Andrey Varlamov what topics concern him. Always be in the mood

Life Orthodox Christian The world is full of temptations and the difficulties that arise from them. Even John Chrysostom, who lived in the 4th century, wrote that the whole world lies in evil, let alone our time. How to live for a person who strives when most of modern culture Is it inherently contrary to Christianity? Naked bodies on billboards and on television, songs with lewd overtones on the radio, many false teachers, sects, seducing literature. Is it possible to be saved in such conditions?

In response to these Orthodox Christian complaints about life, clergy usually respond in the spirit of “No one promised that it would be easy.” And indeed, first of all, a person who has accepted the Christian path of salvation should take for granted the fact that this path is thorny; the Savior even said that it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than to get into the Kingdom of Heaven.

Therefore life Orthodox man- a continuous struggle with passions, and even if the human enemy cannot seduce with external factors, he will certainly find other ways - with thoughts, for example. Indeed, on the same Mount Athos, where there is no television, radio, where no women set foot, monks wage a difficult and continuous struggle all their lives, because passions, first of all, are in the person himself, and not in his environment.

Visiting a temple in the life of an Orthodox Christian

It goes without saying that it is impossible to imagine the life of an Orthodox person without participation in church services. But what about those whose work or study does not allow them to go to work as often as they would like? In this case, we must try not to miss at least the Sunday Divine Liturgies, and, as often as possible, partake of the Holy Mysteries of Christ during them, because communion is the center of our entire Orthodox life. Unfortunately, many modern Christians of their own free will refuse frequent communion, considering themselves unworthy. this is a state of “humility over pride,” meaning that no matter how much a person prepares, visits the temple before communion, reads the canons and Orthodox prayers- he still won’t become worthy of this highest good. And we must approach the Holy Sacraments with precisely these feelings: not dignity and inextricably linked with it, deep gratitude to God for all blessings.

If the rhythm of life of an Orthodox Christian does not allow him, for good reasons, to attend the Liturgy every Sunday or all-night vigil every Saturday, do not become discouraged: there are always people who are much worse off than you, and who endure their condition with humility and patience, as befits real Christians.

Art in the life of an Orthodox person

It often happens that a person who has come to the Orthodox faith as an adult begins to rudely cross out his former interests - he cleans out his computer, his library, and gets rid of “unspiritual” films. Of course, a certain audit must be carried out, but in everything it is necessary to observe moderation and listen to common sense.

There is no such church decree that would erase the concepts of secular literature, music, art. If a person has become a believer, this does not mean that from now on he can only listen to liturgical chants, read only the Gospel and sermons of priests, watch only films about holy places. In addition, there are many works of classical literature that describe Orthodox life

Alexey Varlamov is a famous Russian prose writer. He was born on June 23, 1963 in Moscow in the family of a Glavlit employee and a Russian language teacher. Since childhood, Alexey Nikolaevich Varlamov has been fond of reading, fishing, and traveling. This was reflected in the autobiographical novel “Kupavna” created in 2000. Alexey Nikolaevich traveled a lot around the world and Russia - he visited the middle zone of our country, the Caucasus, Siberia, the Urals, Lake Baikal, the Carpathians, Far East, in the USA, in European countries and in China.

First literary experiments

A. Varlamov, whose biography interests us, graduated from Moscow State University (philological faculty) in 1985. More to early childhood include his first literary experiments. The writer recalls that he always liked to invent various stories and write them down. In 1987, his first work (the story “Cockroaches”) was published in the magazine “October” (No. 12). Already in early work This writer shows his orientation towards classical Russian literature. Varlamov’s works were significantly influenced by the prose of Chekhov, Pushkin, Bunin, as well as A.P. Platonov.

The path from stories to novels and novellas

Alexey Varlamov is a writer whose path in literary work lies from short stories to more voluminous genres - novels and stories. In 1991, the stories “Sacrament” and “Pokrov” were published in “Znamya”, in 1992 in “New World” - “Galasha” and “Christmas Eve”. Then followed the stories “Hello, Prince!”, “Mountain”. In 1995, Varlamov’s first novel, “Loch,” appeared. At the same time, essays, literary and journalistic articles, and critical essays were written. The writing of two plays dates back to this time. One of them earned high praise from M. Roshchin and was staged at the festival of young dramaturgy.

