Poems and Songs of Vladimir Vysotsky. The Interrupted Flifht.

Commentary to the poem “My Black Man”.

Vladimir Vysotsky wrote this poem under the impression of a story about a big boss who liked to wear gray suits — how he struck a bent prisoner with his foot in the face. He con­clud­ed it with the words:

What false and sacred are, I know well,
And learned about many years ago.
By my good luck, I have no choice, dear friends,
Thank the Almighty for the only road.

It is pertinent to quote here an old saying: “Conscientia igitur praeclara sustentor.” (“I am supported by my clear conscience.”)

The poem was written in 1979.

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