Kuprin Alexander Ivanovich - one of the most prominent figures of Russian literature of the 1st half of the 20th century. He is the author of such famous works as "Olesya", "Garnet Bracelet", "Moloch", "Duel", "Juncker", "Cadets" and others. Alexander Ivanovich lived a bright, unusual, dignified life. Fate was sometimes harsh on him. Both the childhood of Alexander Kuprin and his mature years are marked by instability in various spheres of life. He had to fight alone for material independence, fame, recognition and the right to be called a writer. Kuprin went through many adversities. His childhood and youth were especially difficult. We will talk about all this in detail.
The origin of the future writer
Kuprin Alexander Ivanovich was born in 1870. His hometown is Narovchat. Today it is located in the Penza region. The house where Kuprin was born is currently a museum (his photo is presented below). Kuprin's parents were not wealthy. Ivan Ivanovich, the father of the future writer, belonged to the family of impoverished nobles. He served as a petty officer and often drank. When Alexander was only in his second year, Ivan Kuprin died of cholera. The childhood of the future writer, thus, passed without a father. His only support was his mother, which is worth telling separately.
Mother Alexander Kuprin
Lyubov Alekseevna Kuprina (Kulunchakova as a girl), the boy’s mother, was forced to settle in the Widow House of Moscow. It is from here that the first memories flowed, which Ivan Kuprin shared with us. His childhood is largely connected with the image of his mother. She played the role of a higher being in the life of a boy, was for the future writer the whole world. Alexander Ivanovich recalled that this woman was strong-willed, strong, strict, similar to the Eastern princess (the Kulunchakovs belonged to the old family of Tatar princes). Even in the wretched atmosphere of the Widow's House, she remained so. During the day Lyubov Alekseevna was strict, but in the evening she turned into a mysterious witch and told her son tales, which she remade in her own way. These interesting stories Kuprin listened with pleasure. His childhood, very severe, brightened up fairy tales about distant lands and unknown creatures. As a child, Alexander Ivanovich was faced with sad reality. However, difficulties did not prevent such a talented person as Kuprin from being realized as a writer.
A childhood spent in the Widow House
Alexander Kuprin’s childhood passed away from the comfort of noble estates, dinner parties, father’s libraries, where one could sneak in secretly at night, Christmas presents, which were so delightfully looked for under the Christmas tree at dawn. But he knew well the grayness of the orphaned rooms, the meager hotels given out on holidays, the smell of government clothes and the cracks from teachers, which they were not stingy with. Of course, Kuprin's early childhood left an imprint on his personality . The biography of his later years is marked by new difficulties. We should also briefly talk about them.
Military-military childhood Kuprin
For the children of his position there were not many options for further fate. One of them is a military career. Lyubov Alekseevna, taking care of her child, decided to make a military man out of her son. Alexander Ivanovich soon had to part with his mother. In his life began a dull military drill season, which continued Kuprin's childhood. His biography of this time is marked by the fact that he spent several years in public institutions of the city of Moscow. First there was the Razumovsky orphan boarding school, after a while - the Moscow Cadet Corps, and then the Alexander Military School. Kuprin, in his own way, hated each of these temporary havens. The equally stupid future writer was annoyed by the dullness of his superiors, the official situation, spoiled peers, the nearness of educators and teachers, the "cult of the fist", the same uniform and public flogging.
That was such a difficult childhood for Kuprin. It is important for children to have a loved one, and in this sense, Alexander Ivanovich was lucky - he was supported by a loving mother. She died in 1910.
Kuprin leaves for Kiev
Kuprin Alexander, after graduating from college, spent another 4 years in military service. He retired at the first opportunity (in 1894). Lieutenant Kuprin took off his military uniform forever. He decided to move to Kiev.
A real test for the future writer was a big city. Kuprin Alexander Ivanovich spent his whole life in public institutions, so he was not adapted to independent life. On this occasion, he later ironic that in Kiev it was like a “Smolyanka institute,” who was brought into the forest jungle at night and left without a compass, food, and clothing. It was not easy at this time to such a great writer as Alexander Kuprin. Interesting facts about him during his stay in Kiev are connected with what Alexander had to do in order to earn a living.
How Kuprin made a living
In order to survive, Alexander undertook almost any business. In a short time he tried himself as a seller of shag, a construction foreman, a carpenter, an office worker, a factory worker, an assistant to a blacksmith, and a psalm-reader. At one time, Alexander Ivanovich even seriously considered leaving for the monastery. Kuprin’s difficult childhood, briefly described above, probably forever left a mark in the soul of the future writer, who from a young age had to face harsh reality. Therefore, his desire to retire to the monastery is understandable. However, Alexander Ivanovich was destined for a different fate. Soon he found himself in the literary field.
An important literary and life experience was the service of a reporter in the newspapers of Kiev. Alexander Ivanovich wrote about everything - about politics, murders, social and social problems. He also had to fill in entertaining sections, write cheap melodramatic stories, which, by the way, enjoyed considerable success with an artless reader.
The first serious works
Serious works gradually began to come out from under Kuprin's pen. The story "Inquiry" (another name for it is "From the distant past") was published in 1894. Then the collection “Kiev Types” appeared, in which Alexander Kuprin put his essays. His work of this period is noted by many other works. After some time, a collection of stories was published called "Thumbnails." The story "Moloch", published in 1996, made a name for a novice writer. His fame was strengthened by the following works by Olesya and Kadets.
Moving to Petersburg
Anton Pavlovich Chekhov, a great authority on literature, became interested in these successful publications. He met Kuprin in Odessa and invited him to work in the Journal for All, which was published in St. Petersburg.
In this city, for Alexander Ivanovich, a new, vibrant life began with many meetings, acquaintances, feasts and creative achievements. Contemporaries recalled that Kuprin liked to walk well. In particular, Andrei Sedykh, a Russian writer, noted that in his youth he lived a lively life, he was often drunk, and at that time he became scary. Alexander Ivanovich could do reckless things and sometimes even cruel ones. And Nadezhda Teffi, a writer, recalls that he was a very complex person, not at all the kind and simpleton that at first glance might have seemed.
Kuprin explained that creative activity took away a lot of energy and strength from him. For each success, as well as for failure, one had to pay with health, nerves, one's own soul. But evil tongues saw only unsightly tinsel, and then rumors invariably went on that Alexander Ivanovich was a reveler, a rowdy and a drunkard.
New works
No matter how Kuprin spills out his fervor, he always after the next booze returns to his desk. Alexander Ivanovich, during the tumultuous period of his life in St. Petersburg, wrote his cult novel “The Duel”. His stories “Swamp”, “White Poodle”, “Sulamith”, “Staff Captain Rybnikov”, “River of Life”, “Gambrinus” belong to the same period. After some time, already in Odessa, he completed the “Pomegranate Bracelet”, and also set about creating the cycle “Listrigons”.
Personal life of Kuprin
In the capital, he met his first wife, Davydova Maria Karlovna. From her, Kuprin's daughter Lydia was born. Maria Davydova presented the world with a book entitled "Years of Youth". After some time, their marriage broke up. Alexander Kuprin married after 5 years with Heinrich Elizabeth Moritsovna. With this woman he lived until his death. Kuprin has two daughters from his second marriage. The first is Zinaida, who died early, having contracted pneumonia. The second daughter, Ksenia, became a famous Soviet actress and model.
Moving to Gatchina
Kuprin, tired of the busy life of the capital, left Petersburg in 1911. He moved to Gatchina (a small town located 8 km from the capital). Here, in his "green" house, he settled with his family. In Gatchina, everything is conducive to creativity - the silence of a country town, a shady garden with poplars, a spacious terrace. This city is today closely connected with the name of Kuprin. There is a library and a street named after him, as well as a memorial plaque and a monument dedicated to him.
Emigration to Paris
However, the power of happiness came to an end in 1919. First, Kuprin was mobilized into the army on the side of the whites, and a year later the whole family emigrated to Paris. Alexander Ivanovich Kuprin will return to his homeland only after 18 years, already at an advanced age.
At different times, the reasons for the emigration of the writer were interpreted differently. According to Soviet biographers, he was almost forcibly taken out by the White Guards and for the next many long years, until his return, languished in a foreign land. The ill-wishers sought to prick him, exposing him as a traitor, who exchanged his homeland and talent for foreign goods.
Return to the homeland and death of the writer
If you believe the numerous memoirs, letters, diaries, which became available to the public a little later, then Kuprin objectively did not accept the revolution and the established regime. He called her familiarly "scoop."
When he returned to his homeland, already a broken old man, he was taken along the streets to demonstrate the achievements of the USSR. Alexander Ivanovich said that the Bolsheviks are wonderful people. One thing is not clear - where did they get so much money from.
Nevertheless, Kuprin did not regret his return to his homeland. For him, Paris was a beautiful city, but a stranger. Kuprin died on August 25, 1938. He died of cancer of the esophagus. The next day, a crowd of thousands surrounded the House of Writers in St. Petersburg. Came and famous colleagues of Alexander Ivanovich, and loyal fans of his work. They all gathered in order to send Kuprin to the last journey.
The childhood of the writer A. I. Kuprin, in contrast to the young years of many other literary figures of that time, was very difficult. However, in many respects it was thanks to all these experienced difficulties that he found himself in creativity. Kuprin, whose childhood and youth passed in poverty, acquired both material well-being and fame. Today we get acquainted with his work in his school years.