Anna Akhmatova

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Anna Andreevna Gorenko was an insurgent Russian poet who wrote under the pen name Anna Akhmatova to protect her family name. Her poem "Everything" explained the constant despair faced while living under Stalin, whereas "But Listen I am Warning You" portrays her refusal to continue living voiceless. Akhmatova's most renowned poem "Requiem" displays the persistent struggles faced during Stalin's reign of terror and the indignation felt within the time frame. Joseph Stalin's reign of terror impacted the poetry of Anna Akhmatova greatly, as shown in her poems "Everything," "But Listen, I am Warning You," and "Requiem." Anna Akhmatova's poetry was influenced by Stalin's rule and is shown immensely in "Everything." The poem speaks about a new, brighter …show more content…

Rather than continuing to hint at Stalin, this poem is aimed at him directly, making the poem completely impacted by his rule. Akhmatova mentions how she refuses to come back and fight gently, but will instead fight back harder the second time around (But Listen... 3-6). The poem proves how she is no longer letting him have control over her life and career, and is finally fighting against his reign. This is significant because it shows Akhmatova's persistence towards arguing for what she believes in. This means that even throughout Stalin's direct punishments to Akhmatova, she was able to keep writing and fighting for her rights, which is something the average person would not do. She goes on to say that not peacefully "will [she] return to troubled men... with [her] insatiable moans (But Listen... 7-9). This represents the end of her trying to remain peaceful, and the start of her continual fighting back against Stalin. She began to realize her past acts were not working, so she decided to fight back stronger. Akhmatova makes a strong point that she will not come back peacefully and just mention Stalin's cruel rule occasionally, further proving that the rule of Joseph Stalin had a large effect on Akhmatova and her writing. "But Listen, I am Warning You" was a reminder to Russia as a whole to further take action and a warning to Stalin that she was going to be …show more content…

Akhmatova's poems "Requiem," "But Listen, I am Warning You," and "Everything" were significantly impacted by Joseph Stalin's reign of terror. Each one discusses a new era in her campaign, proving she was relentless and dedicated solely to removing Stalin from rule. The poems represent every stage of her fight, following the process in which she built up enough strength to continue the battle, even if her writing access was removed from her. Akhmatova was a strong poet who was not willing to back down without a

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