The most famous works of Turgenev. Turgenev's novels
Ivan Sergeevich Turgenev; Russian Empire, Orel; 09.11.1818 – 22.08.1883
The name of Ivan Turgenev is known far beyond Russia. Even during the life of the poet and writer, his works were appreciated throughout Europe, and numerous critics called him one of the leading writers of the 19th century. The novel “Fathers and Sons” by Turgenev, stories from the series “Notes of a Hunter” and many other works were published in many languages of the world. Thanks to this, Ivan Turgenev’s high place in our ranking is quite logical.
Biography of Turgenev I. S.
If we talk briefly about Turgenev, the author owes much of his love for literature to his mother. Although she was a rather despotic woman who did not hesitate to personally beat her children, she was quite educated and brought up. From childhood, she instilled in Ivan a love for the works of the then young and many other domestic and foreign classics.
Already at the age of nine, the entire Turgenev family moved to Moscow, where Ivan entered a boarding school. At the age of 15, Turgenev entered Moscow University at the Department of Literature. Immediately at the age of 18, Turgenev’s first works appeared, which the professor at Moscow University did not rate very highly, but admitted that there was something in them. This prompted the young poet to further creativity. Thanks to this, already in 1836, the first review of the young Turgenev, “On a Journey to Holy Places,” was published.
After graduating from university, Ivan Turgenev decided to devote himself to scientific activity. To do this, he goes to Germany for further training. Periodically he comes to Russia where he meets many literary figures of that time. One of them was, which had a serious influence on Turgenev’s further writings. In 1842, the writer finally returned to his homeland and was no longer eager for scientific activity, but literary.
The heyday of Turgenev’s work is considered to be 1847, when an avid hunter begins the cycle of stories “Notes of a Hunter.” These stories by Turgenev are extremely popular, and they bring considerable pleasure to the writer. After all, Ivan himself is a big fan of hunting, and Turgenev adopted most of the stories from the serf Afanasy, who was Turgenev’s companion on numerous hunts. But “Notes of a Hunter” and other stories by Turgenev did not please the Russian censorship. This forced the author to move to Paris, which became Turgenev’s second home. 
Starting from this period, Ivan alternately lives in Moscow and Paris, depending on the mood of Russian censorship. But this does not stop him from making many interesting acquaintances. So in 1855 he became closely acquainted with, who even dedicated his story to Turgenev. And in 1963, while participating in the literary life of Europe, he met and many other Western writers. At the same time, he does not abandon his literary work and Turgenev’s “Fathers and Sons”, “Smoke” and many other works of the author are published in turn.
By the end of his life, Turgenev became a universal favorite, both in Russia and in Europe. He was even awarded an honorary doctorate from Oxford University. All the more painful was the loss in 1883 for the entire literary world.
Books by I. S. Turgenev on the Top books website
Turgenev’s stories from the series “Notes of a Hunter” are widely represented in the ratings of our site; many of them are included in our rating. In addition, the novel “Fathers and Sons” by Turgenev took one of the highest places in our ranking. And this is far from the only work of the author in this rating. This allows us to say that Turgenev’s prose is extremely popular at the present time. And although a considerable share of this popularity comes from the need to read Turgenev according to the school curriculum, this is far from the most important argument.
All books by Turgenev I.S.
- Andrey Kolosov
- Breter
- Brigadier
- Spring waters
- Hamlet and Don – Quixote
- Where it is thin there it breaks
- Noble Nest
- Diary of an Extra Man
- Breakfast with the leader
- Calm
- How beautiful, how fresh the roses were...
- A month in the village
- Museum
Tergenev published actively during his lifetime. And although not every work of his delighted critics, it did not leave anyone indifferent. Disputes flared up constantly not only because of literary differences. Everyone knows that at the time when Ivan Sergeevich lived and worked, censorship was especially strict, and the writer could not openly talk about many things that would affect politics, criticize the government or serfdom.
Individual works and complete works of Tergenev are published with enviable regularity. The most voluminous and complete collection of works is considered to be the release of the Nauka publishing house in thirty volumes, which combined all the works of the classic into twelve volumes, and published his letters in eighteen volumes.
