Life and work of Bunin. Themes of Bunin's creativity

The great Russian writer, Nobel Prize winner, poet, publicist, literary critic and prose translator. It is these words that reflect the activities, achievements and creativity of Bunin. The whole life of this writer was multifaceted and interesting, he always chose his own path and did not listen to those who tried to “rebuild” his views on life, he was not a member of any literary society, and even more so a political party. It can be attributed to those personalities who were unique in their work.

earliest childhood

On October 10 (according to the old style), 1870, a little boy Ivan was born in the city of Voronezh, and whose work in the future will leave a bright mark on Russian and world literature.

Despite the fact that Ivan Bunin came from an ancient noble family, his childhood did not pass at all in a big city, but in one of the family estates (it was a small farm). Parents could afford to hire a home teacher. About the time when Bunin grew up and studied at home, the writer recalled more than once during his life. He spoke only positively about this "golden" period of his life. With gratitude and respect, he remembered this student of Moscow University, who, according to the writer, awakened in him a passion for literature, because, despite such a young age, which little Ivan read, there were Odyssey and English Poets. Even Bunin himself later said that this was the very first impetus to poetry and writing in general. Ivan Bunin showed artistry early enough. The poet's creativity found expression in his talent as a reader. He excellently read his own works and interested the most dull listeners.

Studying at the gymnasium

When Vanya was ten years old, his parents decided that he had reached the age when it was already possible to send him to the gymnasium. So Ivan began to study at the Yelets gymnasium. During this period, he lived away from his parents, with his relatives in Yelets. Admission to the gymnasium and the study itself became a kind of turning point for him, because the boy, who had lived with his parents all his life before and had practically no restrictions, was really difficult to get used to the new city life. New rules, strictness and prohibitions entered his life. Later, he lived in rented apartments, but he also did not feel comfortable in these houses. Studying at the gymnasium did not last long, because after 4 years he was expelled. The reason was non-payment of tuition and failure to appear from the holidays.

External path

After everything experienced, Ivan Bunin settles in the estate of his deceased grandmother in Ozerki. Guided by the instructions of his older brother Julius, he quickly passes the course of the gymnasium. Some subjects he taught more diligently. And he even took a university course. Julius, the elder brother of Ivan Bunin, has always been distinguished by his education. Therefore, it was he who helped his younger brother in his studies. Julia and Ivan had a fairly trusting relationship. For this reason, it was he who became the first reader, as well as a critic of the earliest work of Ivan Bunin.

First lines

According to the writer himself, his future talent was formed under the influence of the stories of relatives and friends that he heard in the place where he spent his childhood. It was there that he learned the first subtleties and features of his native language, listened to stories and songs, which in the future helped the writer to find unique comparisons in his works. All this had the best effect on Bunin's talent.

He began writing poetry at a very early age. Bunin's work was born, one might say, when the future writer was only seven years old. When all the other children were just learning to read, little Ivan had already begun to write poetry. He really wanted to achieve success, mentally compared himself with Pushkin, Lermontov. I read with enthusiasm the works of Maikov, Tolstoy, Fet.

At the very beginning of professional creativity

Ivan Bunin first appeared in print, also at a fairly young age, namely at the age of 16. The life and work of Bunin in general have always been closely intertwined. Well, it all started, of course, small, when two of his poems were published: "Over the grave of S. Ya. Nadson" and "The village beggar." During the year, ten of his best poems and the first stories "Two Wanderers" and "Nefyodka" were published. These events became the beginning of the literary and writing activities of the great poet and prose writer. For the first time, the main theme of his writings was identified - man. In Bunin's work, the theme of psychology, the mysteries of the soul, will remain key to the last line.

In 1889, young Bunin, under the influence of the revolutionary-democratic movement of the intelligentsia - populists, moved to his brother in Kharkov. But soon he becomes disillusioned with this movement and quickly moves away from it. Instead of cooperating with the populists, he leaves for the city of Orel and there begins his work in the Oryol Bulletin. In 1891 the first collection of his poems was published.

