Biography

Alexey Peshkov was born in Nizhny Novgorod in the family of a carpenter (according to another version - the manager of the Astrakhan shipping company I. S. Kolchin) - Maxim Savvatevich Peshkov (1839-1871). Mother - Varvara Vasilievna, nee Kashirina (1842-1879). Orphaned at an early age, he spent his childhood in the house of his grandfather Kashirin (see Kashirin's house). From the age of 9 he was forced to go "to the people"; worked as a “boy” at a store, as a pantry utensil on a steamboat, as an apprentice in an icon-painting workshop, as a baker, etc.
In 1884 he tried to enter Kazan University. He got acquainted with Marxist literature and propaganda work.
In 1888 he was arrested for his connection with the circle of N. E. Fedoseev. He was under constant police surveillance. In October 1888 he entered as a watchman at the Dobrinka station of the Gryase-Tsaritsyno railway. Impressions from staying in Dobrinka will serve as the basis for the autobiographical story "The Watchman" and the story "For the sake of boredom".
In January 1889, by personal request (a complaint in verse), he was transferred to the Borisoglebsk station, then as a weigher to the Krutaya station.
In the spring of 1891 he set off to wander around the country and reached the Caucasus.
In 1892 he first appeared in print with the story Makar Chudra. Returning to Nizhny Novgorod, he publishes reviews and feuilletons in the Volzhsky Vestnik, Samarskaya Gazeta, Nizhny Novgorod Leaflet, and others.
1895 - "Chelkash", "Old Woman Izergil".
1896 - Gorky writes a response to the first cinematic session in Nizhny Novgorod:

"And suddenly something clicks, everything disappears, and a railway train appears on the screen. It rushes like an arrow straight at you - beware! It seems that it is about to rush into the darkness in which you are sitting and turn you into a torn bag skin, full of crumpled meat and shattered bones, and will destroy, reduce to rubble and dust this hall and this building, where there is so much wine, women, music and vice.

1897 - "Former people", "Spouses Orlovs", "Malva", "Konovalov".
From October 1897 to mid-January 1898, he lived in the village of Kamenka (now the city of Kuvshinovo, Tver Region) in the apartment of his friend Nikolai Zakharovich Vasiliev, who worked at the Kamensk paper factory and led an illegal working Marxist circle. Subsequently, the life impressions of this period served as material for the writer's novel "The Life of Klim Samgin".
1899 - the novel "Foma Gordeev", a poem in prose "The Song of the Falcon".
1900-1901 - the novel "Three", a personal acquaintance with Chekhov, Tolstoy.
March 1901 - "The Song of the Petrel". "Song of the Petrel" was created by M. Gorky in March 1901 in Nizhny Novgorod. Participation in the Marxist workers' circles of Nizhny Novgorod, Sormov, St. Petersburg, wrote a proclamation calling for a fight against the autocracy. Arrested and expelled from Nizhny Novgorod.
In 1902 M. Gorky turned to dramaturgy. Creates plays "Petty bourgeois", "At the bottom". In the same year, he became the godfather and adoptive father of the Jew Zinovy ​​Sverdlov, who took the surname Peshkov and converted to Orthodoxy. This was necessary in order for Zinovy ​​to receive the right to live in Moscow.

“In 1902, Gorky was elected an honorary member of the Imperial Academy of Sciences. But before Gorky could exercise his new rights, his election was annulled by the government, since the newly elected academician “was under police supervision.” In this regard, Chekhov and Korolenko refused membership in the Academy" (Mirsky D. S. Maxim Gorky)

