"Ma laulan seni kui tuksub elu mu käte all". Trauma poeetika Bernard Kangro luules

Author(s): Maarja Hollo / Language(s): Estonian / Issue: 11/2017

The article discusses six poems from the poetry collection Põlenud puu (Charred tree, 1945) and three cycles from the collection Varjumaa (Shadowland, 1966), both published in exile by Estonian author Bernard Kangro (1910–1994). Those autobiographical poems and cycles are interpreted as a testimony, testifying not only to the author’s personal experiences of the World War II, but also in the name of the other Estonian refugees and in the name of those who suffered and perished in their home country. The article analyses Kangro’s themes, motifs and figures of speech associated with traumatic experience and remembering, as well as the witness position of the lyrical I. The themes of Kangro’s testimony poems include the great escape from Estonia in 1944, loss of homeland, its violent occupation, and also remembering, commemoration, witnessing, testification and the sinking of the traumatic events into oblivion, which all brings sadness, anxiety and melancholy to his lyrical I. Melancholy is associated with motifs of death referring either to the death wish of the lyrical I or to the painful events caused to the homeland by war and occupation. The gist of Kangro’s testimonial poetry consists of traumatic memories and emotions of recalling them, mainly expressed by means of personification, symbols and depersonification, as well as allegory.

A lív költészet nyomában

Author(s): Péter Pomozi / Language(s): Hungarian / Issue: 05/2017

This short study evokes a Baltic Finnic language that is now almost extinct, i.e. Livonian. After offering basic information on the medieval Livonian language area and the former dialectal distribution, the article focuses upon the linguistic heritage of the Salaca Livonian groups, who once lived along the seabanks of the Riga gulf and the Salaca and Svētupe rivers. The Livonians’ history does not end with their ancestors’ death. Curland Livonian has been revitalised, a standard grammar, vocabulary and spelling have been developed. This language is spoken in many places and on many forums, e.g. at summer courses and universities. Two remarkable volumes of poetry, containing the poems of Ķempi Kārl, were also published recently. The second part of the study is dedicated to the lyrical world of Ķempi Kārl, who experiments in his work with the poetical infinity of Salaca Livonian.

A Small Literature in the Service of Nation-Building: the Estonian Case

Author(s): Arne Merilai,Katre Talviste / Language(s): English / Issue: 1/2019

The idea of Estonia’s cultural and national self-sufficiency emerged in the nineteenth century. The contribution of writers and poets was essential to this development. Literature anticipated not only cultural, linguistic, and artistic, but also the economic and political emancipation of Estonians. Cultural practices leading to this emancipation were largely based on Baltic German models; many key elements to the independent Estonian national identity are of foreign origin. On the one hand, the nineteenth-century nationbuilding could therefore be described as self-colonization. On the other hand, it rather created a new nation than transformed a preexisting one, since the very concept of national identity was introduced by this process. Through various political and cultural upheavals, the most influential authors from this seminal period of the Estonian modern culture have remained iconic to this day. The traditional identification with them is so strong that the tentative origins of the nation and the identitary struggles of the national poets themselves may often be forgotten and the personal and individual nature of their contribution downplayed.

AARDEPÄRIMUSE TÜPOLOOGILINE TEGELIKKUS

Author(s): Mare Kalda / Language(s): Estonian / Issue: 08-09/2015

Aated ja stiiliotsingud: ekspressionism 1920. aastate eesti teatris

Author(s): Luule Epner / Language(s): Estonian / Issue: 17/2015

In Estonian theatre, the experience of World War I found expression somewhat belatedly, in the early 1920s, when Expresssionist plays, mainly by contemporary German playwrights – Ernst Toller,Walter Hasenclever, Georg Kaiser et al – were staged in the Estonia Theatre, in the Drama Theatre and in the amateur Hommikteater (Morning Theatre, 1921–1924). The article examines the most significant Expressionist stage productions, focusing on the relations between their ideological, affective and stylistic dimensions. Critical and audience receptions of Expressionist plays are discussed as well.In the Estonia Theatre, a group of young actors and directors(Ants Lauter, Erna Villmer, et al) sought to innovate theatrical language by making use of new, Expressionist devices. In contrast, the amateur Hommikteater (led by August Bachmann and Nigol Andresen)placed emphasis on spreading the ideals of new humanity and social justice, which reflected the left-wing sympathies of the troupe , but their work was also distinguished by an inventive style and a strong emotional impact on audiences. The members of the literary group Tarapita (who promoted Expressionism themselves)enthusiastically supported Hommikteater. This little theatre became highly influential in the process of theatre innovation, despite its very small audiences.However, the key ideas and ideals of postwar Expressionism (including a strong anti-war pathos) had rather little effect on Estonian theatre in general. Expressionism mainly contributed to the widening of the stylistic palette of Estonian theatrical art. This can be partly explained by the social situation of the 1920s: victory in the War of Independence and the subsequent building of the independent Estonian state raised nationalist spirits and made people less sensitive to the destructive experiences of World War I as reflected in postwar German Expressionism.

