Where was Nabokov born? Brief Biography B

He said that this writer has a noble heart and strong will. The works of the master of the pen attracted the attention of critics of various orientations; he was often accused of pornography, a break with the Russian literary diaspora, excessive snobbery and even creative theft.

But it is worth saying that Nabokov’s stories were among the most read and reviewed in the literature of Russian diaspora in the 20s and 30s. Vladimir Vladimirovich’s books are read to this day: critics meticulously discuss his novels, famous directors produce films, and writers look for new grains in his amazing and multifaceted biography.

Childhood and youth

Born April 10 (22), 1899 in the city on the Neva great writer, who left a mark in the history of both Russian and American literature. The future novelist, together with his brothers and sisters, was brought up in a privileged noble family and did not know what poverty was. Vladimir Nabokov has a rich pedigree: the writer used to say that the ancestors of his paternal grandmother can be traced back to the 14th century.

The writer's father - the son of the Minister of Justice Dmitry Nikolaevich - was called Vladimir. In 1887 he graduated from school with a gold medal. Vladimir Sr. personified courage, integrity and honesty. He worked as a lawyer, was the founder of the Cadet Party, and was also known as a journalist and politician. Honor and dignity were the main components for Vladimir Dmitrievich.

In 1911, a man threw down a white glove to the Russian playwright Mikhail Suvorin, who at that time was the editor-in-chief of the newspaper “Novoye Vremya”. The reason for the competition was the publication of journalist Nikolai Snessarev, where the provocateur spoke impartially about the Nabokov family, calling this gentleman “a man who married money.” However, the fight never took place. It is noteworthy that before this incident, the writer’s father spoke unflatteringly about the duel and believed that the cruel tradition was contrary Russian legislation And common sense.

The writer’s mother, Elena Ivanovna, came from a noble family: she was the daughter of landowner and millionaire Ivan Vasilyevich Rukavishnikov, co-owner of the Lena gold mines.

Vladimir Nabokov's childhood passed in three-story house on Bolshaya Morskaya Street, which is up to February Revolution was considered the main fashionable haven for aristocratic ladies and gentlemen. Also big family rested on her Vyra estate near Gatchina or traveled abroad - to Italy or Sweden.

Vladimir and Elena tried to give their offspring a decent education: the children read classic literature, and Benois and Dobuzhinsky came to teach them how to draw. Also, young Nabokov did not neglect sports: the boy loved tennis, football, cycling and playing chess. It is known that in the house of the future literary genius they spoke three languages ​​fluently: Russian, French and English, and the gifted boy mastered the latter to perfection.

And here is the Russian alphabet for little Lodi ( childhood nickname Nabokov) was initially difficult because the child rearranged everything in the English manner. For example, instead of the word “have breakfast” from Vladimir one could hear “breakfast” (“breakfast” in English - breakfast). After homeschooling Nabokov entered the Tenishev School, from which the poet once graduated Silver Age, prose writer Nikolai Stanyukovich, publicist Oleg Volkov and other famous literary figures.

Vladimir came to school by car, accompanied by a driver in livery. By the way, the Nabokov family had three cars, which at that time was considered an unprecedented luxury. During his studies, the young man zealously pored over literature and was interested in entomology, especially future writer loved collecting butterflies. It is noteworthy that these winged insects appeared in Vladimir’s works more than 570 times.

Literature

The creative biography of the master of the pen begins in 1916. Then young writer publishes poetry collection“Poems”, which included 68 works. It is noteworthy that his teacher of Russian literature, Vladimir Gippius, criticized Nabokov’s first creative attempts to smithereens. He advised the student to forget about high art and direct your energies in a different direction. Fortunately, Lodi did not attach importance to the words of his teacher, letting his instructions fall on deaf ears.

In 1917, when Russian Empire the first seeds were “planted” October revolution, the Nabokov family was forced to flee to Crimea. There, the aspiring writer gained popularity: his works were published in the newspaper “Yalta Voice” and were also used by theater troupes. At the beginning of his work, Nabokov gave preference to poetry: in 1918, Nabokov published the almanac “Two Paths”, in which he published poetic works Vladimir and his classmate Andrei Balashov. Among other things, the writer gets acquainted with rhythmic theory, which he tries to implement in his works.