1904-1905 - writes the plays "Summer Residents", "Children of the Sun", "Barbarians". Meets Lenin. For the revolutionary proclamation and in connection with the execution on January 9, he was arrested, but then released under pressure from the public. Member of the revolution of 1905-1907. In autumn 1905 he joined the Russian Social Democratic Labor Party.
1906 - A. M. Gorky travels abroad, creates satirical pamphlets about the "bourgeois" culture of France and the USA ("My Interviews", "In America"). He writes the play "Enemies", creates the novel "Mother". Because of tuberculosis, Gorky settled in Italy on the island of Capri, where he lived for 7 years. Here he wrote "Confession" (1908), where his philosophical differences with Lenin and rapprochement with Lunacharsky and Bogdanov were clearly identified (see "The Capri School").
1908 - the play "The Last", the story "The Life of an Unnecessary Man".
1909 - the novels "The Town of Okurov", "The Life of Matvey Kozhemyakin".
1913 - A.M. Gorky edits the Bolshevik newspapers Zvezda and Pravda, the art department of the Bolshevik magazine Enlightenment, publishes the first collection of proletarian writers. Writes Tales of Italy.
1912-1916 - A. M. Gorky creates a series of stories and essays that compiled the collection "In Russia", autobiographical novels "Childhood", "In People". The last part of the My Universities trilogy was written in 1923.
1917-1919 - A. M. Gorky does a lot of social and political work, criticizes the "methods" of the Bolsheviks, condemns their attitude towards the old intelligentsia, saves many of its representatives from Bolshevik repression and hunger. In 1917, having disagreed with the Bolsheviks on the issue of the timeliness of the socialist revolution in Russia, he did not pass the re-registration of party members and formally dropped out of it.
1921 - A. M. Gorky's departure abroad. A myth developed in Soviet literature that the reason for his departure was the resumption of his illness and the need, at Lenin's insistence, to be treated abroad. In reality, A. M. Gorky was forced to leave because of the aggravation of ideological differences with the established government.
From 1924 he lived in Italy, in Sorrento. Published memoirs about Lenin.
1925 - the novel "The Artamonov Case".
1928 - at the invitation of the Soviet government and Stalin personally, he makes a trip around the country, during which Gorky is shown the achievements of the USSR, which are reflected in the cycle of essays "On the Soviet Union."
1932 - Gorky returns to the Soviet Union. Here he receives an order from Stalin - to prepare the ground for the 1st Congress of Soviet Writers, and for this to carry out preparatory work among them. Gorky created many newspapers and magazines: the Academia publishing house, the book series The History of Factories and Plants, The History of the Civil War, the Literary Study magazine, he wrote the plays Egor Bulychev and Others (1932), Dostigaev and Others » (1933).
1934 - Gorky "holds" the 1st Congress of Soviet Writers, speaks at it with the main report.
In 1925-1936 he wrote the novel The Life of Klim Samgin, which was never completed.
On May 11, 1934, Gorky's son, Maxim Peshkov, unexpectedly dies. M. Gorky died on June 18, 1936 in Moscow, having outlived his son by a little more than two years. After his death, he was cremated, the ashes were placed in an urn in the Kremlin wall on Red Square in Moscow. Before cremation, the brain of A. M. Gorky was removed and taken to the Moscow Brain Institute for further study.

Death

The circumstances of the death of Gorky and his son are considered by many to be "suspicious", there were rumors of poisoning, which, however, were not confirmed. At the funeral, among others, the coffin with the body of Gorky was carried by Molotov and Stalin. Interestingly, among other accusations of Genrikh Yagoda at the so-called Third Moscow Trial in 1938, there was an accusation of poisoning Gorky's son. According to Yagoda's interrogations, Maxim Gorky was killed on the orders of Trotsky, and the murder of Gorky's son, Maxim Peshkov, was his personal initiative. Some publications blame Stalin for Gorky's death. An important precedent for the medical side of the accusations in the "doctors' case" was the Third Moscow Trial (1938), where among the defendants were three doctors (Kazakov, Levin and Pletnev), who were accused of killing Gorky and others.

The first works of Maxim Gorky

Maksim Gorky(Aleksey Maksimovich Peshkov) was born in March 1868 in Nizhny Novgorod in the family of a carpenter. He received his primary education at the Sloboda-Kunavinsky School, from which he graduated in 1878. From that time on, Gorky's working life began. In subsequent years, he changed many professions, traveled around and around half of Russia. In September 1892, when Gorky was living in Tiflis, his first story, Makar Chudra, was published in the Kavkaz newspaper. In the spring of 1895, Gorky, having moved to Samara, became an employee of the Samara Newspaper, in which he led the departments of the daily chronicle Essays and Sketches and Incidentally. In the same year, such well-known stories as "Old Woman Izergil", "Chelkash", "Once Upon a Fall", "The Case with Clasps" and others appeared, and the famous "Song of the Falcon" was published in one of the issues of the Samara Newspaper. . Feuilletons, essays and stories by Gorky soon attracted attention. His name became known to readers, the strength and lightness of his pen were appreciated by fellow journalists.

