Dostoevsky and Alexander Zinoviev: Parallels and Intersections

Abstract

Alexander Zinoviev (1922–2006) got acquainted with Dostoevsky’s work in adolescence, which fell during the period of the formation of the Soviet system in Russia. This circumstance was reflected in the specifics of Zinoviev’s perception of Dostoevsky’s works. He has evolved from skepticism and misunderstanding to acceptance and empathy. Zinoviev’s essay “The Legend of the Great Sufferer” (1981) is dedicated to this experience of comprehending Dostoevsky. Zinoviev was attracted by the experience of Dostoevsky’s spiritual search. Writers of different historical eras and aesthetic systems, Dostoevsky and Zinoviev are close in their relentless search for the solution to the “mystery of the human being”, which attracted both from their youth and did not leave until the end of their lives. For Dostoevsky, it was enclosed in the mystery of personality, for Zinoviev, in the mystery of society as a collective of personalities. Having extensive experience of life in Russia and in the West, both writers unequivocally chose the Russian people and its historical fate as a universal material for their research. Zinoviev’s legacy does not so much develop as complement the discoveries made by Dostoevsky.

Keywords

• f.m. dostoevsky
• a.a. zinoviev
• russian thought
• typology
• artistic method