We have collected a list of literature that has not just become world classics, but is intended to familiarize us with the experience and life of people who lived before us. These books about the 19th century and love reveal the life of the nobles and peasants of that time.

Н. Gogol "Dead souls"
A former collegiate counselor poses as a landowner and tries to pull off an imperial-sized fraud scheme. What do we know today about the lives of the nobility and serfs? In the book you can learn a lot about the structure of high society in the 19th century and the documentation of serfs.
Н. Gogol "Auditor"
A comedy play in five acts. Officials, steeped in corruption, receive news of the arrival of an auditor. There is very little time to prepare and hide what should be hidden. But there is a nuance, the auditor arrives incognito....
Л. Tolstoy "Anna Karenina"
This is a classic book about the nobility. The end of the story is known to everyone. And the plot begins with the acquaintance of the married Anna Karenina with the young officer Vronsky, family quarrels and a description of the life of the nobility. From Tolstoy's novel you can learn a lot about the mores, love and injustice of the upper classes.
А. Griboyedov "Woe is me"
A comedy in verse, where Chatsky. "new man". much thinking on high, exposing Moscow society and morality while life and love pass him by.
М. Lermontov "A hero of our time"
"A hero of our time" is considered one of the first social-psychological novels. Lermontov offered an ambiguous character with a penchant for reflection and travel.
А. Pushkin "Eugene Onegin"
Pushkin proposes himself as Onegin's prototype. And if you read the whole novel, the words "The less we like a woman, the easier it is for her to like us" take on the opposite meaning. Duels, a loving blush on the cheeks and visits to the houses of high society against the background of the measured rural life of the nobility - all this was masterfully described by Pushkin.
А. Pushkin "Belkin's Tales"
A number of novels about the life and life of peasants, nobles and their interaction with each other.
И. Goncharov "Oblomov"
A novel in a trilogy along with "An ordinary story" и "By a cliff". Drama, a departure from the comfort zone and a clear break between the languid nobleman Oblomov and his childhood friend the active Stoltz.
И. Turgenev "Mumu"
A contrasting narrative of nobles and peasants, love of animals and fear of the "hosts".
И. Turgenev "Fathers and children"
A novel about generational disputes at a time of new reforms and the abolition of serfdom.
А. Ostrovsky "Bespridanitsa"
A dramatic play about the life of merchants, financial inequality and pride. The movie "A cruel romance" was based on this play. In the story, a young impoverished noblewoman falls in love with a handsome and lovelorn man who has no intention of marrying her. Out of desperation, she agrees to marry another man in love with her. But as soon as the object of her love appears again, she throws herself into his arms. In the final scene, the groom catches his bride with a handsome baron and shoots her.
Ф. Dostoevsky "Demons"
A novel about a revolutionary group of students in the Russian Empire. "Demons" are full of reflections, contradictory characters, and student life.
А. Chekhov "Cherry orchard"
The play in 4 acts tells about the unwillingness of a family of landowners to let go of the past. The head of the family has debts and, in order to cover them, has to sell his favorite estate at auction. Chekhov vividly showed how the family of nobles ineptly handles finances, and as a result loses their father's house. The key idea of the play - "money can't buy happiness.".
Н. Leskov "Lady Macbeth of Mtsensk"
A tale about a young merchant who falls in love with the family's clerk. Because of passion, the woman kills her husband and all the relatives who claim the inheritance. At the end, her lover leaves her because of a new passport. The outcome is tragic - The merchant woman gets rid of her rival and dies herself. Conclusions that can be drawn from the book, - about the realities of 19th century nobility, about self-serving love for money.
А. Kuprin "pit"
A group of students visit a brothel. They reflect on morality, education, love and women. And in the background Kuprin shows the life of the brothel and its inhabitants.
А. Radishchev "Traveling from St. Petersburg to Moscow"
Radishchev, on behalf of the traveler, tells in detail about the life and life of serfs in different villages between the two capitals. The writer criticizes the arbitrariness of the landlords and sympathizes with the peasants forced to live in captivity. One of the most significant works of Russian literature of the late 18th century, which gave themes to other writers for their books.
Reading classic literature is important to preserve the memory of the lives of our ancestors, as well as to admire the beauty of the Russian language.
Our blog has similar articles on the topic of Russian literature:
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- New Year books by Russian writers
- Child speech development and reading aloud
In our Russian lessons, children are also immersed in Russian culture through historical figures that appear in the topics.
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