A turning point in the fate of the writer Gorky

The turning point in Gorky's fate was 1898, when two volumes of his works were published as a separate publication. The stories and essays that had previously been published in various provincial newspapers and magazines were collected together for the first time and became available to the general reader. The publication was a huge success and sold out instantly. In 1899, a new edition in three volumes went out in exactly the same way. The following year, Gorky's collected works began to be published. In 1899, his first story "Foma Gordeev" appeared, which was also met with extraordinary enthusiasm. It was a real boom. In a matter of years, Gorky turned from an unknown writer into a living classic, into a star of the first magnitude in the sky of Russian literature. In Germany, six publishing companies at once undertook to translate and publish his works. In 1901, the novel "Three" and " Song of the Petrel". The latter was immediately banned by censors, but this did not in the least prevent its distribution. According to contemporaries, "Petrel" was reprinted in every city on a hectograph, on typewriters, rewritten by hand, read at evenings among young people and in workers' circles. Many people knew her by heart. But truly world fame came to Gorky after he turned to theater. His first play, Petty Bourgeois (1901), staged in 1902 by the Art Theatre, was later performed in many cities. In December 1902, the premiere of the new play “ At the bottom", which had an absolutely fantastic, incredible success with the audience. The staging of it by the Moscow Art Theater caused an avalanche of enthusiastic responses. In 1903, the procession of the play began on the stages of theaters in Europe. With triumphant success, she walked in England, Italy, Austria, Holland, Norway, Bulgaria and Japan. Warmly welcomed "At the bottom" in Germany. Only the Reinhardt Theater in Berlin, with a full house, played it more than 500 times!

The literary activity of Maxim Gorky lasted more than forty years - from the romantic "Old Woman Izergil" to the epic "Life of Klim Samgin"

Text: Arseniy Zamostyanov, Deputy Editor-in-Chief, Istorik magazine
Collage: Year of Literature. RF

In the twentieth century, he was both the master of thoughts, and a living symbol of literature, and one of the founders of not only new literature, but also the state. Do not count dissertations and monographs devoted to the "life and work" of the "classic of proletarian literature." Alas, his posthumous fate was too closely linked with the fate of the political system, which Gorky, after many years of hesitation, nevertheless blessed. After the collapse of the USSR, they began to diligently forget about Gorky. Although we have not had and will not have a better chronicler of the “era of initial capital”. Gorky found himself "in an artificial position outside the game." But it seems that he came out of it, and someday he will come out for real.

From a huge and multi-genre heritage, it is not easy to choose the “top ten” and therefore useful. But we will talk almost entirely about textbook works. At least in the recent past, they were diligently studied at school. I don't think it will be forgotten in the future. We don't have a second Gorky...

1. OLD WOMAN IZERGIL

This is a classic of the "early Gorky", the result of his first literary searches. A harsh parable of 1891, a terrible tale, a favorite (in Gorky's system) conflict of Prometheus with both Zeus and birds of prey. This is new literature for that time. Not Tolstoy, not Chekhov, not Leskovsky story. The alignment turns out to be somewhat pretentious: Larra is the son of an eagle, Danko raises his own heart high above his head ... The narrator herself, an old woman, in contrast, is earthy and harsh. In this story, Gorky explores not only the essence of heroism, but also the nature of egoism. Many were hypnotized by the melody of prose.

Actually, this is a ready-made rock opera. And the metaphors are appropriate.

2. SPOUSES ORLOV

Such cruel naturalism - and even with knowledge of the environment - Russian literature did not know. Here you can’t help but believe that the author went barefoot all over Russia. Gorky spoke in detail about the life that he would like to change. Ordinary fights, a tavern, basement passions, illnesses. The light in this life is a medical student. This world wants to throw: “Oh, you bastards! Why do you live? How do you live? You are hypocritical crooks and nothing else! The spouses have the will to change the situation. They work in the cholera barracks, they work furiously.

However, Gorky does not like "happy endings". But faith in a person shows through even in the dirt.

If you think about it, this is not a banality at all. Such is the peshkovskaya grip. Such are the Gorky tramps. In the 1980s, the creators of perestroika “chernukha” worked in the style of these paintings.

3. THE SONG ABOUT THE FALCON, THE SONG ABOUT THE PETTER

All his life Alexei Maksimovich wrote poetry, although he did not consider himself a poet. Stalin's half-joking words are known: “This thing is stronger than Goethe's Faust. Love conquers death." The leader spoke about Gorky's poetic fairy tale "The Girl and Death", forgotten in our time. Gorky composed poetry in a somewhat old-fashioned way. He did not delve into the searches of the then poets, but read many. But two of his "songs", written in blank verse, cannot be deleted from Russian literature. Although ... Poems published as prose in 1895 were perceived as something outlandish:

“We sing glory to the madness of the brave!

