For the purposes of this site, we have defined “classic” authors as those that spent most of their careers before 1953. We have chosen this date as, first, a generational marker. Many late-tsarist authors continued working after the revolution, while many late-Soviet authors are still working today. Those whose careers date before 1953 are more likely to be known abroad (the anti-communist movement in the US happed about this time which made all things from the USSR essentially toxic) and less likely to be working today (due simply to the process of aging). In preparing material for this section, we have tried to concentrate mostly on specific aspects of their works that may not be as well covered in English.
The Anna Akhmatova Museum at the Fountain House is a charming museum that provides both a glimpse into the life of the famed poet and the culture of St. Petersburg that she lived in the 1930s and 40s. Akhmatova is one of the most well-known poets of the Silver Age of Russian literature whose poem […]
