Sonnets

William Shakespeare entered history as one of the greatest playwrights of all time, yet his creative legacy extends beyond brilliant comedies and tragedies, with a significant place held by sonnets. First published without the author's knowledge and not republished for many years, they gradually gained public recognition, and the poet William Wordsworth (1770—1850) even called the sonnets "the key to understanding Shakespeare's heart." In these verses, which have been the subject of entire academic studies, various manifestations of love, philosophical reflections, and ruthless self-analysis intertwine, featuring vivid images and apt metaphors, astonishing rhymes and enchanting comparisons.
In this edition, Shakespeare's sonnets are presented in four versions—in the original, as well as in translations by Anatoly Liberman, Modest Tchaikovsky, and a host of translators, including the famous poets Valery Bryusov and Nikolai Gumilev. Some sonnets are accompanied by informative comments from A. Liberman.