The story "Birth"

Varlamov gained fame in literature after the story “Birth” was published (in 1995 in Novy Mir). In it, the life of one married couple is compared with the vicissitudes of Russian history. The author will use the juxtaposition technique more than once. The difficult pregnancy, subsequent difficult birth, and then the illness of the newborn are presented against the background of the shooting in October 1993 of the White House in Moscow. The ending of the story is successful: it begins in the family new life. This makes it possible to optimistically interpret the author’s forecasts about the new life of our country.

Novel "Loch"

The novel "Loch", written in 1995, continues the theme of Russia. The work is built according to the canons of the famous folk tale, main character which is Ivanushka the Fool. In the novel, this is Alexander Tezkin - the third son who was born in prosperous family from Moscow. The period of action covers almost 30 years (from 1963 to 1993). The geographical space of the work (Moscow, Munich) is complemented by spiritual space - earthly and heavenly. This novel uses the motif of wandering, traditional for Russian literature. The hero likened earthly world a well-protected zone, and heavenly - the freedom to which the human soul yearns. The story of the life and love of Alexander Tezkin is given against the background of the history of our country, which, according to Tezkin, is experiencing last days before the end of the world. G. Mikhailova noted that Varlamov spoke on the mainland national history the collapse of a once great empire and the death of all humanity.

"The Sunken Ark"

These topics are developed in further works. In 1997, the novel "The Sunken Ark" was published. The story centers on the life and death of a sect of eunuchs living in a remote corner of the North. Ilya Petrovich is in love with Masha, his student. He prophesies about what awaits Russia, and turns out to be “the fortress of the Lord” in the work (this is how the name of this hero is translated). Luppo portrays the messiah. He turns out to be a wolf into a kind of werewolf. "Luppo" means "wolf" in Latin. Maria is the heroine who wears christian name, a righteous woman, without whom not a single city, as we know, can stand.

"Dome"

The trilogy ends with the novel "The Dome". It was published in 1999 in the magazine "October". The events cover 35 years - from 1965 to 2000. "The Dome" is the confession of a colorblind person who longs to see the world in color. His illness explains the events that are of a fantastic nature in the work. This is a novel about Russia during perestroika and subsequent years, when a unique phenomenon arose over the country. a natural phenomenon- a dome of fog. The dome is a symbol of Russia's isolation.

"Warm islands in a cold sea"

In 2000, a story called “Warm Islands in a Cold Sea” appeared. Its theme is the journey of two friends to the Russian North. The islands located in the cold White Sea are warmed by the prayers of monks for Russia.

"Mental Wolf" by Alexey Varlamov

This last novel writer to date, which was published in 2014. The action of the work " Mental wolf"Aleksey Varlamov begins 100 years ago and lasts 4 years. The writer is interested in the Silver Age - a “rich”, “rich”, “turbid”, “fascinating time”. Alexey Varlamov analyzes the First world war and the revolution that followed.

The main characters of the work are Vasily Komissarov (small engineer) and Pavel Legkobytov (writer). They strive to survive and hunt the wolf. Vasily’s gentle and sensitive daughter Ulya and his wife are overcome with anxiety and are trying to escape from the predator. However, it is impossible to hide from him or defeat him: according to Varlamov, “mental wolf” is the diagnosis Silver Age. This is his mental epidemic. The mental wolf is the title metaphor of the work. This is the personification of the thought that gives rise to all sin. This image was taken from ancient Orthodox prayers, which express the desire to be hunted by the “mental wolf.” And Varlamov’s heroes, real and fictional, fight the mental wolf that dominates the entire country, fiercely but in vain.

Alexey Varlamov. Our days

Since 1993, Varlamov has been a member of the Russian Writers' Union. He lives in Moscow. Today Alexey Varlamov is a doctor of philology, professor, regular author of the ZhZL series, laureate of the Solzhenitsyn Prize, " Big Book", "Antibooker", etc. Representing the Writers' Union of Russia as a secretary, he speaks at various events and festivals.

