Life of the Rusian Writers: Tolstoy an Dostoyevsky

Background and personal life of Tolstoy

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Leo Tolstoy is one of the most famous 19th century Russian novelists. He was born on 9th of September 1828 at his family estate, Yasnaya Polyana in the Tula Province of Russia. Born together with his three brothers, he was the youngest. When his mother Nee Princess Volkonskaya died in 1830, Tolstoy and his brothers were taken care of by a cousin of their father. Later their father Count Nikolay Tolstoy died in 1837 and their aunt was appointed as their legal guardian. Later this aunt died forcing them to move in with a second aunt where they lived in Kazan, Russia. Despite experiencing all this loss at a tender age, Tolstoy later idealized his memories of his childhood in his unique writing (R. Bartlett 32)

Tolstoy received his primary education at his home where he was taught by French and German tutors. Later in 1843, he joined the University of Kazan where he enrolled in oriental languages program. Despite this huge step, he failed to succeed as a student because of his low grades forcing him to shift his interest to an easier law program. In 1847, Tolstoys habit of partying hard made him drop from University returning to his home without a degree where he became a farmer. His efforts of becoming a good farmer turned out to be a failure. Despite this, he however was successful in keeping a journal. This was the beginning of his fiction writing that would later inspire many.

One day while on a military leave his brother Nikolay visited him and managed to convince him to join the army as a junker. As a junker in the army, Tolstoy moved to Sevastopol in Ukraine in November of 1854 where he was a fighter in the Crimean War up to August 1855.

While still in the army as a junker, he spent his quiet time working on an autobiographical story by the name Childhood. In this autobiography he recorded his childhood memories. Later in 1852, he gave out a sketch of his work to the popular journal of the time called Contemporary where it was welcomed with open hands hence becoming his first published work. This success propelled him to work on his second autobiography about his day to day life at the army in Caucasus. He named this autobiography Cossacks that he completed in 1862 after leaving the army. While still in the Crimean War he managed to write more autobiographies such as Boyhood in 1854. He also expressed his views concerning the contradictions of war through the first Sevastopol Tales (A. Wilson 75)

After leaving the army, he returned home in Russia where he found himself in demand on the scene of St. Petersburg literary. Due to his stubborn and arrogant nature, he refused to align himself with all intellectual school of thought hence declaring himself as an anarchist. In 1862, he produced a journal called YasnayaPolyana and then married a daughter of a doctor by the name of SofyaAndreyevnaBers in that same year.

Background and personal life of Dostoevsky

Fyodor Dostoevsky was born on 11th of November 1821 I Moscow Russia as a son of an army doctor and a righteous man. He was born in a family that was very religious hence he became very religious all his life. His mother was passive, kind and generous. As a youth he developed a habit of reading widely. This was made easier by the education foundation that was laid for him by his mother, father and tutors who offered him a primary education at his tender age. At the age of thirteen, he was taken to a private school by his parents but his mother died two years later. His father who was a cruel man was murdered by the serfs in 1839 when Dostoevsky was only 18 years old schooling in St. Petersburg, Russia. The death of his father affected him that when he began writing the subject of crime and murder would be present in almost all his publication. He became a victim of horrors of homicide that drove him to publish a book of violent death (death of a father). This book was well known as The Brothers Karamazov.He was later trained as a military engineer but his heart disliked school and loved literature. After finishing school, he left the career he had earlier been trained and devoted himself to writing. He began his writing career with Poor Folk, a novel that turned out to be a great success and one highly loved by critics. He was the first Russian author to examine the psychological complexity of a man as well as the unique manner in which human mind works. After publishing Poor Folk, he came up with The Double, which was dealing with a split personality. It later paved way for a great masterpiece called Crime and Punishment (K. Mochulsky 31)

The most crucial part of Dostoevskys life emerged after he published the Poor Folk. He was part of the era of change that occurred in Russia and changed its history. He was involved in political intrigues that were of questionable nature. He became affiliated with the new and radical ideas entering Russia from the West and together with people of the same interest, they hoped to revolutionize Russia. He published concerning various many political questions with the clear understanding that it was illegal since it was only the government that was allowed to do this. This caused him and his friends be imprisoned where they were they were tried after nine months and found guilty and given a penalty of being shot by the firing squad. When they were about to be shot, a message came from the Tsar granting them a reprieve. This terrifying Dostoevsky took a turn when he moved to Siberia. Due to the effect of the terrifying death escape event of escaping death haunted him the rest of his life.

The life of, he went through a spiritual regeneration during the sacred mission of Russians that made him emerge with a prophetic belief that Russia would rise to dominate the world. Due to his sufferings in prison, he highly believed that sufferings purify the human heart.