Artistic features of I.S. Turgenev’s creativity
Most of the writer's novels have the same artistic features. Often the center of attention is a girl who is beautiful, but not beautiful, developed, but this does not mean at all that she is very smart or educated. According to the plot, this girl is always courted by several suitors, but she chooses one, the one whom the author wants to highlight from the crowd, to show his inner world, desires and aspirations.
According to the plot of each novel by the writer, these people fall in love with each other, but there is always something present in their love that does not make it possible to be together right away. It’s probably worth listing all the novels of Ivan Turgenev:
★ "Rudin".
★ "Nobles' Nest".
★ “Fathers and Sons.”
★ “The day before.”
★ “Smoke.”
★ “New.”
To better understand Turgenev’s works and his peculiarities of writing, we should consider several of his novels in more detail. After all, most of the novels were written before the peasant reform was carried out in Russia and all this was reflected in the works.
Roman "Rudin"
This is Turgenev's first novel, which was first defined by the author himself as a story. And although the main work on the work was completed in 1855, the author made adjustments and improvements to his text several times. This was due to criticism from comrades who received the manuscript. And in 1860, after the first publications, the author added an epilogue.
The following characters act in Turgenev's novel:
⇒ Lasunskaya.
⇒ Pigasov.
⇒ Pandnlevsky.
⇒ Lipina.
⇒ Volyntsev.
⇒ Bassists.
Lasunskaya is the widow of a privy councilor who was very rich. The writer rewards Daria Mikhailovna not only with beauty, but also with freedom in communication. She participated in all conversations, trying to show her importance, which in reality she did not have at all. She finds Pigasov funny, who shows some kind of anger towards all people, but especially does not like women. Afrikan Semenovich lives alone because he is very ambitious.
Turgenev's hero from the novel is interesting - Konstantin Pandelevsky, since it was impossible to determine his nationality. But the most remarkable thing in his image is his unusual ability to court ladies in such a way that they then constantly patronized him. But he had no business with Lipina Alexandra, since the woman, despite her young age, was already a widow, although without children. She inherited a large inheritance from her husband, but so that she would not waste it, she lived with her brother. Sergei Volyntsev was a headquarters captain, but already retired. He is decent, and many knew that he was in love with Natalya. The young teacher Basistov hates Pandelevsky, but respects the main character - Dmitry Rudin.
The main character is a poor man, although he is a nobleman by birth. He received a good education at the university. And although he grew up in the village, he is quite smart. He knew how to speak beautifully and for a long time, which surprised those around him. Unfortunately, his words and actions differ. His philosophical views pleased Natalya Lasunskaya, who falls in love with him. He constantly said that he was also in love with the girl, but this turned out to be a lie. And when she denounces him, Dmitry Nikolaevich immediately leaves, and soon dies in France on the barricades.
According to composition, Turgenev's entire novel is divided into four parts. The first part tells how Rudin comes to Natalya’s house and sees her for the first time. In the second part, the author shows how much the girl is in love with Nikolai. The third part is the departure of the main character. The fourth part is an epilogue.
Novel "The Noble Nest"
This is Ivan Sergeevich’s second novel, work on which lasted two years. Like the first novel, “The Noble Nest” was published in the Sovremennik magazine. This work caused a storm in literary circles, from disagreements in the interpretation of the plot to outright accusations of plagiarism. But the work was a great success among the readership, and the name “Noble Nest” became a real catchphrase and has firmly entered into everyday life to this day.
There are a large number of heroes in the novel, who will always be interesting in their character and Turgenev’s description to readers. The female images of the work are presented by Kalitina, who is already fifty years old. Marya Dmitrievna was not only rich, but also a very capricious noblewoman. She was so spoiled that she could cry at any moment because her wishes were not fulfilled. Her aunt, Marya Timofeevna, caused her particular trouble. Pestova was already seventy years old, but she easily and always told everyone the truth. Marya Dmitrievna had children. Lisa, the eldest daughter, is already 19 years old. She is friendly and very pious. This was due to the influence of the nanny. The second female image in Turgenev's novel is Lavretskaya, who is not only beautiful, but also married. Although after her betrayal her husband left her abroad, this still did not stop Varvara Pavlovna.
