Tolstoy A.K. Key dates of life and creativity

Alexei Konstantinovich Tolstoy was born August 24 (September 5 n.s.), 1817 In Petersburg. Count, Russian prose writer, poet, playwright.

On the maternal side, he came from the Razumovsky family (great-grandfather - the last Ukrainian hetman Kirill Razumovsky; grandfather - Minister of Public Education under Alexander I - A.K. Razumovsky). Father - Count K.P. Tolsto, with whom the mother broke up immediately after the birth of her son. He was brought up under the guidance of his mother and her brother, the writer A.A. Perovsky, who encouraged Tolstoy's early poetic experiments.

In 1834 entered the Moscow Archive of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Then he was in the diplomatic service. In 1843 received the title of chamber junker. Late 30s - early 40s Tolstoy wrote fantastic stories in the style of the Gothic novel and romantic prose - "The Family of the Ghoul" and "Meeting in Three Hundred Years" (in French). The first publication is the story "Ghoul" ( 1841., under pseudo. Krasnorogsky) - sympathetically met by V.G. Belinsky. In the 40s A. Tolstoy began working on the historical novel "Prince Silver" (finished in 1861 ), then created a number of ballads and lyrical poems, published later (in 50-60s); many of them gained wide popularity (“My Bells”, “You know the land where everything breathes in abundance”, “Where the vines bend over the pool”, “Kurgan”, “Vasily Shibanov”, “Prince Mikhailo Repnin” and others).

Early 50s A. Tolstoy became close to I.S. Turgenev, N.A. Nekrasov and other writers. Since 1854 publishes poetry and literary parodies in Sovremennik. In cooperation with his cousins ​​A.M. and V.M. Zhemchuzhnikov in the Literary Jumble department of Sovremennik, in Whistle he published satirical and parody works signed by Kozma Prutkov; the work of the author they invented became a parody mirror of obsolete literary phenomena and at the same time created a satirical type of the Nikolaev bureaucrat, who claims to be the legislator of artistic taste.

moving away since 1857 from participating in Sovremennik, Tolstoy began to publish in Russkaya Conversation, and in the 60s and 70s. - mainly in Russkiy Vestnik and Vestnik Evropy. During these years, he defended the principles of the so-called. "pure art", independent of political ideas. In 1861 A. Tolstoy left the service, which he was very tired of, and concentrated on literary studies. Published the dramatic poem "Don Juan" ( 1862 ), the novel "Prince Silver" ( 1863 ), a historical trilogy - the tragedy "The Death of Ivan the Terrible" (1866 ), "Tsar Fyodor Ioannovich" ( 1868) , "Tsar Boris" ( 1870 ).

In 1867 The first collection of poems by Alexei Tolstoy was published. In the last decade he wrote ballads ("Snake Tugarin", 1868 ; "Song about Harald and Yaroslavna", 1869 ; "Roman Galitsky", 1870 ; "Ilya Muromets", 1871 etc.), poems of political satire (“The History of the Russian State from Gostomysl to Timashev”, publ. 1883; "Popov's Dream", publ. 1882 etc.), poems ("Portrait", 1874 ; "The Dragon", 1875 ), lyric poetry.

After retiring, he mostly lived on his estates, paying little attention to the economy, and gradually went bankrupt. His health deteriorated. At the age of 58 A. Tolstoy September 28 (October 10 n.s.) 1875 of the year died in the estate of the Red Horn of the Chernigov province.

The work of Alexei Tolstoy is imbued with motives, philosophical ideas, lyrical emotions. Interest in national antiquity, problems of the philosophy of history, rejection of political tyranny, love for the nature of his native land - these features of Tolstoy as a person and as a thinker are reflected in his works of all genres.

