Fyodor Mikhailovich Dostoevsky

Fyodor Mikhailovich Dostoevsky (Russian: Фёдор Михайлович Достоевский; November 11, 1821 [October 30 in the Julian calendar] - February 9, 1881 [January 28 in the Julian calendar]), a Russian writer who began writing when he was about 20 years old. His first novel "The Poor Man" was published in 1846, when he was 25 years old. Dostoevsky's important works include "Crime and Punishment" (1866), "The Idiot" (1869) and "The Brothers Karamazov" (1880). Dostoevsky wrote a total of 11 novels, 3 novellas and 17 short stories. Dostoevsky often depicts characters who live at the bottom of society but have different ideas from ordinary people, which allows him to understand the psychology of small people in the turbulent Russian society in the 19th century. Some scholars believe that he is the founder of existentialism. For example, the American philosopher Walter Arnold Kaufman once considered "Notes from the Underground" to be the first existentialist book. Dostoevsky was born in Moscow in 1821. He came into contact with literature through fairy tales and legends in his early years, and also dabbled in works by Russian and other foreign authors. Dostoevsky's mother died in 1837, when Dostoevsky was only 15 years old. In the same year, he left home and entered the Nikolaev Military Engineering Institute. After graduation, he worked as an engineer, earned extra income by translating books, and briefly enjoyed a luxurious life. He published his first novel "The Poor Man" in 1846, which allowed him to enter the literary circles of St. Petersburg. In 1849, he was arrested for participating in a literary group that discussed a book that was critical of the Tsar and was later banned. He was sentenced to death, but his sentence was commuted at the last moment before execution. He spent four years in a Siberian prison, followed by six years of compulsory military service in exile. This experience had a very important impact on his soul. Later, Dostoevsky worked as a journalist, published and edited some magazines, and later edited his collection "A Writer's Diary". He also began to travel to Western Europe and developed a gambling addiction, which caused him financial difficulties. For a time he was in dire need of money, but he nevertheless became the most widely known and read Russian writer. His books have been translated into more than 170 languages. Dostoevsky was influenced by many philosophers and writers, including Alexander Pushkin, Nikolai Gogol, August