Who was Afanasy Fet and why is he considered important in Russian literature?
Afanasy Fet was a Russian lyric poet born on the 5th of December 1820 and widely regarded as the finest master of lyric verse in Russian literature. Osip Mandelstam considered him the greatest Russian poet of all time, and Tchaikovsky compared his emotional reach to Beethoven's. He exerted direct influence on the Russian Symbolists, including Alexander Blok and Innokenty Annensky, as well as later poets Sergey Yesenin and Boris Pasternak.
Why did Afanasy Fet change his name and what did the name change mean to him?
Fet was born Afanasy Shenshin, but at age fourteen he was forced to change his surname to Foeth after his parents' German-registered marriage was found legally void in Russia. The name was later printed as Fet in Otechestvennye Zapiski. In a letter to his wife written in 1873, Fet called it "the name of all the trials and tribulations" of his life. That same year, Tsar Alexander II restored the Shenshin name and its noble privileges, though Fet kept Fet as his pen name.
What was Afanasy Fet's relationship with Leo Tolstoy?
Fet and Tolstoy met in Ivan Turgenev's house in 1853 when Tolstoy was a young officer back from the Crimean War, and they remained close friends for the rest of their lives. Tolstoy wrote to Fet in a letter dated the 28th of June 1867 that they both shared a capacity to think with "heart's mind as opposed to brain's mind." Tolstoy also praised Fet's patience when the poet finally recovered the Shenshin name in 1873.
Who was Maria Lazich and what happened between her and Afanasy Fet?
Maria Lazich was a 20-year-old woman Fet fell in love with in the autumn of 1848 while stationed with his regiment near Kherson. Seeing no way to marry a penniless landowner's daughter, Fet abandoned her. In 1851 Maria died after setting her dress on fire; she survived four days and her reported last words were "Do not blame him for this." Fet felt remorse for the rest of his life, and her image recurred throughout his later poetry.
What were the Evening Lights collections by Afanasy Fet?
Evening Lights was a series of four poetry collections that Fet published in 1883, 1885, 1888, and 1891, representing the creative surge of his later years after he bought the Vorobyovka estate near Kursk in 1873. The books sold poorly and were appreciated mainly by a small circle that included Tolstoy, Tchaikovsky, and Nikolay Strakhov. In a letter dated the 25th of August 1891 Fet described Vorobyovka as the place where his "muse awoke from many years of sleep."
How did Afanasy Fet die?
Fet died on the 21st of November 1892 in his Moscow house, having apparently attempted suicide after dictating a note that read "I willingly chose to do what would be inevitable anyway." His secretary wrestled a paper knife from his hand before he ran through the rooms and collapsed into a chair. The cause of death was later believed to be a heart attack. He was interred on the 23rd of November 1892 in the Shenshin family vault at Kleymyonovo.