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Summary Of Introduction By Anna Akhmatova

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Anna Akhmatova’s excerpt “Introduction” is a touching poem about the hardships the people in anti-Soviet Russia had to go through under Stalin’s rule. She speaks of death, loneliness, and constant fear. A loss of a loved one messes with a person emotionally, to the point that recovery from traumatic grief seems impossible. In the time frame of anti-Soviet Russia, Stalin is in power. There is a constant fear of each other, the government, the secret police, and a fear of sharing their thoughts and feelings. It was a brutal time. The communists, known as the Bolsheviks, start turmoil, but a regime against them, most known as the Whites, try to fight for truth and freedom. Akhmatova’s husband is executed by the Bolsheviks for siding and cooperating with the anti-Soviets. “To wail with the wives of the murdered streltsy” (21). The wives ached together for their murdered husbands. …show more content…

At a time this strictly controlled by the government, Akhmatova knew she was in for life or death if anyone found her poems. “As innocent Russia squirmed/ Under the blood-spattered boots and tires/ Of the black maria/s” (10-12). She talks about how the citizens suffer under the corrupt government. The government sent the secret police, that being the black maria’s, to transfer prisoners. Some of the prisoners were innocent, like Akhmatova’s son Lev. “Her son is in jail, her husband is dead/ Say a prayer for her instead” (29-30). She wanders alone with no company in her life. She’s lonely and feels isolated. She can’t grasp what events had happened. She needs invocations to ensure her that everything will be

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