Ahasveeruse tunnistus. Kirjanduslik palverännak kui eetiline kohustus Ene Mihkelsoni "Ahasveeruse unes"

Author(s): Aija Sakova / Language(s): Estonian / Issue: 04/2018

Ene Mihkelson (1944–2017), one of the most philosophical authors in modern Estonian literature, has chosen the title of her novel Ahasveeruse uni (“The Sleep of Ahasuerus”) (2001) associating it with a figure from a medieval legend. The same figure occurs in the title of the story Ahasverus död (“The Death of Ahasuerus”), 1960, Estonian translation published in 1971) by Swedish Nobelist Pär Lagerkvist (1891–1974) . While Mihkelson’s Ahasuerus sleeps or dreams (the Estonian word uni can mean either state of mind), Lagerkvist’s Ahasuerus is either dying or dead. Both titles are very intriguing as both word pairs are oxymoronic. According to a legend, Ahasuerus was a former shoemaker who came to be called Wandering Jew since he was deprived of the right to have a rest, let alone sleep or dream. Neither was he entitled to find peace in death as his task was to keep wandering around the world, telling people about the passion of the Christ right until His Second Coming, thus bringing Christianity nearer to infidels.The aim of the article is to analyse what kind of a testifier Ahasuerus is according to Ene Mihkelson’s novel and what his witness is about. The study sheds light on different aspects of the Ahasuerus legend as well as on some books dealing with the subject and bearing the name of Tallinn as their fictitious place of publication in the early 17th century, which is also mentioned in the novel. A comparative analysis of “The Sleep of Ahasuerus” by Ene Mihkelson and “The Death of Ahasuerus” by Pär Lagerkvist is focused on whether the existentialist memorial wanderings of the first-person narrators of the two books are absolutely necessary, and if so, then whether those wanderings are dominated by the retributive element, or rather by the feeling of being the chosen one.

Ajalooline müüt Jaan Kaplinski draamas „Neljakuningapäev“

Author(s): Paavo Põldmäe / Language(s): Estonian / Issue: 1/2019

This paper examines the phenomenon of historical myth, presented in the form of a piece of theatre. Jaan Kaplinski’s historical and allegorical drama Day of the Four Kings is presented as a prime example. The play is based on a well-known historical event, namely the brutal murder of ancient Estonian chiefs by German conquerors during the rebellion of 1343 (St. George’s Night Rebellion). As Estonian theatre researcher Piret Kruuspere has noted, during the 1970s, re-tellings of national history on the Estonian theatre stage were clothed in metaphors, allusions and secret codes – Aesopian language. In addition to this secret code, the author of Day of the Four Kings used a kind of doubling, placing historical events into the setting of a contemporary house party. This change of perspective causes some degree of alienation as well as amplifies the essential allegorical message of the drama. Representing the real run of historical events, the play is effectively communicating with a contemporary audience, dealing with the problems and themes closely connected with contemporary society. In addition to its allegorical meaning, the play underlines the importance of maintaining ethnical and archaic values and warns against sacrificing these in return for short-time utilitarian purposes. The allegory of the play was even too obvious, so that the first production of the play (in 1977) was practically banned by the official powers of Soviet Estonia. Contrary to the first stage performance of the play, the second attempt – which took place a decade later – was an unfortunate example of the disappearance of the mythical dimension of the drama. This kind of poor production was no longer able to overcome the historical-cultural and national psychological contradictions inherent in the play. The analysis is mainly based on reviews of the play from the period as well as the social and cultural conditions in existence when the theatrical versions were staged. It is easy to conclude that during the process of producing this kind of stage play, it is far more fruitful to accent all kind of allusions and allegorical metaphors than to simply follow the formal development of the external plot. If the mythical dimension disappears, the message of the play loses its essential meaning.

