Rushalya Elegies
The Rushalya Elegies, known in Mirselec as the Rushalya ta Nesarni (the Nesarni being a form of grand dirge and lament for royal figures in ancient Mirselec literature), is a series of 5 novels by the famous Risevan writer Erai Raldergye; they are, in order of publication date:
- Kagorbe tari ta Rushalya (Rushalya from the Mountains), 1910
- Nortebusunmi ta Gager (Walks in the Valley Bottom), 1915
- Hinoru ta Dongan (Grandfather's Clock), 1917
- Haiste ta Kirban (The Dawn Watch), 1921
- Wantanor gari ta Rushalya (Rushalya to the Sea), 1924
To simplify, the Elegies tell the story of two families, the aristocratic Anesker house and the newly wealthy industrialist family of the Masera, over four generations and around 85 years from 1820 to 1905, the period of time defined by several crucial events in modern Risevan history like the 1827 Restoration and Second Constitution, the Ibakisaro, as well as the First Global War of 1883-1887.
The Rushalya Elegies cycle of novels continued the 19th century trend in Mirselec literature of the "Great Novel", being vast in both scope and depth; long discussions of philosophy and social issues, as well as extensive quoting and composition of poetry in both ancient and modern form, are woven into the text, and the social norms and ceremonies of 19th century Risevan royalty are painstakingly reproduced. A detailed count has concluded that nearly 330 named characters populate the book.
