September 14: In memory of the revolutionary Anna Jaclar, sister of Sofia Kovalevskaya and muse of Dostoevsky
On September 14, 1887, 43-year-old Anne Jaclar (Korvin-Krukovskaya), a revolutionary, writer, and participant in the Paris Commune, died in Paris. She was the sister of mathematician Sofia Kovalevskaya and the woman to whom Fyodor Dostoevsky proposed.
A slender, beautiful blonde with blue, sometimes almost green, eyes and a wonderful wavy braid
(publisher of "Russian Antiquity" Mikhail Semevsky)
Childhood in Polibino
She was born in 1843 in Moscow into an aristocratic family. She was her parents' favorite.
Anyuta, being significantly older, enjoyed great advantages over us [my brother and I]. She grew up as a free Cossack, not recognizing any authority over her.
(Sofia Kovalevskaya)
In 1858, his father, Lieutenant General Vasily Korvin-Krukovsky, retired. The family moved to the family estate of Polibino (now in the Pskov region). By then, the general had made an unpleasant discovery: his children weren't as well educated as he would have liked. He had to make up for it.
As a result, Anna and Sophia received an excellent education. From their youth, they devoured materialist literature, including the works of natural philosophers Ludwig Büchner and Karl Vogt, and the populist movement Nikolai Chernyshevsky and Pyotr Lavrov.
Influenced by books, Anna had changed dramatically by the age of 20—she wore simple dresses and spent long periods of time with village women. She demanded to be allowed to study in St. Petersburg, but was refused.
Dostoevsky's first stories and journal
She began writing short stories. The first, titled "Dream," about a girl whose prejudices prevented her from falling in love with a penniless student, was sent to Dostoevsky in 1864 for the magazine "Epoch." She signed herself "Yu. O-v" (Yuri Orbelov) and frankly admitted that she had adopted a pseudonym to avoid revealing the general's daughter's name in print. Dostoevsky published the story, as did the second, titled "Mikhail" ("The Novice"). The royalties ended up in the hands of Anna's father, who caused a scandal:
Now you sell your stories, but the time will come, perhaps, when you will sell yourself too.
Later, the general relented and allowed her to continue writing. He even allowed her to meet Dostoevsky in St. Petersburg, although he noted that she had to be careful with him. "a man not of our society... a former convict".
The Failed Bride
In the winter of 1865, Korvin-Krukovskaya and Dostoevsky met frequently, chatted, and argued. They mostly discussed nihilism, which Anna sympathized with—at that time, Dostoevsky was more inclined toward religion and conservatism. He was attracted to Anna and even proposed marriage. Anna did not reciprocate. But their good relationship remained strong throughout their lives.
Anna Vasilievna is one of the best women I have ever met in my life... but her convictions are diametrically opposed to mine, and she cannot give them up.
(Dostoevsky)
He needs a completely different kind of wife than me. His wife should be completely devoted to him, give her whole life to him, think only of him. But I can't do that.
(Anna to her sister)
Anna's traits can be found in various heroines of Dostoevsky, but she is perhaps most recognizable in Aglaya Epanchina from The Idiot.
Escape Abroad and the Paris Commune
The Korvin-Krukovsky sisters were eager to study. In Russia, universities didn't accept girls. Traveling abroad required permission from their father or husband. Sophia entered into a fictitious marriage with the young scientist Vladimir Kovalevsky (a real relationship would later develop). Anna also left with them.
She worked in a printing house in Paris. She met a medical student and Blanquist revolutionary, Victor Jaclard (they would later marry). Both were adherents of Bakunin's anarchist movement, but they also corresponded with Marx. They lived in Switzerland for a time. They joined the First International and were active participants in the Paris Commune of 1871.
Together with the feminist writer André Léo, Anna founded the newspaper La Sociale and fought for women's rights: she demanded equal pay with men, the right to vote, and the closure of brothels.
The return, expulsion and death of Anne Jaclar
After the fall of the Paris Commune, Victor was arrested (later sentenced to death in absentia). In the autumn of 1871, he escaped from prison.
In 1874, they arrived in Russia. Anna worked as a translator, and Victor taught French. In 1887, after the assassination attempt on Alexander III, Jacquard, with his revolutionary past, was expelled from Russia. Anna was gravely ill by then. She died three months after her departure.
