Victor Petrovich Astafiev was born May 2, 1924 in the village of Ovsyanka (now Krasnoyarsk Territory) in a peasant family.
Father - Pyotr Pavlovich Astafiev. Mother, Lydia Ilyinichna Potylitsyna, drowned in the Yenisei in 1931 . He was brought up in the family of his grandparents, then in an orphanage in Igarka, and was often a street child. After finishing 6th grade high school entered the FZO railway school, graduating from which in 1942, worked for some time as a train compiler in the suburbs of Krasnoyarsk. From there autumn 1942 went to the front as a volunteer, was a driver, artillery reconnaissance officer, and signalman. He took part in the battles on the Kursk Bulge, liberated Ukraine and Poland from fascist invaders, was seriously wounded and shell-shocked.
After demobilization in 1945 together with his wife - later writer M.S. Koryakina - settled in the Urals, in the city of Chusovoy. He worked as a loader, mechanic, foundry worker, carpenter in a carriage depot, and as a meat carcass washer at sausage factory etc.
In 1951 The first story appeared in the Chusovoy Rabochiy newspaper “ Civilian"(after modification it received the name "Sibiryak"). Astafiev’s passion for “writing” manifested itself very early.
From 1951 to 1955 Astafiev is a literary employee of the Chusovoy Rabochiy newspaper; published in the Perm newspapers “Zvezda”, “Young Guard”, the almanac “Prikamye”, the magazine “Ural”, “Znamya”, “Young Guard”, “Smena”. The first collection of stories “Until Next Spring” was published in Perm in 1953, followed by books for children: “Lights” ( 1955 ), "Vasyutkino Lake" ( 1956 ), "Uncle Kuzya, fox, cat" ( 1957 ), "Warm Rain" ( 1958 ).
In 1958 Astafiev’s novel about the life of a collective farm village, “The Snows Are Melting,” was published, written in the tradition of 1950s fiction.
Since 1958 Astafiev - member of the USSR Joint Venture; in 1959-1961 studied at the Higher Literary Courses at the USSR Writers' Union. Astafiev turned out to be a turning point in his work 1959, when the stories “Old Oak” and “The Pass” and the story “Soldier and Mother” appeared in print. The story “Starodub” dedicated to Leonid Leonov (the action takes place in the ancient Kerzhak settlement in Siberia) was the source of the author’s thoughts about historical roots"Siberian" character. Criticism reproached Astafiev for the vagueness of the ethical ideal, for the triviality of the problematic, based on the opposition of “society” and “natural man.”
The story “The Pass” began a series of works by Astafiev about the formation young hero in difficult living conditions - “Starfall” ( 1960 ), "Theft" ( 1966 ), “War is thundering somewhere” ( 1967 ), "Last bow" ( 1968 ; initial chapters). They talked about the difficult processes of the maturation of an inexperienced soul, about the breaking of the character of a person who was left without the support of his relatives in the terrible 1930s and in the no less terrible 1940s. All these heroes, despite what they wear different surnames, are marked by autobiographical features, similar destinies, a dramatic search for life “in truth and conscience.” In Astafiev's stories 1960s The gift of a storyteller was clearly revealed, able to captivate the reader with the subtlety of lyrical feeling, unexpected salty humor, and philosophical detachment. The story “Theft” occupies a special place among these works.
The hero of the story, Tolya Mazov, is one of the dispossessed peasants, whose family is dying in the northern regions. Scenes of the orphanage, “herd” life are recreated by Astafiev with compassion and cruelty, presenting a generous variety of children’s characters broken by time, impulsively falling into quarrels, hysterics, mockery of the weak, and then suddenly, unexpectedly uniting in sympathy and kindness.
From the story “Soldier and Mother”, to apt definition critic A. Makarov, who thought a lot about the essence of Astafiev’s talent, begins a series of stories about the Russian national character. IN best stories(“Siberian”, “Old Horse”, “Hands of the Wife”, “ spruce branch”, “Zakharko”, “Anxious Dream”, “Living Life”, etc.) a man “of the people” is recreated naturally, authentically. Astafiev's creativity in the 1960s was considered by critics to be the so-called. “village prose”, in the center of which were the artists’ reflections on the foundations, origins and essence folk life.
Astafiev's story "The Shepherd and the Shepherdess" ( 1971 ; subtitle “Modern Pastoral”) was unexpected for literary criticism. The already established image of Astafiev as a storyteller, working in the genre of social and everyday narration, was changing before our eyes, acquiring the features of a writer striving for a generalized perception of the world, to symbolic images. For the first time, the theme of war appears in the writer’s work. Love story(Lieutenant Kostyaev - Lyusya) was surrounded by a fiery ring of war, highlighting the catastrophic nature of the meeting of lovers.
