Between Dog & Wolf 1-17
pg. 1 — Discords beyond the Itil
The title to the first chapter of the book. The Russian version is “Zaitil’shchina” (Заитильщина) which is a pun on “Zadonshchina” (Задонщина), a Russian literary monument of the late 14th century, which tells of the Battle of Kulikovo between the Russians and the Mongols. Here it is referenced to draw parallels between Ilya’s conflict with the gamekeeper along the banks of the Itil (another name for the Volga river), and an epic battle or struggle. The use of the old Tatar name “Itil” and reference to a legendary 14th century battle, also give this story's setting a sort of timeless or mythical air, like nothing changes in the wilderness of provincial Russia.
pg. 1 — citizen Sidor Fomich Pozhilykh
A local crime investigator to whom Ilya (one of several chroniclers in this novel) addresses his account of events
pg. 1 — Ilya Petrikeich Zynzyrela
The narrator for about a third of the book, he is a poor cripple, living on the banks of the Volga, and making his money as a blade sharpener. His name sets the stage for several of the motifs present in the book; his first name “Ilya” alludes to the biblical character Elijah, the prophet who could control the weather, and who in Russian folklore is associated with wolves. His patronymic “Petrikeich” ties in the fox motif as it sounds similar to “Petrikeyevna” — a name associated with female foxes in Russian folklore. His last name, though the spelling varies, references the story of Cinderella, a story that is paralleled in a darkly humorous way: for example, when Ilya loses his whole leg rather than just a shoe. Some of the variants of the name, such as “Dzyndzyrela," may be a reference to Ilya’s career of blade sharpening, as “dzyn-dzyn” is an onomatopoeia for the sound metal makes on a grinder.
pg. 1 — A. Sharpenhaur
This is a pun on the german philosopher Arthur Schopenhauer and the word “Sharpener”, referencing Ilya’s profession. Schopenhauer does not appear to relate to the plot at all, apart from being an amusing play on words and an odd name for the trash co-op. The original Russian instead made a pun with “Daniel the prisoner” (D. Zatochnik) which is a well known Eastern Slavic piece of literature from the 12th century. It is the story of a prisoner writing to a prince about his unjust imprisonment, which finds parallels in Ilya’s address to the investigator.
pg. 2 — crashbaret
written “kubare” (кубаре) in the original Russian; a combination of “kubarem” (кубарем, to fall head over heels) and the French “cabaret” (кабаре, entertainment in a nightclub or restaurant.
pg. 2 — the Itil
An old Tatar name for the Volga river: a river which runs through South and Central Russia, and who’s banks are home to over half of Russia’s largest cities.
pg. 3 — Nikolay “Helper”
Nikolay has a tragic backstory. Like many of the thieves and “invaliduals” we meet, he struggles to find work and to hold onto his wife. He is “a sincere loser," seeming to shoulder his burden mildly, and as a result being bullied. Skating is the only joy in his life, but one day he skates off and never returns. Here we start to see some of the dualisms the ice represents—it is implied that Nikolay fell through the ice and died—he broke the thin ice that separated life from death, but he also broke away from suffering to freedom, as Ilya says, Nikolay “went through his transfiguration and flew away."
pg. 3 — Gorodnishche shelter
A shelter in the fictional city of Gorodnische. The name comes from the word “gorodishche” meaning fortified settlement and “nishchii” meaning beggars.
pg. 5 — Gury the hunter
A hunter who vainly takes great pride in his ice skating speed, and goes to Ilya to sharpen his blades. Gury calls “race-skatin” his career, though it does not appear he actually makes money this way; he is always looking for someone to race with.
pg. 5 — Krylobyl
A character for whom Ilya sharpens
pg. 5 — Wintry Man
Another character for whom Ilya sharpens. “Wintry” is meant to be a translation for the Russian “Zimar” which is a word coined by Andrei Voznesenskii in “Song travesty from the spectacle ‘anti-worlds’” and meant to refer to all the winter months.
pg. 5 — vertas
An old Russian unit of length equivalent to about 0.66 miles
pg. 5 — Sloboda
A sloboda was a kind of settlement in the history of the Old Russian regions. The name is from the early Slavic word for "freedom" and thus can be translated as "free settlement."
pg. 7 — Kulebyakovo
This is the name of a town, but it’s also the name of a type of savory Russian pirog.
pg. 8 — Ploski
A village on the Volga
pg. 8 — the youngster Nikolay
The young NIkolai who “stole” the older NIkolay’s name when he died, or “transfigured” as Ilya says. This is one of the many instances of doubling and shifting names and identities, contributing to this motif of unknowability, this twilight zone where nothing is what it seems.
pg. 9 — the Volga
The longest river in Europe, located in central and southern European Russia.
pg. 10 — Fyodor/ Pyotr/Yegor
A man of many names. He is supposedly an accountant, but Ilya says he is actually a “first-rate thief," as are most characters in Gorodnishche. He falls into despair after an affair with “the dame” and kills himself.
pg. 10 — “this dame”
“The dame” or sometimes “the lady” is a recurring character who is always seeking out new men. She seems to be a temptress of sorts, that leaves her ex-lovers in suicidal distress. This character shares many traits with our other female lead, Orina, so although she is never named, it seems likely that they are the same person.
pg. 11 — Krambambuli
Krambambula is an alcoholic mix drink that typically consists of red wine and various kinds of liquor with a sweet fruit punch base. In Russia it traditionally is made with cloves and cherry pits.
pg. 11 — Valday rot-gut
Rot-gut is a poor-quality and potentially toxic liquor, in this case made in Valday — a region in northwest Russia and a source of the Volga river.
pg. 12 — Orina
The narrator's beloved who seems to be quite promiscuous and eventually leaves him. She works in a tower at the train station as a dispatcher. She is described as very beautiful, and Ilya pines after her, even after settling down with someone else. The name Orina is from a poem “Orina, mat’ soldatskaia” (Orina, soldier’s mother) by the Russian poet Nikolay Nekrasov. It is a poem about Orina, narrated by a hunter lodging in her house. This poem’s reference gives a nod to Neskrasov, whose influence can be seen also in Yakov’s poetry chapters with their predilection towards trochaic and ternary meters like those employed in folklore and Nekrasov’s own work.
pg. 16 — the Bydogoshch cemetery
A fictional cemetery and city that lies across the river from Gorodnishche
pg. 17 — Maria
Appears to be another name for Orina
