Boris Zhitkov is a writer whose biography requires careful study. He became a famous writer at a fairly mature age. But in a short time, this man managed to give us about two hundred wonderful stories for children on an adventure theme.
Real friends
In general, his childhood friend Korney Ivanovich Chukovsky helped to get into print Zhitkov. The friendship of these people helped them survive in difficult years. Even after the death of Boris Zhitkov, Chukovsky and his wife warmly belonged to the Zhitkov family. Lidia Chukovskaya subsequently wrote a book about him, in which she not only gave an analysis of his prose, but also expressed simple human admiration for a tall man endowed with courage and talent.
Biography Facts
The biography of Boris Zhitkov contains information necessary for understanding his worldview. The father of the future writer was a simple teacher, and his mother a pianist. The father, a comprehensively developed man, was able to develop these qualities in his son. It was from the parent that the future writer had excellent knowledge in the field of mathematics and astronomy. The mother discovered musical abilities in her son and formed musical knowledge. In addition, Boris Zhitkov was interested in ballet and knew how to play the violin.
Zhitkov received two educations. First, he graduated from the Faculty of Natural Sciences in Odessa, and then, after a few years, the shipbuilding department at the St. Petersburg Institute. Life was not easy. He participated in revolutionary events at the beginning of the century, changed many different professions, traveled the world as a ship navigator. In general, for a more complete understanding of the characteristics of a writer or poet, his biography should be studied. Boris Zhitkov, more precisely, his work also needs to be studied through the prism of his personal life.
First published in 1924. At first, turning to adults, Zhitkov gradually switched to children. His stories about animals, for example, the story “The Fifth Bridge”, were also very popular.
Features of creativity
Features of the work of Boris Zhitkov are as follows:
- inclusion of life experience;
- a clear division of good and a place of honor in Russian literature;
- rich stories;
- dynamism;
- faith in the triumph of light principles, etc.
Children's writer
By nature and mentality, the writer was a romantic and truth-loving. In the first place both in life and in creativity, this man always put honor and dignity, truth and work. According to relatives, Boris's curiosity knew no bounds. Day-to-day he disappeared either in the locksmith workshop or in the ship ports, where he studied working professions, received new impressions and knowledge. At the end of the university, he was offered a place as a teacher. However, the Zhitkovs moved to St. Petersburg, where the talented Boris Zhitkov continued his studies. A brief biography for children should be necessarily supplemented by information about his travels in India, Madagascar, Egypt, which filled the writer’s experience with new events and ideas that he skillfully presented in his works. In other words, the biography of Boris Zhitkov is rather complicated and interesting.
The work of Boris Zhitkov rightfully took pride of place in Russian literature for children. The ability to make subtle observations, to notice the habits of animals and features of nature, a simple language aroused the deep love of the children's reader for the work of Boris Zhitkov. Take, for example, “Tales of animals” and “Boa constrictor”, “Black sail” and “On the ice”, in which Boris Zhitkov expressed himself. A biography for the children of any writer should be entertaining and leave a mark in the soul of a small reader.
In his children's and adult stories and stories, the writer always sided with the weak and destitute. A talented follower of Maxim Gorky, Zhitkov picked up his key to children's consciousness. He said that with a child you need to speak on equal terms, only in this case you can get trust from him. Zhitkov’s ideas on raising a child were very clearly expressed in the encyclopedia “What I saw”. And this work was influenced by the biography of Boris Zhitkov. The writer worked on his writings until his death, which occurred in October 1938.