The meaning of the lyrics of the song "Own Island" (Svoy ostrov) the performer of the song "Vladimir Vysotsky"

We're sailing to a warm land,

Forever.

Our voyage, consider it,

For years.

Place the wheel of fortune

Across,

We know everything about storms

Ahead.

Climb the mast quickly, old man!

The question of land arose sharply, -

Maybe you'll see a continent,

Or maybe an island.

Does anyone have a calculation

At hand?

That someone is sailing away

To retirement.

And the rest - in what their mother

Gave birth to them -

Not for rest, but again -

To work.

You tonsured fate into a nun,

Laugh in her face simply.

Some have their own personal continent,

And some have an island.

They predicted misfortune for me

With the queen of spades,

They predicted that I would find

A continent, -

No, fortune-teller, you are again

Wrong -

I liked to look for

Islands.

And so the shore appeared like a ghost, -

Slowly - count to a hundred.

Is this it, the very continent,

Or is it my island?

Отплываем в теплый край

навсегда.

Наше плаванье, считай, -

на года.

Ставь фортуны колесо

поперек,

Мы про штормы знаем все

наперед.

Поскорей на мачту лезь, старик! -

Встал вопрос с землей остро, -

Может быть, увидишь материк,

Ну а может быть - остров.

У кого-нибудь расчет

под рукой,

Этот кто-нибудь плывет

на покой.

Ну а прочие - в чем мать

родила -

Не на отдых, а опять -

на дела.

Ты судьбу в монахини постриг,

Смейся ей в лицо просто.

У кого - свой личный материк,

Ну а у кого - остров.

Мне накаркали беду

с дамой пик,

Нагадали, что найду

материк, -

Нет, гадалка, ты опять

не права -

Мне понравилось искать

острова.

Вот и берег призрачно возник, -

Не спеша - считай до ста.

Что это, тот самый материк

Или это мой остров?.

Vladimir Vysotsky's poem "My Island" is a philosophical reflection on finding one's place in life, choosing one's path, and how happiness and success can mean very different things to different people.

The first stanza sets the tone for the entire poem: the lyrical hero embarks on a long and possibly perilous journey ("our voyage – for years"). He is ready for difficulties ("we know all about storms in advance") but he is not afraid of them but rather challenges fate ("put the wheel of fortune across"). The purpose of the journey is to find land which could be either a continent or an island.

The second stanza deepens the meaning of this search. Someone is sailing "for peace", seeking stability and tranquility, symbolized by the mainland. Others, "as their mothers bore them", are looking for new deeds and achievements, not afraid of difficulties and dangers ("not for rest, but again – for deeds").

The third stanza develops this idea by contrasting "personal continent" and "island". The mainland is a symbol of established, generally accepted success, material well-being, and public recognition. The island, on the other hand, is a symbol of individuality, freedom, the opportunity to live by one's own rules, even if it is far from the "mainland".

In the fourth stanza, the lyrical hero tells us that he was predicted to find the mainland. But he is not happy about it, because he "liked looking for islands". This is the main idea of the poem: true happiness is not blindly following other people's expectations, but finding your own path, even if it leads not to generally recognized success, but to a "personal island" - a place where a person can truly be themselves.

The final lines are the culmination of the entire poem. The lyrical hero sees land but is not completely sure what it is: a continent or an island. And that's the point: it's not so much the destination that matters, but the journey of searching, the pursuit of self-discovery and finding your own meaning in life.