The madness of the brave is the wisdom of life! O brave Falcon! In a battle with enemies, you bled to death ... But there will be time - and drops of your hot blood, like sparks, will flare up in the darkness of life and ignite many brave hearts with an insane thirst for freedom, light!

Let you die! .. But in the song of the brave and strong in spirit, you will always be a living example, a proud call to freedom, to light!

We sing a song to the madness of the brave! .. "

It's about the Falcon. And Burevestnik (1901) became a real anthem of the Russian revolution. In particular - the revolution of 1905. The revolutionary song was illegally republished in thousands of copies. You can not accept the stormy Gorky pathos, but it is impossible to erase this melody from memory: “A petrel soars proudly between the clouds and the sea.”

Gorky himself was considered a petrel.

The petrel of the revolution, which really happened, although at first it did not please Alexei Maksimovich.

4. MOTHER

This novel, written under the impressions of the events of 1905, was considered the foundation of socialist realism. At school, he was studied with special tension. They reprinted it countless times, filmed it several times and, between us, imposed it. This caused not only respect, but also rejection.

On the barricade wave of 1905, Gorky joined the Bolshevik Party. An even more convinced Bolshevik was his companion, the actress Maria Andreeva, the most charming revolutionary of the 20th century.

The novel is tendentious. But how convincing is he emotionally

Including in their hope for the proletariat. But the main thing is that this novel is not only a historical document. The strength of the preacher and the strength of the writer multiplied, and the book turned out to be powerful.

5. CHILDHOOD, IN PEOPLE, MY UNIVERSITIES

Korney Chukovsky said after reading this book: "In his old age, Gorky was drawn to colors." Between the revolution of 1905 and the war, the main writer showed how a rebel, Prometheus, is born and matures in a child. During this time, Tolstoy left, and Gorky became the "main" Russian writer - in terms of influence on the minds of readers, in terms of reputation among colleagues - even as picky as Bunin. And the story with Nizhny Novgorod motives was perceived as the program of the ruler of thoughts. Comparisons with "Childhood" cannot be dismissed: half a century separates the two stories, but the main thing is that the authors are from different constellations. Gorky revered Tolstoy, but crossed out Tolstoyism. He did not know how to recreate real worlds in prose, Gorky composed a song, an epic, a ballad about the young years of the hero, about his paths, paths.

Gorky admires harsh, brave, thick-skinned people, he is admired by strength, struggle.

He shows them enlarged, neglecting halftones, but refrains from hasty judgments. He despises lack of will and humility, but even admires the cruelty of the world. You can’t say better than Gorky: “A dense, motley, inexpressibly strange life began and flowed with terrible speed. I remember her as a harsh tale, well told by a kind, but painfully truthful genius. One of the most striking episodes in the story "Childhood" is about how Alyosha learned to read and write: "Beeches-people-az-la-bla." This became the main thing in his life.

6. AT THE BOTTOM

Here attestations are superfluous, this is just the Gorky Bible, the apotheosis of Russian outcasts. Gorky brought to the stage the inhabitants of the rooming house, vagabonds, thieves. It turns out that high tragedies and struggles take place in their world, no less significant than those of Shakespeare's kings ... "Man - that sounds proud!" - proclaims Satin, Gorky's favorite hero, a strong personality who was not broken by either prison or drunkenness. He has a strong rival - a wandering preacher of forgiveness. Gorky hated this sweet hypnosis, but refrained from unambiguously exposing Luke. Luke has his own truth.

The heroes of the Gorky rooming house were applauded not only by Moscow and St. Petersburg, but also by Berlin, Paris, Tokyo ...

And they will always put "At the bottom". And in the grumbling of Sateen - a seeker and a robber - they will find new subtexts: “There is only a person, everything else is the work of his hands and his brain! Human! It's great!"

7. BARBARS

As a playwright, Gorky is the most interesting. And "Barbarians" in our list are represented immediately after several Gorky plays about people of the early twentieth century. "Scenes in a county town" are sad: the characters turn out to be false, the provincial reality has gone and is cloudy. But in longing for a hero there is a premonition of something great.

While pumping up sadness, Gorky does not fall into straightforward pessimism.