ANALÜÜTILISED TULEVIKUTARINDId 17.–18. SAJANDI PÕHJAEESTI KIRJAKEELES

Author(s): Liina Pärismaa / Language(s): Estonian / Issue: 64/2018

This article is part of a broader morphosyntactic study and deals with analytic saama ’get, become’, pidama ’must, have to’, tahtma ’want’ and võtma ’get’ constructions which express future tense in Old Written Estonian. This study also focuses on elucidation of the future forms used by the 17th century author Christoph Blume. The study is usage-based and relies on the framework of historical sociolinguistics. The material used in the study is comprised of 610 tagged examples from 17th and 18th century ecclesiastical and didactic texts, which are from the corpuses of Old Written Estonian and the Concordance of Estonian Bible Translations. It was found that the literary language reform influenced the more native and even use of future tense. Although abrupt changes in the expression of future tense occurred from the end of the 17th century, e.g. the usage proportion of the German-influenced saama future construction decreased considerably, although it never fully disappeared, early indications in that direction can also be seen in the middle of the 17th century in the texts of Blume.

Antihumanism ilma reservita: nalja funktsioon ja hävituse mõõtmed (:)kivisildniku viimase aja luules

Author(s): Neeme Lopp / Language(s): Estonian / Issue: 10/2016

In keeping with Kivisildnik’s disposition of construing poetry, which opposes any socially or culturally dominant value or meaning, his poetry of the first half of the current decade – especially in the collections Liivlased ja saurused („Livonians and dinosaurs”, 2011), (:)soari evangeelium („The Gospel of (:)soar”, 2012) published in collaboration with Navitrolla, and Inimsööja taksojuht („The man-eating taxi-driver”, 2013), but also Enne sõda ja kõike seda („Before the war and all this”, 2012) – strikes the eye with some antihumanist traits. Although Kivisildnik’s palette of literary devices had always implicitly spoken of antihumanist ideas („machine poetry”), the above collections mark a transition from implicit antihumanist pathos to a nearly explicit programme, which could as well be called an antihumanist counter-ideology. The mission of Kivisildnik’s antihumanist counter-ideology is to reveal the biologist and commercial foundation of the humanist illusion, i.e. to unfold the covert cynical core of humanism. To achieve this aim, Kivisildnik uses the reversal technique, creating a comical effect. The fun, however, is not innocent, as it enjoys seeing its object as small, low and despicable by exchanging an ideological hyperbole for a litotes, thus performing a symbolic neutering of the object. With the same purpose in mind the author is trying to neuter the humanist image of man, the core of which is human free will. However, this leads us to Kivisildnik’s paradox: the condition of the possibility of his vision is also the condition of its impossibility. As long as there are readers of that poetry the realisation of Kivisildnik’s vision of total destruction must be still a little away. Yet, with no more readers around the prophecy must have been realised. Thus, the poetry referred to above manifests itself as a kind of text of warning, with a constantly haunting menacing potential on its limits.

Argimütoloogia kui Mati Undi poeetika lähtekoht

Author(s): Indrek Ojam / Language(s): Estonian / Issue: 4/2020

The aim of this article is to reinterpret the style and rhetoric of Mati Unt’s proseworks from the point of view of critique of various so-called everyday myths (“everyday mythology” also being the term title of Unt’s late essay-collections). The critical praise in Unt’s reception has revolved mostly around his unique ability to depict the most modern cultural trends, catchphrases and phenomena of his time. This talent of Unt has been explained by the author’s deep interest in myths and Jungian psychoanalysis. I propose, however, that the key author to understand the specific equilibrium of realism and estrangement so characteristic of Unt’s works, is Roland Barthes and his early book “Mythologies” (1957). Barthes’ contemporary French consumer-society was saturated with mythical tropes, which he proceeded to deconstruct using the critical methods of semiotics. Barthes saw the stereotypes of his contemporary television and commercial world as sedating and affirming the status quo. Cultural clichés of various kinds were also crucial raw material for Unt’s novels and short stories. He incorporated these materials into his works rather organically, thus achieving realistic effects, but often also overemphasised these tropes, coming close to estranging the reader. I attempt to show, through close-reading of two Unt’s short novellas from his middle period – “And if we are not dead, we shall be living on” (1973) and “Talking” (1984) – how Unt constructed a realistic story-world, using various modern stereotypes, and later rewrote these stories. The article ends with a discussion of how my analysis may contribute to the debate about Unt’s ambivalent place between modernism and postmodernism in Estonian literature.

