Elements of folklore works in the story of a left-hander. Folklore traditions in the work of one of the Russian writers of the XIX century

"Lefty" is a touching story about a master who devoted his whole life to working for the good of his homeland. Leskov creates many literary images that live and act in the atmosphere of bygone days.

In 1881, the magazine "Rus" published "The Tale of the Tula Lefty and the Steel Flea." Later, the author will include the work in the collection "The Righteous".

Fictional and real are intertwined in a single whole. The plot is based on true events that allow one to adequately perceive the characters described in the work.

So, Emperor Alexander I, accompanied by the Cossack Matvey Platov, really visited England. In accordance with his rank, he was accorded due honors.

The true story of Lefty unfolded in 1785, when two Tula gunsmiths, Surnin and Leontiev, went to England by order of the emperor to get acquainted with the weapons industry. Surnin is tireless in acquiring new knowledge, while Leontiev "plunges" into a disorderly life and "gets lost" in a foreign land. Seven years later, the first master returns home to Russia and introduces innovations to improve weapons production.

It is believed that the master Surnin is the prototype of the protagonist of the work.

Leskov widely uses the folklore layer. So, the feuilleton about the miracle master Ilya Yunitsyn, who creates tiny locks, no larger than a flea, is the basis for the image of Lefty.

Real historical material is harmoniously integrated into the narrative.

Genre, direction

There are differences in terms of genre. Some authors prefer the story, others prefer the tale. As for N. S. Leskov, he insists that the work be defined as a tale.

"Lefty" is also characterized as a "weapons" or "shop" legend that has developed among people of this profession.

According to Nikolai Semenovich, the source of the tale is the "fable" he heard in 1878 from some gunsmith in Sestroretsk. The legend became the starting point that formed the basis of the idea of the book.

The writer's love for the people, admiration for his talents, ingenuity found its embodiment in relief characters. The work is saturated with elements of a fairy tale, winged words and expressions, folklore satire.

essence

The plot of the book makes you think about whether Russia can truly appreciate its talents. The main events of the work clearly indicate that both the authorities and the mob are equally blind and indifferent towards the masters of their craft. Emperor Alexander I visits England. He is shown an amazing piece of work by the English craftsmen - a dancing metal flea. He acquires a "curiosity" and brings it to Russia. For a while, the "nymphosoria" is forgotten. Then Emperor Nicholas I became interested in the “masterpiece” of the British. He sent General Platov to the Tula gunsmiths.

In Tula, a "courageous old man" orders three craftsmen to do something more skillful than the "English" flea. The craftsmen thank him for the sovereign's trust and set to work.

Two weeks later, Platov, who arrived for the finished product, without understanding what exactly the gunsmiths did, grabs Lefty and takes him to the palace to the king. Appearing before Nikolai Pavlovich, Lefty shows what work they have done. It turned out that the gunsmiths had shod the "English" flea. The emperor is happy that the Russian fellows did not let him down.

Then follows the order of the sovereign to send the flea back to England in order to demonstrate the skill of Russian gunsmiths. The left-hander accompanies the "nymphosoria". The British welcome him warmly. Interested in his talent, they do everything possible so that the Russian craftsman remains in a foreign land. But Lefty refuses. He is homesick and asks to be sent home. The British are sorry to let him go, but you can't keep him by force.

On the ship, the master meets the half-skipper, who speaks Russian. Acquaintance ends with drinking. In St. Petersburg, a half-skipper is sent to a hospital for foreigners, and Lefty, who is sick, is imprisoned in a "cold quarter" and robbed. Later, they are brought to die in the common people's Obukhov hospital. The left-hander, living out his last hours, asks Dr. Martyn-Solsky to inform the sovereign of important information. But it does not reach Nicholas I, since Count Chernyshev does not want to hear anything about it. Here's what the piece says.