More at the very beginning of the 1970s Astafiev asserted the right of every person who had front-line experience to remember “their” war. The philosophical conflict of the story was realized in the confrontation between the pastoral motive of love and the monstrous, scorching element of war; the moral aspect concerned the relations between soldiers. The most controversial responses from critics were devoted to the genre and composition of the story. The circular composition of the story seemed rigid and overly rationalistic. The “overture” and “finale” of the work, designed in the style of folk laments and lamentations, according to some researchers, “do not quite fit with the plot-conflict basis of the story.” They criticized this bright, now classic story Astafiev for “everydayism”, and for “pacifism”, and for pastoralism, for “deheroization”, for a “romantic” “non-military” hero dying of love.
The story “Ode to the Russian vegetable garden” ( 1972 ) is a kind of poetic hymn to the hard work of the peasant, in whose life expediency, utilitarianism and beauty were harmoniously combined. The story is imbued with sadness about the lost harmony of agricultural labor, which allowed a person to feel a life-giving connection with the earth.
Created over two decades, “Last Bow” ( 1958-1978 ) is an epoch-making canvas about village life in the difficult 1930s and 40s and a confession of a generation whose childhood fell on the years of the “great turning point”, and whose youth was in the “fiery forties”. Written in the first person, stories about a difficult, hungry, but beautiful rural childhood are united by a feeling of deep gratitude to fate for the opportunity of living, direct communication with nature, with people who knew how to live “in peace,” saving children from hunger, instilling in them hard work and honesty. In the chapter "Chipmunk on the Cross", included in "The Last Bow" in 1974 , told scary story the collapse of a peasant family, in the chapter “Soroka” - a story about the sad fate of a bright and talented man, Uncle Vasya-Soroka, in the chapter “Without Shelter” - about the hero’s bitter wanderings in Igarka, about homelessness as social phenomenon 1930s
After the publication of "The Sad Detective" ( 1986 ), "Lyudochki" ( 1989 ), the final chapters of “The Last Bow” ( 1992 ) the writer’s pessimism intensified. The world appeared before his eyes “in evil and suffering,” full of vice and crime. Events of the present and the historical past began to be considered by him from the position of a maximalist ideal, the highest moral idea and, naturally, did not correspond to their embodiment. This tough maximalism was aggravated by the pain for a ruined life, for a person who had lost himself and was indifferent to social revival.
In parallel with artistic creativity in the 1980s Astafiev is engaged in journalism. Documentary stories about nature and hunting, essays about writers, reflections on creativity, essays about the Vologda region, where the writer lived from 1969 to 1979, about Siberia, where he returned in 1980, compiled the collections “Ancient, Eternal...” ( 1980 ), "Memory Staff" ( 1980 ), “Everything has its hour” ( 1985 ).
In 1988 The book “Sighted Staff” was published dedicated to memory criticism by A. Makarov. Based on his stories, Astafiev creates the drama “Bird Cherry” ( 1977 ), "I'm sorry" ( 1979 ), writes the film script “Thou shalt not kill” ( 1981 ).
Novel about the war “Cursed and Killed” (Part 1. 1992 ; Part 2. 1994 ) not only amazes with facts that were not customary to talk about before, it is distinguished by the sharpness, passion, and categoricalness of the author’s intonation, which is surprising even for Astafiev.
In 1995 Astafiev’s story “So I Want to Live” about the bizarre front-line fate and post-war life of a simple Russian soldier Kolyasha Khakhalin was published, and later the story “Obertone” ( 1996 ) and "The Jolly Soldier" ( 1998 ). Created in the genre of social and everyday and even naturalistic storytelling, these things connect and balance the author’s contradictory intonations, returning the writer to a state of wisdom and sadness. “Thank you also to the Almighty,” said Astafiev in one of latest interviews that my memory is merciful, in ordinary life much that is heavy and terrible is erased" ( Literary Russia. 2000. №4).
Years of life: from 05/01/1924 to 11/29/2001
Russian. Soviet writer, prose writer. playwright, essayist. Made a huge contribution to domestic literature. The largest writer in the genre of "village" and military prose. Veteran of the Great Patriotic War.