The political ideals of A. Tolstoy were peculiar. He himself believed that he stood outside the warring camps of modern Russian society. He hated political oppression, despised the bearers of retrograde views and unprincipled politicians-bureaucrats, but he also did not trust people of revolutionary convictions, finding their activities harmful to society. Turning to history and reflecting on the fate of the country, Tolstoy denied the progressiveness of the development of Russian monarchical statehood, the unification of Rus' around the Moscow principality. The bureaucratization of the state apparatus, the unlimited autocracy of the tsars seemed to Tolstoy the result of the influence of the Tatar yoke on the political system of Rus'. He considered Kievan Rus and ancient Novgorod to be the ideal state structure corresponding to the national character of the people. The high level of development of art, the special significance of the cultural layer of the chivalrous aristocracy, the simplicity of morals, the prince's respect for the personal dignity and freedom of citizens, the breadth and variety of international relations, especially relations with Europe - this was the way of life of Ancient Rus'. Ballads depicting images of Ancient Rus' are permeated with lyricism, they convey the poet's passionate dream of spiritual independence, admiration for the whole heroic natures captured by folk epic poetry.

ALEXEY KONSTANTINOVICH TOLSTOY

Life dates: September 5, 1817 - October 10, 1875
Place of Birth : St. Petersburg
Russian writer, poet, playwright, satirist
Notable works : "Prince Silver", "Death of Ivan the Terrible", "In the midst of a noisy ball, by chance ..."

