At the beginning of the twentieth century, Leonid Andreev was a leading literary figure who captured the heated public debates of Russian society and distilled them into his short stories, novels and plays. Although his literary reputation has not endured outside of Russia, Andreev’s works still offer an intriguing view of the Russian
fin de siècleand the difficult years of war and revolution.
Born in the provincial town of Orel, Andreev studied law at St Petersburg and Moscow universities. He worked for only a short time as a barrister, while also supporting himself and his family as a journalist, most notably for the Moscow newspaper Courier [Kur’er]. When his father died unexpectedly, the adolescent Andreev had accepted responsibility for his mother and siblings. The stress of
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Citation: White, Frederick. "Leonid Andreev". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 27 February 2019 [https://www.litencyc.com/php/speople.php?rec=true&UID=14419, accessed 27 November 2024.]
