author
Nikolai Alekseevich Nekrasov
1821–1878
Known for turning the lives of ordinary people into powerful poetry, this major Russian writer brought unusual warmth, anger, and sympathy to the struggles of peasants and the poor. He was also an influential editor whose work helped shape Russia’s literary culture in the mid-19th century.
1 Audiobook
Who Can Be Happy and Free in Russia?
by Nikolai Alekseevich Nekrasov
About the author
Born in 1821, he became one of the most important Russian poets of the 19th century, remembered for writing with deep feeling about social injustice, peasant life, and the hardships faced by women and the poor. His poetry stood out for its plainspoken energy and for its serious attention to people who were often ignored in literature.
He was not only a poet but also a writer, critic, and publisher. He is especially associated with the journal Sovremennik (The Contemporary), which he helped make into a major literary force. Alongside his public work, he built a reputation through poems and longer works that combined compassion, satire, and a strong sense of Russian speech and everyday life.
He died in 1878, but his influence lasted well beyond his lifetime. Readers still return to him for the moral force of his verse and for the way he brought the voices of common people into the center of Russian literature.