Leskov as a writer and public figure. Leskov N.S. Key dates of life and work

Born on February 4 (16 NS) in the village of Gorokhov, Oryol province, in the family of an official of the criminal chamber, who came from the clergy. His childhood years were spent on the estate of the Strakhov relatives, then in Orel. After retiring, Leskov's father took up agriculture in the farmstead Panin, Kromsky district, which he acquired. In the Oryol wilderness, the future writer was able to see and learn a lot, which later gave him the right to say: “I did not study the people from conversations with St. Petersburg cab drivers... I grew up among the people... I was one of their own with the people... I was this people are closest to the priests..." In 1841 1846 Leskov studied at the Oryol gymnasium, which he failed to graduate: in his sixteenth year he lost his father, and the family's property was destroyed in a fire. Leskov entered the service of the Oryol Criminal Chamber of the Court, which gave him good material for future works.

In 1849, with the support of his uncle, Kyiv professor S. Alferyev, Leskov was transferred to Kyiv as an official of the treasury chamber. In the house of his uncle, his mother’s brother, a professor of medicine, under the influence of progressive university professors, Leskov’s ardent interest in Herzen, in the great poet of Ukraine Taras Shevchenko, in Ukrainian culture was awakened; he became interested in ancient painting and architecture of Kyiv, later becoming an outstanding connoisseur of ancient Russian art.

In 1857, Leskov retired and entered private service in a large trading company, which was engaged in the resettlement of peasants to new lands and on whose business he traveled almost the entire European part of Russia.

Start literary activity Leskova dates back to 1860, when he first appeared as a progressive publicist. In January 1861, Leskov settled in St. Petersburg with the desire to devote himself to literary and journalistic activities. He began publishing in Otechestvennye zapiski.

Leskov came to Russian literature with a large stock of observations on Russian life, with sincere sympathy for the needs of the people, which was reflected in his stories “The Extinguished Cause” (1862), “The Robber”; in the stories “The Life of a Woman” (1863), “Lady Macbeth of Mtsensk” (1865).

In 1862, as a correspondent for the newspaper "Northern Bee", he visited Poland, Western Ukraine, and the Czech Republic. He wanted to get acquainted with everyday life, art and poetry Western Slavs, with whom he was very sympathetic. The trip ended with a visit to Paris. In the spring of 1863 Leskov returned to Russia.

Knowing well the province, its needs, human characters, details of everyday life and deep ideological trends, Leskov did not accept the calculations of “theorists” divorced from Russian roots. He speaks about this in the story “Musk Ox” (1863), in the novels “Nowhere” (1864), “Bypassed” (1865), “On Knives” (1870). They outline the theme of Russia’s unpreparedness for the revolution and tragic fate people who have connected their lives with the hope of its speedy fulfillment. Hence the disagreements with the revolutionary democrats.

In 1870 1880 Leskov overestimated a lot; acquaintance with Tolstoy has a great influence on him. National-historical issues appeared in his work: the novel “The Cathedral People” (1872), “A Seedy Family” (1874). During these years, he wrote several stories about artists: “The Islanders”, “The Captured Angel”.

The talent of the Russian person, the kindness and generosity of his soul always admired Leskov, and this theme found its expression in the stories “Lefty (The Tale of the Tula Oblique Lefty and the steel flea)" (1881), "The Stupid Artist" (1883), "The Man on the Clock" (1887).

In Leskov's legacy great place occupied by satire, humor and irony: “Selected Grain”, “Shameless”, “Idle Dancers”, etc. The story “Hare Remise” was the last major work of the writer.

Leskov died in St. Petersburg.

Name: Nikolay Leskov

Age: 64 years old

Activity: writer

Family status: was divorced

Nikolai Leskov: biography

Nikolai Leskov is called the founder of Russian skaz - in this regard, the writer stands on a par with. The author became famous as a publicist with a sharp pen that exposed the vices of society. And later he surprised his colleagues with his knowledge of the psychology, morals and customs of the people of his native country.

