Why did Mayakovsky love & fear boxing?
"A handsome, gloomy-looking young man with the bass voice of an archdeacon and the fists of a boxer." That's how Mayakovsky was described. He did, indeed, train in boxing for two years and then dedicated poetry to the sport.
Mayakovsky showed up for his first class in a blue satin suit and, when he received a jump rope, he became dejected – jumping was not his forte. However, he threw hooks as decisively as he wrote poetry. Once, a rag bag, which served as a punching bag, even tore under his pressure.
Mayakovsky confessed: "I don't dare fight. If I start, I'll kill someone." However, he did use his fists: He beat up one of the suitors of his beloved Lilya Brik so badly that he later showed everyone his bruised hands.
Incidentally, Mayakovsky also advised speaking to hooligans in the language of boxing. This sport became a source of inspiration for him. "Know both French and English boxing, but not so that you can break your jaw, but so that, fearing neither bayonets nor bullets, you can disarm an entire patrol single-handedly," he urged.
