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After a brief military career, the illustrious Russian author Fyodor Dostoyevsky quickly turned to writing as a profession with the publication of his first novel, "Poor Folk" in 1846. This novel sparked a literary career that would eventually cement Dostoyevsky's reputation as one of the greatest novelists of the nineteenth century. Early participation in a literary political group landed the writer in exile in Siberia for nearly a decade, an experience...
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Fyodor Dostoyevsky "An Honest Thief" is an 1848 short story that famously tells the tale of Emelyan Ilyitch, the tragic drunk. It begins with our narrator conversing with Astafy Ivanovich, an aged soldier and temporary lodger. An unfortunate coat theft leaves Astafy dismayed one day, and a conversation is struck up between the two, who seem to share the same dislike for thieves in general. One night, however, Astafy recounts to the narrator a story...
3) White Nights
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The short works of Dostoevsky exist in the very large shadow of his astonishing longer novels, but they too are among literature's most revered works and offer keys to understanding the themes in his longer works. Contained in this volume are the short stories "White Nights," "A Disgraceful Affair," and "The Dream of the Ridiculous Man," three of Dostoevsky's most troubling, moving, and poignant works. Alongside A DISGRACEFUL AFFAIR, Harper Perennial...
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Russian author Fyodor Dostoyevsky is best known for his psychological works of fiction. His characters and plots all carry psychosomatic troubles and problems that help make the stories more relatable to the reader. "Notes from Underground, The Double and Other Stories" combines some of Dostoyevsky's shorter works, though they certainly do not lack for depth. "Notes from Underground" is widely known as the first existential novel because of the raving,...
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A towering literary giant, Fyodor Dostoyevsky was-and remains-unparalleled in his understanding of the darkness that resides in the farthest corners of the human soul. Although his shorter works have been overshadowed by his astonishing novels-Crime and Punishment and The Brothers Karamazov, to name but two-his stories and novellas deserve a place among the great literary inventions of the modern era, offering insight into the themes and ideas that...
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"A Gentle Creature" is an 1876 short story by Fyodor Dostoyevsky. Inspired by a real story of a seamstress who committed suicide in 1876, it chronicles the relationship between a girl and a pawnbroker whose shop she visits frequently. When a 16-year-old girl frequently pawns her belongings so that she can advertise as a governess in the newspaper, her dire financial situation is made apparent to the shop owner and narrator, who resolves to give her...
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From the author of Crime and Punishment comes this remarkable collection of short fiction. A selection of ten compelling tales, steeped in Dostoyevsky's characteristic themes of spiritual torment and psychological struggle, evoke life in Czarist Russia. Featured stories include "The Dream of a Ridiculous Man," "Bobok," "An Honest Thief," "An Unpleasant Predicament," "Another Man's Wife," "The Peasant Marey," "The Crocodile," "A Faint Heart," "A Christmas...
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An Unpleasant Predicament is a novel by Fyodor Dostoevsky that tells the story of a man who is forced to make a difficult decision. The man is in a difficult situation because he is being blackmailed, and he must choose between two unpleasant options. He eventually decides to commit suicide rather than face the consequences of his decision.
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A Little Hero is a novella by Fyodor Dostoyevsky that tells the story of a young boy's journey to find his place in the world. The story is full of complex characters and intricate plot lines, and it is written in a dense, intriguing style. It is considered to be one of Dostoyevsky's most underrated works, and it is not widely read or studied today.
10) Polzunkov
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The story follows the life of a man named Polzunkov, who is living in poverty and is constantly persecuted by those around him. The novel is said to be based on Dostoevsky's own experiences living in poverty, and it is considered to be one of his most autobiographical works.
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The story follows a young man's journey to find himself. It is written in nine letters, which the protagonist sends to his loved ones. The letters chronicle his experiences and inner thoughts as he travels across Europe. Dostoyevsky's writing is complex and rich, and the novella is a beautifully written exploration of self-discovery.
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When the protagonist Ivan Ilyich Pralinsky drinks a little bit too much with his colleagues one day, he expresses his desire for a philosophy founded upon the value of kindness and charity to those who are worse off than oneself. After he leaves, Ivan encounters a wedding celebration, which turns to be that of one of his underlings at work, and his new philosophy is put to the test when he gatecrashes the festivities. Also translated as "A Nasty Story",...
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This volume contains Fyodor Dostoyevsky's 1877 short story "The Dream of a Ridiculous Man". It begins with a man walking St. Petersburg's streets while musing upon how ridiculous his life is, as well as its distinct lack of meaning or purpose. This train of thought leads him to the idea of suicide, which he resolves to commit using a previously-acquired gun. However, a chance encounter with a distressed little girl in the street derails his drastic...
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Mr. Prohartchin lives a miserable life. To his neighbors he is a man to be pitied, living in a bare apartment with little more than a mattress on the floor. His meals are sparse and frugal, and he is isolated from society. However, when his landlady investigates his apartment upon his death, she finds that there was more to Mr. Prohartchin than she and her other tenants ever could have guessed. "Mr. Prohartchin" was first published in Annals of the...
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A young, lonely man strolls the streets of St. Petersburg contemplating his solitude when he happens upon a young woman in tears. While escorting her home, the two strike up a conversation and soon become friends, meeting up at night to share their stories. When the young woman, Nastenka, explains that she was crying because she had been waiting for her fiancé who promised he would be back to marry her, the young man, despite his growing feelings...
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While serving time in a prison camp, a man witnesses the savage beating of another prisoner. A fellow inmate, who comes from wealth in his home country of Poland, comments on the brutality of the peasant prisoners, leading the young man to reflect on an event from his childhood that had demonstrated to him the kindness and culture of Russian peasants."The Peasant Marey" is considered an autobiographical work, set during a period in the 1930s when...
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While contemplating his life and deeming himself ridiculous, a man on the verge of suicide is interrupted by a young girl begging for his help. In his dark mood, he brushes her away, but when he returns home to commit the act he cannot move past his feelings of guilt over his treatment of the girl. "The Dream of a Ridiculous Man" was adapted into a 1990 BBC production entitled The Dream starring Jeremy Irons.
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"The Crocodile - An Extraordinary Incident" introduces the reader to Dostoevsky's silly side, with an absurd and surreal plot that will have you howling with laughter. Satirical and deeply humorous, this volume is not to be missed by fans and collectors of Dostoevsky's seminal work. Other notable works by this author include: "Crime and Punishment" (1866), "Notes from the Underground" (1864), and "The Idiot" (1869). Many vintage books such as this...
20) A Faint Heart
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"A Faint Heart" is a fantastic short story by Fyodor Mikhailovich Dostoevsky (1821 – 1881), a Russian novelist, essayist, short story writer, journalist, and philosopher. His literature examines human psychology during the turbulent social, spiritual and political atmosphere of 19th-century Russia, and he is considered one of the greatest psychologists in world literature.
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