Childhood and youth

Leskov was born in the village of Gorokhovo (Oryol province). The writer's father, Semyon Dmitrievich, came from an old spiritual family - his grandfather and father served as priests at a church in the village of Leski (hence the surname).


And the future writer’s parent himself graduated from seminary, but then worked in the Oryol Criminal Chamber. He was distinguished by his great talent as an investigator, capable of unraveling even the most complex case, for which he quickly rose through the ranks and received a noble title. Mom Maria Petrovna came from the Moscow nobility.

In the Leskov family, which settled in the administrative center of the province, five children grew up - two daughters and three sons, Nikolai was the eldest. When the boy was 8 years old, his father had a strong quarrel with his superiors and, taking his family, retired to the village of Panino, where he took up farming - he plowed, sowed, and looked after the garden.


Young Kolya had a disgusting relationship with his studies. For five years the boy studied at the Oryol gymnasium, and in the end he had a certificate of completion of only two classes. Leskov’s biographers blame this on the education system of those times, which through cramming and inertia discouraged the desire to comprehend science. Especially such extraordinary ones, creative personalities as Kolya Leskov.

Nikolai had to go to work. The father assigned his son to the criminal ward as an employee, and a year later he died of cholera. At the same time, another grief befell the Leskov family - the house with all its property burned to the ground.


Young Nikolai set off to explore the world. At his own request, the young man was transferred to the government chamber in Kyiv, where his uncle lived and taught at the university. In the Ukrainian capital, Leskov plunged into an interesting, eventful life - he became interested in languages, literature, philosophy, sat at his desk as a volunteer at the university, and moved in the circles of sectarians and Old Believers.

Enriched life experience the future writer's job is with another uncle. My mother’s sister’s English husband invited his nephew to join his company, Schcott and Wilkens, a position that required long and frequent business trips throughout Russia. The writer called this time the best in his biography.

Literature

The idea of ​​devoting his life to the art of words visited Leskov for a long time. For the first time, the young man thought about the writing field while traveling around the Russian expanses with assignments from the company “Schcott and Wilkens” - the trips gave bright events and types of people who just asked to be written down on paper.

Nikolai Semenovich took his first steps into literature as a publicist. He wrote articles “on the topic of the day” in St. Petersburg and Kyiv newspapers; officials and police doctors were criticized for corruption. The success of the publications was enormous, and several internal investigations were opened.


Trying to write as an author works of art happened only at the age of 32 - Nikolai Leskov wrote the story “The Life of a Woman” (today we know it as “Cupid in Shoes”), which was received by readers of the magazine “Library for Reading”.

From the very first works, people started talking about the writer as a master who could vividly convey female images With tragic fate. And all because after the first story, the brilliant, heartfelt and complex essays “Lady Macbeth of Mtsensk” and “Warrior” were published. Leskov skillfully wove individual humor and sarcasm into the dark side of life presented, demonstrating a unique style, which was later recognized as a type of skaz.


Nikolai Semenovich’s literary interests also included drama. Beginning in 1867, the writer began creating plays for theaters. One of the popular ones is “Spendthrift”.

Leskov loudly declared himself as a novelist. In the books “Nowhere”, “Bypassed”, “On Knives” he ridiculed revolutionaries and nihilists, declaring Russia’s unpreparedness for radical changes. After reading the novel “On Knives” he gave this assessment of the writer’s work:

“...after the evil novel “On Knives” literary creativity Leskova immediately becomes a bright painting or, rather, an icon painting - he begins to create for Russia an iconostasis of its saints and righteous people.”

After the publication of novels criticizing revolutionary democrats, magazine editors organized a boycott of Leskov. Only Mikhail Katkov, who heads the Russian Messenger, did not refuse to cooperate with the writer, but it was impossible to work with this writer - he mercilessly corrected the manuscript.


