Among other Russian writers of the Silver Age, Leonid Andreev was particularly prominent. Having laid the foundation for the Russian trend of expressionism, he was exploiting his literary talent with might and main, and in fact he invented a new genre that took a lot of good from a variety of styles. Maybe he did not achieve the fame of Dostoevsky or Gogol, but, nevertheless, Andreev left a very noticeable mark in the history of Russian literature.
The love of reading manifested itself in the future writer as a child. As a 17-year-old teenager, he decided to test himself for courage, and lay down between the rails in front of the approaching train. Fortunately, in the end, Leonid Andreev did not suffer. He entered the University of St. Petersburg with the intention of studying for a lawyer. The family paid for his education, but after the death of her father she had financial difficulties. With grief, Leonid Andreyev began to drink a lot. At one time he was even starving, since he had nothing to buy food for. Even at a young age he became interested in the work of Arthur Schopenhauer.
Andreev wrote his first stories as a student, and even tried to publish them, but the editors of the journal, where he turned, rejected them with laughter. Due to the inability to pay for further education, Leonid Andreev was expelled from the University of St. Petersburg. Subsequently, he entered another university, already in Moscow. After failing on a love front, an aspiring writer tried to shoot himself. Because of the injury, he began to develop a heart defect, which eventually brought him to the grave. Leonid Andreyev’s family moved to him in Moscow, and he, trying to support her, took up any work. In particular, he gave private lessons and even painted portraits to order. The first publications of Andreev were published on the pages of several Moscow newspapers. He wrote satirical feuilletons, under the pseudonym “James Lynch”.
The first story he published in the newspaper “Courier”. He himself admitted that this story was in fact an imitation of Charles Dickens. However, he was highly appreciated by Maxim Gorky. Because of his connections with revolutionary student organizations, Leonid Andreev was forced to give the police on his own recognizance. In 1905, he supported the first revolution, and also hid some of its supporters, wanted by the police. He was subsequently arrested and spent some time in prison, until a bail was paid for him.
After these events, the writer moved with his family first to Germany, and then to Italy. Over time, Leonid Andreyev became disillusioned with the ideas of the revolution, and sharply condemned the events of 1917. Then he lived in Finland, and after the separation of this country from Russia, he ended up there as an emigrant. Later work Andreeva imbued with a negative attitude towards the Soviet regime. The Leonid Andreev House Museum is located in the city of Orel, in its historic homeland.
