Ivan the Terrible and His Activities in the Assessment of F. M. Dostoevsky

Abstract

The article is devoted to the issues of F. M. Dostoevsky’s understanding of the role of Ivan the Terrible’s state activity in Russian history and the reflection of the writer’s ideas about the personality of Ivan the Terrible in works of art and literary criticism. The article notes the importance of a detailed study of the references in the writer’s work to the events and figures of the past periods, the attention to which until recently was on the periphery of scientific interests, and if it was covered, then along the way, when considering the historiosophical views of the writer and mainly on the material of journalism. The article points to the writer’s interest in the figure of Ivan the Terrible as a monarch and a person. It emphasizes that the writer’s attitude toward this ruler was influenced by reading The History of the Russian State by N. M. Karamzin. If, in his artistic work, Dostoevsky is attracted primarily by Ivan the Terrible as a split and tragically complex personality, then, in A Writer’s Diary, the talent of a statesman is put in the first place, whose experience can be helpful in solving the Eastern question vital for the era. At the same time, observations are made on Dostoevsky’s understanding of the “historical” truth and the specifics of the writer’s interpretation of historical plots.

Keywords

• f. m. dostoevsky
• russian history
• journalism
• literary criticism
• “historical” truth
• a writer’s diary
• ivan the terrible
• n. m. karamzin
• history of the russian state
• eastern question
• m. y. lermontov