Victor Astafiev was born in the village of Ovsyanka, not far from Krasnoyarsk. The writer’s father, Pyotr Pavlovich Astafiev, went to prison for “sabotage” several years after the birth of his son, and when the boy was 7 years old, his mother drowned in an accident. Victor was raised by his grandmother. Having been released from prison, the father of the future writer married for the second time and new family left for Igarka, however expected big money didn’t work, on the contrary, he ended up in the hospital. The stepmother, with whom Victor had a tense relationship, kicked the boy out into the street. In 1937, Victor ended up in an orphanage.
After graduating from boarding school, Victor went to Krasnoyarsk, where he entered a factory apprenticeship school. After graduating, he worked as a train compiler at the Bazaikha station near Krasnoyarsk until he volunteered for the front in 1942. Throughout the war, Astafiev served with the rank of private, from 1943 on the front line, he was seriously wounded and shell-shocked. In 1945, V.P. Astafiev was demobilized from the army and, together with his wife (Maria Semyonovna Koryakina), came to her homeland - the city of Chusovoy in the western Urals. The couple had three children: daughters Lydia (1947, died in infancy) and Irina (1948-1987) and son Andrei (1950). At this time, Astafiev works as a mechanic, laborer, loader, carpenter, meat washer, and meat processing plant watchman.
In 1951, the writer's first story was published in the Chusovskoy Rabochiy newspaper, and from 1951 to 1955 Astafiev worked as a literary employee of the newspaper. In 1953, his first book of short stories, “Until Next Spring,” was published in Perm, and in 1958, the novel “The Snows Are Melting.” V. P. Astafiev is accepted into the Writers' Union of the RSFSR. In 1962 the family moved to Perm, and in 1969 to Vologda. In 1959-1961, the writer studied at the Higher Literary Courses in Moscow. Since 1973, stories have appeared in print, which later made up the famous narrative in the stories “The King Fish”. The stories are subject to strict censorship, some are not published at all, but in 1978, V. P. Astafiev was awarded the USSR State Prize for the narration in the stories “The King Fish”.
In 1980, Astafiev moved to live in his homeland - in Krasnoyarsk, in the village of Ovsyanka, where he lived for the rest of his life. The writer accepted perestroika without enthusiasm, although in 1993 he was one of the writers who signed the famous “Letter of the 42”. However, despite numerous attempts to draw Astafiev into politics, in general the writer remained aloof from political debates. Instead, the writer actively participates in cultural life Russia. Astafiev, member of the board of the USSR Writers' Union, secretary of the board of the RSFSR Writers' Union (since 1985) and the USSR Writers' Union (since August 1991), member of the Russian PEN Center, vice-president of the European Forum writers' association (since 1991), chairman of the literary commission. legacy of S. Baruzdin (1991), deputy. Chairman - member of the Bureau of the Presidium of the International. Literary Fund. He was a member of the editorial board of the magazine (until 1990), a member of the editorial boards of the magazines (since 1996 - public council), "Continent", "Day and Night", "School Roman Newspaper" (since 1995), the Pacific almanac "Rubezh", the editorial board, then (since 1993) the editorial council of "". Academician of the Academy of Creativity. People's Deputy of the USSR from the Union of Writers of the USSR (1989-91), member of the Presidential Council of the Russian Federation, the Council for Culture and Art under the President of the Russian Federation (since 1996), the Presidium of the Commission on State Affairs. Prizes under the President of the Russian Federation (since 1997).
He died on November 29, 2001 in Krasnoyarsk, and was buried in his native village of Ovsyanka, Krasnoyarsk Territory.
Created in 1994 Non-profit foundation them. Astafiev". In 2004, the foundation established the All-Russian Literary Prize named after V.P. Astafiev.
In 2000, Astafiev stopped working on the novel “Cursed and Killed,” two books of which were written back in 1992-1994.
On November 29, 2002, the memorial house-museum of Astafiev was opened in the village of Ovsyanka. Documents and materials from the writer’s personal fund are also stored in State Archives Perm region.
In 2004, on the Krasnoyarsk-Abakan highway, not far from the village of Sliznevo, a brilliant forged “Tsar Fish”, a monument to the story of the same name by Viktor Astafiev, was installed. Today this is the only monument in Russia to a literary work with an element of fiction.
Astafiev invented a new literary form: "zatesi", - peculiar short stories. The name is due to the fact that the writer began writing them during the construction of the house.
Writer's Awards
Battle awards
Order of the Red Star (1943)
Medal "For Courage" (1943)
Medal "For Victory over Germany"
Medal "For the Liberation of Poland"
State awards
Order Patriotic War 2nd degree (1985)
Order of the Red Banner of Labor (twice: 1974 and 1984)
(twice: 1978 and 1991)
Title of Hero of Socialist Labor (1989)
Order of Lenin and gold medal"Hammer and Sickle" (1989)
Order of Friendship of Peoples (1989)
(twice: 1996 and 2003 posthumously)
Order of Merit for the Fatherland, 2nd class (1999)
Honorary Citizen Igarka and Krasnoyarsk.