The next work included in the treasury native literature, became the legend about the master gunsmith “Lefty”. In it, Leskov’s unique style shone with new facets, the author sprinkled in original neologisms, layered events on top of each other, creating a complex framework. They started talking about Nikolai Semenovich as a strong writer.

In the 70s, the writer went through difficult times. The Ministry of Public Education appointed Leskov to the position of evaluator of new books - he decided whether publications could be released to the reader or not, and received a meager salary for this. In addition, the next story, “The Enchanted Wanderer,” was rejected by all editors, including Katkov.


The writer conceived this work as an alternative traditional genre novel. The story combines unrelated plots, and they are not finished. Critics smashed “free form” to smithereens, and Nikolai Semenovich had to publish snippets of his brainchild in a scattering of publications.

Subsequently, the author turned to creating idealized characters. From his pen came a collection of short stories, “The Righteous,” which included sketches “The Man on the Clock,” “The Figure,” and others. The writer presented straightforward, conscientious people, claiming that he met everyone at life path. However, critics and colleagues accepted the work with sarcasm. In the 80s, the righteous acquired religious traits - Leskov wrote about the heroes of early Christianity.


At the end of his life, Nikolai Semenovich again turned to exposing officials, military men, and representatives of the church, giving literature the works “The Beast,” “The Stupid Artist,” and “The Scarecrow.” And it was at this time that Leskov wrote stories for children's reading, which magazine editors gladly accepted.

Among the literary geniuses who later became famous, there were loyal fans of Nikolai Leskov. considered the nugget from the Oryol outback “the most Russian writer,” and they elevated the man to the rank of their mentors.

Personal life

By the standards of the 19th century, Nikolai Semenovich’s personal life was unsuccessful. The writer managed to walk down the aisle twice, the second time with his first wife alive.


Leskov married early, at 22 years old. The chosen one was Olga Smirnova, the heiress of a Kyiv entrepreneur. This marriage produced a daughter, Vera, and a son, Mitya, who died while still young. The wife suffered from a mental disorder and later was often treated at the St. Nicholas Clinic in St. Petersburg.

Nikolai Semenovich, in fact, lost his wife and decided to enter into a civil marriage with Ekaterina Bubnova, who had been a widow for several years. In 1866, Leskov became a father for the third time - his son Andrei was born. Along this line, in 1922, the future ballet celebrity Tatyana Leskova, great-granddaughter of the author of The Enchanted Wanderer, was born. But Nikolai Semenovich did not get along with his second wife either; after 11 years, the couple separated.


Leskov was known as an ideological vegetarian; he believed that animals should not be killed for food. The man published an article in which he divided vegans into two camps - those who eat meat, observing a kind of fast, and those who feel sorry for innocent living beings. He considered himself one of the latter. The writer called for the creation of a cookbook for like-minded Russians, which would include “green” recipes from products available to Russians. And in 1893 such a publication appeared.

Death

Nikolai Leskov suffered from asthma all his life, last years the disease worsened, attacks of suffocation began to happen more and more often.


On February 21 (March 5, new style), 1895, the writer was unable to cope with the exacerbation of the illness. Nikolai Semenovich was buried in St. Petersburg at the Volkovsky cemetery.

Bibliography

  • 1863 – “The Life of a Woman”
  • 1864 – “Lady Macbeth of Mtsensk”
  • 1864 – “Nowhere”
  • 1865 – “Bypassed”
  • 1866 – “Islanders”
  • 1866 – “Warrior”
  • 1870 – “At Knives”
  • 1872 – “The Soborians”
  • 1872 – “The Sealed Angel”
  • 1873 – “The Enchanted Wanderer”
  • 1874 – “A Seedy Family”
  • 1881 – “Lefty”
  • 1890 – “Devil's Dolls”

Nikolai Semenovich Leskov is a writer whose works, in the opinion of M. Gorky, should be on a par with the works of L. Tolstoy, I. Turgenev, N. Gogol. All his writings are truthful, since the author knew and understood the life of the people well.

