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Леночка
Рассказ Александра Ивановича Куприна (1870—1938), впервые опубликованный в 1910 году.
- GenresClassics
14 pages, Kindle Edition
Published January 1, 1910
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About the author
Aleksandr Kuprin
915 books156 followersAleksandr Kuprin (Russian: Александр Иванович Куприн; 7 September 1870 in the village of Narovchat in the Penza Oblast - August 25, 1938 in Leningrad) was a Russian writer, pilot, explorer and adventurer who is perhaps best known for his story The Duel (1905). Other well-known works include Moloch (1896), Olesya (1898), Junior Captain Rybnikov (1906), Emerald (1907), and The Garnet Bracelet (1911) (which was made into a 1965 movie). Vladimir Nabokov styled him the Russian Kipling for his stories about pathetic adventure-seekers, who are often "neurotic and vulnerable."
Kuprin was a son of Ivan Ivanovich Kuprin, a minor government official who died of cholera during 1871 at the age of thirty-seven years. His mother, Liubov' Alekseevna Kuprina, Tatar princess (of the Kulunchakovs), like many other nobles in Russia, had lost most of her wealth during the 19th century. Kuprin attended the Razumovsky boarding school during 1876, and during 1880 finished his education in the Second Moscow Military High School (Cadet Corps) and Alexander Military School, spending a total of ten years in these elite military institutions. His first short story, The Last Debut, was published during 1889 in a satirical periodical. "In February 1902, Kuprin and Maria Karlovna Davydova were married, their daughter Lidia born in 1903." Kuprin's mother died during 1910.
Kuprin ended military service during 1894, after which he tried many types of job, including provincial journalism, dental care, land surveying, acting, circus performer, church singer, doctor, hunter, fisher, etc. Reportedly, "all of these were subsequently reflected in his fiction." His first essays were published in Kiev in two collections. Reportedly, "although he lived in an age when writers were carried away by literary experiments, Kuprin did not seek innovation and wrote only about the things he himself had experienced and his heroes are the next generation after Chekhov's pessimists."
Although the 1896 short story Moloch first made his name known as a writer, it was his novel The Duel (1905) which made him famous. "Kuprin was highly praised by fellow writers including Anton Chekhov, Maxim Gorky, Leonid Andreyev, Nobel Prize-winning Ivan Bunin" and Leo Tolstoy who acclaimed him a true successor to Chekhov. After publication of The Duel he paid less and less interest to fancy literature and began to spend time in pubs and brothels. His sensationalist novel about the lurid life of prostitutes, The Pit (1915), was accused by Russian critics of excessive Naturalism.
Although not a conservative, he did not agree with Bolshevism. While working for a brief time with Maxim Gorky at the World Literature publishing company, he criticized the Soviet regime. During spring 1919, from Gatchina near Petrograd, Kuprin left the country for France. He lived in Paris for most of the next 17 years, succumbing to alcoholism. He wrote about this in much of his work. He eventually returned to Moscow on May 31, 1937, just a year before his death, at the height of the Great Purge. His return earned publication of his works within the Soviet Union.
Kuprin died during the spring of 1938 in Leningrad and is interred near his fellow writers at the Literaturskiye Mostki in the Volkovo Cemetery (Volkovskoye Memorial Cemetery) in Leningrad. A minor planet 3618 Kuprin, discovered by Soviet astronomer Nikolai Stepanovich Chernykh in 1979 is named after him.
Reportedly, "even today, Alexander Kuprin remains one of the widest read classics in Russian literature", with many films based on his works, "which are also read over the radio", partly due to "his vivid stories of the lives of ordinary people and unhappy love, his descriptions of the military and brothels, making him a writer for all times and places."
Kuprin was a son of Ivan Ivanovich Kuprin, a minor government official who died of cholera during 1871 at the age of thirty-seven years. His mother, Liubov' Alekseevna Kuprina, Tatar princess (of the Kulunchakovs), like many other nobles in Russia, had lost most of her wealth during the 19th century. Kuprin attended the Razumovsky boarding school during 1876, and during 1880 finished his education in the Second Moscow Military High School (Cadet Corps) and Alexander Military School, spending a total of ten years in these elite military institutions. His first short story, The Last Debut, was published during 1889 in a satirical periodical. "In February 1902, Kuprin and Maria Karlovna Davydova were married, their daughter Lidia born in 1903." Kuprin's mother died during 1910.
Kuprin ended military service during 1894, after which he tried many types of job, including provincial journalism, dental care, land surveying, acting, circus performer, church singer, doctor, hunter, fisher, etc. Reportedly, "all of these were subsequently reflected in his fiction." His first essays were published in Kiev in two collections. Reportedly, "although he lived in an age when writers were carried away by literary experiments, Kuprin did not seek innovation and wrote only about the things he himself had experienced and his heroes are the next generation after Chekhov's pessimists."
Although the 1896 short story Moloch first made his name known as a writer, it was his novel The Duel (1905) which made him famous. "Kuprin was highly praised by fellow writers including Anton Chekhov, Maxim Gorky, Leonid Andreyev, Nobel Prize-winning Ivan Bunin" and Leo Tolstoy who acclaimed him a true successor to Chekhov. After publication of The Duel he paid less and less interest to fancy literature and began to spend time in pubs and brothels. His sensationalist novel about the lurid life of prostitutes, The Pit (1915), was accused by Russian critics of excessive Naturalism.
