March 8, 1809
The first book of fables by the 40-year-old has been published Ivan Krylov. Slim—fifty pages, 23 fables, no illustrations—it became a bestseller: 1200 copies sold out in a flash. The author earned fame as Russia's finest fabulist, gaining honor, respect, and material well-being.
Eagles sometimes fly lower than hens;
But chickens will never rise to the clouds!
“Ah, what am I to blame?” - “Be quiet! tired i listen
Leisure me sort your fault, puppy!
You are to blame for the fact that I want to eat "
Up until this point, Krylov's life had been anything but rosy. He was born in 1769. During the Pugachev Rebellion, his father, a poor army officer, served in Yaik fortress. In 1774, when the Yaitsky town was surrounded, the commandant of the fortress Simonov I was at a loss. The captain took command. Krylov. The fortress stood firm.
Pugachev gnashed his teeth. He vowed to hang not only Simonov and Krylov, but also the latter's entire family, who were in Orenburg at the time. Thus, the four-year-old child, the later famous Krylov, was also doomed to death.
(Pushkin, "The History of Pugachev")
Krylov's wife and Vanya were forced to go into hiding and starve. It is believed that childhood malnutrition led to Krylov's adult overindulgence. His memoirs were an important source for Pushkin's account of the Pugachev Rebellion.
After the rebellion ended, Krylov Sr. received no ranks or awards. He moved with his family to Tver. Soon after, 8-year-old Vanya died. He found a job as a clerk in the district court. He learned to read and write in the landowners' house. Lvov — kind people allowed him to attend their children's French lessons.
He was self-educated. He read a lot. He had a gift for mathematics and artistic taste. He played various musical instruments. In addition to French, he learned English, German, and Italian. Later, when he was already over 50, on a bet with the translator of Homer Gnedich In two years he mastered ancient Greek.
Our finest painters listened to his opinions on their works with confidence and respect. As a musician, in his youth he was renowned for his violin playing and participated in friendly quartets of the first virtuosos.
(Petr Pletnev)
В Petersburg He moved at 13—his mother secured him a position in the state chamber. He fell in love with the newly opened public theater (now the Alexandrinsky Theater) and began dreaming of a literary career. He began publishing from the 1780s, but critics found his early efforts too sarcasm-laden and lacking in artistry.
He published the magazines "Mail of Spirits" and "Spectator," where, among other things, he analyzed the repertoire and quality of acting on the Russian stage—and thereby contributed to the development of theater criticism in Russia.
In 1806, on the advice of the fabulist Ivan Dmitrieva translated three fables Lafontaine. He did it masterfully and realized that he had found himself. He wrote 236 fables in total. He borrowed some of the plots from La Fontaine (and he from Aesop и Phaedra), others he invented himself, fortunately, he had plenty of material overheard from ordinary people at fairs and gatherings in taverns. Thanks to Krylov, 19th-century literature began to speak a language that is still understandable today.
Hey Moska! She is strong to know that she barks at the Elephant!
This kind [of fable] is understandable to everyone; both servants and children read it
Friends called him "Nightingale." They valued him for his storytelling skills, but mocked him for his laziness and sloppiness. There was a joke about how Krylov was once invited to a masquerade:
— I don’t know what dress to wear...
- If you washed, shaved, dressed cleanly, no one would recognize you.
From 1812 he worked in the Public Library: under his leadership, the collection of books in Russian grew from four units to 26,000 volumes.
In his youth, he wanted to marry a priest's daughter, but her parents refused the poor poet. According to contemporaries, he raised his daughter Sasha from the cook Feni - After her marriage, he gave her a large dowry, looked after her children and bequeathed all his property to her husband.
Being strong is good, being smart is twice as good
He died in 1844 of pneumonia. The last collection of fables he wrote during his lifetime was published at the same time. Friends received it along with an invitation to his funeral. The title page bore the inscription: "An offering. In memory of Ivan Andreevich Krylov. At his request."