This article gives a brief biography of Leskov, the most important and interesting things about his creative heritage.

Childhood and education

Nikolai Semenovich was born in the Oryol region (years of life - 1831-1895). His father is a minor official who came from the clergy, his mother is the daughter of an impoverished nobleman. He received his first education in the family of wealthy relatives on his mother’s side, and two years later he became a student at a gymnasium in Orel. He always had good abilities, but did not accept cramming and the rod. As a result, based on the results of training, it was necessary to retake exams in the fifth grade, which the future writer considered unfair and left the gymnasium with a certificate. The lack of a certificate did not allow obtaining further education, and the father got his son into the ward of the criminal court in Orel. Life dramas will subsequently be resurrected in numerous works of the writer. This is short biography Leskov during his childhood and adolescence.

Service

In 1849, Nikolai Semenovich moved to Kyiv and settled with his uncle, a professor of medicine. It was a time of communicating with university youth, who often visited the teacher’s house, studying languages ​​- Ukrainian and Polish, attending lectures, and getting to know literature on their own. As a result, the formation of spiritual interests and mental development young men.

The year 1857 also became important for the writer. Leskov, whose biography and work are inextricably linked with the life of the Russian people, moved from public service to private service. He began working in the commercial company of his uncle, A. Shkott, and over the course of several years visited many parts of Russia. Subsequently, this will allow Nikolai Semenovich to say that he studied life “not at school, but on barges.” And personal observations and accumulated material will form the basis of more than one work.

Publicistic activity

Leskov’s subsequent biography and work (this will be discussed briefly below) are connected with St. Petersburg and Moscow. In 1961, he left Kyiv and, having moved to the capital, began collaborating with Russian Speech. By this time, Nikolai Semenovich had already acted as a publicist in “Modern Medicine”, “St. Petersburg Gazette”, “Economic Index”. Now the writer’s articles appear in Knizhny Vestnik, Otechestvennye zapiski, Vremya.

In January 1962, Nikolai Semenovich moved to the Northern Bee: he headed the department there. inner life. For two years he has been covering in his articles the most pressing social problems, enters into disputes with Sovremennik and Den. This is how it developed at the beginning creative path biography of Leskov.

Interesting facts from his journalistic activities were related to the topic of fires in St. Petersburg (1862). Nikolai Semenovich spoke out regarding the alleged organizers, nihilistic students, and called on the authorities to confirm or refute these data. As a result, he was hit with a lot of criticism both from leading writers, who accused the author of denunciation and slander, and from the government. And the pseudonym M. Stebnitsky, with which he had signed his works until then, became so abusive that the writer had to abandon it.

There is also a note from the office in St. Petersburg, which notes that Leskov “sympathizes with everything anti-government.”

In general, it can be argued that journalistic activity has prepared further creativity writer.

New challenges

Biography of Leskov, summary which you are reading was not simple. After the article about the fires, the writer left the capital. As a correspondent, he went on a trip to Europe, which gave him a lot interesting information about life in other countries. Leskov also began work on his first novel, “Nowhere,” whose heroes were the same nihilists. The work was not allowed to be published for a long time, and when it finally reached readers in 1964, the Democrats again attacked the writer.

Debut in fiction

A short biography of Leskov the writer dates back to 1962, when the short story “The Extinguished Case” appeared in print. It was followed by the works “The Robber”, “In the Tarantass”, the story “The Life of a Woman” and “Caustic”. All of them resembled an artistic essay, which at that time was popular among commoners. But a feature of Nikolai Semenovich’s works has always been a special approach to depicting folk life. Many of his contemporaries believed that it should be studied. Nikolai Semenovich was convinced that the life of the people must be known, “not by studying it, but by living it.” Such views, along with excessive ardor in journalism, led to the fact that Nikolai Leskov, whose brief biography is given in the article, found himself excommunicated from progressive Russian literature for a long time.