Literary awards
Awards (1987), magazines: (1976, 1988), (1989), (1996), weekly (2000)
(1994)
(1997, Germany)
Prize "For the honor and dignity of talent" of the International Literary Fund (1998)
Apollo Grigoriev Prize of the Academy of Russian Contemporary Literature (1998)
Prize named after Y. Kazakova (2001, posthumously)
Biography and episodes of life Viktor Astafiev. When born and died Viktor Astafiev, memorable places and dates important events his life. Quotes from a writer and playwright, photos and videos.
Years of life of Viktor Astafiev:
born May 1, 1924, died November 29, 2001
Epitaph
“Siberian autumn is pure and innocent.
The Yenisei has spread its harsh power.
The viburnum is ripe, the viburnum is burning
It’s like a fire in Astafiev’s estate!
And the bitterness of viburnum is already rather sweet.
Frost makes the fruits even juicier.
What a loss! What a loss!
Its space is irreplaceable..."
From a romance based on poems by Nina Guryeva in memory of Astafiev
Biography
His motto was “not a day without a line!” Until his death, Astafiev was full of plans - on paper and in his heart. The biography of Viktor Astafiev is a difficult story of the life of a talented and strong man who has experienced many losses. But this did not stop him from becoming a truly popular writer.
Viktor Astafiev was born in the village of Ovsyanka (now in the Krasnoyarsk Territory), where today there is a whole memorial complex of the writer. Astafiev’s grandmother’s house is part of this complex; it was the grandmother who raised the boy after his father was imprisoned and his mother drowned while going on a date with her husband. Later, with his father’s new family, Victor moved to Igarka, but soon his stepmother decided to throw off the burden of a child and Astafiev had to wander. Astafiev’s literary talent was first noticed by a teacher at the boarding school where the boy ended up. After boarding school, Astafiev entered a school in Krasnoyarsk, and then went to war as a volunteer, where he was seriously wounded several times. Astafiev’s health, alas, did not allow him to get a qualified job, and he tried to feed his family as best he could: he worked as a loader, a carpenter, even as a meat washer.
Once in Chusovoy Astafiev got to class literary circle, this inspired him so much that he wrote the story in one night, and then worked for several more years at the Chusovsky Rabochiy newspaper. Already in 1953, his first book of stories was published, followed by novels, books for children, and essays. In 1958, he was accepted into the Writers' Union of the RSFSR after the release of his novel “The Snow is Melting.” From there, Astafiev was sent to literary courses in Moscow, where he studied for two years. This period brought the writer great fame, and during this time his prose reached its lyrical peak. Next came for many years Astafiev's fruitful work includes numerous stories, plays, novels, novellas, in which the writer often refers to his childhood, to the places in which he lived, memories of the war, reflections on life and the country. Readers especially loved Astafiev for his lively literary language and for his talent - to depict Russian life so realistically. When Astafiev’s collected works were published in the late 90s, they filled 15 volumes!
Astafiev's death occurred on November 29, 2001. The cause of Astafiev’s death was a stroke, which he suffered in April and from which he was never able to recover. Astafiev’s funeral took place on December 1 in Ovsyanka, the writer’s homeland. Astafiev’s grave is located on Mayskaya arable land - three kilometers from Ovsyanka, in the same place where his daughter Irina is buried.
Life line
May 1, 1924 Date of birth of Viktor Petrovich Astafiev.
1942 Astafiev volunteering for the front.
1945 Demobilization with the rank of private, departure to the Urals, marriage to Maria Koryakina.
1948 Birth of daughter Irina.
1950 Birth of son Andrei.
1951 Work in the newspaper “Chusovsky Rabochiy”, publication of the first story.
1953 The release of Astafiev’s first book, “Until Next Spring.”
1958 Admission of Astafiev to the Union of Writers of the USSR.
1959-1961 Studying at the Higher Literary Courses in Moscow.
1962 Moving to Perm.
1969 Moving to Vologda.
1980 Moving to Krasnoyarsk.
1987 Death of Astafiev's daughter, Irina.
1989-1991 People's Deputy of the USSR.
1994 Astafiev was awarded the independent Triumph Prize.
1995 Astafiev was awarded the State Prize of Russia for the novel “Cursed and Killed.”
November 29, 2001 Date of death of Astafiev.
December 1, 2001 Astafiev's funeral.
