Poor Folk

Interesting Facts

• «Poor Folk» is considered the first social-psychological novel in Russian literature.
• The novel is written in the form of correspondence between the two main characters — Makar Devushkin and Varvara Dobroselova.
• The work was highly praised by critics, particularly Vissarion Belinsky, who called it «a new Gogol».
• Dostoevsky wrote the novel in just nine months, which was quite rapid for that era.
• The novel addresses themes of poverty, humiliation, and human dignity, which became characteristic of Dostoevsky's work.
• «Poor Folk» was Dostoevsky's first published work, bringing him fame and recognition in literary circles.