The story “Lady Macbeth of Mtsensk,” published in 1964, as well as “The Warrior,” published two years later, was preferred by writers and critics to be ignored. Although it was in them that they manifested customized style and the writer’s humor, which will later be highly appreciated by specialists. This is how it developed in the sixties creative biography Leskov, the summary of which amazes with the amazing stamina and incorruptibility of the writer.

70s

The new decade was marked by the release of the novel “On Knives.” The author himself called it the worst in his work. And Gorky noted that after this work the writer abandoned the theme of nihilists and began to create the “iconostasis of saints and righteous people” of Russia.

A short biography of Leskov of the new period begins with the novel “Soborians”. He was a success with readers, but the opposition of the true Christianity to official Christianity in the work again led the writer into conflict, now not only with the authorities, but also with the church.

And then the author publishes “The Sealed Angel” and “The Enchanted Wanderer,” which were reminiscent of ancient Russian walks and legends. If “Russian Messenger” published the first story without corrections, then disagreements arose again regarding the second. Free form of the work and several storylines were at one time not understood by many critics.

In 1974, due to his difficult financial situation, Leskov entered the Scientific Committee of the Ministry of Education, where he studied books published for the people. A year later he goes abroad for a short time.

80-90s

The collection of stories “The Righteous”, the satirical works “The Stupid Artist” and “Scarecrow”, rapprochement with Tolstoy, the anti-church “Notes of an Unknown” (not completed due to the ban on censorship), “Midnight Offices”, etc. - this is the main thing he did in the new tenth anniversary of Leskov.

A short biography for children must include a story about the adventures of Lefty. And although many critics felt that the writer in this case I simply retold an old legend; today this is one of the most famous and original works of Nikolai Semenovich.

The event was the publication of ten volumes of the writer’s collected works. And here there were troubles: the sixth volume, which included church works, was completely withdrawn from sale, and later reformed.

The last years of the writer’s life were also not very joyful. None of his major works (“Devil's Dolls”, “Invisible Trace”, “Falcon Binding”) were published in the original version. On this occasion, Leskov wrote that pleasing the public is not his task. He saw his purpose in scourging and tormenting the reader with directness and truth.

Biography of Leskov: interesting facts

Nikolai Semenovich was known as a vegetarian and even wrote an article about this. He, according to his own statement, was always against slaughter, but at the same time did not accept those who refused meat not out of pity, but for reasons of hygiene. And if Leskov’s first calls to translate a book for vegetarians into Russian caused ridicule, then very soon such a publication actually appeared.

In 1985, an asteroid was named in honor of Nikolai Semenovich, which, of course, indicates recognition of his work by his descendants.

This is a short biography of Leskov, whom L. Tolstoy called the most Russian of the writers of Russia.

Nikolai Semyonovich Leskov - born in 1835, and died in 1895.

The writer was born in the City of Orel. He had a large family; Leskov was the eldest of the children. After moving from the city to the village, love and respect for the Russian people began to form in Leskov. His family moved because tragic death father and the loss of all property in a fire.

It is unknown for what reasons, but studies did not work out to the young writer and he was barely hired, and only thanks to his friends. Only in adolescence does Leskov begin to develop creative look for many things.

His career as a writer begins with the publication of articles in various magazines. Things go uphill after Leskov moves to St. Petersburg. Already there he wrote many serious works, but there are different reviews about their content. Due to disagreements with revolutionary democrats and established views of that era, many publishing houses refuse to publish Leskov. But the writer does not give up and continues to work on stories.

Nikolai Semyonovich had two marriages, but both of them were unsuccessful. Officially, Leskov had three children - two from his first marriage (the eldest child died in infancy) and one from his second.

Leskov died of asthma, which actively developed in the last years of his life.

Interesting facts, 6th grade.