Memorable places
1. The village of Ovsyanka, where Astafiev was born and buried.
2. Vocational school No. 19 in Krasnoyarsk named after. Astafiev (former FZO-1), where the writer studied.
3. Astafiev’s house-museum in Chusovoy, where the writer lived and worked after the war.
4. Literary Institute named after. M. Gorky, where Astafiev studied at the Higher Literary Courses.
5. Astafiev’s house in Perm, where he lived in the 1960s and where it is installed today memorial plaque to the writer.
6. Memorial complex Astafiev in the village of Ovsyanka, which includes the Astafiev Museum, the house of the writer’s grandmother Ekaterina Potylitsina and a chapel.
Episodes of life
The first daughter of the Astafievs died while still a baby. These were hard times, immediately after the war, everyone was starving, there were not enough food cards. The daughter simply had nothing to eat, and her mother lost her milk. Later, a daughter, Irina, was born, whom Astafiev, alas, also had to lose when she herself already had two children - Irina died of a heart attack. The Astafievs took their grandchildren in and raised them as their own children.
After suffering a stroke, Astafiev wrote to his fellow soldier Ivan Gergel that he sometimes experienced real despair. “If I had a gun at home, I would end all this torment, because I can’t live,” Astafiev complained. Most of all, he was worried that he could not write - he tried to dictate into a voice recorder, but it turned out like someone else’s text.
Covenant
“Let my name live as long as my works are worthy of remaining in the memory of people. I wish you all the best life; For this he lived, worked and suffered.”
Documentary film with Viktor Astafiev “Everything has its hour”
Condolences
“His death could have been expected, and yet it was unexpected. It was vaguely believed: maybe he would hold out this time, and at this already mortal point. But, apparently, there is a limit to Astafiev’s love of life and perseverance. He was a real soldier - beaten, shot, cheerful, cheerful and sad, kind-hearted and truly angry, sometimes rude. Everything was in it. He grabbed the reader, as they say, to the quick. Not everyone accepted him, and this is natural - he was unlike anyone in our wonderful literature about the former terrible war. After all, in addition to the general war, everyone also had their own war.”
Konstantin Vanshenkin, poet
“Viktor Petrovich Astafiev has gone into eternity, leaving behind such a short and such long life. A hard life to the point of martyrdom. And joyful to the point of self-forgetfulness. A life full of aromas of herbs and flowers, beautiful music, poetry and creativity. And by his departure he was able to morally surpass all of us - Krasnoyarsk residents who were unable to protect, to save the writer’s sick heart from the dirt of the slanderous media, from the spiritual darkness of the deputies. And forgive us, Lord, and rest the soul of your deceased servant Victor in the villages of the righteous, grant him the Kingdom of Heaven and eternal peace, he worked a lot on this earth. And for us who remain here, this loss is irreparable...”
Gennady Fast, rector of the Assumption Church in the city of Yeniseisk
This section is compiled from answers to questions that are most often asked by visitors to the V. P. Astafiev Library-Museum.
Dates of life
When and where was V.P. Astafiev born?
Born on May 1, 1924 in the village of Ovsyanka near Krasnoyarsk in the family of Pyotr Pavlovich and Lydia Ilyinichna Astafiev.
When and why did Vitya Astafiev end up in Igarka?
In 1935, father Pyotr Pavlovich, deciding to go to work in Igarka, took the boy with him.
Did V.P. participate? Astafiev in the Great Patriotic War?
Astafiev went to the front as a volunteer in October 1942. At the front he was a driver, artillery scout, signalman, crossed the Dnieper, participated in the battles on the Kursk Bulge, in the Korsun-Shevchenko operation, in the battles for the liberation of Poland. He was wounded three times. He was demobilized in 1945. For military services he was awarded the Order of the Red Star and the Medal “For Courage”.
Where did V.P. Astafiev study?
From 1932 to 1934 studied at Ovsyanskaya school of the 1st level. In 1936 he graduated from Igarka primary school, in 1940 - sixth grade. In 1941, he entered the railway school in Krasnoyarsk. In June 1942, he received the specialty of “train compiler”, worked for several months at the Bazaikha station and volunteered for the front. After the war, in the Ural city of Chusovoy, Viktor Petrovich graduated from the school for working youth. From 1959 to 1961 studied at the Higher Literary Courses in Moscow.
In what places did the writer live?
1924 – 1935 in the village of Ovsyanka, 1935 – 1941. in Igarka, 1941 – 1942 in Krasnoyarsk, 1942 – 1945. – at the front, 1945 – 1963. – Chusovoy in the Urals, 1959 – 1961. – studied at the Higher Literary Courses in Moscow, 1962 – 1969. in Perm, 1969 – 1980 in Vologda, since 1980 in Krasnoyarsk and the village. Oatmeal.
