New collection of the Presidential Library marks the anniversary of the writer and journalist Mikhail Saltykov-Shchedrin

"A wit man, a great observer, who knew every detail of Russian life, he always remained himself. He was independent in his views, true only to his sense of justice", wrote the literary critic Alexander Pypin in the bibliographic essay Saltykov's Idealism (1899).

January 27, 2021, marks the 195th anniversary of Mikhail Saltykov-Shchedrin, the classic of Russian literature, journalist and editor of the Otechestvennye Zapiski magazine. Marking this memorable date, the Presidential Library's portal releases a new electronic collection. It features digital copies of the complete collection of the writer's works and rare editions of selected publications, studies of his oeuvre and graphic materials.

"The Russians know Mikhail Saltykov as a talented satirist who... could fluently comprehend the various unpleasant sides of Russian life and convey them in poetic images. But they don’t know... that when it was necessary to write some urgent article or review for the magazine... he did it, and such publications... were masterpieces of their kind... Mikhail Evgrafovich was a born journalist in the best sense of the word... "- wrote the publicist Grigory Yeliseev. His memoirs are available in the September issue of the Russkoye Bogatstvo magazine (1893).

Saltykov-Shchedrin was a graduate of the Tsarskoye Selo Lyceum. Sometimes, he believed that civil service could go together with the writer's and journalist's work. He had a good start of his career - an Official for Special Assignments under the Ministry of Internal Affairs, a Ryazan Vice Governor, a Tver Vice Governor, the Chairman of the Treasury Chamber, first in Penza, then in Tula... However, Saltykov-Shchedrin was dismissed for publishing articles and books...

In 1868, the writer became Nikolai Nekrasov's co-editor in the Otechestvennye Zapiski literary magazine, and later - an editor (after Nekrasov died in 1878). Since then, practically all issues of the magazine featured essays, journalistic and critical articles by Saltykov-Shchedrin.

"Now, he was directly in front of the people and could talk to them any time and discuss urgent issues of his choice", recalled Grigory Yeliseev. "Another benefit of Saltykov’s new editor's position was the opportunity to get friends with both the magazine's employees and the writers in general". The fact is that many knew Saltykov-Shchedrin only by name and writings. Now, constantly communicating with authors and associates, " …he showed more of his personal qualities every day. <...> ... Mikhail Yevgrafovich was extremely sincere and expansive, - continues Yeliseev, - He was so impressive that everything that struck him made him speak out immediately... <...> ...his original person became famous in all literary circles. <...> In a word: the former surly man with his stern appearance and angry speech became a common favourite...".

"He helped the writers ... by solving their troubles paying rather big revenues", remembered Konstantin, the writer's son. The unique edition of his memoirs about his father is entitled Intimate Shchedrin (1923). "He helped especially the young writers with advice and, moreover, did not hesitate to correct their literary works. Some of the writers who began at that time and then gained fame in literature and journalism, obviously, more than once remembered with a kind word a stern old man with a gray beard, who helped them to blossom out".

"The most talented authors... appealed to the Otechestvennye Zapiski despite my unsociability and lack of charming manners, - wrote Shchedrin to his friend, critic Pavel Annenkov, - they trusted my tact and knowledge and no one exclaim against my changes and improvements".

Leo Tolstoy highly appreciated the editorial activity and oeuvre of Saltykov-Shchedrin. So, having read the magazine, he wrote in his diary: "I discovered a whole new literature, excellent and sincere - Otechestvennye Zapiski".

Saltykov-Shchedrin was fond of work and demanded the same from others. Konstantin Shchedrin evoked an episode when a certain author explained that he could not provide material to the editor because he "can't write": "It is impossible", my father stopped him short, "when a writer sits down at his desk and takes pen in hand, he immediately has a subject to write... At least it always happens to me, - he added".

Saltykov-Shchedrin "longed to convey his ideas to society in time. <…> He wrote as he wished. And if he smoothed something, he intended not to write a rough phrase, but to soften its roughness and harshness to safely pass through the Scylla and Charybdis of the Russian censorship", highlighted Grigory Yeliseev.

Saltykov-Shchedrin's letters illustrate the censorship pressure, which he had to overcome writing and editing Otechestvennye Zapiski. On February 20, 1880, Saltykov wrote to Nadezhda Khvoshchinskaya-Zayonchkovskaya, one of the magazine's authors: "...the February book was issued in very poor condition. Nothing like this has ever happened, I mean, such a defeat. Four full articles were eliminated, at the request of the censorship, one was excluded. I don’t know what to publish next month".

In April 1884, the Otechestvennye Zapiski magazine was forbidden. Saltykov described his mood after the ban of the magazine in the elegy-tale Adventure with Kramolnikov, which hero "woke up one morning, ... and discovered that he does not exist. <...> As if a door had slammed shut in front of him or the road ahead was blocked up, and he had no way and reason to go".

Saltykov-Shchedrin admitted with pain: "...I am deprived of the opportunity to talk with the reader every month. <...> I may say that my reader was the only love, with him I felt no shame. And, - do not think, I'm self-assured, - it seemed to me that this abstracted person also loves me... <...> Now it was taken away from me".

Ill Shchedrin continued to work. Having finished Old Years in Poshekhonye, he started the cycle Forgotten Words. Literary critic Boris Papkovsky quotes the writer's phrase, said a few days before the death, in the book Mikhail Shchedrin, published in the series Ingenious People of the Great Russian Nation (1943): "You know, there were such words like conscience, Motherland, humanity... and others... And now try to find them!.. I must remind them...".

His death interrupted his plans. Saltykov-Shchedrin died on May 10 (April 28) 1889. In his testament, he wrote to his son: "Most of all do love your native literature and prefer the title of a writer to any other".