The first love

Despite the fact that throughout his life the themes of Bunin's work were diverse, almost the entire first collection of poems is saturated with the experiences of young Ivan. It was at this time that the writer had his first love. He lived in a civil marriage with Varvara Pashchenko, who became the author's muse. So for the first time love manifested itself in the work of Bunin. Young people often quarreled, did not find a common language. Everything that happened in their life together, each time made him disappointed and wondered, is love worth such experiences? Sometimes it seemed that someone from above simply did not want them to be together. First, it was Varvara's father's ban on the wedding of young people, then, when they nevertheless decided to live in a civil marriage, Ivan Bunin unexpectedly finds a lot of minuses in their life together, and then he is completely disappointed in her. Later, Bunin concludes for himself that he and Varvara do not suit each other in character, and soon the young people simply part. Almost immediately, Varvara Pashchenko marries Bunin's friend. This brought many experiences to the young writer. He is disappointed in life and love completely.

Productive work

At this time, Bunin's life and work are no longer so similar. The writer decides to give up personal happiness, all given to work. During this period, tragic love comes through brighter in Bunin's work.

Almost at the same time, fleeing loneliness, he moved to his brother Julius in Poltava. There is a rise in the literary field. His stories are published in leading magazines, in writing he is gaining popularity. The themes of Bunin's work are mainly devoted to man, the secrets of the Slavic soul, the majestic Russian nature and selfless love.

After Bunin visited St. Petersburg and Moscow in 1895, he gradually began to enter into a large literary environment, in which he very organically fit in. Here he met Bryusov, Sologub, Kuprin, Chekhov, Balmont, Grigorovich.

Later, Ivan begins to correspond with Chekhov. It was Anton Pavlovich who predicted to Bunin that he would become a "great writer." Later, carried away by moral sermons, he makes his idol out of him and even tries to live according to his advice for a certain time. Bunin asked for an audience with Tolstoy and was honored to meet the great writer in person.

A new step on the creative path

In 1896, Bunin tries himself as a translator of works of art. In the same year, his translation of Longfellow's The Song of Hiawatha was published. In this translation, Bunin's work was seen by everyone from the other side. His contemporaries recognized his talent at its true worth and highly appreciated the work of the writer. Ivan Bunin received the Pushkin Prize of the first degree for this translation, which gave the writer, and now also the translator, a reason to be even more proud of his achievements. To receive such high praise, Bunin literally did a titanic work. After all, the translation of such works itself requires perseverance and talent, and for this the writer also had to learn English on his own. As the result of the translation showed, he succeeded.

Second attempt at marriage

Remaining free for so long, Bunin decided to marry again. This time, his choice fell on a Greek woman, the daughter of a wealthy emigrant A. N. Tsakni. But this marriage, like the last one, did not bring joy to the writer. After a year of married life, his wife left him. In marriage, they had a son. Little Kolya died very young, at the age of 5, from meningitis. Ivan Bunin was very worried about the loss of his only child. The further life of the writer developed in such a way that he had no more children.

mature years

The first book of short stories entitled "To the End of the World" was published in 1897. Almost all critics rated its content very positively. A year later, another poetry collection "Under the open sky" was published. It was these works that brought the writer popularity in the Russian literature of that time. Bunin's work was briefly, but at the same time capacious, presented to the public, which highly appreciated and accepted the author's talent.

But Bunin's prose really gained great popularity in 1900, when the story "Antonov apples" was published. This work was created on the basis of the writer's memories of his rural childhood. For the first time, nature is vividly depicted in Bunin's work. It was the carefree time of childhood that awakened in him the best feelings and memories. The reader plunges headlong into that beautiful early autumn that beckons the prose writer, just at the time of picking Antonov apples. For Bunin, according to him, these were the most precious and unforgettable memories. It was joy, real life and carelessness. And the disappearance of the unique smell of apples is, as it were, the extinction of everything that brought the writer a lot of pleasure.

Reproaches of noble origin

Many ambiguously regarded the meaning of the allegory “the smell of apples” in the work “Antonov apples”, since this symbol was very closely intertwined with the symbol of the nobility, which, due to Bunin’s origin, was not at all alien to him. These facts caused many of his contemporaries, such as M. Gorky, to criticize Bunin's work, saying that Antonov apples smell good, but they do not smell democratic at all. However, the same Gorky noted the elegance of literature in the work and Bunin's talent.