His adult life was full of marital problems. Epileptic attacks and debts. Dostoevsky married Snitkina on 15th February 1867 and had their first child Sonya on 5th March 1868 but died shortly of pneumonia.

Tolstoys older generation in the countryside setting

Education:

Tolstoy received his primary education at his home where he was taught by French and German tutors. Later in 1843, he joined the University of Kazan where he enrolled in oriental languages program. Despite this huge step, he failed to succeed as a student because of his low grades forcing him to shift his interest to an easier law program.

Career as a farmer and a soldier:

In 1847, Tolstoys habit of partying hard made him drop from University returning to his home without a degree where he became a farmer. His efforts of becoming a good farmer turned out to be a failure. Despite this, he however was successful in keeping a journal. This was the beginning of his fiction writing that would later inspire many. One day while on a military leave his brother Nikolay visited him and managed to convince him to join the army as a junker. As a junker in the army, Tolstoy moved to Sevastopol in Ukraine in November of 1854 where he was a fighter in the Crimean War up to August 1855.

Early writing career:

While still in the army as a junker, he spent his quiet time working on an autobiographical story by the name Childhood. In this autobiography he recorded his childhood memories. Later in 1852, he gave out a sketch of his work to the popular journal of the time called Contemporary where it was welcomed with open hands hence becoming his first published work. This success propelled him to work on his second autobiography about his day to day life at the army in Caucasus. He named this autobiography Cossacks that he completed in 1862 after leaving the army. While still in the Crimean War he managed to write more autobiographies such as Boyhood in 1854. He also expressed his views concerning the contradictions of war through the first Sevastopol Tales.

Start of anarchism and marriage life:

After leaving the army, he returned home in Russia where he found himself in demand on the scene of St. Petersburg literary. Due to his stubborn and arrogant nature, he refused to align himself with all intellectual school of thought hence declaring himself as an anarchist.In 1862, he produced a journal called YasnayaPolyana and then married a daughter of a doctor by the name of SofyaAndreyevnaBers in that same year.

Dostoevskys younger generation in the city setting

Birth and education:

Fyodor Dostoevsky was born on 11th of November 1821 I Moscow Russia as a son of an army doctor and a righteous man. He was born in a family that was very religious hence he became very religious all his life. His mother was passive, kind and generous. A strong education foundation was laid for him by his mother, father and tutors who offered him a

primary education at his tender age. At the age of thirteen, he was taken to a private school by his parents but his mother died two years later. His father who was a cruel man was murdered by the serfs in 1839 when Dostoevsky was only 18 years old schooling in St. Petersburg, Russia.

Early writing career:

As a youth he developed a habit of reading widely. The death of his father affected him that when he began writing the subject of crime and murder would be present in almost all his publication. He became a victim of horrors of homicide that drove him to publish a book of violent death (death of a father). This book was well known as The Brothers Karamazov. He was later trained as a military engineer but his heart disliked school and loved literature. After finishing school, he left the career he had earlier been trained and devoted himself to writing. He began his writing career with Poor Folk, a novel that turned out to be a great success and one highly loved by critics. He was the first Russian author to examine the psychological complexity of a man as well as the unique manner in which human mind works. After publishing Poor Folk, he came up with The Double, which was dealing with a split personality. It later paved the way for a great masterpiece called Crime and Punishment.

Tolstoy reflecting on his personal point of view through the protagonist

Both as an artist and a moralist, Tolstoy impact on the public continues to live without diminishing. His powerful descriptive powers are retained by his fictional works. His personal preferences and values are well expressed through his works which emerge every time an opportunity arises in his life. He dominates as a moralist, public commentator and a teacher. Through his concrete doctrine of non-resistance, he opposed or resisted many inequalities of the state. This made him an example setter for other movements of similar interests such as Mohandas Gandhis movement in India and Martin Luther King Jr. movement in the United States. He also stood head high on behalf of the poor through solid action. He adjusted his lifestyle to be like that of the humblest through the convictions of his heart that made him channel his efforts and income into the humanitarian projects such as famine relief.

Dostoevsky - reflecting multiple POV through different characters (conversation)

In 1843, Dostoevsky wrote his first novel called Poor Folk which was a social tale about a government worker. This story concentrates mainly on poor people and how they struggle with lack of self-esteem. This makes them lose their inner freedom, being dependent on social authorities and to lose their individuality. He tried to show how dependence and poverty destroy the self-esteem of a person leading to suffering both inward and outward.

He was involved in political intrigues that were of questionable nature. He published concerning various many political questions with the clear understanding that it was illegal since it was only the government that was allowed to do this. This caused him...