There are many heroes in the novel. There are those that play an important role in the plot, and there are episodic ones. For example, several times in Turgenev’s novel a certain Sergei Petrovich appears, who is a gossip from a secular society. The handsome Pashin, who is very young and has a position in society, comes to the city for his work. He is obsequious, but easily liked by the people around him. It is worth noting that he is very talented: he composes music and poetry himself, and then performs them. But his soul is cold. He likes Lisa.
A music teacher comes to the Kalitins' house, who was a hereditary musician, but fate was against him. He is poor, although he is German. He does not like to communicate with people, but he perfectly understands everything that happens around him. The main characters include Lavretsky, who is thirty-five years old. He is a relative of the Kalitins. But he could not boast of his education, although he was a kind person in himself. Fyodor Ivanovich has a noble dream - to plow the land, because he has failed to do anything else. He is counting on his friend, the poet Mikhalevich, who will help him realize all his plans.
According to the plot, Fyodor Ivanovich comes to the province to realize his dream, where he meets Lisa and falls in love with her. The girl reciprocates his feelings. But then Lavretsky’s unfaithful wife arrives. He is forced to leave, and Lisa goes to a monastery.
The composition of Turgenev's novel is divided into six parts. The first part tells the story of how Fyodor Ivanovich arrives in the province. And therefore, the second part talks about the main character himself. In the third part, Lavretsky, Kalitin, and other heroes go to Vasilyevskoye. Here the rapprochement between Lisa and Fyodor Ivanovich begins, but this is already described in the fourth part. But the fifth part is very sad, since Lavretsky’s wife arrives. The sixth part is an epilogue.
Novel "On the Eve"
This novel was created by Ivan Turgenev in anticipation of a revolution in Russia. The main character of his work is a Bulgarian. It is known that the novel was written by a famous writer in 1859, and the very next year it was published in one of the magazines.
The plot is based on the Stakhov family. Nikolai Artemyevich Stakhov, who not only spoke French well, but was also a great debater. In addition, he was also known as a philosopher who was always bored at home. He met a German widow and now spent all his time with her. This state of affairs greatly upset his wife, Anna Vasilievna, a calm and sad woman who complained to everyone in the house about her husband’s infidelity. She loved her daughter, but in her own way. By the way, Elena was already twenty years old at that time, although at the age of 16 she left parental care, and then lived as if she were on her own. She had a need to constantly take care of the poor, the unfortunate, and it didn’t matter whether they were people or animals. But for those around her, she seemed a little strange.
Elena was simply created to share her life with Dmitry Insarov. This young man, who was barely 30 years old, has an amazing and unusual fate. His purpose was to liberate his land. Therefore, Elena follows him and begins to believe in his ideas. After the death of her spouse, she decides to devote herself to a noble mission - she becomes a sister of mercy.
The meaning of Turgenev's novels
All the novels of the famous writer Ivan Sergeevich Turgenev reflect the history of Russian society. He doesn't just portray his characters and tell their life stories. The writer walks the path together with his characters and guides the reader along this path, forcing them to philosophize together about what the meaning of life is, what goodness and love are. Landscapes also play a huge role in Turgenev’s novels, reflecting the mood of the characters.
M. Katkov wrote about Turgenev’s novels:
“Clarity of ideas, skill in depicting types, simplicity in design and course of action.”
Turgenev's novels have not only educational, but also historical significance, since the writer reveals the moral problems of the entire society. In the fates of his heroes, the fates of thousands of Russians who lived more than one hundred and fifty years ago are guessed. This is a real excursion into the history of both high society and ordinary people.
Rudin (1856, other sources – 1855)
Turgenev's first novel is named after the main character.
Rudin is one of the best representatives of the cultural nobility. He was educated in Germany, like Mikhail Bakunin, who served as his prototype, and like Ivan Turgenev himself. Rudin is endowed with eloquence. Appearing at the estate of the landowner Lasunskaya, he immediately charms those present. But he speaks well only on abstract topics, carried away by the “flow of his own sensations,” not noticing how his words affect his listeners. The commoner teacher Basistov is captivated by his speeches, but Rudin does not appreciate the young man’s devotion: “Apparently, he was only looking for pure and devoted souls in words.” The hero also suffers defeat in the field of public service, although his plans are always pure and selfless. His attempts to teach at a gymnasium and manage the estates of one tyrant landowner end in failure.
He wins the love of the landowner's daughter, Natalya Lasunskaya, but retreats before the first obstacle - his mother's opposition. Rudin does not stand the test of love - and this is how a person is tested in Turgenev’s artistic world.
Nobles' Nest (1858)
A novel about the historical fate of the nobility in Russia.
The main character, Fyodor Ivanovich Lavretsky, falls into the love net of the cold and calculating egoist Varvara Pavlovna. He lives with her in France until an incident opens his eyes to his wife’s infidelity. As if freed from an obsession, Lavretsky returns home and seems to see anew his native places, where life flows silently, “like water through swamp grasses.” In this silence, where even the clouds seem to “know where and why they are floating,” he meets his true love, Lisa Kalitina.
But this love was not destined to be happy, although the amazing music composed by the old eccentric Lemm, Lisa’s teacher, promised happiness for the heroes. Varvara Pavlovna, who was considered dead, turned out to be alive, which means that the marriage of Fyodor Ivanovich and Lisa became impossible.
In the finale, Lisa goes to a monastery to atone for the sins of her father, who acquired wealth through dishonest means. Lavretsky is left alone to live out a joyless life.
The Eve (1859)
In the novel “On the Eve,” Bulgarian Dmitry Insarov, fighting for the independence of his homeland, is in love with a Russian girl, Elena Strakhova. She is ready to share his difficult fate and follows him to the Balkans. But their love turns into cruelty towards Elena’s parents and friends, leading her to break with Russia.
In addition, the personal happiness of Insarov and Elena turned out to be incompatible with the struggle to which the hero wanted to devote himself without reserve. His death looks like retribution for happiness.
All Turgenev’s novels are about love, and all are about the problems that worried the Russian public at that time. In the novel “On the Eve”, social issues are in the foreground.
Dobrolyubov, in the article “When will the real day come?”, published in the magazine “Sovremennik,” called on the “Russian Insarovs” to fight the “internal Turks,” which included not only supporters of serfdom, but also liberals, like Turgenev himself who believed in the possibility of peaceful reforms. The writer persuaded Nekrasov, who published Sovremennik, not to publish this article. Nekrasov refused. Then Turgenev broke with the magazine with which he had collaborated for many years.
Fathers and Sons (1861)
In the next novel, “Fathers and Sons,” the dispute is between liberals, like Turgenev and his closest friends, and a revolutionary democrat like Chernyshevsky and Dobrolyubov (Dobrolyubov partly served as the prototype for the main character Bazarov).
Turgenev hoped that “Fathers and Sons” would serve to unite the social forces of Russia. However, the novel caused a real storm of controversy. The Sovremennik staff saw in the image of Bazarov an evil caricature of the younger generation. The critic Pisarev, on the contrary, found in him the best and necessary traits of a future revolutionary, who does not yet have room for activity. Friends and like-minded people accused Turgenev of currying favor with the “boys”, the younger generation, of unjustifiably glorifying Bazarov and belittling the “fathers”.
Offended by the rude and tactless polemics, Turgenev leaves abroad. Two very unusual stories of these years, with which Turgenev then intended to complete his literary career, are imbued with deep sorrow - “Ghosts” (1864) and “Enough” (1865).
Smoke (1867)
The novel “Smoke” (1867) differs sharply from Turgenev’s previous novels. The main character of "Smoke" Litvinov is unremarkable. The center of the novel is not even him, but the meaningless life of a motley Russian society in the German resort of Baden-Baden. Everything seemed to be shrouded in smoke of petty, false significance. At the end of the novel, an extended metaphor for this smoke is given. who watches Litvinov returning home from the carriage window. “Everything suddenly seemed like smoke to him, everything, his own life, Russian life - everything human, especially everything Russian.”
The novel revealed Turgenev's extreme Westernizing views. In the monologues of Potugin, one of the characters in the novel, there are many evil thoughts about the history and significance of Russia, the only salvation of which is to tirelessly learn from the West. "Smoke" deepened the misunderstanding between Turgenev and the Russian public. Dostoevsky and his like-minded people accused Turgenev of slandering Russia. The Democrats were unhappy with the pamphlet on revolutionary emigration. Liberals – a satirical depiction of the “tops”.
Nov (1876)
Turgenev's last novel, Nov, is about the fate of populism. At the center of the work is the fate of the entire social movement, and not its individual representatives. The characters' characters are no longer revealed in love affairs. The main thing in the novel is the clash between different parties and layers of Russian society, primarily between revolutionary agitators and peasants. Accordingly, the social resonance of the novel and its “topicality” increase.
Poems in prose
The swan song of the aging writer was Poems in Prose (their first part appeared in 1882, the second was not published during his lifetime). They seemed to crystallize into lyrical miniatures the thoughts and feelings that possessed Turgenev throughout his career: these are thoughts about Russia, about love, about the insignificance of human existence, but at the same time about feat, about sacrifice, about the meaningfulness and fruitfulness of suffering.
last years of life
In the last years of his life, Turgenev became more and more homesick. “I am not only drawn, I am vomiting to Russia...” he wrote a year before his death. Ivan Sergeevich died in Bougival in the south of France. The writer's body was transported to St. Petersburg and buried at the Volkov cemetery in front of a huge crowd of people. Over his coffin, the fierce debates that during his life did not cease around his name and books fell silent. Turgenev's friend, the famous critic P.V. Annenkov wrote: “A whole generation came together at his grave with words of tenderness and gratitude to both the writer and the person.”
Homework
Prepare to share impressions about the novel “Fathers and Sons” and its hero.
Formulate in writing the questions that arose while reading.
Literature
Vladimir Korovin. Ivan Sergeevich Turgenev. // Encyclopedias for children “Avanta+”. Volume 9. Russian literature. Part one. M., 1999
N.I. Yakushin. I.S. Turgenev in life and work. M.: Russian Word, 1998
L.M. Lotman. I.S. Turgenev. History of Russian literature. Volume three. Leningrad: Nauka, 1982. pp. 120 – 160
The famous Russian writer Ivan Sergeevich Turgenev was born on October 28, 1818 in Orel. His father and mother were nobles. The future writer spent his childhood on his mother’s estate, Spasskoye-Lutovinovo. In 1827, Ivan and his family moved to Moscow. Turgenev studied literacy from home teachers and in private boarding schools. In 1833 he entered Moscow University, and a year later he transferred to the Faculty of History and Philology of St. Petersburg University.
The famous prose writer, oddly enough, began his literary work with poetry. When in 1836 the aspiring poet showed his creations to Professor Pletnev, he invited him to a literary evening, where Turgenev met with Pushkin himself. A couple of years later, Turgenev’s works appeared in the Sovremennik magazine. By this time he had written about a hundred poems and even a poem.
In 1938, the writer left the country for the first time and went to Germany. He has been living in Berlin for more than a year, writing poetry, studying foreign languages and attending lectures at the university. After this, he returns to his homeland for a while, and then goes abroad again, this time to Italy.
Since 1843, Ivan Sergeevich entered service in the Ministry of Internal Affairs. At the same time, his poem “Parasha” appeared, highly appreciated by the famous critic Belinsky. A little later, the ironic poems “The Landowner” and “Andrey” appear. In 1845 the poet retired.
Soon Turgenev began writing his famous collection of stories, “Notes of a Hunter.” In the works included in this cycle, Turgenev’s nature and the main direction of his work are clearly manifested - the diversity of human characters, the value of each person as an individual, as well as all the negative phenomena of serfdom. Turgenev’s heroes were very often ordinary Russian people - peasants; he, a hereditary nobleman, was an ardent opponent of serfdom and the infringement of people in society.
As a result, Turgenev's works, in which his position on modern politics is clearly visible, are banned, and he himself is first arrested and then expelled from St. Petersburg to Spasskoye. As a result, after living a little more in Russia, in 1856 Turgenev left the country and went first to France, and then to England and Germany. His story “Asya” appears there.
In 1859 his novel “The Noble Nest” appeared. The main character of the novel is somewhat similar to Ivan Sergeevich himself - he is close to the people, understands all their problems and considers it his duty to alleviate their lot. However, for the sake of personal happiness, he forgets about his calling, but never achieves it.