The Bolshevik coup dealt a blow to many families, and the Nabokovs were no exception. Therefore, the writer and his parents moved to Berlin, the largest center of Russian emigration of those years. While the family lives in the capital of Germany, Vladimir receives higher education at Cambridge University, later teaching English and also translating American literature.

In 1926, Nabokov's debut novel, Mashenka, was published. This book is soaked from cover to cover philosophical thought and discussions about the role of love on earth. It is worth noting that the plot of the work revolves around emigration, because main character Ganin moves from Russia to an unfamiliar country. The protagonist learns that the wife of his friend Alferov, Mashenka, is going to visit her husband. Seeing the girl’s photo, Ganin sees his ex-love, with whom he broke up when he was young. Therefore, the already forgotten feeling of the protagonist begins to fill his heart again, and Mashenka lives in memories, remaining behind the scenes in reality.

In general, Nabokov’s first book is the apogee of Bunin’s influence: Vladimir Vladimirovich tried to follow the beaten path of this writer. Therefore, in 1926, the student sent a copy of the first novel to his mentor with the signature: “Don’t judge me too harshly, I beg you.” Ivan Alekseevich did not even bother to answer the aspiring novelist, making notes on one of the pages of the book: “Oh, how bad!” The fact is that Bunin judged a writer’s talent by his elegance in literature, putting the author’s reasoning in the background.

Also in Berlin, Nabokov wrote the novels “The Gift” (1935–1937), “Invitation to Execution” (1935–1936), “Despair” (1934), etc. Most of the manuscripts were published in the journal “Modern Notes”, and Vladimir was recognized under the pseudonym “Sirin”.

In 1936, when Nabokov came to power, Nabokov’s wife was fired due to the xenophobia that was progressing in the country. From Berlin the road led to France, and from there the writer left for America, where from 1940 to 1958 he worked as a teacher at American universities. Vladimir Nabokov's lectures on literature were popular among students, because the master was one of those few teachers who could make any listener absorb knowledge like a sponge.

Having become a writer, Sirin invented his own style: his works were characterized by a bright and unique handwriting, which was later borrowed by some authors, for example, Sokolov or Bitov. Nabokov, like , meticulously analyzed state of mind the main characters and “mixed” all the synesthetic sensations and memories with an unpredictable climax and denouement. The master also loved puns and meticulous descriptions of even the most insignificant details.

In 1955, the Parisian publishing house Olympia Press published Vladimir Vladimirovich’s novel “Lolita” - the most famous philosophical work writer with a touch of frustration and eroticism. In the 1960s, Nabokov translated the work into Russian. By the way, “Lolita” is not the only work based on the love of an adult for a teenager. Before this, the writer published a book with a similar theme - “Camera Obscura” (1932).

“Lolita” is considered a world bestseller, but at first, for obvious reasons, the book suffered the same fate as Joyce’s novel “Ulysses.” Publishers considered Nabokov's plot pornographic, and in some countries a taboo was imposed on the work. And this is not surprising, because the master described the passionate feelings of an adult man for the 12-year-old nymphet Dolores.

However, Sirin himself was frightened by such thoughts, so at one time he wanted, like, to burn his manuscript, which was written thanks to the influence of the English sexologist Havelock Ellis. It was because of this eccentric novel that they did not dare to give Sirin his well-deserved Nobel Prize on literature. Also, the story of a frivolous girl and her adult admirer was filmed twice: in 1962 (the script was written by Sirin himself), and in 1997, directed by Adrian Lyne.

Personal life

According to rumors, Nabokov was extremely amorous as a child: when he was 15, he fell in love with the peasant daughter Polya, and at the age of 16 he developed feelings for a plump, short girl, Valentina Shulgina. According to the writer's recollections, it was love at first sight. Young people met in secret and hid from the eyes of their parents. After graduating from the gymnasium, Nabokov promised to marry Tamara (as the writer called his passion), but after moving to Crimea their connection was severed. Shulgina became the prototype of Mashenka in novel of the same name.

In 1922, Nabokov met with Svetlana Siewert, but their union was not successful: the beloved’s parents were against Vladimir, because they believed that the writer did not have a permanent job at that time.

In 1925, the writer marries a girl Jewish origin– Vera Solonim, who became the guardian of his literary heritage. For example, after the death of her husband, she translated Nabokov’s novel “Pale Fire” (“ Pale Fire"). This beautiful black-eyed woman not only shared the master’s love for creativity, but also engaged with him in his favorite pastime - catching butterflies. On May 10, 1934, a son, Dmitry, was born into the Nabokov family, who in the future became an American translator (including translating his father’s works) and an opera singer.

