Maxim Gorky wrote to Maria KuprinA-IordAnskaya in 1910: ‘This narration is a historical work in its nature, nobody has ever written about the rural community like this’. The Russian rural community, as Bunin believed, had no chance to last, if no changes for the better occurred. Critics accused the writer of sharply negative description of rural life. In his interview for the ‘Odessa newspaper’ (No. 56, March 12, 1910) Bunin said that his TIkhon KrAsov in the ‘Village’ — ‘is not a merchant, but a peasant, and he built his prosperity on the poor villagers’. Thomas Mann read the ‘Village’ in French, but even in translation, as he said, this book ‘retained all its fascinating power’, ‘it is an unusually mournful novel from the peasant life’.
Village
Creation period
1910 year
Dimensions
21,5х15 cm, 220 pages
Technique
paper, typographic printing
Collection
Exhibition
0
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Bunin I.A.
Village
#12
<p>The story was first published in 1910 in the magazine “Modern world” (№ 3, 10, 11). In the story Bunin reflected his thoughts about the people, about the fate of Russia. It is based on the author’s observations about the life of the peasants in the Yelets district. To create the character KuzmA KrAsov, Bunin used some features of EgOr IvAnovich NazArov, a self-taught poet from Yelets, he took some features from so-called “narOdniki” writers, and even took something from himself. In TIkhon KrAsov one can recognize the features of his brother EvgEny AleksEevich. The prototype of DurnOvka was the village of OgnYOvka, where the estate of his brother EvgEny was located. According to VEra NikolAevna, the first part of the story was written in Moscow within three days: “Sometimes he was leaving the room to come up to the mother, saying: “It’s awful, really awful.” Then he went back to his room again and continued writing.” At this moment Bunin’s imagination was probably bringing to him the pictures of events happening in this story.
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‘In Moscow, I spent 15 hours a day writing this story, I was afraid to stop even for a minute, afraid that the electric light inside of me would suddenly go out and I would immediately be captured by the depression for which to overcome I found the only means — working. And then this stress led me to deadly fatigue and heart attacks to icy sweat, almost to loss of consciousness… I finished the story (I believe that I ruined it, because at first I started working with too tight deadlines, and recently it was too hard to work)’.
On August 20, 1910, Bunin I.A. wrote to Gorky M.
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<p>The “Village” gave a rise to many disputes and was the beginning of Bunin’s huge popularity. This first major writing was followed by other novels and stories, as Bunin wrote, “sharply outlining the Russian soul, its light and dark sides, and often tragic origins. Among the Russian critics and the Russian intellectuals who used to idealize the simple folks due to lack of awareness of the folk nature, or due to political considerations, my ‘unsparing’ writings caused hot and hostile responses. During these years, I felt my literary power grew stronger every day”.
#9
#13
Yelets Local History Museum
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Village
Creation period
1910 year
Dimensions
21,5х15 cm, 220 pages
Technique
paper, typographic printing
Collection
Exhibition
0
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