Dog Hearted: Essays on Our Fierce and Familiar Companions

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Science does not yet know any way of turning animals into human beings. This was my attempt, but an unsuccessful one, as you can see. He spoke for a while and then began to revert to his original primitive condition.’

Nobody should be whipped. Remember that, once and for all. Neither man nor animal can be influenced by anything but suggestion."This was a charming collection of essays portraying an extremely diverse cast of dogs that were both charming and confusing in equal measure. The essays were surprisingly intimate, as if the authors' dogs provided a window into their domestic lives, whether that be current or remembered, that might not otherwise have been exposed. Perhaps this intimacy and vulnerability is encouraged by the simple and honest love that most have for their canine companions, unlike the complexity of human-to-human relationships. Add the flavor of the Soviet mid-1920s, after the Socialist Revolution but still before the iron fist rule of Stalin's terror policy. Despite its short size, this book has endless layers. On the surface, it is a hilariously sad story about a science experiment gone very wrong in the direction that its creator did not quite anticipate, and all the funny antics of the newly created sorta-human Sharikov. Yes, that includes obsessive and funny cat-chasing even when the dog becomes "human". The novella has been interpreted both as a satire on Bolshevism and as a criticism of eugenics. [8] [9] On the other level, it is a cautionary warning about what happens when power falls in the hands of those who should not be allowed to yield it, and the dangers and pitfalls of the system that allows that to happen. Yes, that includes an easy step from killing cats to pointing guns at real people, and demanding sex in exchange for keeping a job, and of course the ultimate evil that was to penetrate the fabric of the years to come - writing denunciations for little else than petty personal gains. " But just think, Philipp Philippovich, what he may turn into if that character Shvonder keeps on at him! I'm only just beginning to realize what Sharikov may become, by God!"

The only part of this that doesn't work is the ‘dry blizzard witch’, clearly a little personification in the original Russian which just seems confusing in this translation. Otherwise it reads OK, and as it was done in 2007 it should at least benefit from more recent scholarship than the other two I looked at. Vintage publish the Michael Glenny version from 1968, which I prefer in many ways (this is actually the one I meant to buy): In 2007, Guerilla Opera staged the premiere of Heart of a Dog, an opera by Rudolf Rojahn, directed by Sally Stunkel. In 2010, the second production was directed by Copeland Woodruff. [17] Corazón de Perro" fue escrito entre enero y marzo de 1925, el autor, luego de que "Los Huevos Fatales", también de fuerte crítica a los soviets no fuera censurado por descuido, sí sufre la censura de éste, el cual sería publicado recién en su país en 1987 (Bulgákov falleció en 1940).El experimento en cuestión trata acerca de un perro de la calle al que le implantan los testículos y la hipófisis de un hombre; éste sufrirá una transfiguración y no una transformación, puesto que el experimento y la evolución de la operación transcurre entre el 23 de diciembre y el 7 de enero, lo cual incluye alusiones a la Navidad católica y la ortodoxa. The whole horror of the situation is that he now has a human heart, not a dog's heart. And about the rottenest heart in all creation!" Cerabona, Ron (2013-06-15). "Musical masters the mind of a dog". The Canberra Times . Retrieved 2020-05-01. He saw the terror around him, saw the results, and distilled a response into a short phrase. That's writing that's a joy to read.