Main characters and their characteristics

Emperor Alexander I- "the enemy of labor." Differs in curiosity, a very impressionable person. Suffering from melancholy. Bows before foreign miracles, believing that only the British can create them. Compassionate and compassionate, building a policy with the British, carefully smoothing out sharp corners.
Emperor Nikolai Pavlovich- ambitious "soldafon". Has an excellent memory. He does not like to yield to foreigners in anything. He believes in the professionalism of his subjects, proves the failure of foreign masters. However, the common man does not interest him. He never thinks about how hard this skill is achieved.
Platov Matvei Ivanovich- Don Cossack, Count. Heroism and sweeping prowess emanates from his figure. A truly legendary person, who is the living embodiment of courage and courage. He has great endurance, willpower. He loves his native land immensely. A family man, in a foreign land he misses his native household. Insensitive to foreign creations. He believes that the Russian people will be able to do everything, no matter what they look at. Impatient. Without understanding, he can beat a commoner. If he is wrong, then he will certainly ask for forgiveness, since behind the image of a tough and invincible ataman lies a generous heart.
Tula masters is the hope of the nation. They are well-versed in the "metal business". They have a bold imagination. Excellent gunsmiths who believe in miracles. Orthodox people are full of church piety. They hope for God's help in solving difficult problems. They honor the gracious word of the sovereign. Thank you for the trust placed in them. They personify the Russian people and their good qualities, which are described in detail Here.
oblique southpaw- Skilled gunsmith There is a birthmark on the cheek. He wears an old "ozyamchik" with hooks. In the modest appearance of a great worker, a bright mind and a kind soul are hidden. Before taking on any important business, he goes to church to receive a blessing. The characteristics and description of Lefty are detailed in this essay. He patiently endures Platov's bullying, although he did nothing wrong. Later, he forgives the old Cossack, not harboring resentment in his heart. The left-hander is sincere, speaks simply, without flattery and cunning. Immensely loves the fatherland, never agrees to exchange his homeland for well-being and comfort in England. It is difficult to endure separation from their native places.
half-skipper- an acquaintance of Levsha, who speaks Russian. We met on a ship bound for Russia. We drank a lot together. After arriving in St. Petersburg, he takes care of the gunsmith, trying to rescue him from the terrible conditions of the Obukhov hospital and find a person who would convey an important message from the master to the sovereign.
Dr. Martyn-Solsky- a true professional in his field. He tries to help Lefty overcome the disease, but does not have time. He becomes that confidant to whom Lefty tells a secret intended for the sovereign.
Count Chernyshev- a narrow-minded Minister of War, with great conceit. He despises the common people. He has little interest in firearms. Because of his narrow-mindedness, narrowness of thinking, he substitutes the Russian army in battles with the enemy in the Crimean War.

Topics and issues

The theme of Russian talents runs like a red thread through all of Leskov's work. The left-hander, without any glass enlargers, was able to make small studs to nail horseshoes to a metal flea. His imagination has no limits. But it's not just about talent. Tula gunsmiths are hard workers who do not know how to rest. With their diligence, they create not only outlandish products, but also a unique national code that is passed down from generation to generation.
The theme of patriotism deeply worried Leskov. Dying on the cold floor in the hospital corridor, Lefty thinks about his homeland. He asks the doctor to find an opportunity to inform the sovereign that it is impossible to clean the guns with bricks, since this will result in their unsuitability. Martyn-Solsky tries to convey this information to the Minister of War, Chernyshev, but everything turns out to be fruitless. The words of the master do not reach the sovereign, but the cleaning of guns continues until the very Crimean campaign. Outrageous is this unforgivable disregard of the tsarist officials for the people and for their fatherland!
The tragic fate of Lefty is a reflection of the problem of social injustice in Russia. Leskov's tale is both cheerful and sad at the same time. The story of how Tula craftsmen shoe a flea, demonstrating a selfless attitude to work, is captivating. In parallel with this, serious reflections of the author about the difficult fate of brilliant people from the people sound. The problem of attitude to folk craftsmen at home and in a foreign land worries the writer. In England, Lefty is respected, they offer him excellent working conditions, and they also try to interest him in various curiosities. In Russia, he is faced with indifference and cruelty.
The problem of love for one's native places, to native nature. The native corner of the earth is especially dear to man. Memories of him captivate the soul and give energy to create something beautiful. Many, like Lefty, are drawn to their homeland, since no foreign blessings can replace parental love, the atmosphere of their home and the sincerity of faithful comrades.
The problem of the attitude of talented people to work. Masters are obsessed with finding new ideas. These are workers who are fanatically passionate about their work. Many of them “burn out” at work, because they give their all to the implementation of their plans without a trace.
Issues of power. What is the true strength of a person? Representatives of the authorities allow themselves in relation to ordinary people to go beyond the “permitted”, shout at them, use their fists. Craftsmen with calm dignity endure such an attitude of the masters. The true strength of a person is in balance and steadfastness of character, and not in the manifestation of incontinence and spiritual impoverishment. Leskov cannot stay away from the problem of a heartless attitude towards people, their lack of rights and oppression. Why is so much cruelty applied to the people? Doesn't he deserve humane treatment? The poor Lefty is indifferently left to die on the cold hospital floor, without doing anything that could somehow help him get out of the strong bonds of the disease.