Alexei Konstantinovich Tolstoy is a classic of Russian literature, one of our greatest poets of the second half of the 19th century, a brilliant playwright, translator, creator of magnificent love lyrics, a satirist poet unsurpassed so far, who wrote his works, both under his real name and under the name invented by Tolstoy together with the Zhemchuzhnikov brothers of Kozma Prutkov. And also Tolstoy is a classic of Russian “terrible literature”, his stories “Ghoul” and “Ghoul Family” are considered masterpieces of Russian mysticism. The works of Alexei Konstantinovich Tolstoy are familiar to us from school. But little is known about the life of the writer himself, paradoxically. The fact is that most of the writer's archives perished in fires, and a significant part of the correspondence was destroyed after Tolstoy's death by his wife. Researchers of the writer's work had to restore the facts of his life literally bit by bit. And I must say that Alexei Konstantinovich lived a very interesting life.
The future writer was born in the family of Count Konstantin Petrovich Tolstoy, a bank adviser, and Anna Alekseevna, nee Perovskaya, the natural daughter of Count Alexei Kirillovich Razumovsky. Her father achieved for her and the brothers a title of nobility and the surname "Perovsky", and also gave a thorough education.
The father's uncle was a famous sculptor and vice-president of the Academy of Arts - Count Fyodor Petrovich Tolstoy.
The uncles on the mother's side were the writer Aleksey Alekseevich Perovsky (known to us under the pseudonym Anton Pogorelsky), who later became the Minister of Internal Affairs, and the future Governor-General of Orenburg - Vasily Alekseevich Perovsky.
When the boy was only 6 weeks old, his parents' marriage broke up, and Anna Alekseevna took her son to Ukraine to the estate of her brother Alexei. In practice, the uncle became the main educator of Alexei Konstantinovich. The famous fairy tale "The Black Hen, or Underground Inhabitants" Pogorelsky wrote specifically for Alyosha Tolstoy.
Since Pogorelsky was a famous novelist, he managed to instill in his nephew a love for books and literary creativity from an early age. It was Alexei Alekseevich who subsequently served as a prototype for Leo Tolstoy to create the image of Pierre Bezukhov in the novel War and Peace.
In 1810, Perovsky brought his sister and nephew to St. Petersburg. Here for ten years he maintains friendly relations with famous writers: A.S. Pushkin, V.A. Zhukovsky, K.F. Ryleev and others. The nephew also listens with interest to literary discussions.
Soon after arrival, through the efforts of Zhukovsky, Alexei is brought as a playmate to the future Russian Emperor Alexander II, who at that time was also eight years old. The boys got along in character and maintained good relations for life. Subsequently, the emperor's wife also appreciated Tolstoy's personality and talent.
In 1827, Alexei Konstantinovich, together with his mother and uncle, went to Germany, where they visited Goethe. Tolstoy will keep his childhood impressions and the gift of the great writer (a fragment of a mammoth tusk) for many years to come. In 1831, on "commercial" business, Perovsky went to Italy, where he also took his sister and nephew. Aleksey so "falls in love" with this country, its works of art and historical monuments, that after returning to Russia, he longs for the great Italian cities for a long time. At this time, in his diaries, he calls Italy "a lost paradise."
Having received a good home education, in March 1834 Tolstoy entered the Moscow Main Archive of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs as a "student". Here his interest in history is further developed. The service does not particularly burden Tolstoy - he is busy in the archive only two days a week. The rest of the time he devotes to secular life. But attending balls and parties, he devotes time to other activities - Tolstoy begins to seriously engage in literature.
The following year, he writes his first poems, which were approved by Zhukovsky and even by Pushkin.
In 1836, Tolstoy took a four-month vacation to accompany the seriously ill Perovsky to Nice for treatment. But on the way, in a Warsaw hotel, Perovsky dies. After Perovsky's death, Tolstoy receives his entire large fortune in his will.
At the end of 1836, Tolstoy was transferred to the department of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and was soon appointed to the Russian mission to the German Sejm in Frankfurt am Main. However, the service was, in fact, a mere formality, and although Tolstoy went to Frankfurt (where he first met Gogol), he, like any young socialite, spends most of his time in entertainment.
In 1838-39 Tolstoy lived in Germany, Italy and France. Here he writes his first stories (in French) - "The Family of the Ghoul" and "Meeting in Three Hundred Years" (1839). True, these stories will be published only after the death of the author. These works of Tolstoy are vivid examples of mysticism (by the way, the writer will remain interested in the other world even in adulthood: it is known that he read books on spiritualism, attended sessions of the English spiritualist Hume who toured Russia).
In 1840, Alexei Konstantinovich received the title of collegiate secretary. From December Tolstoy was transferred to the II Department of the Imperial Chancellery in St. Petersburg. Returning to Russia, Tolstoy continues to live a “social life”: he hits on young ladies at St. Petersburg balls, spends money in style, hunts in his estate Krasny Rog in the Chernigov province, which he inherited from Alexei Perovsky. Hunting becomes a passion for Tolstoy, he repeatedly went with a horn to a bear at the risk of his life. In general, Alexei Konstantinovich was distinguished by amazing physical strength - he twisted silver forks and spoons with a screw, unbent horseshoes.
In 1841, Alexei Konstantinovich first appeared in print as a writer - his book “Ghoul. Works of Krasnorogsky ”(the pseudonym was taken from the name of the Krasny Rog estate). Vissarion Grigorievich Belinsky noted this work as the creation of a very young, but very promising talent.
From 1842 to 1846 Tolstoy successfully moved up the career ladder, receiving ever higher ranks. During these years, he tries himself in the genre of poetry (the poem "Serebryanka" in the "Leaflet for Secular People") and prose (the story "Artemy Semyonovich Bervenkovsky, a fragment of" Amen "from the unwritten novel" Stebelovsky "), writes essays about Kyrgyzstan.
In 1847-49, he began to write ballads from Russian history, he plans to write the novel Prince Silver.
All these years, Alexei Konstantinovich leads a life typical of a secular person: he does not bother himself with service, travels often, participates in social entertainment and flirts with young ladies. He is handsome, smart and full of energy.
