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Ivan Sergeevich Turgenev is
generally regarded as one of the three greatest
Russian novelists. Born in Orel, he was able to
study in Moscow, Saint Petersburg, and Berlin. He
was the first Russian writer to receive wide
recognition outside his native Russia. He
published his book A Sportsman's Sketches in
1852. These sympathetic tales, largely about the
life of peasants, gained a reputation for
Turgenev. He added to it with a series of
brilliant novels, most notably Fathers and Sons,
Soil, and A Nest of Gentlefolk.
An analysis of the works of Ivan Turgenev reveals
him as broadly sympathetic to a group in Russia
called "The Westerners". They believed
that Russia's well being depended upon its
ability to learn from the best of western
European culture. His heroes are often frustrated
and disillusioned liberals, the so-called
"superfluous men" of the time. His
heroines, on the other hand, are usually
strong0willed and have a powerful sense of duty.
Although he wrote realistically, his prose, and
especially his descriptions of nature, often
contains a beautiful poetic atmosphere.
Turgenev tried to find favor with the liberals of
his day, but they criticized him for the
politically ineffective heroes in his novels.
This criticism mounted to considerable heights
over the character Bazarov in Fathers and Sons.
Turgenev called him a nihilist, a man who opposed
all tradition and authority. Offended by the
unfavorable reception, he spent more and more
time abroad, and died near Paris in 1883.
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