Why did V.P. Astafiev, returning to Ovsyanka in 1980, not settle in his grandmother’s house?
By that time, my grandmother's house belonged to to strangers, who refused to sell it to the writer, and Viktor Petrovich purchased a small house nearby, across the street opposite, at the address: st. Shchetinkina, 26.
Which of the presidents and famous politicians came to V.P. Astafiev to Ovsyanka?
In 1996, the first President of Russia B.N. Yeltsin visited Ovsyanka. In the winter of 2004, during his visit to the Krasnoyarsk Territory, Ovsyanka was visited by Russian President V.V. Putin, who had a long and detailed conversation with the writer’s widow M.S. Koryakina-Astafieva in the writer’s Ovsyanka house.
When did the writer die and where is he buried? What was the cause of his death?
Died November 29, 2001. He was buried in the new Ovsyanka cemetery on Manskaya Mountain, 2 kilometers from Ovsyanka. The cause of death was a severe stroke.
Family matters
Name the closest relatives of V.P. Astafiev.
Father - Pyotr Pavlovich Astafiev (1901 - 1979, buried in Vologda). Mother - Lydia Ilyinichna Astafieva, nee Potylitsyna (d. 1931, drowned in the Yenisei). Grandmother - Ekaterina Petrovna Potylitsyna, main character story "The Last Bow" (1866 - 1948). Grandfather - Ilya Evgrafovich Potylitsyn (d. 1935). Grandfather - Pavel Yakovlevich Astafiev (1882 - 1939).
How many years did Vitya Astafiev live with his grandmother?
After tragic death In July 1931, orphaned Vitya Astafiev’s mother took in his grandmother Ekaterina Petrovna and grandfather Ilya Evgrafovich Potylitsyn, with whom he lived until the fall of 1934.
Did V.P. Astafiev have siblings?
Viktor Petrovich had two sisters who died in infancy; three brothers and three sisters (father's children from his second marriage).
How many times was V.P. Astafiev married?
Once. Viktor Petrovich has been married to his wife Maria Semyonovna Koryakina-Astafieva for more than 50 years. Maria Semyonovna Koryakina-Astafieva (1920 - 2011) - member of the Russian Writers' Union, author of several collections of stories ("Father", "Signs of Life", "Father-in-Law", "Earthly Memory and Sorrow", "On Foot from the War", Nadezhda bitter like smoke" etc.).
How many children does Viktor Petrovich have? Where do they live now and what do they do?
Three. Daughter Lydia (b. 1946, died in infancy). Daughter Irina (1948–1987). Son Andrey (b. 1950) currently lives in Vologda and is a historian by training.
In what year and from what did daughter Irina die?
Irina died of heart disease in 1987 in Vologda. She was buried in the new Ovsyansky cemetery.
How many grandchildren does V.P. Astafiev have? Are there any great-grandchildren?
Three grandchildren. Victor and Polina (children of Irina’s daughter) live in Krasnoyarsk. Evgeny (Andrey's son) lives in Moscow. There are two great-grandchildren: on April 22, 2003, Polina had a daughter, Nastya; On March 26, 2003, Victor’s son Sasha was born.
Literary and social activities
When was the first work of fiction written?
The first story, “A Civilian,” was written in 1951 and published in the newspaper “Chusovskoy Rabochiy.”
When and where was the first book published and what was it called?
The collection of stories "Until Next Spring" was published in Perm in 1953.
How many works did the writer create?
3 novels (“The Snow is Melting” (1958), “Sad Detective” (1982-1985), “Cursed and Killed” (1992-1994); narrative in the stories “King Fish” (1972-1975); 10 stories (“Pass ", "Starodub", "Starfall", "Theft", "Last Bow", "Shepherd and Shepherdess", "Ode to the Russian Garden", etc.), a cycle of 293 ideas (lyrical and philosophical miniatures); 70 stories, 2 film script ("Thou shalt not kill", "Crack"), 2 plays ("Bird cherry", "Forgive me"), large number articles and essays.
What feature films are based on the works of V. P. Astafiev?
"Starfall" (director I. Talankin), "My Beloved" (director A. Voitetsky), "Seagulls Never Flew Here" (director B. Mansurov), "Twice Born" (director A. Sirenko), "Somewhere It's Thundering war", "Taiga Tale" (director V. Fetin).
What theatrical productions were created based on the works of V.P. Astafieva?