Death

IN last years Vladimir lives in a picturesque city in western Switzerland - Motreux - and is engaged in literary activity. Notable novels written by Nabokov during this period include Pale Fire (1961) and Adu (1969).

In the summer of 1977, Vladimir Nabokov died of a severe bronchial infection. The body of the literary genius was cremated and buried in the Clarens cemetery. On the novelist’s grave it is written: “Vladimir Nabokov, writer.”

“Laura and Her Original” is the last and unfinished novel of the writer, published posthumously. The master left a will that the manuscript be destroyed, but the writer’s widow disobeyed her husband’s last wish and, shortly before her death, asked Dmitry to fulfill his father’s will. But in 2008, Dmitry Vladimirovich decided that the writer’s unfinished novel should be published.

Quotes

• “Loneliness, as a situation, can be corrected, but as a condition, it is an incurable disease.”
• "Three syllable formula human life: the irrevocability of the past, the insatiability of the present and the unpredictability of the future.”
• "Literature professors tend to come up with problems like, 'What was the author's intent?' or even worse: “What does the book want to say?” I belong to those writers who, having conceived a book, have no other goal than to get rid of it.”
• “Life is a big surprise. Perhaps death will be an even bigger surprise.”

Bibliography

• "Mashenka" (1926)
• "King, Queen, Jack" (1928)
• "Defense of Luzhin" (1930)
• "Feat" (1932)
• Camera Obscura (1932)
• "Despair" (1934)
• "Invitation to Execution" (1936)
• "The Gift" (1938)
• "The True Life of Sebastian Knight" (1941)
• "Under the Sign of the Illegitimate" (1947)
• "Lolita" (eng. Lolita) (1955)
• "Pnin" (eng. Pnin) (1957)
• "Pale Fire" (1962)
• "Ada, or the Joy of Passion: A Family Chronicle" (1969)
• "Laura and Her Original" (1975-1977, published posthumously in 2009)

Biography and episodes of life Vladimir Nabokov. When born and died Nabokov, memorable places and dates important events his life. Poet quotes, Photo and video.

Years of life of Vladimir Nabokov:

born April 10, 1899, died July 2, 1977

Epitaph

“Sail, boat, into the harsh fog,
Fly into the bay as you play,
Where the port town awaits us,
Like us, transported to heaven."
From Vladimir Nabokov's poem "Resurrection of the Dead"

Biography

Vladimir Nabokov was born into the family of Vladimir Nabokov, the son of the Minister of Justice, and Elena Rukavishnikova, the daughter of a wealthy gold miner. The biography of Vladimir Nabokov was supposed to be the life story of a writer from a wealthy and good family, but it became the story of an eternal emigrant.

When Nabokov was 11 years old, he entered the Tenishev School - the forge of “cultural personnel” in Russia at the beginning of the 20th century. After the October Revolution, Nabokov's family moved to Crimea, and in 1919 to London, where Vladimir entered Cambridge University and graduated with a doctorate in French literature. And six days after graduation, Vladimir was left without his beloved father - he died at a lecture at the Berlin Philharmonic in an attempt to neutralize the Black Hundreds who shot at Russian figure Milyukova. Later that year, Vladimir left for Berlin, where he lived until 1937, when Nazi sentiments in Germany began to affect the fate of his wife Vera Slonim, whom he married in 1925. Vera Slonim played important role in the life of Nabokov and in the biography of Nabokov, including the writer’s. Nabokov was forced to leave again - first to France, and then, when German troops began to attack Paris, in the USA.

In the USA, the writer Nabokov began teaching Russian, Russian and world literature- first at Wellesley Women's College, then at Cornell University, and even gave a course of lectures at Harvard. Since 1937, when the writer left Germany, he no longer wrote a single book in Russian, except for his autobiography and the author’s translation of “Lolita.” Speaking of “Lolita”: this novel was at first almost banned from publication, but soon made Nabokov a writer known throughout the world. Soon after the book was published, it was filmed by Stanley Kubrick; the writer Nabokov himself acted as the screenwriter for the film.

In 1960, Nabokov and his family moved to Europe, where he lived until the end of his life. His son Dmitry studied opera singing in Italy, and Nabokov’s faithful assistant and life partner Vera Slonim settled with her husband in a hotel in the beautiful Swiss town of Montreux. Nabokov's death occurred on July 2, 1977; the cause of Nabokov's death was a severe bronchial infection. Five days after Vladimir Nabokov's death, his body was cremated, and the next day Nabokov's funeral took place in the Clarens cemetery, near Montreux. On Nabokov's grave is written in French "Vladimir Nabokov, writer." His wife was buried nearby, having outlived the writer by fourteen years. The writer's son, Dmitry, became his publisher and translator of his father's works into Russian, working literary heritage Nabokov until his death in 2012. In memory of Nabokov, an asteroid was named after him in 1985.

Vladimir Nabokov with his wife Vera Slonim

Life line

April 10 (22), 1899 Date of birth of Vladimir Vladimirovich Nabokov.
autumn 1916 Receipt of the Rozhdestveno estate and inheritance from his uncle, Vasily Rukavishnikov, publishing of the first poetry collection “Poems”.
November 15, 1917 Moving to Crimea.
April 1919 Moving to London.
1922 Graduation from Cambridge University, Nabokov moved to Berlin to live with his parents.
March 1922 Death of Vladimir Nabokov's father.
April 25, 1925 Marriage to Vera Slonim.
May 10, 1934 Birth of son Dmitry.
1926 Completion of the first novel “Mashenka”.
1926-1937 The release of eight books by Nabokov in Russian.
1937 Moving to France.
May 1940 Escape from France, move to the USA.
1940-1948 Teaching at Wellesley College.
1941-1948 Working as a research assistant at the Harvard Museum of Comparative Zoology.
September 1948 Moving to Ithaca, New York teaching activity at Cornell University.
1957 Release of the novel "Pnin".
1958 Publication of the novel “Lolita” in the USA.
January 19, 1959 Nabokov's last lecture at Cornell.
1962 Release of the film "Lolita", publication of the novel "Pale Fire".
1964 Release of the English translation of the poem “Eugene Onegin”.
September 15, 1960 Moving to Switzerland, publication of Nabokov's last novels.
July 2, 1977 Nabokov's date of death.
July 7, 1977 Nabokov's cremation.
July 8, 1977 Funeral of Vladimir Nabokov.

Memorable places

1. Nabokov’s house in St. Petersburg, where he was born and lived with his parents in 1899-1917. and where is it installed today? Memorial plaque the writer and the Nabokov Museum is located.
2. The village of Rozhdestveno, where Nabokov’s estate is located (now the Nabokov Museum), which he inherited from his uncle.
3. Tenishevsky School, where Nabokov studied (now the building educational theater"On Mokhovaya" Academy of Theater Arts).
4. Cambridge University, where Vladimir Nabokov graduated.
5. Museum of Comparative Zoology Harvard University, where Nabokov worked in 1941-1948.
6. Wellesley College, where Nabokov taught in 1940-1948.
7. Cornell University, where Nabokov taught in 1948-1959.
8. Hotel Le Montreux Palace, where Nabokov lived with his wife in the last years of his life.
9. Clarens cemetery in Switzerland, where Nabokov is buried.

Episodes of life

The release of the novel “Lolita” was not without scandal. Nabokov still long years accused that he probably took such a plot for the novel from own life, they even made assumptions that the writer had affairs with American students. And Nabokov, giving interviews, often jokingly addressed his wife with the question: “In reality, I haven’t met any Lolitas, have I, dear?” He loved Vera very much, wrote her letters full of tenderness and love and did not give any reason to accuse him of infidelity.

Nabokov considered himself an American writer with a Russian heart. Famous Quote Nabokov: “I American writer, born in Russia, educated in England, where he studied French literature before moving to Germany for fifteen years... My head speaks English, my heart speaks Russian, and my ear speaks French.”

Nabokov made a significant contribution not only to literature, but also to lepidopterology; over 20 species of butterflies and even their entire genus are named after Nabokov

Covenant

“Life is a big surprise. Perhaps death will be an even bigger surprise.”

Documentary film “Vladimir Nabokov. Russian roots"

Condolences

“No matter how immersed he was in writing a novel, he always had time for me. Whatever knowledge he shared with me, he expressed a thought, whether simple or complex, in an original and funny way, just like my mother. He shared with me happiness, optimism, humor, honor and genius. Many appreciate these qualities in him. Others cannot forgive him, just as they cannot come to terms with the fact that his genius was finally recognized and that he lived out his life in the warmth of ideal family happiness.”
Dmitry Nabokov, son of Vladimir Nabokov

1922 - Nabokov graduates from Trinity College, Cambridge, where he studies Romance and Slavic languages ​​and literature. In the same year, the Nabokov family moved to Berlin, where his father became editor of the Russian newspaper “The Rudder”. It was in “Rul” that the first translations of French and English poets, Nabokov's first prose.

1922-37 - Nabokov lives in Germany. For the first few years he lived in poverty, earning a living by composing chess compositions for newspapers and giving tennis and swimming lessons, and occasionally acting in German films.

1925 - marries V. Slonim, who became his faithful assistant and friend.

1926 - after the publication of the novel “Mashenka” in Berlin (under the pseudonym V. Sirin), Nabokov gains literary fame. Then they appear the following works: “The Man from the USSR” (1927), “The Defense of Luzhin” (1929-1930, story), “The Return of Chorba” (1930; collection of stories and poems), “Camera Obscura” (1932-1933, novel), “Despair” (1934, novel), "Invitation to Execution" (1935-1936), "The Gift" (1937, separate edition - 1952), "The Spy" (1938).

1937 - Nabokov leaves Nazi Germany, fearing for the lives of his wife and son.

1937-40 - lives in France.

1940-1960 - in the USA. At first, after moving to the USA, Nabokov traveled around almost the entire country in search of work. A few years later he began teaching at American universities. Since 1945 - US citizen. Since 1940 he begins to write works in English language, which he had fluently owned since childhood. The first English-language novel - " True life Sebastian Knight." Nabokov then wrote the works "Under the Sign of the Illegitimate", "Conclusive Evidence" (1951; Russian translation "Other Shores", 1954; memoirs), "Lolita" (1955; he wrote both in Russian and in English), "Pnin" (1957), "Ada" (1969). In addition, he translates into English: "The Tale of Igor's Campaign", the novel "Eugene Onegin" by A. S. Pushkin (1964; Nabokov himself believed his translation was unsuccessful), the novel by M.Yu. Lermontov "Hero of Our Time", lyric poems Pushkin, Lermontov, Tyutchev.

1955 - the novel “Lolita,” which four American publishers refused to publish, is published in Paris by Olympia Press. In 1962, a film was made based on the novel.

1960-1977 - Nabokov lives in Switzerland. During these years, Nabokov’s works were published in America (books “Poems and Problems” (39 poems in Russian and English, 14 poems in English, 18 chess problems), 1971; “A Russian Beauty and Other Stories” (13 stories, some translated from Russian, and some written in English) (New York). Published “Strong Opinions” (interviews, criticism, essays, letters), 1973; “Tyrants Destroyed and Other Stories” (14 stories, some translated from Russian and some written in English), 1975; “Details of a Sunset and Other Stories” (13 stories translated from Russian), 1976, etc.

1986 - Nabokov’s first publication appears in the USSR (the novel “The Defense of Luzhin” in the magazines “64” and “Moscow”).

Main works:

Novels: “Mashenka” (1926), “The Defense of Luzhin” (1929-1930), “Camera Obscura” (1932-33), “Despair” (1934), “The Gift” (1937), “Lolita” (1955), "Pnin" (1957), "Ada" (1969),
"Look at the harlequins!" (1974),

The story “Invitation to Execution” (1935 - 36), Collection of stories: “The Return of Chorb” (1930), Book of Memories “Other Shores” (1951), Collection “Spring in Fialta and Other Stories” (1956), Poems, Research “ Nikolai Gogol" (1944), Commentary prose translation of "Eugene Onegin" (vol. 1-3, 1964), Translation into English of "The Tale of Igor's Campaign", "Lectures on Russian Literature" (1981), "Conversations. Memories" (1966)

Russian and American writer, poet, translator, literary critic and entomologist.

Pseudonyms: V. Sirin, Vasily Shishkov.

Nabokov's works are characterized by complex literary technique, deep analysis emotional state characters combined with an unpredictable, sometimes almost thriller plot. Among the most famous examples of Nabokov’s creativity are the novels “Mashenka”, “The Defense of Luzhin”, “Invitation to Execution”, “The Gift”. The writer gained fame among the general public after the publication of scandalous romance"Lolita", which was subsequently made into several film adaptations.

Nabokov's range of interests was unusually diverse. He made a significant contribution to lepidopterology (a branch of entomology focusing on lepidoptera), taught Russian and world literature and published several courses of literary lectures, created translations of “Eugene Onegin” and “The Tale of Igor’s Campaign” into English, and was seriously interested in chess: he was quite a strong practical player and published a number of interesting chess problems.

Nabokov about himself:
I am an American writer, born in Russia, educated in England, where I studied French literature before moving to Germany for fifteen years. ...My head speaks English, my heart speaks Russian, and my ear speaks French

Biography
Vladimir Nabokov was born into an aristocratic family of the famous Russian politician Vladimir Dmitrievich Nabokov. In everyday life, the Nabokov family used three languages: Russian, English, and French - thus, the future writer was fluent in three languages ​​with early childhood. By in my own words, he learned to read English before he could read Russian. The first years of Nabokov's life were spent in comfort and prosperity in the Nabokovs' house on Bolshaya Morskaya in St. Petersburg and in their country estate Batovo (near Gatchina).

Education began in Tenishevsky School in St. Petersburg, where Osip Mandelstam had recently studied. Literature and entomology become Nabokov's two main hobbies. Shortly before the revolution, Nabokov published a collection of his poems with his own money.

The revolution of 1917 forced the Nabokovs to move to Crimea, and then, in 1919, to emigrate from Russia. They managed to take some of the family jewelry with them, and with this money the Nabokov family lived in Berlin, while Vladimir was educated at Cambridge, where he continues to write Russian poetry and translates L. Carroll’s “Alice in Wonderland” into Russian.

Since 1922, Nabokov became part of the Russian diaspora in Berlin, earning a living by teaching English. Berlin newspapers and publishing houses organized by Russian emigrants publish Nabokov's stories. In 1927, Nabokov married Vera Slonim and completed his first novel, Mashenka. After which, until 1937, he created 8 novels in Russian, continuously complicating his author’s style and experimenting more and more boldly with form. Nabokov's novels not published in Soviet Russia, were a success among Western emigration, and are now considered masterpieces of Russian literature (especially “The Defense of Luzhin”, “The Gift”, “Invitation to Execution”).

The Nazis' rise to power in Germany at the end of the 1930s put an end to the Russian diaspora in Berlin. Nabokov's life with his Jewish wife in Germany became impossible, and the Nabokov family moved to Paris, and with the outbreak of World War II emigrated to the United States. With the disappearance of the Russian diaspora in Europe, Nabokov finally lost his Russian-speaking reader, and the only opportunity to continue his work was to switch to English. Nabokov wrote his first novel in English (“The True Life of Sebastian Knight”) in Europe, shortly before leaving for the United States; from 1937 until the end of his days, Nabokov did not write a single novel in Russian (except for his autobiography “Others”). shore" and the author's translation of "Lolita" into Russian).

In America, from 1940 to 1958, Nabokov made a living by lecturing on Russian and world literature at American universities. His first English-language novels (The True Life of Sebastian Knight, Bend Sinister, Pnin), despite their artistic merit, were not commercially successful. During this period, Nabokov became close friends with E. Wilson and other literary scholars, and continued to work professionally in entomology. Traveling throughout the United States during his vacation, Nabokov worked on the novel Lolita, the theme of which (the story of a pedophile who is attracted to little girls) was unthinkable for its time, as a result of which the writer had little hope of even publishing the novel. However, the novel was published (first in Europe, then in America) and quickly brought it to the author world fame and financial well-being.

Nabokov returns to Europe and since 1960 lives in Montreux, Switzerland, where he creates his latest novels, the most famous of which are Pale Fire and Ada.

Vladimir Vladimirovich Nabokov was born April 10 (22), 1899 in St. Petersburg in the aristocratic family of the famous Russian politician Vladimir Dmitrievich Nabokov.

The Nabokovs were a noble and wealthy noble family. Many of its representatives reached serious social heights, for example, the grandfather of the future writer Dmitry Nikolaevich Nabokov was the Minister of Justice, one of the authors of the judicial reform of 1864. In addition to Vladimir, the Nabokov family had four more children: sons Sergei and Kirill, daughters Olga and Elena. The Nabokov family used three languages: Russian, English, and French - thus, the future writer was fluent in three languages ​​from early childhood. In his own words, he learned to read English before he could read Russian. The first years of Nabokov's life were spent in comfort and prosperity in the Nabokovs' house on Bolshaya Morskaya in St. Petersburg and in their country estate Batovo (near Gatchina).