Biography of Nikolaev Leskov

The writer, in the future nicknamed “the most Russian of all Russians,” was born on February 4, 1831 in the village of Gorokhovo, Oryol district. The mother was from an insolvent noble family, and the father was a former seminarian, but left the clergy and became an investigator, had a brilliant career and could have risen to the nobility, but major quarrel with management ruined all his plans and he had to quit and move with his wife and five children from Orel to Panino. Upon reaching the age of ten, Leskov goes to study at the gymnasium, although not for long: after 2 years he leaves educational institution, having failed in training. In 1847 he entered service in the Criminal Chamber. A year later, the father contracts cholera and dies. Leskov asks to be transferred to Kyiv and, having received approval, moves.

Exactly 10 years later, Leskov leaves the service and goes to work for the agricultural trading company Schcott and Wilkens. Leskov will later name the time spent working for the company thanks to many work trips throughout the country. best period In my life. It was during this period that he began to write. In 1860, the trading house closed, and Leskov had to return to Kyiv. This time he is trying his hand at journalism. A few months later, he rushes to St. Petersburg, where his literary career begins.

In 1862, in one of his articles, Leskov demands that the authorities comment on rumors of arson in St. Petersburg, which brought upon himself accusations of denunciation and criticism of the authorities. His articles reached Alexander II himself. Since 1862 he has been published in the Northern Bee, and his essays begin to receive the first high marks from his contemporaries.

In 1864, he published his first novel, “Nowhere,” about the life of nihilists, and the story “Lady Macbeth of Mtsensk.” In 1866, the story “Warrior” was published, coolly received by contemporaries, but highly appreciated by descendants.

In 1870, the novel “On Knives” was published, full of ridicule of nihilistic revolutionaries who, in the writer’s opinion, had merged with criminals. Leskov himself was dissatisfied with the work and received criticism from his contemporaries. Immediately after this, his work turns to the clergy and to the local nobility. In 1872, he published the novel “The Councilors,” which became the cause of a conflict between the writer and the Church.

In 1881, one of the most successful and famous works Leskova - “The Tale of the Tula Oblique Lefty and the Steel Flea. In 1872, the story “The Enchanted Wanderer” was written, which was very coldly received by contemporaries and was not allowed for publication in publications. It is because of “The Wanderer” that the friendship with M.N. Katkov ends. - an influential critic, publicist and publisher.

At the end of the 1880s. gets closer to L.N. Tolstoy, which radically changes Leskov’s attitude towards the Church. The main works showing his hostility towards the clergy are the story “Midnight Office” and the essay “Popov’s leapfrog and parish whim.” After their publication, a scandal broke out, and the writer was fired from the Ministry of Public Education. Leskov again found himself isolated by his contemporaries.

In 1889, he began publishing a multi-volume collection, which was warmly received by the public. Quick sales helped the writer improve his financial affairs. But in the same year, the first heart attack occurred, the cause of which was probably the news of censorship sanctions against the collection. In the last years of his creative work, Leskov’s works became even more biting and cynical, which the public and publishers did not like. From 1890 he fell ill, suffering from suffocation for the next 5 years - until his death on March 5, 1895.

Biography by dates and Interesting Facts. The most important.

Other biographies:

  • Alighieri Dante

    Famous poet, author of the well-known " Divine Comedy» Alighieri Dante was born in Florence in 1265 into a noble family. There are several versions of the poet's true date of birth, but the authenticity of none of them has been established.

  • Zhitkov

    Boris Stepanovich Zhitkov was a great writer who dedicated all his works to children. Boris Zhitkov was not only a writer, but also a teacher. He was born in 882 on August 30, in the city of Novgorod.

  • Salvador Dali

    The world-famous artist and creative figure Salvador Dali was born in 1904 on May 11 in the small province of Figueres. The head of the family worked as a notary and was a respected man.

  • Vladimir Galaktionovich Korolenko

    Korolenko is one of the most underrated literary figures of his time. He wrote many wonderful works in which he touched on a wide variety of topics, from helping the disadvantaged

  • Odoevsky Vladimir Fedorovich

    Vladimir Odoevsky came from an ancient and noble family. On the one hand, he was related to both the Russian tsars and Leo Tolstoy himself, and on the other, his mother was a serf peasant.

Nikolai Leskov lived an interesting and difficult life. Leskov's writing path was thorny, however, he managed to break through to the stars. Many of Leskov’s works, for various reasons, found it difficult to reach the reader. Leskov was unpleasant to many colleagues in his role; “critics” and seasoned writers did not like his work. People who are fond of literature, describing Leskov’s torment in visiting publishing houses, with the hope that at least someone will publish him, compare them with a trip to the indifferent doctors of a sick person. Hiding under various pseudonyms, Leskov published in some publications, receiving a livelihood for this.

Writer Nikolai Leskov was born in February 1831, in the village of Gorokhovo, which was in the Oryol province. The family into which Leskov was born was large and poor. Nikolai's father was a criminal investigator. Leskov was raised by his mother's wealthy relatives. When the boy turned 10 years old, he was sent to the Oryol gymnasium. Nikolai Semenovich studied at the gymnasium for five years. The future writer studied carelessly, and eventually dropped out of high school. I went to work and got a job as a scribe in the Chamber of Criminal Court.

In two years, Leskov’s father would die; the young man was 17 years old. The family found itself in a difficult financial situation. Nikolai’s uncle, on his mother’s side, Professor Alferyev, invites the young man to his home in Kyiv. Arriving in Ukraine, Nikolai Semenovich Leskov gets a job in the government chamber. Working as the secretary of the recruit presence, Leskov travels a lot around Russian Empire. In and out, Nikolai communicates with different people- pilgrims, Old Believers. Communication with them makes a certain impression on Leskov. In his spare time, Nikolai educates himself, reads, and attends lectures at the university.

In 1857 Leskov left public service and goes to work at the company Schcott and Wilkens. For three years, on company business, Nikolai Semenovich has been traveling all over the country. It's time to return to Kyiv. Here he again enters the public service, only this time in the office of the Kyiv Governor-General. He combined his work with journalism. Leskov's articles are published in newspapers in Kyiv and. In 1861, Nikolai Semenovich Leskov moved to the capital of the Russian Empire. Here he is engaged in journalism, writing in many newspapers and magazines. Most creative union Leskov had a problem with the journal Otechestvennye zapiski.

An article by Leskov is published in the Northern Bee. The article is devoted to a series of fires in St. Petersburg. Nikolai calls on the authorities to figure out the reasons: what is it? Accident or the activity of student revolutionaries? After the publication of the article, Leskov was hit with a barrage of criticism; he was called an accomplice of tsarism and a strangler of freedom. Nikolai had to go on a business trip abroad as a correspondent for Northern Bee. In Europe, Leskov managed to visit Poland, France, and Austria. Returning to Russia, Leskov published the stories: “The Life of a Woman”, “Three Stories of Stebnitsky”, “Musk Ox” and the novel “Nowhere”. The novel “Nowhere” caused an unprecedented barrage of criticism in liberal circles, which fell on Leskov like a cold shower.

Fortunately, not all of society shared liberal ideas, and there were magazines and newspapers of other political shades. The “evil” monarchy respected the principles of political pluralism. Leskov publishes in Russky Vestnik and other conservative magazines. In subsequent years, Leskov wrote several more works: “Lady Macbeth Mtsensk district", "Warrior", "At Knives". Last novel became another reason for liberals to criticize Leskov.

In the subsequent years of his life, Nikolai Semenovich Leskov will deal with issues of morality and religiosity. He will write a number of amazing works: “The Soborians”, “The Sealed Angel”, “The Enchanted Wanderer”. Nikolai Leskov is the author of many wonderful works, the most famous of which is the story “Lefty”. The people liked the story so much that the word “left-handed” became a common noun, and means a person from the people, a master of his craft. Nikolai Semenovich Leskov died in February 1895. Nikolai was buried at the Volkovsky cemetery in St. Petersburg.