the main idea

Lefty is a symbol of the talent of the Russian people. Another bright image from Leskov's gallery of "righteous people". No matter how hard it is, the righteous always fulfills the promise, gives himself to the fatherland to the last drop, without demanding anything in return. Love for the native land, for the sovereign works wonders and makes you believe in the impossible. The righteous rise above the line of simple morality and disinterestedly do good - this is their moral idea, their main idea.

Many statesmen do not appreciate this, but in the memory of the people there always remain examples of selfless behavior and sincere, disinterested deeds of those people who lived not for themselves, but for the glory and well-being of their Fatherland. The meaning of their life is in the prosperity of the Fatherland.

Peculiarities

Having brought together bright flashes of folk humor and folk wisdom, the creator of "The Tale" wrote a work of art that reflected an entire era of Russian life.

In places in "Lefty" it is difficult to determine where good ends and evil begins. This shows the "cunning" of the writer's style. He creates characters, sometimes contradictory, carrying both positive and negative traits. So, the courageous old man Platov, being a heroic nature, could never raise his hand against a “little” person.

"Wizard of the word" - this is how Gorky called Leskov after reading the book. The folk language of the heroes of the work is their bright and accurate description. The speech of each character is figurative and original. It exists in unison with his character, helping to understand the character, his actions. The Russian person is characterized by ingenuity, so he comes up with unusual neologisms in the spirit of “folk etymology”: “trifle”, “busters”, “thump”, “valdakhin”, “melkoskop”, “nymphosoria”, etc.

What does it teach?

N. S. Leskov teaches a fair attitude towards people. All are equal before God. It is necessary to judge each person not by his social affiliation, but by Christian deeds and spiritual qualities.

Only then can one find a diamond that glows with righteous rays of warmth and sincerity.

Key questions What events in Leskov's life helped him become the author of the tale? How is a story different from a fairy tale? What elements of folklore do you notice? Who do you think the narrator could be? History and fiction. Find inconsistencies in the text. History and fiction. Find inconsistencies in the text. Who is the link of all the events of the tale?

Research activities of students Literary critics. How is a story different from a fairy tale? What legend underlies the tale of N.S. Leskov? Presentation of the Historian When and where does the action of the tale take place? State people: collect historical material about them. Find inconsistencies in the text. Presentation Presentation Linguists How are new, unusual words of a tale formed? What is the role of such words? Presentation

Basic concepts. Skaz is a genre of epic, based on folk traditions and legends, narration, conducted on behalf of the narrator. It is characterized by a combination of accurate sketches of folk life and customs with the fabulously fantastic world of folklore. The narrator in the tale is not a real person, but an artistic image that has all the features of a real person. The narration is conducted on behalf of the narrator, a person with a special character and style of speech. Irony is an expression of ridicule.

"Lefty" The tale of the Tula oblique left-hander and the steel flea What events in Leskov's life helped him become the author of the tale? What elements of folklore do you notice? The beginning, repetitions, ending of the tale contains an edification. What do you think, who could be the narrator, the narrator? The narrator is a simple man, an artisan, a craftsman. In his speech there are many irregularities, vernacular, inversions characteristic of folklore works, historical characters - Alexander I and Platov - are shown from the point of view of a commoner.

The plot of the work. Alexander I received a microscopic steel flea as a gift from the British, brought it home and forgot it. Nicholas I found a flea and instructed Ataman Platov to transfer it to Tula, and Tula craftsmen to think about it. The Tula people shod the flea, causing surprise and admiration among the English masters.

Statesmen 1. Find quotes characterizing Alexander I and Platov. Alexander Pavlovich: - affection; – sympathy for the industrial West; - distrust of one's own nation. Platov: sharpness, not diplomacy; opposition to Western culture; faith in Russian people. Platov M.I. Alexander I "He traveled all over the country and everywhere through his affectionateness had internecine conversations with all sorts of people"; “We Russians are good for nothing with all our knowledge” “And as soon as Platov notices that the sovereign is interested in something foreign, then everyone is silent, and Platov will now say: so and so, and we have our own house no worse” ; “and Platov keeps his agitation that everything means nothing to him”

How is Platov depicted in the drawings of Kuzmin N.? The figure shows Platov, who, in the cabinet of curiosities in front of the emperor and the English generals, takes out a rifle screwdriver from his trousers and picks the lock of the pistol. Three surprised Englishmen in dress uniforms gathered around Platov, and Alexander the First stood and smiled sweetly on the right. The artist N. Kuzmin Platov in the drawing is a serious, gloomy gray-haired old man in orders, his face is simpler and more severe than the faces of the sovereign and the surprised Englishmen. The artist depicts this scene satirically.

Third Chapter The effect of fabulousness is enhanced by the very nature of the narration. Watch how Alexander I hides a flea. He “dipped the flea into the nut ... and in order not to lose the nut itself, he dipped it into his golden snuffbox, and ordered the snuffbox to be put in his travel box. Reminiscent of fabulous descriptions of Kashcheev's hidden death: a needle in an egg, an egg in a duck, a duck in a chest, etc.

How are new, unusual words formed? "Melkoskop" - a microscope; “dolbitsa” - table, “Abolon polvedersky - Apollo Belvedere; "ceramides" - pyramids; "double" - double; "mother of pearl" - mother of pearl. What is the role of such words? Such "folk" words create a humorous effect. When does the narrator use unusual words? The narrator uses new words and expressions when he encounters words that are not in the speech of ordinary people, or when he needs to tell about what the heroes saw abroad. A word game is also a denunciation: “slander” (because newspaper feuilletons often contain slander); “public statements” (you hear “public” and “police”).

Conclusions The tale "Lefty" belongs to the best examples of this genre. The narrator conveys not only the point of view of an individual, but embodies the popular opinion. The narrator's speech is complex, sometimes incorrect. A small flea becomes a test for the heroes - their feeling of love for their homeland is tested. Ataman Platov acts as the protector of the nation during the tsar's foreign excursions.

Sources Great Encyclopedia of Cyril and Mifody

Few writers of the nineteenth century used folklore and folk traditions so extensively in their work. Deeply believing in the spiritual strength of the people, he is nevertheless far from its idealization, from the creation of idols, from “an idol liturgy for a peasant,” to use Gorky’s expression. The writer explained his position by the fact that he “studyed the people not from conversations with St. Petersburg cabmen”, but “grew up among the people” and that he “neither should lift the people on stilts, nor put them under his feet.” A confirmation of the writer's objectivity can serve as "The Tale of the Tula Oblique Lefty and the Steel Flea", estimated at one time by critics as "a set of buffoonish expressions in the style of ugly foolishness" (A. Volynsky). Unlike Leskov's other fairy tales, the narrator from the folk environment does not have specific features. This anonymous person acts on behalf of an indefinite multitude, as his original mouthpiece. There are always various rumors among the people, transmitted from mouth to mouth and overgrown in the process of such transmission with all sorts of conjectures, assumptions, new details. The legend is created by the people, and it is this freely created, embodying the “voice of the people” that it appears in “Lefty”. Interestingly, in the first printed editions, Leskov prefaced the story with the following preface: “I wrote down this legend in Sestroretsk according to a local tale from an old gunsmith, a native of Tula, who moved to the Sestra River back in the reign of Emperor Alexander the First. The narrator two years ago was still in good spirits and in fresh memory; he willingly recalled the old days, greatly honored Tsar Nikolai Pavlovich, lived “according to the old faith”, read divine books and bred canaries.” The abundance of “reliable” details left no room for doubt, but everything turned out to be ... a literary hoax, which the author himself soon exposed: “... I composed this whole story in May last year, and Lefty is a person I invented ... ” Leskov will return to the question of Levsha’s invention more than once, and in his lifetime collected works he will remove the “preface” completely. This hoax itself was necessary for Leskov to create the illusion that the author was not involved in the content of the tale. However, with all the outward simplicity of the narrative, this story by Leskov also has a “double bottom”. In embodying folk ideas about Russian autocrats, military leaders, about people of another nation, about themselves, the simple-hearted narrator knows nothing about what the author who created him thinks about the same thing. But Leskov's "secret writing" allows you to clearly hear the author's voice. And this voice will tell that the rulers are alienated from the people, they neglect their duty to them, that these rulers are accustomed to power that does not need to be justified by the presence of their own merits, that it is not the supreme power that is concerned about the honor and fate of the nation, but simple Tula peasants. It is they who protect the honor and glory of Russia and constitute her hope. However, the author will not hide the fact that the Tula masters, who managed to shoe an English flea, in fact, spoiled the mechanical toy, because they “did not get into the sciences”, that they, “deprived of the opportunity to make history, created jokes”. England and Russia (Orlovshchina, Tula, St. Petersburg, Penza), Revel and Merrekul, the Ukrainian village of Peregudy - such is the “geography” of Leskov’s stories and short stories in just one book. People of different nations enter into the most unexpected connections and relationships here. A “truly Russian person” sometimes puts foreigners to shame, sometimes it turns out to be dependent on their “system”. Finding common humanity in the lives of different peoples and striving to comprehend the present and future of Russia in connection with the course of historical processes in Europe, Leskov, at the same time, was clearly aware of the uniqueness of his country. At the same time, he did not fall into the extremes of Westernism and Slavophilism, but kept to the position of objective artistic research. How did the “through Russian” writer and man who passionately loved Russia and his people manage to find a measure of such objectivity? The answer lies in Leskov's work itself.