It is not surprising that the play had a happy theatrical fate: at least two roles - Cherkun and Monakhova - are spelled out with brilliance. There is something for interpreters to look for.

8. Vassa ZHELEZNOVA

But this tragedy in our time simply needs to be re-read and reviewed. I think there is no more insightful book (not to mention plays) about Russian capitalism. Merciless play. Even in our time, hypocrites are afraid of her. It is easiest to repeat the common truth that behind every great fortune there is a crime.

And Gorky managed to show the psychology of this crime of rich quarters.

He knew how to paint vices like no one else. Yes, he exposes Vassa. And yet she came alive. Actresses play it incredibly interesting. Some even manage to justify this killer. Vera Pashennaya, Faina Ranevskaya, Nina Sazonova, Inna Churikova, Tatyana Doronina - Vassa was played by actresses who were worshiped by the theatrical world. And the public watched how mad with fat, weird and dying Russian capitalism.

9. TOWN OF OKUROV

Gorky wrote this story in 1909. A gray county town, the eternal orphanage of fussy, unhappy people. The chronicle is complete. Gorky is observant and ironic: “The main street, Porechnaya, or Berezhok, is paved with large cobblestones; in the spring, when young grass breaks through between the stones, Sukhobaev, the head of the city, calls the prisoners, and they, big and gray, heavy, silently crawl along the street, uprooting the grass. On Porechnaya, the best houses lined up harmoniously - blue, red, green, almost all with front gardens - the white house of Vogel, the chairman of the district council, with a turret on the roof; red-brick with yellow shutters - heads; pinkish - the father of Archpriest Isaiah Kudryavsky and a long row of boastful cozy houses - the authorities lodged in them: the military commander Pokivaiko, a passionate lover of singing, was nicknamed Mazepa for his big mustache and thickness; tax inspector Zhukov, a gloomy man who suffered from hard drinking; zemstvo chief Strehel, theater-goer and playwright; police officer Karl Ignatievich Worms and cheerful doctor Ryakhin, the best artist of the local circle of comedy and drama lovers.

An important topic for Gorky is the eternal dispute about philistinism. Or - "mixture"?

After all, a lot of things are mixed in a Russian person, and perhaps this is precisely his mystery.

10. THE LIFE OF KLIMA SAMGIN

The novel - the largest in Gorky's heritage, "for eight hundred people," as the parodists taunted - remained unfinished. But what remains, in terms of refinement, surpasses everything written by Gorky. It turns out that he knew how to write with restraint, almost academically, but at the same time in a Gorky way.

According to Gorky's definition, this is a book about "an intellectual of average value who goes through a whole range of moods, looking for the most independent place in life, where he would be comfortable both financially and internally."

And all this against the backdrop of the turning-point revolutionary years, right up to 1918. Gorky for the first time showed himself to be a realist, an objective analyst, found a harmonious narrative tone for his last book. He wrote "Samgin" for decades. At the same time, the author does not like the title character. Samghin is a real snake, reminiscent of Shchedrin's Judas Golovlev. But he crawls "throughout all the great Russia" - and the space of history opens up to us. It seems that Gorky, who lived in an eternal hurry, did not want to part with this book. The result was an encyclopedia, and not an idealistic one at all. Gorky writes without hypocrisy about love and flirting, about politics and religion, about nationalism and financial scams... This is both a chronicle and a confession. Like Cervantes, he even mentions himself in the novel: the characters discuss the writer Gorky. Just like us a hundred years later.

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Alexey Peshkov, known in literary circles as Maxim Gorky, was born in Nizhny Novgorod. Alexei's father died, in 1871, when the future writer was only 3 years old, his mother lived only a little longer, leaving her son an orphan at 11 years old. For further care, the boy was sent to the family of his maternal grandfather Vasily Kashirin.

It was not the cloudless life in his grandfather's house that made Alexei switch to his own bread from childhood. Getting food, Peshkov worked as a messenger, washed dishes, baked bread. Later, the future writer will talk about this in one of the parts of the autobiographical trilogy called "Childhood".

In 1884, young Peshkov aspired to pass the exams at Kazan University, but to no avail. Difficulties in life, the unexpected death of his own grandmother, who was a good friend of Alexei, lead him to despair and attempted suicide. The bullet did not hit the young man's heart, but this incident doomed him to lifelong respiratory weakness.

In a thirst for changes in the state structure, young Alexey contacts the Marxists. In 1888 he was arrested for anti-state propaganda. After his release, the future writer is engaged in wandering, calling this period of his life his “universities”.