In his next novel, “On the Eve,” Turgenev also continued the theme of the need to abolish such a humiliating phenomenon for the country as serfdom and changes in state policy towards the common people. Such creativity made the writer more and more popular in the eyes of the people, but critics and revolutionaries interpreted the meaning of the novel in their own way. As a result, in response to Dobrolyubov’s article published in Sovremennik, he left the magazine. Despite the fact that from that moment the paths of Turgenev and his former revolutionary friends diverged, he still appreciated their spiritual qualities and believed that the future of Russia belonged to such people.
In 1962, the famous novel “Fathers and Sons” appeared, which the writer dedicated to the eternal conflict of generations and the political and ideological interests of people. There were also conflicts between landowners and peasants, who were finally freed from serfdom, and between different classes of nobles. Arguing in the novel with his hero, the “nihilist” Bazarov, who is not interested in art, nature and love, he at the same time pays tribute to the firmness of his convictions, which are opposite to the opinions of society. The differences between the common people and the intelligentsia, who tried to defend their interests, were also touched upon.
Ivan Sergeevich Turgenev was born on October 28 (November 9), 1818 in the city of Orel. His family, both on his mother’s and father’s sides, belonged to the noble class.
The first education in Turgenev’s biography was received at the Spassky-Lutovinovo estate. The boy was taught literacy by German and French teachers. Since 1827, the family moved to Moscow. Turgenev then studied in private boarding schools in Moscow, and then at Moscow University. Without graduating, Turgenev transferred to the Faculty of Philosophy of St. Petersburg University. He also studied abroad and then traveled around Europe.
The beginning of a literary journey
While studying in his third year at the institute, in 1834 Turgenev wrote his first poem called “Wall”. And in 1838, his first two poems were published: “Evening” and “To the Venus of Medicine.”
In 1841, having returned to Russia, he was engaged in scientific activities, wrote a dissertation and received a master's degree in philology. Then, when the craving for science cooled, Ivan Sergeevich Turgenev served as an official in the Ministry of Internal Affairs until 1844.
In 1843, Turgenev met Belinsky, they struck up a friendly relationship. Under the influence of Belinsky, new poems by Turgenev, poems, stories were created and published, including: “Parasha”, “Pop”, “Breter” and “Three Portraits”.
Creativity flourishes
Other famous works of the writer include: the novels “Smoke” (1867) and “Nov” (1877), novels and short stories “The Diary of an Extra Man” (1849), “Bezhin Meadow” (1851), “Asya” (1858), “Spring Waters” (1872) and many others.
In the fall of 1855, Turgenev met Leo Tolstoy, who soon published the story “Cutting the Forest” with a dedication to I. S. Turgenev.
Last years
In 1863 he went to Germany, where he met outstanding writers of Western Europe and promoted Russian literature. He works as an editor and consultant, himself translating from Russian into German and French and vice versa. He becomes the most popular and read Russian writer in Europe. And in 1879 he received an honorary doctorate from Oxford University.
It was thanks to the efforts of Ivan Sergeevich Turgenev that the best works of Pushkin, Gogol, Lermontov, Dostoevsky, and Tolstoy were translated.
It is worth briefly noting that in the biography of Ivan Turgenev in the late 1870s - early 1880s, his popularity quickly increased, both at home and abroad. And critics began to rank him among the best writers of the century.
Since 1882, the writer began to be overcome by illnesses: gout, angina pectoris, neuralgia. As a result of a painful illness (sarcoma), he died on August 22 (September 3), 1883 in Bougival (a suburb of Paris). His body was brought to St. Petersburg and buried at the Volkovsky cemetery.
Chronological table
Other biography options
- In his youth, Turgenev was frivolous and spent a lot of his parents’ money on entertainment. For this, his mother once taught him a lesson, sending him bricks in a parcel instead of money.
- The writer’s personal life was not very successful. He had many affairs, but none of them ended in marriage. The greatest love in his life was the opera singer Pauline Viardot. For 38 years, Turgenev knew her and her husband Louis. He traveled all over the world for their family, living with them in different countries. Louis Viardot and Ivan Turgenev died in the same year.
- Turgenev was a clean man and dressed neatly. The writer loved to work in cleanliness and order - without this he never began to create.
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