"Forgive me" - Theater named after. Ermolova, "Theater on Liteiny"; "Starfall" - Krasnoyarsk Youth Theater; "Thou shalt not kill" - Krasnoyarsk drama theater them. Pushkin; "Flying Goose" - Moscow Art Theater named after. Chekhov, "The Sad Detective" - Theater named after. Mossovet, the opera "Fidelity" based on the story "The Shepherd and the Shepherdess" by composer K. Molchanov - Sverdlovsk Opera and Ballet Theater, etc.
When and where was the first foreign edition published?
In Prague, in 1963, a collection of stories "Adonis" was published.
In which countries were the works of V. P. Astafiev published? What languages were they translated into?
The works of V. P. Astafiev have been translated and published in many countries of the world: Holland, France, Germany, Spain, Japan, China, Korea, Finland, Poland, Bulgaria, Hungary, Romania, etc. More than 100 books have been published abroad - in 28 countries in 22 foreign languages.
Which of his works were especially dear to the writer?
“Ode to the Russian vegetable garden”, “Shepherd and shepherdess”, “Last bow”.
Did V.P. write? Astafiev's poems? Have they been published?
What prizes and awards did V. P. Astafiev receive?
In 1975, for the stories “The Pass”, “The Last Bow”, “Theft”, “The Shepherd and the Shepherdess” V.P. Astafiev was awarded the State Prize of the RSFSR. M. Gorky. In 1978, he was awarded the USSR State Prize for his book “The Tsar Fish”. In 1991, the writer became a laureate of the USSR State Prize for the story “The Seeing Staff.” In 1995 he was awarded the national independent award "Triumph". In 1996, the Russian State Prize was awarded for the novel “Cursed and Killed.” In 1997, for his outstanding contribution to Russian literature, he was awarded an international Pushkin Prize. In 1998, he was awarded the International Literary Fund Prize “For the Honor and Dignity of Talent.” In 1999 V.P. Astafiev became a laureate literary prize named after Apollon Grigoriev for the story “The Cheerful Soldier”.
Viktor Petrovich was awarded the Order of Merit for the Fatherland, 2nd degree, three times the Order of the Red Banner of Labor, twice the Order of Friendship of Peoples. In 1998, he was awarded the title of Hero of Socialist Labor with the Order of Lenin and the Hammer and Sickle Gold Medal.
What was the writer's social activity?
V.P. Astafiev actively spoke out in defense of the Ural and Siberian forests and rivers. For example, largely thanks to the efforts of Viktor Petrovich, timber rafting on twelve rivers of the Krasnoyarsk Territory (including the Mana River) was stopped. Viktor Petrovich was repeatedly elected as a deputy of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR, the RSFSR, and the Krasnoyarsk Regional Council.
V.P. Astafiev was an active assistant to many cultural institutions: he managed to secure the allocation of additional premises for the Krasnoyarsk Regional Scientific Library, with his help a Literary Lyceum was created in Krasnoyarsk, and Literary Museum, a new library building was built in the village. Oatmeal. Viktor Petrovich was the initiator of the conference “Literary Meetings in the Russian Province” in Krasnoyarsk. Thanks to his authority and active assistance, in 1998 the chapel of St. Innocent of Irkutsk was built in Ovsyanka.
Is it true that the library in Ovsyanka was built with the money of V.P. Astafiev?
V.P. Astafiev came up with the idea of constructing a new building for the Ovsyansk library. The writer made considerable efforts to ensure that funds from the regional budget were allocated for this construction; many enterprises and individuals helped. Not without financial support Viktor Petrovich, he invested one of his bonuses into this business.
Tastes, hobbies, affections
What was V.P. Astafiev’s hobby?
He was interested in fishing and gardening (when his health allowed). He was an avid football fan.
Favorite literary works, poets, prose writers?
Literary works: "Don Quixote" by M. Cervantes, " Dead souls"N.V. Gogol, A.S. Pushkin's poem "The Prophet". Poets and prose writers: Gogol, Tolstoy, Leskov, Dostoevsky, Pushkin, Lermontov, Tyutchev, Baratynsky; Yuri Nagibin, Vasily Belov, Valentin Rasputin, Yuri Kuznetsov, Vladimir Sokolov.
Favorite pieces of music? Favorite composers?
“Requiem” by G. Verdi, the 8th unfinished symphony and “Ave Maria” by F. Schubert, “Melody” by K. W. Gluck, sonatas by W. A. Mozart and many others. G. Verdi, M. Mussorgsky, D. Bortnyansky, V. Gavrilin, G. Sviridov.