Few writers of the nineteenth century used folklore and folk traditions so extensively in their work. Deeply believing in the spiritual strength of the people, he is nevertheless far from its idealization, from the creation of idols, from “an idol liturgy for a peasant,” to use Gorky’s expression. The writer explained his position by the fact that he “studyed the people not from conversations with St. Petersburg cabmen”, but “grew up among the people” and that he “neither should lift the people on stilts, nor put them under his feet.”
A confirmation of the writer's objectivity can serve as "The Tale of the Tula Oblique Lefty and the Steel Flea", estimated at one time by critics as "a set of buffoonish expressions in the style of ugly foolishness" (A. Volynsky). Unlike Leskov's other fairy tales, the narrator from the folk environment does not have specific features. This anonymous person acts on behalf of an indefinite multitude, as his original mouthpiece. There are always various rumors among the people, transmitted from mouth to mouth and overgrown in the process of such transmission with all sorts of conjectures, assumptions, new details. The legend is created by the people, and it is this freely created, embodying the “voice of the people” that it appears in “Lefty”.
Interestingly, in the first printed editions, Leskov prefaced the story with the following preface: “I wrote down this legend in Sestroretsk according to a local tale from an old gunsmith, a native of Tula, who moved to the Sestra River back in the reign of Emperor Alexander the First. The narrator two years ago was still in good spirits and in fresh memory; he willingly recalled the old days, greatly honored Tsar Nikolai Pavlovich, lived “according to the old faith”, read divine books and bred canaries.” The abundance of “reliable” details left no room for doubt, but everything turned out to be ... a literary hoax, which the author himself soon exposed: “... I composed this whole story in May last year, and Lefty is a person I invented ... ” Leskov will return to the question of Levsha’s invention more than once, and in his lifetime collected works he will remove the “preface” completely. This hoax itself was necessary for Leskov to create the illusion that the author was not involved in the content of the tale.
However, with all the outward simplicity of the narrative, this story by Leskov also has a “double bottom”. In embodying folk ideas about Russian autocrats, military leaders, about people of another nation, about themselves, the simple-hearted narrator knows nothing about what the author who created him thinks about the same thing. But Leskov's "secret writing" allows you to clearly hear the author's voice. And this voice will tell that the rulers are alienated from the people, they neglect their duty to them, that these rulers are accustomed to power that does not need to be justified by the presence of their own merits, that it is not the supreme power that is concerned about the honor and fate of the nation, but simple Tula peasants. It is they who protect the honor and glory of Russia and constitute her hope.
However, the author will not hide the fact that the Tula masters, who managed to shoe an English flea, in fact, spoiled the mechanical toy, because they “did not get into the sciences”, that they, “deprived of the opportunity to make history, created jokes”.
England and Russia (Orlovshchina, Tula, St. Petersburg, Penza), Revel and Merrekul, the Ukrainian village of Peregudy - such is the “geography” of Leskov’s stories and short stories in just one book. People of different nations enter into the most unexpected connections and relationships here. A “truly Russian person” sometimes puts foreigners to shame, sometimes it turns out to be dependent on their “system”. Finding common humanity in the lives of different peoples and striving to comprehend the present and future of Russia in connection with the course of historical processes in Europe, Leskov, at the same time, was clearly aware of the uniqueness of his country. At the same time, he did not fall into the extremes of Westernism and Slavophilism, but kept to the position of objective artistic research. How did the “through Russian” writer and man who passionately loved Russia and his people manage to find a measure of such objectivity? The answer lies in Leskov's work itself.

