As in a hard shell, every human being is enclosed in a cover of body, dress, and life. Who is man? We may only conjecture. What constitutes his joy or his sorrow? We may guess only by his acts, which are oft-times enigmatic; by his laughter and by his tears, which are often entirely incomprehensible to us. And if we, Russians, who live so closely together in constant misery, understand one another so poorly that we mercilessly put to death those who should be pitied or even rewarded, and reward those who should be punished by contempt and anger -- how much more difficult is it for you Americans, to understand distant Russia? But then, it is just as difficult for us Russians to understand distant America, of which we dream in our youth and over which we ponder so deeply in our years of maturity. The Jewish massacres and famine; a Parliament and executions; pillage and the greatest heroism; "The Black Hundred," and Leo Tolstoy -- what a mixture of figures and conceptions, what a fruitful source for all kinds of misunderstandings! The truth of life stands aghast in silence, and its brazen falsehood is loudly shouting, uttering pressing, painful questions: "With whom shall I sympathize? Whom shall I trust? Whom shall I love?" In the story of The Seven Who Were Hanged I attempted to give a sincere and unprejudiced answer to some of these questions. -- Leonid Andreyev
This is a pre-1923 historical reproduction that was curated for quality. Quality assurance was conducted on each of these books in an attempt to remove books with imperfections introduced by the digitization process. Though we have made best efforts - the books may have occasional errors that do not impede the reading experience. We believe this work is culturally important and have elected to bring the book back into print as part of our continuing commitment to the preservation of printed works worldwide.
Leonid Andreyev is widely considered one of the most talented writers in Russian literature. In his prose, he reflected the influence of A. Chekhov's realism, the fascination with psychological paradoxes of F. Dostoevsky, and a constant obsession with the insignificance of life and the inevitability of death, in the manner of L. Tolstoy. In " Judas Iscariot," Leonid Andreyev leads us to reflect on the true role of Judas in the Passion of Christ and suggests a possible interpretation: that the betrayal perpetrated by Judas was a kind of destiny to which he could not resist. It will be up to the reader to answer this and other questions, or perhaps, be left even more in doubt after reading this small masterpiece by Leonid Andreyev.
Lazarus and The Gentleman from San Francisco, while fairly typical of Slavic literature, nevertheless contain few of the elements popularly associated with the work of contemporary Russian writers. They have no sex interest, no photographic descriptions of sordid conditions and no lugubrious philosophizing. These stories are not cheerful, yet their sadness is uplifting rather than depressing. They both contain what the Greek called katharsis in their tragedies - that cleansing atmosphere which purges us of every baser feeling as we read them.
Leonid Andreiev is widely regarded as one of the most talented writers in Russian literature. In his prose, he reflected the influence of A. Chekhov's realism, the fascination with F. Dostoevsky's psychological paradoxes, and a constant obsession with the insignificance of life and the inevitability of death, in the manner of L. Tolstoy. Written in 1909 and dedicated precisely to Tolstoy, " The Seven Who Were Hanged" is considered by many to be Andreiev's best novel. The work masterfully and simply delves into each of the tragedies of seven condemned to death, leading the reader unrelentingly to a revelation, a state of illumination that only the best works of art offer.
Satan has returned to Earth for a sightseeing visit in the form of the American billionaire Henry Wondergood. Accompanied by his faithful demon butler Toppi they head for Rome, but are sidetracked by an unforeseen accident and end up at the home of the inscrutable Thomas Magnus and his divine daughter Maria. As Satan begins to discover the meaning of being a man, the satanic aspects of mankind become ever more apparent to him. Leonid Andreyev was a Russian author active in the beginning of the twentieth century, famous mostly for his plays and short fiction, and often portrayed as Russia’s equivalent to Edgar Allan Poe. Satan’s Diary was his last work, completed just a few days before his death in 1919. This edition was translated by his previous collaborator Herman Bernstein and published in 1920.
‘A Dilemma’ is a psychological thriller from the "Russian Edgar Allan Poe" following the mentally perplexed Anton. He does not love Tatiana, but the fact that she loves the lame Alexis simply enrages him. So yes, he will kill Alexis and free himself of this mental burden. As part of his plan Anton begins to feign insanity, lashing out in public, reverting to a childlike state, all is going to plan...As we are dragged along for this horrific ride, we are forced to wonder, was this man ever sane to begin with? It is a brilliant novel, that will leave the reader questioning everything on the page before them till the last horrific end. If you loved Leonardo DiCaprio in ‘Shutter Island’ you will love this intriguing short. Leonid Andreyev was a Russian novelist, playwright and short story writer who holds a special place in the canon of literature as the father of Russian Expressionism. He was known for his rich and diverse blend of Symbolism, Naturalism and Realism. Often referred to as the ‘Russian Edgar Allan Poe’ his haunting novels were eagerly devoured in the English speaking world. His fantastic, dark and controversial novels have been adapted in to Broadway productions and films. His most well-known works include ‘He Who Gets Slapped’ , ‘The Seven Who Were Hanged’, the play ‘Tsar Hunger’, and his novel ‘Sashka Zhegulev’.
In "Diary of Satan" Andreyev summed up his boundless disillusionment in an absorbing satire on human life. Fearlessly and mercilessly he hurled the falsehoods and hypocrisies into the face of life. He portrayed Satan coming to this earth to amuse himself and play. Having assumed the form of an American multi-millionaire, Satan set out on a tour through Europe in quest of amusement and adventure. Before him passed various forms of spurious virtues, hypocrisies, the ruthless cruelty of man and the often deceptive innocence of woman. Within a short time Satan finds himself outwitted, deceived, relieved of his millions, mocked, humiliated, beaten by man in his own devilish devices.
There stood once in a public place a black tower with massive fortress-like walls and a few grim bastioned windows. It had been built by robber barons, but time swept them into the beyond, and the tower became partly a prison for dangerous criminals and grave offenders, and partly a residence. In the course of centuries new structures were added to it, and were buttressed against the massive walls of the tower and against one another; little by little it assumed the dimensions of a fair sized town set on a rock, with a broken skyline of chimneys, turrets and pointed roofs. When the sky gleamed green in the west there appeared, here and there, lights in the various parts of the tower. The gloomy pile assumed quaint and fanciful contours, and it somehow seemed that at its foot there stretched not an ordinary pavement, but the waves of the sea, the salty and shoreless ocean. And the picture brought to one's mind the shapes of the past, long since dead and forgotten. An immense ancient clock, which could be seen from afar, was set in the tower. Its complicated mechanism occupied an entire story of the structure, and it was under the care of a one-eyed man who could use a magnifying glass with expert skill. This was the reason why he had become a clockmaker and had tinkered for years with small timepieces before he was given charge of the large clock. Here he felt at home and happy. Often, at odd hours, without apparent need he would enter the room where the wheels, the gears and the levers moved deliberately, and where the immense pendulum cleft the air with wide and even sweep.
Thank you for visiting our website. Would you like to provide feedback on how we could improve your experience?
This site does not use any third party cookies with one exception — it uses cookies from Google to deliver its services and to analyze traffic.Learn More.