THE LOWER DEPTHS (Nachtasyl) : Scenes from Russian Life

Boston, MA: International Pocket Library/IPL. Unstated Printing . Paperback. Very Good/None as Issued. Text/New New. Softcover w/sketch of Gorki/VG; w/edge & surface wear. PO name to front cover verso. Published w/o printing date, nor ISBN (pre-late 1960's). The Lower Depths (also translated as A Night's Lodging, and At the Bottom) is a drama in 4- acts by Russian writer & political activist Maxim Gorki (1868 - 1936), a founder of socialist realism literary genre, and 5-time nominee for the Nobel Prize in Literature. Play first performed 1902, and published in the same year as "Na dne"; this Edwin Hopkins' English translation dates to 1906. The play is set in a late 19th century dilapidated flophouse housing society's outcasts. The spirits of the denizens of the rooming house are unexpectedly, and most briefly, uplifted by a new boarder --- the tramp Luka. Luka listens to their stories, advises them, spins illusions and generates hope. But Luka wanders off and bleak reality returns --- a resident thief kills the landlord, and an alcoholic actor hangs himself. Best known Gorki play in 108 pgs.