In 1850, Tolstoy traveled "with a check" to the Kaluga province. He even calls his trip "exile", but it is here that he first reads his poems and chapters from the novel "Prince Silver" in public - in the governor's house, in the presence of Nikolai Vasilyevich Gogol. In the same year, the writer acquires the Pustynka estate near St. Petersburg.
In 1850, Tolstoy, together with his cousin Alexei Zhemchuzhnikov, hiding behind the pseudonyms "Y" and "Z", sent the comedy in one act "Fantasy" for censorship. Although the censor made corrections to the work, on the whole he did not find anything reprehensible in it. The premiere of the play took place on January 8, 1851 at the Alexandrinsky Theater and ended in a tremendous scandal, after which the production was banned: the public did not understand the play's innovation, the parody of absurd dialogues and monologues at all, Emperor Nicholas I, who was present at the premiere, left the hall without waiting for the end of the performance.
But fate almost immediately "rewards" the newly-minted playwright for trouble - at a masquerade ball he meets an intelligent, beautiful and strong-willed woman - Sofya Andreevna Miller (wife of a horse guard colonel, nee Bakhmetyeva), who in 1863 will become his wife. After the beginning of the affair with Tolstoy, she immediately leaves her husband for her brother's estate, but the categorical unwillingness of Alexei Konstantinovich's mother to see her as her daughter-in-law and obstruction from her husband, who did not give her a divorce, leads two loving people to marriage only 12 years after they met.
In 1852, Tolstoy, "using his official position" successfully petitioned for mitigation of the fate of I.S. Turgenev, who was arrested for an article in memory of Gogol.
Two years later, the writer "comes out" with his works in the "Contemporary". Here his poems about nature (“My Bells”, etc.) are published, a cycle of satirical humorous poetry begins to appear under the pseudonym “Kozma Prutkov”, which Tolstoy writes together with the Zhemchuzhnikov brothers. In the same year, Alexei Konstantinovich met Leo Tolstoy.
During the Crimean War in 1855, Tolstoy wants to organize a special voluntary militia. But when he fails, he enters the "rifle regiment of the Imperial family." They did not manage to get to the front of hostilities, but in the winter of 1855-56, most of the regiment was “mowed down” by typhus. Tolstoy did not escape this disease either. Sofya Andreevna came to look after him, and telegrams were personally sent to Alexander II every day about the state of health of Alexei Konstantinovich.
After the coronation of Alexander II (1856), at which Tolstoy was an honored guest, the emperor promoted his "old friend" to lieutenant colonel and appointed adjutant wing.
The following year, two people close to the writer died - his mother and uncle, Vasily Alekseevich. Alexei Konstantinovich invites his father to his mother's funeral. From that time on, he began to send him a pension, about 4 thousand rubles a year. At the same time, he settles his beloved woman with her relatives in his estate Pustynka near St. Petersburg.
In January 1858 Tolstoy returned to Petersburg. This year, his poem “The Sinner” is published in the “Russian Conversation”, published by the Slavophiles, and next year, “John of Damascus”.
The Emperor grants Tolstoy the Order of St. Stanislaus, 2nd class.
Since 1859, Alexei Konstantinovich was dismissed on indefinite leave from the duties of an aide-de-camp, and he settled in one of his estates, Pogoreltsy. The writer joins the Society of Lovers of Russian Literature, begins to work on the poem "Don Juan".
Since 1860, for ten years, Tolstoy spends most of his time in Europe, only occasionally coming to Russia.
In 1861, together with his peasants in the Red Horn, he celebrates their liberation from serfdom. In autumn, he writes a letter of resignation to Alexander II. On September 28, he receives a positive response and an honorary, non-binding position of Jägermeister with the rank of State Councilor.
Until mid-January 1862, the writer read his new novel Prince Silver at meetings with the Empress with great success. At the end of the readings, he receives a valuable gift from the empress (a massive golden keychain in the form of a book with memorable notes). In the same year, his poem "Don Juan" and the novel "Prince Silver" are published in the "Russian Messenger". By winter, the writer leaves for Germany.
In April of the following year, after many years of waiting, they are married to Sofya Mikhailovna in the Orthodox Church of Dresden. The wife returns to her homeland, and Tolstoy remains for treatment.
The empress again becomes the first listener of his new work. In July 1864, in Schwalbach, he read to the Empress and her retinue "The Death of Ivan the Terrible." At the beginning of 1866, the tragedy was published in the journal Otechestvennye Zapiski. 1867 - staged with great success on the stage of the Alexandrinsky Theater in St. Petersburg. In 1868, thanks to a wonderful translation by the poetess Karolina Pavlova, the audience of the court theater of the Duke of Weimar sees her. In the same year, Tolstoy wrote the parody "History of the Russian State from Gostomysl to Timashev" in verse. In 83 stanzas, the writer managed to fit the history of Rus' from 860 to 1868. The work was published after Tolstoy's death.
After the transformation of Vestnik Evropy into a general literary magazine, Alexei Konstantinovich often publishes his works in it. Here his epics and poems, the second and third parts of the trilogy about Ivan the Terrible (1868, 1870), the autobiographical story in verse "Portrait" and the poetic story "Dragon" are published.
Tolstoy's health is deteriorating. He suffers from asthma and terrible neuralgic headaches. From 1871 to the spring of 1873, the writer traveled to Germany and Italy for treatment. He gets a little better. In 1873, he even submitted a new poem, "Popov's Dream", to print. In December, he was elected a corresponding member of the St. Petersburg Academy of Sciences in the department of the Russian language and literature.
The following year, the writer gets worse. He is being treated both in Russia and abroad. Eventually, he is prescribed morphine, which is the beginning of the end. Morphine addiction develops. On September 28 (October 10), 1875, during a severe attack of headache, Alexei Konstantinovich injects himself with too much morphine, which leads to death.
He died in his estate Krasny Rog (now the Pochepsky district of the Bryansk region), and was buried here.
In the village of Krasny Rog, fifty kilometers from Bryansk, is the former estate of the most famous Russian poet, prose writer and playwright Alexei Tolstoy. Here he spent his last years of life, and here he is buried. Currently located here Museum-estate of Alexei Tolstoy .