Avalduste tekstistrateegiad

Author(s): Riina Reinsalu / Language(s): Estonian / Issue: 62/2016

Professional and administrative communication requires the creation of different types of texts. While some of them merely serve the purpose of preserving information, others are intended to influence people’s actions. In this article, I will explore applications as a textual genre based on 19 applications presented to Sauga Municipality. My goal is to find out what kind of generic structure these applications have and by what linguistic means the applicants aim to direct the actions of those who receive them. Since the applicants are citizens and the receiver is a state authority, the analysis of textual strategies also sheds light on practices between citizens and local authorities as well as on possible power relations between them. The structural analysis of the applications reveals that they have a somewhat rigid generic structure stemming from the tradition of the genre, the particular communicative situation, and the relations between the applicants and the receiver. Applications, in general, are based on two obligatory moves (presenting background information and naming the desired action) and an optional move (expressing one’s point of view). In addition, in presenting the background information, we can distinguish between three steps: one can elaborate when and where the problem occurred, how the applicant is related to the problem, and what in fact is the problem. While the general structure of the analyzed applications is fairly standardized, some differences can be detected in the particular order of moves and steps. The choices of strategies in applications appear in certain textual patterns. The content of an application is usually either a request or wish and expressed as I request, I wish, and wish. In some rare cases, citizens also use propositions or orders in communicating with their local government. Since the application is in the applicant’s own best interest, a direct obligating or coercive approach is usually found inappropriate. The citizen’s demand or order would come across as harsh and as violating the traditions of the genre, and in doing so would create unnecessary opposition from state authorities and thereby undermine the communicative purpose of the application: influencing the receiver to perform the act desired by the applicant.

Baltisakslase romaan

Teos ja autor

Author(s): Ljubov Kisseljova / Language(s): Estonian / Issue: 01/2016

The article discusses the Russian historical novel „Constantin Loeven (From my memoirs)” (1831) by Baron Karl Georg Woldemar Friedrich von Rosen (1800–1860), who was born in Estonia. Rosen’s literary activities started from writing poetry in Latin, of which no example has survived. He used German to publish criticism and translations, but most of his oeuvre is in Russian. He started learning Russian at the age of 19. Since 1825 he published in Russian, as his ambition was to become not only a Russian author, but also a Russian national ideologist. So he wrote some plays on themes of Russian history and a libretto for the first Russian national opera „A life for the Tzar”. The article analyses the innovative qualities. of Rosen’s novel. The scene is laid in Estonia, southern Russia, and Greece. The protagonist participates in the Greek War of Independence. The Greek theme enables „Constantin Loeven” to be classified as a historical novel, which was the most topical genre of the time. Unlike in earlier Russian literature Rosen’s romantic hero of Baltic German origin is not a gloomy criminal, but rather a modern man with a complex and strange mindset, a freedom fighter. The character owes to the German sentimentalist and romanticist tradition, as well as to the French libertine novel. In addition, the article specifies on some biographical details of baron Rosen.

Colloquia Comparativa Litterarum

Frequency: 1 issues / Country: Bulgaria

Colloquia Comparativa Litterarum is published by Sofia University St. Kliment Ohridski and edited by the literary scholars of the Balkan Studies Masters and Doctoral Studies Program (Department of General, Indo-European, and Balkan Linguistics with the Faculty of Slavic Studies). This journal aims to encourage the study of Comparative Literature. The similarities and overlaps between less popular literatures and the well-researched canonical phenomena remain rather unexplored. Colloquia Comparativa Litterarum wants to give priority to such issues; to reconsider the clichéd notions of centres and peripheries, of one-way influences, temporary delays and topic deficiencies. It makes sense to seek the meaning of common affinities and trends, in other words – to look at what is positive, stimulating, and creative about the communication between literary and cultural phenomena. In fact, the Balkans are home to just a small share of the less researched literatures in the field of Comparative Literature. In Europe, we often know too little about our neighbours, unless they happen to be the French, German or British literatures.

Colloquia Comparativa Litterarum expresses itself in three languages: Bulgarian, French and English. It provides new opportunities for communication between scholars of Comparative Literature with the aim of a complete, conceptual and terminological understanding of new ideas within our field of research.

