Classics of Russian Literature | Mikhail Mikhailovich Zoshchenko, 1895–1958 (Lecture 31)

Lecture 31: Thus far, we have dealt with Soviet writers who took the revolution and the Soviet regime very seriously. Probably the most popular writer in the Soviet Union, Mikhail Zoshchenko, took a different approach: He considered the whole experience fodder for satire and laughter. Somewhat in the style of our own newspaper satirists Art Buchwald and Russell Baker, Zoshchenko wrote mostly short stories, sometimes very short, that shed a ridiculous light on the many hypocritical and often downright crazy aspects of Soviet propaganda and life. Miraculously, in the context of Soviet control, he got away with it for quite some time, often under the protective cover of a narrative style that seemed to disassociate the author from the civic vices he so lovingly portrayed. The lightness and skill of his presentation seemed to forestall any possible ideological offense. A good example of his deftness, as well as his remarkable and unusual courage, can be found in the story “Pelageia,” which takes off from the milieu connected with the famous Soviet campaign for mass literacy.

Suggested Reading:
Mikhail Zoshchenko, Nervous People and Other Stories, translated by Maria Gordon and Hugh McLean, with a critical introduction by McLean. (Skip the early part and read the title story.)