Ballads and poems

"Vasily Shibanov" (1840)
"Riot in the Vatican" (1864)

"Blagovest" (1840)
"Ilya Muromets" (1871)
"Canute" (1872)
"You are my land, my dear land..."
"Prince Mikhailo Repnin"
"Where the vines bend over the pool..."

poems

"Sinner" (1858)
"John of Damascus" (1859)
"The Alchemist" (1867)
"Popov's Dream" (1873)
"Portrait" (1874)
"Dragon" (1875)

Dramaturgy

"Fantasy" (1850; first production at the Alexandrinsky Theater in 1851)
"Don Juan" (1862)
The Death of Ivan the Terrible (1865; first production at the Alexandrinsky Theater in 1867).The tragedy was filmed in 1991.
"Tsar Fyodor Ioannovich" (1868; first production in 1898 at the Theater of Literary andart society)
Tsar Boris (1870; first production in 1881 at the Moscow Brenco Theatre)
Posadnik (1871; first production in 1877 at the Alexandrinsky Theater)

Prose

"Ghoul" (1841), the story was repeatedly filmed
"Wolf Foster" (1843)
"Amena" (1846)
"Prince Silver" (1862), the novel was filmed twice

INTERNET RESOURCES

Alexei Konstantinovich Tolstoy // Chronos. - Access mode: http://www.hrono.ru/biograf/bio_t/tolstoi_ak.php

Tolstoy Alexey Konstantinovich: Collected Works //Lib.ru/Classics. - Access mode:

Alexei Konstantinovich Tolstoy - Russian writer, poet and playwright. Count Alexei was born on August 24 (according to Yul.kal-ryu) on September 5, 1817 in St. Petersburg in the family of Count Konstantin Tolstoy and the pupil of Count Alexei Razumovsky Anna Perovskaya. Tolstoy died on September 28 (Yul.kal-ryu) on October 10, 1875 in the village of Krasny Rog (Chernigov province).

Biography

Immediately after the birth of her son, Anna left her husband. The father of little Alyosha was replaced by his maternal uncle, the famous writer Alexei Alekseevich Perovsky (real name Anton Pogorelsky). It was he who instilled in his nephew a love of books and literature, encouraging the boy's creative impulses.

The writer spent his early years in the Chernihiv province, namely in the village of Pogoreltsy. It then appeared more than once in the works of Tolstoy, at the mention of childhood. Perovsky brings his sister and nephew to St. Petersburg. In the northern capital, the future playwright meets with Pushkin, Zhukovsky and other writers of that time, with whom his uncle has friendly ties. Alexei shows interest in literature, sneaking into meetings of famous poets and writers, listening to the conversations of adults. A little later, Tolstoy meets the future Russian Emperor Alexander II. The boys find a common language and become good friends, maintaining friendships for life.

In 1827, the uncle arranges for the family a trip to Germany, where Alexei Tolstoy meets Goethe and even receives a gift from the great writer, who then keeps for many years as a valuable trophy. In 1831, Perovsky shows the boy Italy, this country fascinates Tolstoy so much that he calls it “paradise lost” and is sad for a long time when he arrives at home.

The playwright receives education at home, and in 1834 enters the Moscow Archive of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The service takes a little time from the young man, but it develops his interest in history. The young man is actively engaged in creativity, simultaneously studying literature. He actively writes his own poems, reflecting on various topics. In the future, his works will be appreciated by Zhukovsky and Pushkin. After completing his studies, Tolstoy gets a place in Germany and lives there for some time, traveling around Italy and France along the way.

But Alexei did not stay abroad for long, in 1839 he received the title of collegiate secretary and was assigned to St. Petersburg in the department of the imperial office. An ambitious man successfully moves up the career ladder, receiving new titles. During these years, Tolstoy travels a lot, leads an active social life, attends parties and meets women.

In 1850, the writer met Sophia Miller and fell in love, but officially married her only thirteen years later in 1863. After his resignation in 1861, Tolstoy lives in an estate near St. Petersburg and in the village of Krasny Rog.

In 1875, Alexei, who was taking morphine as a cure for headaches, went too far with the dosage. It was a large dose of the drug that caused the death of the writer, who was known among the people as one of the most powerful people of that time.

Creation

Tolstoy's first works ("The Family of the Ghoul" and "Meeting in Three Hundred Years") were in French, written while living in Germany. Later they were also available for the Russian audience. The first book is published in 1841 and has the title “Ghoul”, when writing it, the writer refers to memories, especially to the time spent in the company of the future heir to the throne.

During his service from 1842 to 1846, Tolstoy seeks himself in poetry, releasing the poem "Serebryanka" in the newspaper, and also tries his hand at prose, writes essays. In 1847, Alexei Konstantinovich began to create Russian ballads, even planning to write a novel about princely life.

After his official resignation, he delves more and more into literature, becoming the author of satirical works, the historical novel “Prince Silver”, the dramaturgical trilogy “The Death of Ivan the Terrible” and the psychological novella in poetic form “In the midst of a noisy ball, by chance ...”.

Throughout his life, Alexei Tolstoy creates many biting works that tell about modern life, so most of the satirical creations that ridicule power and political principles were published posthumously.

The surname Tolstoy in our view is closely associated with literary creativity, and this is no coincidence. In Russian prose and poetry, there were as many as three well-known authors who wore it: Lev Nikolaevich, Alexei Konstantinovich and Alexei Nikolaevich Tolstoy. The works written by them are not connected in any way, but the authors themselves are united by blood relationship, although distant. All of them are representatives of a large noble branch. Tatyana Tolstaya, a modern writer, by the way, also belongs to this genus. Although the most famous representative of this noble branch is, of course, Lev Nikolaevich, today we invite you to get acquainted with the work of Alexei Konstantinovich. The works of Alexei Nikolaevich Tolstoy also deserve close attention. However, this is a topic for a completely different article. So, for example, the namesake of the poet and writer of interest to us, Alexei Tolstoy, created works for children that are still very popular and fascinating to this day.

Biography of Tolstoy Alexei Konstantinovich

Alexei Konstantinovich Tolstoy (years of life - 1817-1875) - poet, writer, playwright. He was born in St. Petersburg. He came from the Razumovsky family on the maternal side (his great-grandfather was the last hetman of Little Russia, and his grandfather, A.K. Razumovsky, was the Minister of Public Education under Tsar Alexander I). The father of the future writer is Count K. P. Tolstoy, with whom the mother broke up immediately after the birth of the boy. Alexei Konstantinovich was brought up under the guidance of his mother and her brother, A. A. Perovsky, a writer who encouraged the poetic experiments of young Tolstoy.

In 1834 he was accepted into the service of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, in the Moscow archive. After that he was in the diplomatic service. Tolstoy Alexei, whose works we will present to you below, received the title of chamber junker in 1843.

Fantastic stories and romantic prose

In the late 1830s and early 1840s, he created fantastic novels gravitating towards the Gothic novel, as well as romantic prose: "Meeting in Three Hundred Years", "Ghoul's Family". His first published work is the story "Ghoul", written in 1841, created under the pseudonym Krasnorogsky. Also in the 1840s, Alexei Konstantinovich began work on a historical novel called (finished in 1861), at the same time a number of lyrical ballads and poems were created, which came out a little later (in the 1850s and 60s). Many works of Alexei Tolstoy gained great popularity. Their list is as follows: "Kurgan", "My Bells", "Prince Mikhailo Repnin", as well as "Vasily Shibanov", etc.

Collaboration in Sovremennik

In the early 1850s, Tolstoy became close to N. A. Nekrasov, I. S. Turgenev and other writers. Since 1854, his literary parodies and poems have been published in Sovremennik. In collaboration with V. M. and A. M. Zhemchuzhnikovs (his cousins), satirical parody works were published under the pseudonym Kozma Prutkov in the Literary Jumble section of this journal. The work of this fictitious author became a mirror of obsolete phenomena in literature and at the same time created a satirical picture of a bureaucrat claiming to be a legislator of artistic taste.

Tolstoy Alexei, whose works by that time were already numerous, having moved away from participation in Sovremennik, from 1857 began to be published in Russkaya Conversation, and later, in the 1860s and 70s, mainly in Vestnik Evropy, as well as "Russian Bulletin". At this time, he defended the principles of the so-called "pure art", that is, independent of any political ideas, including "progressive".

In 1861, Alexei Konstantinovich Tolstoy, whose works are discussed in this article, finally quits the service, which was very burdensome for him, and completely focuses on literary work.

In 1862, his poem "Don Juan" was published, the next - "Prince Silver" (novel). In 1866, the first part of a large work, the historical trilogy The Death of Ivan the Terrible, was released, two years later, the second part, Tsar Fyodor Ioannovich, and in 1870, the final part, Tsar Boris.

Lyrical legacy

Answering the question about what works Alexei Tolstoy wrote, one cannot fail to note his lyrics. In 1867, the first collection of poetry by this author appears. In the last ten years of his life, he wrote ballads (1868 - "The Serpent Tugarin", 1869 - "The Song of Harald and Yaroslavna", 1870 - "Roman Galitsky", 1871 - "Ilya Muromets", etc.). There were also political satires in verse ("History of the Russian State ...", published in 1883, "Popov's Dream" - in 1882, etc.), lyric poems and poems (1874 - "Portrait", 1875 - "Dragon" ).

General characteristics of creativity

The work of Alexei Konstantinovich is imbued with the unity of philosophical ideas, motives, lyrical emotions. One can note the interest in such problems as the philosophy of history, national antiquity, rejection of tsarist tyranny - these features of Tolstoy's work are reflected in many of his works belonging to various genres. Aleksey Konstantinovich considered ancient Novgorod and Kievan Rus to be the ideal device for the country, corresponding to the Russian national character. The way of life in Rus' at that time seemed to him as follows: a high level of development of various arts, the importance of such a cultural layer as the aristocracy, the prince's respect for the freedom and personal dignity of citizens, the simplicity of morals, the diversity and breadth of international relations, especially with Europe.

ballads

The ballads depicting the images of Ancient Rus' are permeated with lyricism, they reflect the passionate dream of their creator of spiritual independence, as well as admiration for the heroic whole natures that Alexei Tolstoy portrayed in folk epic poetry. The works, the list of which is offered to you ("Matchmaking", "Ilya Muromets", "Kanut", "Alyosha Popovich" and other ballads) are marked by the fact that the images of legendary heroes in them, the plots of historical events illustrate the author's idea, embody his ideals (to For example, Prince Vladimir of Kyiv). In their artistic means, they are close to some other lyrical poems by Alexei Konstantinovich ("You are my land ...", "If you love, so without reason", "Blagovest", etc.).

Tolstoy's ballads, depicting the era of the strengthening of statehood in Rus', are permeated through and through with a dramatic beginning. Their plots are the events of the reign of Ivan the Terrible, whom the poet considered the most vivid exponent of the principle of absorption by the state of the individual and unlimited autocracy.

The "dramatic" ballads are more traditional in form than the "lyrical" ballads, which date mainly to the late 1860s and early 1870s. However, these works of Alexei Konstantinovich Tolstoy are marked by the fact that he acted as an original poet, capable of modifying the structure of the genre.

For example, in one of the ballads, "Vasily Shibanov", he revises the classic situation of a dispute with the king of a freedom-loving subject, which became widespread under the influence of the works of F. Schiller. Conveying how Kurbsky denounces Ivan the Terrible, Tolstoy in the participants in this dramatic conflict - the rebellious boyar and the tsar - emphasizes the common: ingratitude, inhumanity, pride. Aleksey Konstantinovich finds the readiness to suffer for the truth, the ability for self-sacrifice in a simple person, who is sacrificed to this dispute by the powers that be. Thus, the slave wins a moral victory over the king and restores by his feat the triumph of the true greatness of man over the imaginary. Like other "dramatic" ballads of this author, "Vasily Shibanov" in terms of its subject matter and the psychological complexity of the characters' images, as well as the creator's ethical approach to historical events, approaches the works of major genres written by Alexei Tolstoy. We will now consider these works.