His work is well known not only in our country, but also abroad. The works of Alexey Nikolaevich Varlamov have been translated into several foreign languages. As part of official delegations, he represents our country at international book salons and fairs. In 1997, Alexey Nikolaevich participated in the American international writing program. He gave lectures at Stanford, New York, Yale, Boston and other leading universities in the USA. Varlamov also taught at universities in Germany, Belgium, Slovakia, France, etc.

Varlamov Alexey Nikolaevich - prose writer.

His father is an employee of Glavlit, his mother is a Russian language teacher. Among the writer’s ancestors were nobles (great-great-grandfather - Senator N.N. Myasoedov) and peasants of the Kaluga province. Since childhood, Varlamov was fond of reading, traveling, and fishing, which was reflected in the autobiographical novel “Kupavna” (2000). Traveled a lot around the country and the world - in Central Russia, the Caucasus, the Russian North, the Urals, Siberia, was on Lake Baikal, in the Far East, in the Carpathians, in the USA, China, European countries.

Any existence is better than non-existence.

Varlamov Alexey Nikolaevich

In 1985, Varlamov graduated from the Faculty of Philology of Moscow State University, where he attended lectures by A.A. Taho-Godi, M.V. Panov, V.V. Kuskov, N.I. Tolstoy, V.A. Beloshapkova, A.V. Karelsky. The writer assigns a significant place to linguistics in his professional development.

The first literary experiences date back to early childhood. V. recalls that he always loved to invent stories and write them down. The first publication was the story “Cockroaches” (October 1987. No. 12). Already in early works Varlamov’s orientation towards Russian is visible classic literature. The prose of A.S. Pushkin, A.P. Chekhov, I.A. Bunin, as well as A.P. Platonov and Yu.P. Kazakov had a significant influence on the writer’s work.

The turning point of the 1990s in Russia forced the writer to turn to questions about the present and future of the country, to national characteristics. “Folklore expeditions, the village, a turn to realizing one’s Russianness. Political upheavals that occurred in his youth. The desire to understand everything, understand your attitude and find your way. In more later years purchase village house in the north of the Vologda region (not far from Belovskaya Timonikha). This is the story “A House in the Village,” which, by the way, Belov read and returned to me with numerous notes, but on the whole his resolution was positive and very dear to me” (Autobiography. Department latest literature IRLI). Interest in Russian character and Russian life is noticeable in many of his works.

In literary creativity, the path of a writer lies from short stories to novels. The stories “Veil” and “Sacrament” were published in 1991 in “Znamya” (No. 6), “Christmas Eve” and “Galasha” - in “New World” in 1992 (No. 6). This was followed by the stories “Mountain”, “Hello, Prince!”, and in 1995 - the first novel “Loch” (October. No. 2). At the same time, essays, critical essays, journalistic and literary articles were created. At the same time, 2 plays were written, one of which was staged at the festival of young dramaturgy and was highly appreciated by M. Roshchin.

The author himself conventionally divides everything written into “fictional”, even if it has real basis, and "documentary". He classifies as “fictional” the stories “Alloy”, “Partisan Marych and the Great Steppe”, “Angel”, “Going on Air”, “Sacrament”, “Tutaev”, “Entry”, “Kal-varia”, etc., the stories “Hello, Prince!”, “The Mountain”, the novels “The Loch”, “The Sunken Ark”, “The Dome”. The author defines the last three novels as “a kind of trilogy about viruses that have infected our national consciousness”: in “The Sucker” this is apocalypticism (in parallel with the writing of this novel, the author defended PhD thesis on the topic “Apocalyptic motifs in Russian prose of the late 20th century”), in “The Sunken Ark” - sectarianism, in “Dome” - utopianism. Moreover, in all three, the motive of escape from reality comes first. Heroes of novels - modern people, restless, unstable, doubting, often worthless, but trying to find themselves.

Alexey Varlamov is a Russian writer, philologist, historian. Since 2011, he has headed the magazine “Literary Studies”. main topic in the books of Alexei Varlamov - the role of faith in human life.

Childhood

Alexey Nikolaevich Varlamov was born in 1963. The writer's childhood memories are connected with a village located in the Noginsky district of the Moscow region. Not far from the Kupavna station, the name of which he put in the title of one of his novels, his grandmother lived. “She became a key character in my literary fate“,” Varlamov once said.