Interestingly, for Bunin, reproaches about his noble origin meant nothing. He was alien to swagger or arrogance. Many at that time were looking for subtexts in Bunin's works, wanting to prove that the writer regretted the disappearance of serfdom and the leveling of the nobility as such. But Bunin pursued a completely different idea in his work. He was not sorry for the change of the system, but for the fact that all life passes, and that we all once loved with all our hearts, but this is also a thing of the past ... He was sad that he no longer enjoys his beauty .

Wanderings of the writer

Ivan Bunin was in his soul all his life. Probably, this was the reason that he did not stay anywhere for a long time, he liked to travel to different cities, where he often drew ideas for his works.

Beginning in October 1900, he traveled with Kurovsky around Europe. Visited Germany, Switzerland, France. Literally 3 years later, with another friend of his - the playwright Naydenov - he was again in France, visited Italy. In 1904, having become interested in the nature of the Caucasus, he decides to go there. The journey was not in vain. This trip, many years later, inspired Bunin to a whole cycle of stories "The Shadow of a Bird" that are connected with the Caucasus. The world saw these stories in 1907-1911, and much later the story of 1925 “Many Waters” appeared, also inspired by the wondrous nature of this region.

At this time, nature is most clearly reflected in Bunin's work. It was another facet of the writer's talent - travel essays.

"Find your love, keep it..."

Life brought Ivan Bunin together with many people. Some passed and passed away, others stayed for a long time. An example of this was Vera Nikolaevna Muromtseva. Bunin met her in November 1906, at a friend's house. Clever and educated in many areas, the woman was indeed his best friend, and even after the death of the writer she prepared his manuscripts for publication. She wrote the book "The Life of Bunin", in which she placed the most important and interesting facts from the writer's life. He told her more than once: “Without you, I would not have written anything. I'd be gone!"

Here love and creativity in Bunin's life find each other again. Probably, it was at that moment that Bunin realized that he had found the one he had been looking for for many years. He found in this woman his beloved, a person who will always support him in difficult times, a comrade who will not betray. Since Muromtseva became his life partner, the writer wanted to create and compose something new, interesting, crazy with renewed vigor, this gave him vitality. It was at that moment that the traveler wakes up in him again, and since 1907 Bunin has traveled half of Asia and Africa.

World recognition

In the period from 1907 to 1912, Bunin did not stop creating. And in 1909 he was awarded the second Pushkin Prize for his Poems 1903-1906. Here we recall the person in Bunin's work and the essence of human actions, which the writer tried to understand. Many translations were also noted, which he did no less brilliantly than he composed new works.

On November 9, 1933, an event occurred that became the pinnacle of the writer's writing activity. He received a letter informing him that Bunin was being awarded the Nobel Prize. Ivan Bunin is the first Russian writer to receive this high award and prize. His work reached its peak - he received worldwide fame. Since then, he began to be recognized as the best of the best in his field. But Bunin did not stop his activities and, as a truly famous writer, he worked with redoubled energy.

The theme of nature in Bunin's work continues to occupy one of the main places. The writer writes a lot about love. This was an occasion for critics to compare the work of Kuprin and Bunin. Indeed, there are many similarities in their works. They are written in a simple and sincere language, full of lyrics, ease and naturalness. The characters of the heroes are spelled out very subtly (from a psychological point of view.) Here, to the best of sensuality, there is a lot of humanity and naturalness.

Comparison of the work of Kuprin and Bunin gives reason to highlight such common features of their works as the tragic fate of the protagonist, the assertion that there will be retribution for any happiness, the exaltation of love over all other human feelings. Both writers claim in their work that the meaning of life is in love, and that a person endowed with the talent to love is worthy of worship.

Conclusion

The life of the great writer was interrupted on November 8, 1953 in Paris, where he and his wife emigrated after starting in the USSR. He is buried in the Russian cemetery of Sainte-Genevieve-des-Bois.

It is simply impossible to briefly describe Bunin's work. He created a lot in his life, and each of his works is worthy of attention.

It is difficult to overestimate his contribution not only to Russian literature, but also to world literature. His works are popular in our time both among young people and among the older generation. This is really the kind of literature that has no age and is always relevant and touching. And now Ivan Bunin is popular. The biography and work of the writer cause many interest and sincere reverence.