An important collection of writings and memoirs on the Russian Futurist movement from one of America's pre-eminent linguists and literary theorists. Born in Moscow in 1896, Roman Jakobson brought an extraordinary rare poet's sensibility to his exploration of language. This volume, which fills a major gap in the literature of the Russian avant-garde, is a lively collection of letters, memoirs, poetry, prose, and essays. It includes recollections of Mayakovsky, Khlebnikow and others.

The book consists of nine chapters devoted to representations of melancholia in 19th-century art and literature. The book not only provides a survey of images and modes of behaviour of 19th-century individuals, but also discusses the meanings of melancholia as they appeared in European culture over time.