Leskov and Nikolay Solovyov: On the History of the Relationship Between the Writer and the Critic

The relationship between Nikolay Leskov and the critic Nikolay Solovyov (1831–1874) has not been specifically studied to date. The peculiarity of these relations is that Leskov was not only a writer and artist, but also an active journalist who harshly criticized the writers of his time, including Nikolay Solovyov. In the context of their heated polemics, the research analyzes Leskov’s articles from the Literaturnaia biblioteka journal and the Birzhevye Vedomosti newspaper. On the other hand, it considers Nikolay Solovyov’s articles “Vanity of Vanities,” “Two Novelists,” “Russian Journalism in 1871,” and others, which contain the critic’s reviews of Leskov’s works. Solovyov’s open letter “Specialists in anonymous letters” is introduced into scientific circulation. It is a response to Leskov’s sharp feuilleton “Specialists in the female part.” Solovyov’s articles “Criticism of Trends” and “War or Peace? Criticism of the New Work by Count L.N. Tolstoy” are also analyzed, in which his differences with Leskov in assessing Tolstoy’s epic novel are revealed. The source of Solovyov’s statement about the insufficient coverage of the historical role of the masses in War and Peace is being clarified –– the statement that gave Leskov the opportunity to launch a polemical attack on the critic. The greatest attention is paid to Nikolay Solovyov’s articles as the least studied writer.