Leskov N. S.

Essay on a work on the topic: Folklore traditions in the work of one of the Russian writers of the 19th century. (N. S. Leskov. "Lefty".)

Few writers of the nineteenth century used folklore and folk traditions so extensively in their work. Deeply believing in the spiritual strength of the people, he is nevertheless far from its idealization, from the creation of idols, from “an idol liturgy for a peasant,” to use Gorky’s expression. The writer explained his position by the fact that he “studyed the people not from conversations with St. Petersburg cabmen”, but “grew up among the people” and that he “neither should lift the people on stilts, nor put them under his feet.”
A confirmation of the writer's objectivity can serve as "The Tale of the Tula Oblique Lefty and the Steel Flea", estimated at one time by critics as "a set of buffoonish expressions in the style of ugly foolishness" (A. Volynsky). Unlike Leskov's other fairy tales, the narrator from the folk environment does not have specific features. This anonymous person acts on behalf of an indefinite multitude, as his original mouthpiece. There are always various rumors among the people, transmitted from mouth to mouth and overgrown in the process of such transmission with all sorts of conjectures, assumptions, new details. The legend is created by the people, and it is this freely created, embodying the “voice of the people” that it appears in “Lefty”.
Interestingly, in the first printed editions, Leskov prefaced the story with the following preface: “I wrote down this legend in Sestroretsk according to a local tale from an old gunsmith, a native of Tula, who moved to the Sestra River back in the reign of Emperor Alexander the First. The narrator two years ago was still in good spirits and in fresh memory; he willingly recalled the old days, greatly honored Tsar Nikolai Pavlovich, lived “according to the old faith”, read divine books and bred canaries.” The abundance of "reliable" details left no room for doubt, but everything turned out. a literary hoax, which the author himself soon exposed: “... I composed this whole story in May last year, and Lefty is a person I invented.” Leskov will return to the question of the invention of Lefty more than once, and in his lifetime collected works he will remove the “preface” completely. This hoax itself was necessary for Leskov to create the illusion that the author was not involved in the content of the tale.
However, with all the outward simplicity of the narrative, this story by Leskov also has a “double bottom”. In embodying folk ideas about Russian autocrats, military leaders, about people of another nation, about themselves, the simple-hearted narrator knows nothing about what the author who created him thinks about the same thing. But Leskov's "secret writing" allows you to clearly hear the author's voice. And this voice will tell that the rulers are alienated from the people, they neglect their duty to them, that these rulers are accustomed to power that does not need to be justified by the presence of their own merits, that it is not the supreme power that is concerned about the honor and fate of the nation, but simple Tula peasants. It is they who protect the honor and glory of Russia and constitute her hope.
However, the author will not hide the fact that the Tula masters, who managed to shoe an English flea, in fact, spoiled the mechanical toy, because they “did not get into the sciences”, that they, “deprived of the opportunity to make history, created jokes”.
England and Russia (Orlovshchina, Tula, St. Petersburg, Penza), Revel and Merrekul, the Ukrainian village of Peregudy - such is the “geography” of Leskov’s stories and short stories in just one book. People of different nations enter into the most unexpected connections and relationships here. A “truly Russian person” sometimes puts foreigners to shame, sometimes it turns out to be dependent on their “system”. Finding common humanity in the lives of different peoples and striving to comprehend the present and future of Russia in connection with the course of historical processes in Europe, Leskov, at the same time, was clearly aware of the uniqueness of his country. At the same time, he did not fall into the extremes of Westernism and Slavophilism, but kept to the position of objective artistic research. How did the “through Russian” writer and man who passionately loved Russia and his people manage to find a measure of such objectivity? The answer lies in Leskov's work itself.
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