The first steps of creativity

Since 1892, having returned to his native place, Alexei Peshkov became a journalist. The first articles of the young author are published under the pseudonym Yehudiel Khlamida (from the Greek cloak and dagger), but soon the writer comes up with another name for himself - Maxim Gorky. With the word "bitter" the writer strives to show the "bitter" life of the people and the desire to describe the "bitter" truth.

The first work of the master of the word was the story "Makar Chudra", published in 1892. Following him, the world saw other stories "Old Woman Izergil", "Chelkash", "Song of the Falcon", "Former People" and others (1895-1897).

Literary rise and popularity

In 1898, the collection Essays and Stories was published, which brought Maxim Gorky fame among the masses. The main characters of the stories were the lower classes of society, enduring the unprecedented hardships of life. The suffering of the "tramps" the author displayed in the most exaggerated form, in order to create a simulated pathos of "humanity". In his works, Gorky nurtured the idea of ​​the unity of the working class, protecting the social, political and cultural heritage of Russia.

The next revolutionary impulse, openly hostile to tsarism, was the Song of the Petrel. As a punishment for calling for a fight against the autocracy, Maxim Gorky was expelled from Nizhny Novgorod and recalled from the members of the Imperial Academy. Remaining in close ties with Lenin and other revolutionaries, Gorky wrote the play "At the Bottom" and a number of other plays that received recognition in Russia, Europe and the United States. At this time (1904-1921), the writer connects his life with the actress and admirer of Bolshevism, Maria Andreeva, breaking ties with his first wife, Ekaterina Peshkova.

Abroad

In 1905, after the December armed rebellion, fearing arrest, Maxim Gorky went abroad. Collecting the support of the Bolshevik Party, the writer visits Finland, Great Britain, the USA, gets acquainted with the famous writers Mark Twain, Theodore Roosevelt and others. .

Not daring to go to Russia, from 1906 to 1913 the revolutionary lives on the island of Capri, where he creates a new philosophical system, which is vividly displayed in the novel Confession (1908).

Return to the fatherland

An amnesty for the 300th anniversary of the Romanov dynasty allowed the writer to return to Russia in 1913. Continuing his active creative and civic activities, Gorky publishes the key parts of the autobiographical trilogy: 1914 - "Childhood", 1915-1916 - "In People".

During the First World War and the October Revolution, Gorky's Petersburg apartment became the site of regular Bolshevik meetings. But the situation changed dramatically a few weeks after the revolution, when the writer explicitly accused the Bolsheviks, in particular Lenin and Trotsky, of lust for power and the falsity of the intentions of creating democracy. The newspaper Novaya Zhizn, which was published by Gorky, became the object of persecution by censorship.

Together with the prosperity of communism, criticism of Gorky decreased and soon the writer met Lenin personally, admitting his mistakes.

Staying from 1921 to 1932 in Germany and Italy, Maxim Gorky writes the final part of the trilogy entitled "My Universities" (1923), and is also being treated for tuberculosis.

The last years of the writer's life

In 1934, Gorky was appointed head of the Union of Soviet Writers. As a sign of gratitude from the government, he receives a luxurious mansion in Moscow.

In the last years of his work, the writer was closely associated with Stalin, in every possible way supporting the policy of the dictator in his literary works. In this regard, Maxim Gorky is called the founder of a new trend in literature - socialist realism, which is more associated with communist propaganda than with artistic talent. The writer died on June 18, 1936.

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Name: Alexey Maksimovich Peshkov
Aliases: Maxim Gorky, Yehudiel Chlamyda
Birthday: March 16, 1868
Place of Birth: Nizhny Novgorod, Russian Empire
Date of death: June 18, 1936
A place of death: Gorki, Moscow region, RSFSR, USSR

Biography of Maxim Gorky

Maxim Gorky was born in Nizhny Novgorod in 1868. In fact, the writer's name was Alexei, but his father was Maxim, and the writer's surname was Peshkov. My father worked as a simple carpenter, so the family could not be called wealthy. At the age of 7, he went to school, but after a couple of months he had to quit his studies due to smallpox. As a result, the boy received a home education, and he also independently studied all subjects.

Gorky had a rather difficult childhood. His parents died too early and the boy lived with his grandfather , who had a very difficult character. Already at the age of 11, the future writer went to earn his own bread, moonlighting either in a bakery shop or in a dining room on a steamer.