Constructing a Text, Creating an Image: The Case of Johannes Barbarus

Author(s): Anneli Kõvamees / Language(s): English / Issue: 1/2018

The Estonian poet, physician and politician Johannes Vares-Barbarus (1890–1946) is a contradictory figure in Estonian history and culture. He was a well-known and acknowledged doctor named Vares, but also a poet named Barbarus who was notable for his modernistic poems in the 1920s and 1930s. His actions in the 1940s as one of the leading figures in the Sovietization of Estonia have complicated the reception of his poetry. His opposition to the Republic of Estonia and his left-wing views are nearly always under observation when he or his poems are discussed. Predominantly his poetry has been discussed; his other works have received much less attention. This article analyses his travelogue Matkavisandeid & mõtisklusi (Travel Sketches and Contemplations) based on his trip to the Soviet Union. It was published in the literary magazine Looming in 1935 and reprinted in 1950 in his collected works.

Cultiural Diversity and Transnationality in Baltic German Autobiografical Texts

Author(s): Tiiu Jaago / Language(s): English / Issue: 157/2015

This article stems from the research of oral history and life stories in Estonia. While both stories and research studies made on the basis of stories at the end of the 20th century concentrated on the experience of the 20th-century events (World War II, mass repressions, life under the conditions of the Soviet authority, etc.), more and more attention is currently paid to the present day (multicultural environments, virtual communities, communication space of transnational families, etc.). The article observes, on the basis of Baltic German texts, life in a culturally diverse environment and transnational family in the 19th century and at the beginning of the 20th century. By means of text analysis, the authors’ subjective geographies are mapped and thereafter, their attitudes to one or the other territory and the cultural “other” are described. The question is, what is the common share of cultural diversity and transnationality in the past and in the present-day society; which factors favour this common share (mutual relationships of family members, existence of communication networks etc.) and which ones exclude it (historical-cultural features, like e.g. the existence of the class society).

Deictic Close Reading

Author(s): Arne Merilai / Language(s): English / Issue: 1/2020

Inspired by practical didactics, this article suggests using pragmapoetic deictic analysis as a method to enrich close reading of poetry. When applying the pragmalinguistic theory of deixis and the analytic philosophical theory of indexicals to poetic texts, it soon becomes apparent that, in addition to traditional spatial, temporal, and personal deixis, it is also necessary to speak about emotional, or modal, deixis. The latter functions on a scale of positive and negative connotations, or, of subjective distance, which is the mental counterpart to spatial relations. In addition, poetry amplifies the intuitive deictic and egocentric quality of ostensive words of natural kind. On a formal level, however, we notice a congenital enhancement of discourse (or text) deixis, which manifests itself via self-reference using linguistic equivalence. This theory is exemplified by a deictic analysis of a short poem by Ene Mihkelson, which reveals the poem’s orientational reference system as a deictic network onto which an imaginary plot of the poem is projected. It should be noted that a deictic plot is wider than a lyrical/poetic plot, the latter being a concretization of the deictic potential created in the author’s or reader’s consciousness through the course of reading. Accordingly, we pass through three levels of analysis: (1) deictic network as the orientational frame of reference in the analyzed text, (2) deictic plot as the possible spatial and temporal dynamics of poetic thought within that frame of reference, and (3) lyrical plot as the concretization of a potential deictic plot in the conscious mind of the author or reader.

Diderot in Estonian: In Search of a Dialogue

Author(s): Katre Talviste / Language(s): English / Issue: 2/2016

Denis Diderot’s work has recently been enthusiastically translated into Estonian. Translations of Neveu de Rameau, Jacques le Fataliste, Paradoxe sur le comédien, Lettre sur les aveugles and Lettre sur les sourds et muets have been published from 2003 to 2015. In the 20th century, there was seemingly much less interest for his work. Only a few excerpts from his texts were translated and critical attention rarely focused on him. However, a closer look reveals that Diderot has held a rather important place in several culturally significant debates and that the relatively discreet response to his work reflects some key developments of Estonian literature.

