A Single Problem of the Psychology of Art in the Works of Edgar Poe and Galaktion Tabidze

Abstract

There are striking similarities in the concepts of the great American author Edgar Allan Poe and the brilliant Georgian king-poet Galaktion Tabidze, which indicate the high spiritual values and similar attitudes towards the world of these two poets and great men.

       In the writings of both poets, special attention is paid to the concepts of the madman and the insane.This metaphorical application refers not to clinical insanity but to the ele­vation of the artist above the possibilities of ordinary man, to a higher level of co­ns­ci­ousness. Goethe, Grigol Robakidze, Edgar Poe, Galaktioni, Terenti Granelli understood the notion of the insane as synonymous with superior perception, positive energy and inspiration. But madness, insanity acquired its odious content in the totalitarian Soviet empire and artists serving justice and freedom were referred to as madmen. An example of this is the declaration of Terence Granelli as mentally ill. In this regard, the Soviet political system did not spare Galaktion Tabidze and created the image of a “mad poet” from him.

        The ingenious aesthetics of the “mad poet” can also be seen in the work of the Ame­ri­can poet Edgar Allan Poe. He is a spiritual ally of Galaktion Tabidze and Terence Gra­nelli. There is a particularly great similarity in the work of Edgar Poe and Galaktion.

       This scientific study examines the parallels in the legacy of these two great creators from the perspective of a metaphorical understanding of one specific concept - the ma­dman, the insane.