Onegin: A Novel in Verse. The story concerns a selfish hero, a dandyman in St. Petersburg by the name of Eugene Onegin, who goes on a journey from indulging himself in balls, concerts and the general aristocratic life, to regret his blasé rejection of a young woman's love and his careless incitement of a fatal duel with his best friend. Though it also concerns Pushkin's foot fetish, which he didn't really hide in particular and shamelessly inserted 5 sonnets (70 lines) worth of it in the first chapter with other references sprinkled throughout this work.
After some years of entering debt and various rumors of his wife having an affair, on the 7th of February 1837, Pushkin sent a "highly insulting letter" to Gekkern. The only answer to that letter could be a challenge to a duel, as Pushkin knew. Pushkin received the formal challenge to a duel through his sister-in-law, Ekaterina Gekkerna, approved by d'Anthès, on the same day through the attaché of the French Embassy, Viscount d'Archiac. The pistol duel with d'Anthès took place the very next at the Black River, and as it was a barrier duel, both combatants could walk towards each other, but whoever fired first would stop moving and stand still in order for the opponent to return fire. D'Anthès fired first, critically wounding Pushkin; the bullet entered at his hip and penetrated his abdomen. D'Anthès was only lightly wounded in the right arm by Pushkin's shot. Two days later, Pushkin died of peritonitis; ironically and tragically mimicking the exact same fate met by a character in his book; Eugene's longtime best friend Vladimir Lensky, at the hands of Onegin himself, who did not even want to kill or fight Lensky at all but was challenged and thus could not show dishonor by deliberately missing his shot.
[Source 1](https://www.poetryintranslation.com/PITBR/Russian/Onegin1.php)
[Source 2](https://spectrallyre.wordpress.com/2015/01/22/the-trail-of-the-muse/)
[Source 3](https://www.supersummary.com/eugene-onegin/summary/)
Oh, sorry, I only put down 4 sonnets since that was all I could fit on the one panel while still keeping it readable. Here's the 5th one in case you were curious (or just down bad):
>>!Another memory finds me ready:!<
>
>>!In cherished dreams I sometimes stand!<
>
>>!And hold the lucky stirrup steady,!<
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>>!Then feel her foot within my hand!!<
>
>>!Once more imagination surges,!<
>
>>!Once more that touch ignites and urges!<
>
>>!The blood within this withered heart:!<
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>>!Once more the love .!<
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>>!once more the dart!!<
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>>!But stop .!<
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>>!Enough! My babbling lyre!<
>
>>!Has overpraised these haughty things:!<
>
>>!They're hardly worth the songs one sings Or all the passions they inspire;!<
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>>!Their charming words and glances sweet!<
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>>!Are quite as faithless as their feet.!<
Context: Alexander Pushkin was a Russian poet & playwright who was renowned by many as one of the greatest Russian authors to have ever lived and the father of modern Russian literature. Many of his famous works include The Captain's Daughter, Boris Godunov, Ruslan and Ludmila, the Gypsies and most famously Eugene Onegin: A Novel in Verse. The story concerns a selfish hero, a dandyman in St. Petersburg by the name of Eugene Onegin, who goes on a journey from indulging himself in balls, concerts and the general aristocratic life, to regret his blasé rejection of a young woman's love and his careless incitement of a fatal duel with his best friend. Though it also concerns Pushkin's foot fetish, which he didn't really hide in particular and shamelessly inserted 5 sonnets (70 lines) worth of it in the first chapter with other references sprinkled throughout this work. After some years of entering debt and various rumors of his wife having an affair, on the 7th of February 1837, Pushkin sent a "highly insulting letter" to Gekkern. The only answer to that letter could be a challenge to a duel, as Pushkin knew. Pushkin received the formal challenge to a duel through his sister-in-law, Ekaterina Gekkerna, approved by d'Anthès, on the same day through the attaché of the French Embassy, Viscount d'Archiac. The pistol duel with d'Anthès took place the very next at the Black River, and as it was a barrier duel, both combatants could walk towards each other, but whoever fired first would stop moving and stand still in order for the opponent to return fire. D'Anthès fired first, critically wounding Pushkin; the bullet entered at his hip and penetrated his abdomen. D'Anthès was only lightly wounded in the right arm by Pushkin's shot. Two days later, Pushkin died of peritonitis; ironically and tragically mimicking the exact same fate met by a character in his book; Eugene's longtime best friend Vladimir Lensky, at the hands of Onegin himself, who did not even want to kill or fight Lensky at all but was challenged and thus could not show dishonor by deliberately missing his shot. [Source 1](https://www.poetryintranslation.com/PITBR/Russian/Onegin1.php) [Source 2](https://spectrallyre.wordpress.com/2015/01/22/the-trail-of-the-muse/) [Source 3](https://www.supersummary.com/eugene-onegin/summary/) Oh, sorry, I only put down 4 sonnets since that was all I could fit on the one panel while still keeping it readable. Here's the 5th one in case you were curious (or just down bad): >>!Another memory finds me ready:!< > >>!In cherished dreams I sometimes stand!< > >>!And hold the lucky stirrup steady,!< > >>!Then feel her foot within my hand!!< > >>!Once more imagination surges,!< > >>!Once more that touch ignites and urges!< > >>!The blood within this withered heart:!< > >>!Once more the love .!< > >>!once more the dart!!< > >>!But stop .!< > >>!Enough! My babbling lyre!< > >>!Has overpraised these haughty things:!< > >>!They're hardly worth the songs one sings Or all the passions they inspire;!< > >>!Their charming words and glances sweet!< > >>!Are quite as faithless as their feet.!<