Digitaalse kirjanduse defineerimisest ja periodiseerimisest

Author(s): Piret Viires / Language(s): Estonian / Issue: 1/2017

The article examines the links between digital literature and digital humanities, as well as various definitions and periodisation of digital literature. Digital literature is ‘digitally born’ literature, created and studied since the end of the 1980s and largely defined as a work with an important literary aspect that takes advantage of the capabilities and contexts provided by computer technology (e.g. hypertext literature, multimedia poetry, interactive literature, etc.). In the periodisation of digital literature, two generations have so far been differentiated (late 1980s until 1995 and from 1995 until today). The article adds a third generation to this periodisation, starting from2006–2007 and linked with the development and spread of social media platforms (Twitter, Facebook, Tumblr) and smart gadgets.The article defines the third generation of digital literature as literature created via social media (including so-called Alt Lit literature), characterised by its democracy, dialogue between participants, textual and narrative dynamics, and mixing of various forms of media. In addition, it is suggested that this type of literature can be associated with post-postmodernist literary trends. A closer look is taken at the work of Estonian authors Kaur Riismaa, Liina Tammiste and Keiti Vilms, who have all used social media platforms (Facebook,Twitter). The article discusses whether these authors can be associated with the term ‘Alt Lit’. The conclusion reached is that several of the features of Alt Lit can be ascribed to the texts and activity of Riismaa, Tammiste and Vilms; Alt Lit features seem to correspond best to Vilms.The overall conclusion of the article is, however, that the content and essence of digital literature does not so much depend on the will of the authors, creative impulses or inner-literature movements, but instead on the development of computer technology. Thus the definitions of digital literature are dynamic in time and depend on the technological solutions that are emerging in a given period and the types and works of digital literature these new technologies can inspire.

EBAÕDUS KOJUTULEK EESTI KIRJANDUSES

Author(s): Leo Luks / Language(s): Estonian / Issue: 03/2018

The article addresses homecoming as described in Estonian literature. First, a brief introduction is given to the theoretical foundations of the present approach to cosily settled vs. homeless, with references to some of the author’s earlier publications. Speaking from experience, homecoming from afar is a festive, even solemn occasion – thus, its literary depiction should presumably use the festive register. The main argument of the article is that a typical case of homecoming in Estonian literature is associated with a home lost, due to which homecoming fails to meet the expectations of a celebration, turning instead into a weird, if not scary experience. The theoretical basis of the article lies in Sigmund Freud’s treatment of the uncanny (das Unheimliche). It is argued that Freud’s approach is appropriate for the analysis of homecomings in Estonian literature. The theoretical introduction is followed by a parallel analysis of how homecoming is described in Estonian postwar exile literature and in homeland Estonian poetry. There follows a definition of the motifs of an eerie revenant and an empty house in Estonian literature (mainly based on Friedebert Tuglas’ short story Kuldne rõngas (“Golden ring”). The article is concluded by an analysis of homecoming as a frustrating experience as depicted in Peet Vallak’s short story Hulkur (“A vagabond”) and in Merca’s poem Saabumine (“Arrival”). The conclusive part of the article contains some rather far-reaching generalisations. It is argued that depiction of the cosy and the normal is not the mission of literature, which should instead generate malfunctions in the world of the everyday. It is doubted whether a literary work of high artistic value could ever be built on the sweet idyll of homecoming, which doubts are escalated in the following speculations about the onthology of literature and human nature. The article ends in a list of ways for the writer to avoid turning the description of a homecoming uncanny, namely, describe the homecoming as a process, but never depict the arrival.

Ecce genius

Author(s): Holger Rajavee / Language(s): Estonian / Issue: 3/2020

The article aims to explore the etymology and semantics of the word ‘genius’, its history, meanings and uses. The concept manifests itself as a human aspiration towards self-sufficiency, a desire to solve the mystery of the human ideal.The original antique meaning used to be ‘attendant spirit’, and as a genius could be either good or bad, the Middle Ages preferred speaking of guardian angels and demons, respectively. From the Late Middle Ages to the Early Renaissance the concept became increasingly associated with artists, particularly talented (‘ingenious’) poets. The 18th century introduces the idea of a modern artistic genius as a person standing out for God-given gifts, characterized by originality, confrontation with the rules and – most importantly – creativity. In the 19th century the word made a frequent appearance in philosophical debates. A semantic change was brought about by the first decades of the 20th century in connection with the rise of totalitarian ideologies associating the word with the cult of the leader. It is not before the second half of the 20th century that ‘genius’ found its way back to both literary and spoken language, but now as a common adjective or epithet applicable to a representative of any walk of life.In Estonian writing the word ‘genius’ made its first appearance in the late 19th century. In the early 20th century, we meet both the “genius of the Estonian ­people” and artists as ‘creative geniuses’. In Estonia, too, the term was transformed into “genius of the leader” and “genius of the Soviet people” during the Soviet occupation, and was not reused in the artistic context until the last decades of the 20th century.