Marking Fyodor Dostoevsky’s 200th anniversary: The Presidential Library spotlighted the last novel of the writer

On November 11, 2021, the Presidential Library hosted a video lecture entitled "The Brothers Karamazov as a Literary Phenomenon" as part of the Knowledge of Russia project. The event was the ninth in the series of lectures "Fyodor Dostoevsky - Conversation about Values", devoted to the 200th anniversary of the birth of the world-famous writer, celebrated on this day.

The recording of the event is available on the institution's YouTube channel.

Dmitry Bogach, PhD in Philology, Head of the Department of Digital Didactics at the St. Petersburg Radio Engineering College, talked about the last novel by Fyodor Dostoevsky.

Video lecture participants answered the questions about the heroes and ideas of the great novel. Who is the main hero of the novel? Is it abandoned youth in search of happiness and love? What is the main novel's idea? Is it the high moral feat of a person or his extreme humiliation? Who are the Karamazov brothers? Do they represent the Russian family - generous and full of contrasts, which combine two abysses - the highest ideals and the lowest fall?

The lecturer compared the points of view on the deep essence of the novel by various researchers: Abram Belkin (a novel about evil and disgusting in humanity), Vladimir Kantor (a novel about a "non-moral" and "pre-Christian" national culture), Maxim Gorky (the typology of moral wounds and diseases of the Russian people), Guria Shchennikov ("mass spiritual nihilism and the feeling of denial of traditional values").

The event also featured a video presentation delivered by Franciscan monk Emanuele Rimoli, the Doctor of Theology, Professor of Christian Anthropology at the University of Saint Bonaventure (Rome).

One has the opportunity to learn more about the writer thanks to the materials of the special digital collection of the Presidential Library Fyodor Dostoevsky (1821-1881) [The World of Dostoevsky]. It features copies of the writer's works and materials about his life and career.

Interactive lessons and video lectures are regularly held in the Presidential Library. They are available on the institution's portal in the Multimedia lessons section and the Video lectures for school section, as well as on the Presidential Library's YouTube channel, where records of past lectures and open lessons are presented.