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‘On the Body of the Soul’ with Lyudmila Ulitskaya
Friday 22 May, 2020, 19:00 - 20:00
We are delighted to invite you to an evening with an acclaimed Russian writer Lyudmila Ulitskaya, who kindly agreed to read stories from her book On the Body of the Soul to members and friends of The Cambridge Russian-Speaking Society.
There will be an opportunity to ask questions.
WHEN: Friday, 22 May at 19:00
WHERE: Zoom meeting
LANGUAGE: Russian
TICKETS: free*
Lyudmila Ulitskaya is a biologist by education and a writer by calling. In her new book “On the Body of the Soul” she explores the body and soul as one entity and describes the heroes of stories in their ultimate state, when the boundary between reality and non-existence is blurred.
“We know much more about the body than the soul.
No one can sketch an atlas of the soul. One can only sometimes sense its borderline space.
There, near that border, as you approach it, one can feel distinct vibrations, and reveal such fine details, which one can hardly describe in our beautiful but also limited language. This is a risky and even dangerous nearing. But that space lures to itself and the further you live, the stronger that attraction is. ” Lyudmila Ulitskaya
Living life, we constantly meet boundaries – internal, external, conditional, real. The borders are “expanding”, “erasing”, “overcoming”, “demanding respect”, we set some ourselves, others designate states, society or traditions. It is the philosophical and humanistic interpretation of this concept that occupies Ulitskaya.
The collection includes two cycles of stories. In the stories of the “Girlfriends” cycle, the key motive, the narrative motor, is love, perhaps the core force that sweeps the boundaries between people. Through physical and blood love, at times late, unexpected, gradual and sympathetic, heroes gain the missing part of the soul, the strength necessary for life. Many stories of the collection have personal dedications.
In the second cycle “On the body of the soul”, Lyudmila Ulitskaya approaches the innermost boundary – the boundary of life, or rather physical existence. Is there a line between life and death? Or is death the border of life? And what is there, beyond the physical existence? Lyudmila Ulitskaya finds her heroes in those crucial moments of their life, when the physical and spiritual are practically inseparable.
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*there is no charge for this lecture, but we would welcome any donation you would like to make towards support of our efforts in bringing more speakers and lectures online during the lock down and social distancing time. Suggested donation £5.
You can send your donation by a direct bank transfer (BACS) to the following account:
Cambridge Russian-Speaking Society
NATWEST Bank, Sort code: 60-11-30
Account: 18120466
Please email camruss@camruss.com if you have any questions.
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