In 1884, Gorky ended up in Kazan and tried to get an education, but this attempt failed, and he had to work hard again to earn money for his livelihood. At the age of 19, Gorky even tries to commit suicide due to poverty and fatigue.

Here he is fond of Marxism, trying to agitate. In 1888 he was arrested for the first time. He gets a job at an iron job, where the authorities keep a close eye on him.

In 1889, Gorky returned to Nizhny Novgorod, got a job with the lawyer Lanin as a clerk. It was during this period that he wrote "The Song of the Old Oak" and turned to Korolenko to appreciate the work.

In 1891, Gorky set off to travel around the country. In Tiflis, his story "Makar Chudra" is published for the first time.

In 1892, Gorky again went to Nizhny Novgorod and returned to the service of the lawyer Lanin. Here it is already published in many editions of Samara and Kazan. In 1895 he moved to Samara. At this time, he actively writes and his works are constantly printed. The two-volume Essays and Stories, published in 1898, is in great demand and is very actively discussed and criticized. In the period from 1900 to 1901 he met Tolstoy and Chekhov.

In 1901, Gorky created his first plays, The Philistines and At the Bottom. They were very popular, and "Petty Bourgeois" was even staged in Vienna and Berlin. The writer became known already at the international level. Since that moment, his works have been translated into different languages ​​of the world, and he and his works have become the object of close attention of foreign critics.

Gorky became a participant in the revolution in 1905, and since 1906 he has been leaving his country in connection with political events. He has been living on the Italian island of Capri for a long time. Here he writes the novel "Mother". This work influenced the emergence of a new trend in literature as socialist realism.

In 1913, Maxim Gorky was finally able to return to his homeland. During this period, he is actively working on his autobiography. He also works as an editor for two newspapers. Then he gathered proletarian writers around him and published a collection of their works.

The period of the revolution in 1917 was ambiguous for Gorky. As a result, he joins the ranks of the Bolsheviks, despite doubts and torments. However, he does not support some of their views and actions. In particular, regarding the intelligentsia. Thanks to Gorky, most of the intelligentsia in those days escaped starvation and painful death.

In 1921 Gorky left his country. There is a version that he does this because Lenin was too worried about the health of the great writer, whose tuberculosis worsened. However, Gorky's contradictions with the authorities could also be the reason. He lived in Prague, Berlin and Sorrento.

When Gorky was 60 years old, Stalin himself invited him to the USSR. The writer was given a warm welcome. He traveled around the country, where he spoke at meetings and rallies. He is honored in every possible way, taken to the Communist Academy.

In 1932, Gorky returned to the USSR for good. He leads a very active literary activity, organizes the All-Union Congress of Soviet Writers, publishes a large number of newspapers.

In 1936, terrible news swept across the country: Maxim Gorky had left this world. The writer caught a cold when he visited his son's grave. However, there is an opinion that both the son and the father were poisoned because of political views, but this has never been proven.

Documentary

Your attention is a documentary film, a biography of Maxim Gorky.

Bibliography of Maxim Gorky

Novels

1899
Foma Gordeev
1900-1901
Three
1906
Mother (second edition - 1907)
1925
The Artamonov case
1925-1936
Life of Klim Samgin

Tale

1908
The life of an unwanted person
1908
Confession
1909
Okurov town
Life of Matvey Kozhemyakin
1913-1914
Childhood
1915-1916
In people
1923
My universities

Stories, essays

1892
girl and death
1892
Makar Chudra
1895
Chelkash
Old Isergil
1897
former people
Spouses Orlovs
Mallow
Konovalov
1898
Essays and stories (collection)
1899
Song of the Falcon (poem in prose)
twenty six and one
1901
Song about the petrel (poem in prose)
1903
Man (poem in prose)
1913
Tales of Italy
1912-1917
In Russia (a cycle of stories)
1924
Stories 1922-1924
1924
Notes from the diary (a cycle of stories)

Plays

1901
Philistines
1902
At the bottom
1904
summer residents
1905
Children of the Sun
Barbarians
1906
Enemies
1910
Vassa Zheleznova (revised in December 1935)
1915
Old man
1930-1931
Somov and others
1932
Egor Bulychov and others
1933
Dostigaev and others

Publicism

1906
My interviews
In America" ​​(pamphlets)
1917-1918
series of articles "Untimely Thoughts" in the newspaper "New Life"
1922
About the Russian peasantry