She was an amazing woman. She had a strong influence on the formation of the personality of her grandson, but she was absolutely not a believer and had nothing in common with the textbook heroines of Russian literature. Alexei’s grandmother studied at a classical gymnasium and lost relatives during the Revolution. Being a representative of a wealthy merchant family, she experienced many hardships.

The parents of the future writer were adherents of the communist way of thinking. But as already mentioned, it was the grandmother who played important role in shaping Alexey’s worldview. It was she who told him the stories that he later transferred to the pages of his works. The people that the daughter of a wealthy Moscow merchant told her grandson about became the heroes of such books as “Eva and Myasoedov”, “Pokrov”, “An Incident at the Junction Station”, “Kupavna”.

My grandmother wrote poetry, but it was never published. She had more important things to do - raising children. Varlamov claims that while studying literary creativity, he to some extent carries out her instructions.

The beginning of creativity

Alexey Varlamov began writing early, as a child. One day, as a boy, he went fishing and almost caught a large carp. IN last moment the line broke. Alexei felt offended, because no one would believe that he almost managed to catch a big fish. A little later he wrote the story “How to Fish with a Fishing Rod.” The hero of this work managed to catch a carp. Alexey Varlamov says: “The advantages of writing are that it allows you to catch fish that have fallen through the cracks in real life.”

Faith

The heroes of Alexei Nikolaevich Varlamov's books find themselves in difficult situations, from which a miracle allows them to get out. And it is impossible without faith. Alexey Varlamov was raised in an atheistic spirit. His family did not attend church. But he first became interested in questions of faith as a child.

One day, when Alexey was traveling with his parents to Kupavna, he noticed several destroyed churches. The adults explained to the boy that only the uneducated go there, dark people. This intrigued him. The first church that Varlamov visited is located in Pskov. As the writer recalls, he entered the church and attended the liturgy. And he stayed. Alexey defended the entire service. That day, as if spellbound, he followed the church rituals.

The novel “Crime and Punishment” made the strongest impression on Alexey Varlamov as a reader. The writer states: the main idea Dostoevsky's book is that it is impossible to live without God. Varlamov was baptized after graduating from university.

Philology

After school, Alexey Varlamov entered the Faculty of Philology of Moscow State University. Graduated, defended his candidate's thesis, then his doctorate, dedicated to creativity Prishvina. In 1993, Varlamov became a member of the Union Russian writers. He worked in such publications as " Literary newspaper", "On the Eve", "Roman-newspaper", "October". In the late 90s, Alexey Varlamov lectured at universities in the USA and Europe.

Literary creativity

Writer Alexey Varlamov published his first work in 1987. It was the story "Cockroaches". His novels “Birth” and “The Sucker” brought him fame. Alexey Varlamov is a laureate of several literary prizes. In 1999 he received a scholarship from the Moscow literary fund for the book "Kupavna". Seven years later - the Alexander Solzhenitsyn Prize. Other books by Alexey Varlamov: “House in the Village”, “The Sunken Ark”, “Dome”, “The Time of Tall Grass”. He is the author of biographies of Alexei Tolstoy, Mikhail Bulgakov, Andrei Platonov.

"Birth"

The novel was first published in 1995, in the magazine New world" This work brought the author victory in the Anti-Booker competition. Many books by Alexei Varlamov depict a difficult period in the history of Russia, namely the nineties of the last century. Such works include “Birth,” in which the main events unfold against the backdrop of the collapse of the USSR and the unrest that took place in Moscow from August to December.

The main character is a thirty-five-year-old woman who has long stopped dreaming of motherhood. But a miracle happens. A slight ailment turns out to be nothing more than pregnancy. A woman breaks the news to her husband, for whom she has not felt anything for a long time. The author did not give his heroes names - just He and She. They will have to go through a difficult ordeal - the birth of a child with a terrible diagnosis. Only faith helps Varlamov’s heroes.

The writer does not promote ideas Orthodox Church. But in his books, and especially in “Birth,” there are thoughts about love, mutual understanding between loved ones, and faith.