In the history of tsarist Russia, then the USSR and the Russian Federation, there are many cases when writers and poets are persecuted. Moreover, their names are forever erased from the memory of people, although their talent is undeniable and their contemporaries were read in books. One of these writers is Yuri Osipovich Dombrovsky.
It is difficult to imagine the number of arrests and investigations that Dombrowski experienced. We can say that he spent half his life in prisons and camps, but did not change his views. He was against the policy pursued by the Soviet government: the media said one thing, but in fact it was another. Such hypocrisy abhorred the writer, about which he could not remain silent.
Biography
Yuri Dombrovsky was born in 1909 in Moscow. His parents were from the intelligentsia, so Yuri received a good education. At first he studied at the gymnasium, which was located near the Arbat, and in 1932 he entered the Higher Literary Courses. He graduated with honors, and the teachers noted that the young writer had a "light pen" and undoubted talent.
In addition to being a writer, Dombrowski had a sharp tongue, and he openly expressed his opinion. Probably because of this, in 1933 he was framed: they planted a flag without insignia in his dorm room, but this was enough for the young writer to be arrested and expelled from Moscow. Although his acquaintances assured that he was far from politics and was never interested in her. Alma-Ata became the place of his exile.
First link
Of course, Dombrovsky wanted to write, but in a strange city it was necessary to somehow get a job and look for a new job, so I had to do whatever I came across. For some time he managed to work as a journalist - this is at least close to the writing profession. And then the inscriptions “archaeologist”, “art critic”, “teacher” appeared in his work book.
Here he even established his personal life: he married a teacher of literature, Klara Fayzulaevna Turumova. And he wanted to settle in Kazakhstan forever, but the authorities again begin to persecute the writer: an investigation begins in his case, sewn, as they say, with white thread. For several months he is placed in a pre-trial detention center, without the right to communicate with anyone else. And then they suddenly let go.
It would seem that after the second time you can already understand that they will not leave him alone, but instead of succumbing to fear, Dombrovsky describes this situation in the book.
Writing career
At that time he began to cooperate with the newspaper "Kazakhstanskaya Pravda", published stories in the literary magazine "Literary Kazakhstan". Moreover, he uses his real name, which was not accepted at that time. And at that time the first part of his famous novel Derzhavin was published, for which he was again put behind bars. So much for freedom of speech …
However, until 1939, all arrests and imprisonments were, so to speak, "not real." It was as if Dombrovsky was simply intimidated, they wanted to break his will. Therefore, after the arrest and contrived accusation, they were released rather quickly. But these "landings" could not affect the outlook and attitude towards the authorities, so in 1939, after his arrest, he was sent to the Kolyma camps.
After spending four years in the camp, the writer returns to Alma-Ata and begins teaching. It's amazing how he, with his camp past, was admitted to the students. Apparently, in the provinces, the attitude towards this was not so tough. Therefore, in addition to teaching, he writes scripts for the local theater and lectures on Shakespeare.
At this time, he seriously took up writing work: he wrote the anti-fascist novel "A monkey comes for his skull", as well as a collection of short stories "The Dark Lady".
Dombrovsky spent six whole years at large, and during this time, perhaps, he wrote something, but this is unknown.
In 1949, Yuri Osipovich was arrested again - for the fourth time. This time, the testimony against him was given by the correspondent of "Komsomolskaya Pravda" Irina Strelkova. And again he is sent north - to Ozerlag. This is despite the fact that from the last detention he was released ahead of time due to his disability. Perhaps at that time the book "These bitches wanted to kill me" appeared from the writer's pen.
This time he spent a long and painful six years in the camp and only came out in 1955. Friends noticed that he became somehow quiet and calm, as if he understood the truth, which he did not know before. All his manuscripts were arrested, Dombrovsky had nothing left, and he had to start all over again.
He was allowed to return to Moscow, and there a unique incident happened to him. Once an unknown person came to his home and brought the manuscript of the novel "The Monkey Comes for His Skull", although Yuri Osipovich thought that it was burned, because after his arrest such an order was issued. But, apparently, there were people in the power structures who understood what was happening in the country and helped as best they could.
last years of life
After leaving the Ozerlag, Yuri Osipovich did not openly express his views, but his stories, novels and poems spoke for themselves. The authorities could no longer pursue him openly, but "took action": often the writer was simply beaten in the street, in the courtyard of a house. Several thugs swooped in and kicked me severely. He did not contact the police, because he understood that there was no point in this.
One of Dombrowski's most famous novels is The Faculty of Unnecessary Things, which he wrote for almost ten years. It is considered the second part of the dilogy, the first part of which was the novel Keeper of Antiquities about the events of 1937 in the USSR. This novel came out in Paris, because in the Soviet Union censorship would not have missed it.
According to one version, this novel caused the death of the writer. He was beaten again, and two months later he died in the hospital. Dombrovsky was then 78 years old. The writer was buried at the Kuzminskoye cemetery in Moscow.