Favorite songs and romances?
Romances: “You will not understand my sadness” in Spanish. V. Ivanova, “Dozing weeping willows"in Spanish by G. Kareva, "Shine, burn, my star" in Spanish by B. Shtokolov. Songs: "Down the Volga River", "Why are you standing, swaying, thin rowan", "In the green O in the little garden the canary sang”, “The stitches and paths were overgrown”, etc.
Favorite artists?
Nesterov, Surikov, Repin, Ilya Glazunov, Tkachev brothers.
Which writer was Viktor Petrovich especially friendly with?
Evgeny Nosov, Nikolay Rubtsov, Alexander Makarov.
Which countries did Viktor Petrovich visit?
Viktor Petrovich has been abroad many times: in France, Greece, Italy, Austria, Germany, Spain, Yugoslavia, Bulgaria, Czechoslovakia, Hungary, Poland, Colombia, Peru, USA, Japan, China, Mongolia, etc.
Favorite flower?
Adonis (spring adonis, starodob), rose.
Favorite color?
Favorite city?
Kyiv, Madrid.
Compiled by:
I. P. Vladimirova, N. Ya. Sakova (Artamonova)
Brief biography Viktor Astafiev
Viktor Petrovich Astafiev is a Russian writer-essayist. Born on May 1, 1924 in the village of Ovsyanka (Krasnoyarsk Territory). His father was sent to prison when he was only a few years old, and his mother soon died tragically. The boy was given to his mother's parents to be raised. He wrote about his childhood memories later in autobiographical novel"Last bow."
Having been released, the writer’s father remarried and the new Astafiev family moved to the Far North to Igarka. Here the future writer and his father were engaged in commercial fishing. But soon Pyotr Astafiev became seriously ill and ended up in the hospital, and Victor’s stepmother kicked him out onto the street. He wandered for a long time and lived in abandoned premises, until he finally found himself in orphanage. In 1942 he went to the front, and a year later he joined the army. For his courage, Victor was awarded orders more than once.
After demobilization, Astafiev went to the Urals. In 1945 he married Maria Koryakina. In 1951, he got a job at the editorial office of the Chusovsky Rabochiy newspaper. His first work, “Civilian,” appeared there. Along the way, he wrote various articles and reviews. The main theme of the writer’s work was military and rural prose. One of the first works was written as an essay at school. Then he turned it into the story “Vasyutkino Lake.” Astafiev often published in the Smena magazine.
In 1953, the writer’s first book, “Until Next Spring,” was published. Since 1958, Astafiev was registered in the Union of Writers of the USSR. Since 1959, he studied in Moscow, then moved to Perm, and then to Vologda. Since 1980 he settled in Krasnoyarsk. For about two years he was listed as a people's deputy of the USSR. V.P. Astafiev died in the fall of 2001 and was buried in his native village.
Option 2
Viktor Petrovich Astafiev is a Soviet writer, prose writer and essayist. Born on May 1, 1924, not far from Krasnoyarsk, in the village of Ovsyanka. Astafiev's parents were dispossessed, and his father, Pyotr Astafiev, soon went to prison. Mother, Lydia Ilyinichna, drowned at another crossing on the way to her husband. As a result, the boy was raised by his maternal grandparents. He recalled his childhood years with warmth and later spoke about them in his autobiography, “The Last Bow.”
When Victor’s father was released, he remarried and, with his two sons, decided to go to work in the north. Having concluded an agreement with a fish factory in Igarka, Pyotr Astafiev took his son with him to work. However, soon the father fell ill and was hospitalized. Victor found himself thrown out onto the street by his stepmother and forced to survive. He lived in an abandoned building for several months, and then he was sent to an orphanage. At the age of 18, he volunteered for the army and underwent military training in Novosibirsk. At the end of the war he was seriously wounded, after which he was transferred to Western Ukraine.
Astafiev's work was mainly associated with military and village prose. The first works of the writer include his school essay, later converted into the story “Vasyutkino Lake”. Soon his first works began to appear in the Smena magazine, attracting the attention of critics. Among them are the stories “Starodub” and “Pass”. Astafiev's narration was told from the point of view of a simple worker or soldier. He also wrote many stories for children. His books were translated into many languages, as they conveyed the originality of the Russian village and military affairs.
One of Astafiev’s most famous works was the story “A Civilian,” published in 1951. After a short break, another significant book, “Until Next Spring,” was published. In 1958, Astafiev was accepted into the Writers' Union. Repeatedly changing cities, in 1980 he returned to his native Krasnoyarsk, where he died on November 29, 2001.