Novels of Tolstoy

Alexei Konstantinovich in his novel "Prince Silver" depicts violent clashes in an atmosphere of unbridled tyranny of strong people and shows that arbitrariness has a detrimental effect on the personality of the monarch, as well as on his environment. In this work, it is noted that, moving away from the already corrupted court circle, sometimes even forced to hide from social oppression and persecution, gifted people belonging to various sectors of society nevertheless "make history", protect the country from the attack of external enemies, master and discover new lands (Ermak Timofeevich, Mitka, Ivan Koltso, Prince Serebryany, etc.). The style of this work is associated with the traditions of the story and the historical novel of the 1830s, including those coming from such stories by Nikolai Vasilyevich Gogol as "Taras Bulba" and "Terrible Revenge".

Dramaturgy

In the aforementioned dramatic trilogy, the author depicted Russian life at the end of the 16th century - the beginning of the 17th. And in these plays, the solution of various historical and philosophical problems is more important for him than the exact adherence to historical facts. Aleksey Konstantinovich depicts the tragedy of three reigns, three autocrats: Ivan the Terrible, obsessed with the idea that his power is of divine origin, the soft-hearted ruler Fedor and the wise Boris Godunov, "a brilliant ambitious man."

Tolstoy Alexei, whose works often depicted past eras, paid great attention to the creation of original, individual and vivid portraits of historical figures. His great achievement is the image of Tsar Fedor, which indicates that in the 1860s the writer mastered the principles of psychological realism. In 1898, the Moscow Art Theater was opened with a production of the tragedy of this author - "The Tsar" These are the main dramatic works of Alexei Tolstoy. The list can be continued, since we have listed only the main ones.

political satire

Features of the historical outlook of Alexei Konstantinovich were reflected in his For example, behind such an anecdotal plot, which was in the work "Popov's Dream", the author's mockery of the liberals was hidden. In the poems "Against the current" or, for example, "Sometimes a merry May ..." and others, the controversy with the nihilists was reflected. In the "History of the State ..." Alexei Konstantinovich subjected historical phenomena to merciless ridicule, he believed that they interfered with the life of Russia.

intimate lyrics

Unlike ballads and dramaturgy, this author's intimate lyrics were alien to elation of tone. Sincere and simple lyrical works of Alexei Konstantinovich Tolstoy. Many of them are, as it were, psychological poetic short stories ("That was in early spring", "In the midst of a noisy ball, by chance ...").

Music based on the works of Alexei Konstantinovich

Alexei Konstantinovich introduced elements of folk poetic style into his work, often his poems are close to the song. Many creations created by Alexei Tolstoy have been set to music. The works (the list includes more than 70 poems) became the basis for romances that were written to his words by P. I. Tchaikovsky, N. A. Rimsky-Korsakov, S. I. Taneev, M. P. Mussorgsky and others.

1. Alexey Alekseevich Perovsky(pseudonym - Anthony Pogorelsky; 1787-1836) - Russian writer, member of the Russian Academy (1829). Brother of statesmen counts L. A. and V. A. Perovsky, uncle of Alexei Tolstoy and brothers Alexei and Vladimir Zhemchuzhnikov.
A prominent prose writer of the 1920s and 1930s, who published his works under the pseudonym "Antony Pogorelsky", cultivated in his nephew a love of art and encouraged his first literary experiments. ()

6. Manor "Pustynka"- not far from the Sablino station, on the right, high and steep bank of the Tosna River, there was once the Pustynka estate, bought in 1850 by the writer's mother Anna Alekseevna Tolstaya.
The Tolstoys built a stone manor house in the English Gothic style (architect V.Ya. Langvagen, designed by A.I. Stackenschneider). The ensemble also included an outbuilding for guests, an office, stables, a carriage house, etc., united by a unity of design. Many people often visited Tolstoy here. writers and scientists, including I.A. Goncharov, N.I. Kostomarov, I.S. Turgenev, A.A. Fet, Ya.P. Polonsky and many others. etc. After the death of Tolstoy in 1875, the estate passed into the possession of S.A. Khitrovo. In 1912, a fire destroyed almost all the buildings; Currently, two ponds and fragments of the park have been preserved. Modern address: Nikolskoye, Tosnensky district, Leningrad region. (