Fall in Love With These Great Russian Masters
The mystery of human existence lies not in just staying alive, but in finding something to live for.
I can still remember those days when novels like Mother, Anna Karenina, The Gambler, and Crime and Punishment forced me to stay all night and get immersed in the beautiful realm of Russian literature.
Given the Russia-Ukraine situation, the world has now divided itself into two. One part supports Putin, and the other hates him. However, we know Russia is not all about Putin, and it has a lot to offer if you open your mind. Especially in literature, this country produced some great masters whom even Putin haters love and admire.
If you aren’t already a fan of Russian literature, I highly recommend you read the following literary masters and fall in love with them.
The Master of Realistic Fiction
Leo Tolstoy is one of the most renowned authors in history.
His novels War and Peace and Anna Karenina are considered some of the best pieces of literature ever written. The characters in these two remarkable novels are so vividly drawn that they seem like real people.
Tolstoy is a master of characterization. He brings them to life through their thoughts, emotions, and actions. So, we feel as if we know them intimately.
I first read Anna Karenina when I was in college. For an introverted person like me, it was a gift from heaven. I deeply fell in love with some of the characters; Kitty, Vronsky, Nikolai Levin, Oblonski, and Anna.
The novel starts with an incredibly insightful sentence, “All happy families are alike; each unhappy family is unhappy in its own way.”
Tolstoy knows how to keep the reader engaged. His plots are complex but not confusing, and he always keeps the reader guessing what will happen next. As a result, you’ll never feel bored.
Very few writers have the deep understanding of human nature as Tolstoy has. He works on big canvases capturing the essence of what it means to be human, with all our flaws and contradictions, and shows us that we are not so different from one another after all.
If you are curious to know more about life and its beauties and complexities, or if you want a master who can teach you how to tell incredible stories, Leo Tolstoy is your go-to destination.
“Rummaging in our souls, we often dig up something that ought to have lain there unnoticed.” ― Leo Tolstoy, Anna Karenina
The Master of Modern Short Story
Anton Chekov’s writing style is unique and often considered ahead of time. His work has been translated into many languages and continues to be studied and performed today.
His plays The Cherry Orchard and The Three Sisters are considered two of the greatest plays in the history of literature. But I am his fan for his insightful short stories that help you see below the surface of life.
If Chekhov is new to you (which he should not be), then you can start with these stories: Kashtanka, Ward №6, The Darling, Lady with Lapdog, and The Black Monk.
Other writers often fail to deliver in their novels what Chekhov does in a three-page short story. He has written more than 500 short stories waiting to be embraced by you.
Unsurprisingly, many of his works remain classics today.
I am sure you will fall in love with his writing style, insightful observations, and ability to evoke emotions in you.
“The role of the artist is to ask questions, not answer them.”― Anton Chekhov
The Master Who Speaks for the Working Class
Mother by Maxim Gorky was probably the first novel that made me cry. I’m pretty sure it will make you cry too.
Not because this novel is written in 1906 and talks about revolutionary factory workers, but because, while reading the novel — you will never know when — you will become one of the revolutionaries.
You will experience what Pavel, Natasha, Nikolay Ivanovich, and Mother went through in life. You will get to know how the working class was deprived of their right throughout history.
This novel will make your blood boil, and it will melt your heart too. I’m telling you — don’t die before reading Maxim Gorky’s Mother.
If you have any doubt about Maxim Gorky’s storytelling prowess, try this short story, An Autumn Night, and see how Maxim can amaze a reader in his world of realism.
Maxim Gorky is the writer once who shoot himself in the chest just to end the miseries he was experiencing in life. His almost unbearable early years gave him the power to read humans through their eyes.
Fall in love with his timeless works and get enlightened.
“The good qualities in our soul are most successfully and forcefully awakened by the power of art. Just as science is the intellect of the world, art is its soul.”― Maxim Gorky
The Master Who Produced the Finest Novels
Though “Crime and Punishment” and “The Brothers Karamazov ” are two of his most notable novels, I was introduced to Fyodor Dostoevsky through “The Idiot.”
Reading him can be challenging for some readers, but it’s worth it. The characters he created are the most memorable in the history of literature.
Dostoyevsky never wrote anything that he hadn’t experienced. And he experienced the worst nightmares a man can experience in a lifetime.
While reading Dostoyevsky, you will find life in its purest form: unpredictable, chaotic, painful — yet there’s hope.
If you don’t know where to start, I suggest you read “Crime and Punishment” or “The Gambler” first. And of course, don’t miss his great novella “Notes from the Underground” which is considered one of the first existentialist novels.
Immerse yourself in his masterful storytelling.
“The mystery of human existence lies not in just staying alive, but in finding something to live for.”― Fyodor Dostoyevsky, The Brothers Karamazov
To tell you the truth — I’m forever indebted to the above Russian masters.
They made my early years colorful by portraying life in its entirety before me when I was desperate to search for meaning. They helped me to become who I am today.
Go. Read them. Fall in love with them. And see how life unfolds before you.
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