Page:Russian Literature - A Study Outline.djvu/16

12 STUDY OUTLINE ON III EARLY NINETEENTH CENTURY AUTHORS 1. Age of Alexander I. a Nikolai Mikhailovich Karamzin, 1766-1826. Karamzin by his monumental work, "The history of the Russian state," did in literature what the great war of 1812 had done in national life. He awakened the national consciousness and created a lasting interest in the history of the nation, in the making of the empire, in the evolution of national character and institutions. Prince Kropotkin. (1) His- service to Russian literature. (2) His novels: "Poor Liza" and "Natalia, the boyar's daughter." (3) His "Letters of a Russian traveler." (4) His "History of Russia." b Vasili Andreevich Zhukovski [Jukovsky], 1783- 1852. The tender poet of romantic melancholy. Prince Serge Wolkonsky. The most original translator in the world's litera- ture. A. Bruckner. (1) His life. (2) His poems. (3) His translations. c Ivan Andreevich Krylov, 1768-1844. Kryloff may be taken as the greatest fable writer not only of Russia . . . but also of all nations of modern times. Prince Kropotkin. Their style [that of his fables] pleases the un- lettered by its simplicity, and is the envy and de- spair of the artist in its supreme art. . . . His work bears the stamp of ageless modernity. . . .