A Russian Gentleman

Aksakov, S. T. (Sergei Timofeevich), 1791-1859Project Gutenberg · United StatesDec 2019

3.8

Word count: 478K words
Chapters: 48

Summary

Project Gutenberg was the first provider of free electronic books, or eBooks. Michael Hart, founder of Project Gutenberg, invented eBooks in 1971 and his memory continues to inspire the creation of eBooks and related technologies today.A Russian Gentleman by S. T. AksakovAuthor: Aksakov, S. T. (Sergei Timofeevich), 1791-1859,Language: English, Class: PG: Language and Literatures: Slavic (including Russian), Languages and Literature, Release Date: Feb 6, 2012

Editor's review

This work is Aksakov's memoir of Russian country-gentry life presented for English-language readers, and is a free public-domain e-book from Project Gutenberg. Its value lies not in dramatic plotting but in preserving, from a participant's perspective, the everyday details of a nineteenth-century Russian landed estate: family relations, hunting, farming, servants and local customs, so that it reads like a slowly unfolding panorama of manners. The prose is plain and the observation minute, with the warmth and distance peculiar to memoir; it suits readers interested in Russian literature and social history as background reading. One need not look for a continuous story; treat it as a collection of essayistic sketches of people and scenes, noting how the narrator handles family memory with gentle humor and nostalgia. The electronic edition makes it easy to search names and places, and it can be read alongside histories of Russian literature and discussions of serfdom.

Who it's for

A good fit for

Readers interested in nineteenth-century Russian rural and aristocratic life
Literature lovers who want social background to accompany their reading of Russian literature
Readers who prefer memoirs and sketches of manners to plot-driven fiction
Researchers and self-learners who need a free public-domain English text

Not a good fit for

Novel readers expecting tight plotting and strong conflict
Those unaccustomed to public-domain English texts and a slow narrative pace
Readers seeking a systematic account of Russian history

Reading tips

Begin with the chapters on family members and estate life, build a map of the relationships, then read through.
Read it against Turgenev's or Tolstoy's rural works and note the differences in point of view.
Jot down details of hunting, festivals and servants as background material for Russian social history.
Do not force your way page by page; skim by theme and use the book as a collection of essays.

About the publisher

Project Gutenberg United States · Founded in 1971

Project Gutenberg is a digital publishing project focused on public-domain ebooks. Its publishing direction centers on classic literary works whose copyright has expired, covering genres such as poetry, drama, fiction, and epic. Representative books include Lyrical Ballads by Wordsworth and Coleridge, Proust's Du côté de chez Swann, Shakespeare's Macbeth and The Complete Works of William Shakespeare, Homer's The Iliad, Dante's La Divina Comèdia: Purgatòri, Cervantes's The History of Don Quixote, Volume 2, and Grahame's The Wind in the Willows. Its author resources consist mainly of classic Western writers such as Wordsworth, Proust, Shakespeare, Homer, Dante, Cervantes, Grahame, and Tolstoy. Its publishing feature is the provision of freely accessible ebooks in EPUB and Kindle formats; it is not a traditional publisher, and publicly available information is limited.

FAQ

Is this book a novel or a memoir?

It is reminiscence written by Aksakov from family memory, with a clear autobiographical and documentary character; it is not a novel driven by invented plot. Read it for its sketches of people and scenes of life, not for a complete storyline.

Can I read this book if my English is not good?

The text is a public-domain English book and the language is on the whole plain, but it contains many words and family titles connected with nineteenth-century Russian gentry life. Intermediate English or above is advisable, or use the electronic edition's search function and a dictionary.

Why pay attention to the details of custom?

The book's chief value is its first-hand observation of estate life, hunting, family relations and local customs. These details give concrete background for reading Russian literature and studying social history, and are easier to remember than abstract discussion.

Comments

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About the author

Aksakov, S. T. (Sergei Timofeevich), 1791-1859 Author · Russian · 1791–1859

Sergei Timofeevich Aksakov (1791–1859) was a Russian writer known for his memoir-based works about family life and observations of nature. His representative work, A Family Chronicle, along with his memoirs, draws on personal memory and is written in a plain, detailed style that combines literary quality with documentary value. He was skilled at presenting the life of old Russia through accounts of domestic routines and rural scenery, and he has had a certain influence on later Russian memoir literature. The library currently holds his work A Russian Gentleman, an English translation related to A Family Chronicle, which shows that his writing centers on family memory. Public information about the details of his life and the full scope of his work is limited, so no further elaboration is given here.