Ivan Sergeyevich
Turgenev

1818-1883


Ivan Sergeyevich Turgenev was a Russian realist writer, poet, publicist, playwright, novelist and translator. His rich work includes novels, many short stories, novellas, articles, plays and poems. He was born on October 28 (November 9), 1818 in the city of Orel, in a noble family. He received his first education at the Spasskoye-Lutovinovo estate. I.S. Turgenev’s family moved to Moscow in 1827, where Ivan Sergeevich studied at private boarding schools, and then entered Moscow University. Subsequently, he moved to the Faculty of Philosophy at St. Petersburg University. His education was complemented by foreign travel. Having started his literary career in 1834, I. S. Turgenev created the first poem, and in 1838 published his first poems. Returning to Russia in 1841, he was engaged in scientific activities, served as an official in the Ministry of Internal Affairs and struck up a friendship with V.G. Belinsky, under whose influence he began to create his new works. In the late 1840s and early 1850s, I.S. Turgenev successfully studied drama, writing several plays. He also translated the works of George Byron and William Shakespeare into Russian. Important events in his literary career were the publication of The Hunter’s Notes in 1852 and a meeting with L.N. Tolstoy in the autumn of 1855. I.S. Turgenev continued his active literary activity, moving to Germany in 1863, where he met the great French writers: Gustave Flaubert, Emile Zola, Alphonse Daudet and Edmond de Goncourt. I.S. Turgenev became an editor, consultant and successful translator. In 1879, he was awarded the title of Honorary Doctor of the University of Oxford. I.S. Turgenev translated the best works of Russian writers into Western languages. In the late 1870s and early 1880s, he achieved great popularity both at home and abroad. The library-reading room at the Turgenevskaya metro station is named in honor of Ivan Sergeevich, at the entrance to which there is a bust of the great writer.

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