Ideophones in Vladimir Mayakovsky’s work

Abstract

The Russian poet Vladimir Mayakovsky used ideophones to create meaning. In fact Mayakovsky constantly used ideophones in his poetic expression, part and parcel of the emphasis on sound in his poetry. In the 1910s he worked alongside the Moscow Linguistic Circle. To the end of his life in 1930 (due to suicide) the poet remained close friends with the important linguist Roman Jakobson. There is no doubt that his association with linguists led to Mayakovsky’s paying more attention to verbal form in his work; in particular, his use of ideophones is remarkable.