He began his education at the Tenishevsky School in St. Petersburg, where Osip Mandelstam had studied shortly before. Nabokov's range of interests was unusually diverse. He made a significant contribution to lepidopterology (a branch of entomology focusing on lepidoptera), taught Russian and world literature and published several courses of literary lectures, and was seriously interested in chess: he was a fairly strong practical player and published a number of interesting chess problems. In their composition he felt something akin to literary creativity. Nabokov had good drawing abilities; he was taught by the famous Dobuzhinsky. The boy was predicted to have a future as an artist. Nabokov did not become an artist, but both his abilities and acquired skills were useful for his verbal painting, his unique ability to feel color, light, shape and convey these feelings in words.

Autumn 1916 Vladimir Nabokov received the Rozhdestveno estate and a million-dollar inheritance from Vasily Ivanovich Rukavishnikov, his maternal uncle. In 1916 Nabokov, while still a student at the Tenishev School, used his own money to publish in St. Petersburg, under his own name, the first poetry collection “Poems” (68 poems written by from August 1915 to May 1916).

Revolution 1917 forced the Nabokovs to move to Crimea, and then in 1919, emigrate from Russia. They managed to take some of the family jewelry with them, and with this money the Nabokov family lived in Berlin, while Vladimir was educated at Cambridge, where he continues to write Russian poetry and translates L. Carroll’s “Alice in Wonderland” into Russian.

In March 1922 Vladimir Nabokov's father, Vladimir Dmitrievich Nabokov, was killed. This happened at a lecture by P.N. Miliukov “America and the Restoration of Russia” in the building of the Berlin Philharmonic. V.D. Nabokov tried to neutralize the radical who shot Miliukov, but was shot by his partner.

Since 1922 Nabokov becomes part of the Russian diaspora in Berlin, earning a living by teaching English. Berlin newspapers and publishing houses organized by Russian emigrants publish Nabokov's stories. In 1922 becomes engaged to Svetlana Sievert; the engagement was called off by the bride's family early 1923, since Nabokov could not find permanent job. In 1925 Nabokov marries Vera Slonim and completes his first novel, Mashenka. Then before 1937 creates 8 novels in Russian, continuously complicating his author's style and experimenting more and more boldly with form. Nabokov’s novels, which were not published in Soviet Russia, were a success among Western emigration, and are now considered masterpieces of Russian literature (especially “The Defense of Luzhin,” “The Gift,” “Invitation to Execution”).

The Nazis' rise to power in Germany at the end of the 1930s put an end to the Russian diaspora in Berlin. Nabokov's life with his Jewish wife in Germany became impossible, and the Nabokov family moved to Paris, and with the outbreak of World War II emigrated to the United States. With the disappearance of the Russian diaspora in Europe, Nabokov finally lost his Russian-speaking reader, and the only opportunity to continue his work was to switch to English. Nabokov wrote his first novel in English (“The True Life of Sebastian Knight”) in Europe, shortly before leaving for the USA. since 1937 and until the end of his days, Nabokov did not write a single novel in Russian (except for the autobiography “Other Shores” and the author’s translation of “Lolita” into Russian).

In America from 1940 to 1958 Nabokov makes his living by lecturing on Russian and world literature at American universities. His first English-language novels (The True Life of Sebastian Knight, Bend Sinister, Pnin), despite their artistic merits, were not commercial success. During this period, Nabokov became close friends with E. Wilson and other literary scholars, and continued to work professionally in entomology. Traveling throughout the United States during his vacation, Nabokov worked on the novel Lolita, the theme of which (the story of an adult man who became passionately infatuated with a twelve-year-old girl) was unthinkable for its time, as a result of which the writer had little hope even for the publication of the novel. However, the novel was published (first in Europe, then in America) and quickly brought its author worldwide fame and financial well-being. It is interesting that initially the novel, as Nabokov himself described, was published in the odious Olympia publishing house, which, as he realized after publication, published mainly “semi-pornographic” and related novels.

Nabokov returns to Europe and since 1960 lives in Montreux, Switzerland, where he writes his latest novels, the most famous of which are Pale Fire and Ada.

Vladimir Nabokov died July 2, 1977 aged 78, buried in the cemetery at Clarens, near Montreux, Switzerland.