Although not a conservative, he did not agree with Bolshevism. While working for a brief time with Maxim Gorky at the World Literature publishing company, he criticized the Soviet regime. During spring 1919, from Gatchina near Petrograd, Kuprin left the country for France. He lived in Paris for most of the next 17 years, succumbing to alcoholism. He wrote about this in much of his work. He eventually returned to Moscow on May 31, 1937, just a year before his death, at the height of the Great Purge. His return earned publication of his works within the Soviet Union.
Kuprin died during the spring of 1938 in Leningrad and is interred near his fellow writers at the Literaturskiye Mostki in the Volkovo Cemetery (Volkovskoye Memorial Cemetery) in Leningrad. A minor planet 3618 Kuprin, discovered by Soviet astronomer Nikolai Stepanovich Chernykh in 1979 is named after him.
Reportedly, "even today, Alexander Kuprin remains one of the widest read classics in Russian literature", with many films based on his works, "which are also read over the radio", partly due to "his vivid stories of the lives of ordinary people and unhappy love, his descriptions of the military and brothels, making him a writer for all times and places."
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Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
January 26, 2024
The writing style of Kuprin is absolutely stunning.
Exquisitely written landscape descriptions, thought-provoking narration, interesting intellectual monologues/dialogues and detailed analysis of emotions.
This short story deals with the feeling of nostalgia for your youth or just for "a different time" overall. Basically, the longing for an easier, nonchalant and jolly life.
As a reader you experience mixed emotions due to the fact that the memories are a bitter-sweet concept themselves. You really start to reminiscence about your own past, start remembering own emotions and hidden memories begin to resurface. On top of that, the ending was really heartbreaking (however, not sad, since nothing bad or negative happened!!). It just made you realise certain things about your own self.
Nevertheless, next to the praise of this short story, I must also mention things I didn't like that prevented me from giving it 5 stars.
There's pretty much only one reason why I had to deduct a star, and the reason is the relationships between our male protagonist and a madame (called Lenochka) from his youth. I really didn't understand their relationship dynamic. I found the things between them mean, non-romantic and it felt like the male protagonist was a bully. I'm not saying the Lenochka did everything right, however, it just felt like she was the one the author blamed for the male protagonist's broken heart and partial heart-wrenching feelings and hurt during his nostalgic flashbacks and the times many years ago.
I can assure you that I am aware of the concept that people who like each other oftentimes bully each other (not me, y'all stay safe though, as a side comment), however, in my opinion this wasn't even "silly fun bullying" buttt actually hurtful things that the protagonist did towards our Lenochka. Therefore, I can perfectly understand why she rejected his advancements in her direction. Oh, btw, on top of that, he was also a kind of Don-Juanesque playboy, so yeah... Not sure how this woman is responsible for his misfortunes regarding broken hearts from romance, especially when it was pretty evident that she was never interested in a romantic relationship with him and he practically forced their kiss. Yes, she was flirty, however, from my perspective she never really overstepped a certain threshold that could have given him false signals about her desires and intentions.
Exquisitely written landscape descriptions, thought-provoking narration, interesting intellectual monologues/dialogues and detailed analysis of emotions.
This short story deals with the feeling of nostalgia for your youth or just for "a different time" overall. Basically, the longing for an easier, nonchalant and jolly life.
As a reader you experience mixed emotions due to the fact that the memories are a bitter-sweet concept themselves. You really start to reminiscence about your own past, start remembering own emotions and hidden memories begin to resurface. On top of that, the ending was really heartbreaking (however, not sad, since nothing bad or negative happened!!). It just made you realise certain things about your own self.
Nevertheless, next to the praise of this short story, I must also mention things I didn't like that prevented me from giving it 5 stars.
There's pretty much only one reason why I had to deduct a star, and the reason is the relationships between our male protagonist and a madame (called Lenochka) from his youth. I really didn't understand their relationship dynamic. I found the things between them mean, non-romantic and it felt like the male protagonist was a bully. I'm not saying the Lenochka did everything right, however, it just felt like she was the one the author blamed for the male protagonist's broken heart and partial heart-wrenching feelings and hurt during his nostalgic flashbacks and the times many years ago.
I can assure you that I am aware of the concept that people who like each other oftentimes bully each other (not me, y'all stay safe though, as a side comment), however, in my opinion this wasn't even "silly fun bullying" buttt actually hurtful things that the protagonist did towards our Lenochka. Therefore, I can perfectly understand why she rejected his advancements in her direction. Oh, btw, on top of that, he was also a kind of Don-Juanesque playboy, so yeah... Not sure how this woman is responsible for his misfortunes regarding broken hearts from romance, especially when it was pretty evident that she was never interested in a romantic relationship with him and he practically forced their kiss. Yes, she was flirty, however, from my perspective she never really overstepped a certain threshold that could have given him false signals about her desires and intentions.
June 21, 2025
"Нет, жизнь все-таки мудра, и надо подчиняться ее законам. <...> И кроме того, жизнь прекрасна. Она — вечное воскресение из мертвых. Вот мы уйдем с вами, разрушимся, исчезнем, но из нашего ума, вдохновения и таланта вырастут, как из праха, новая Леночка и новый Коля Возницын… Все связано, все сцеплено. Я уйду, но я же и останусь. Надо только любить жизнь и покоряться ей. Мы все живем вместе — и мертвые и воскресающие."
Никто так хорошо не пишет об обыденной вечности, как Куприн.
May 8, 2020
...man trifft jemanden, den man Jahrzehnte nicht gesehen hat und auf einmal sind Erinnerungen da an frühere Zeiten... einfach nur schön !
June 29, 2022
супер, я даже прослезилась! не ожидала
November 20, 2023
It's great, it's just great
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews