Belyaev's works list. The early years of the writer

2014 marks the 130th anniversary of the birth of the famous Russian writer Alexander Romanovich Belyaev. This outstanding creator is one of the founders of the genre of science fiction literature in the Soviet Union. Even in our time, it seems simply incredible that a person in his works can depict events that will happen several decades later.

The early years of the writer

So, who is Alexander Belyaev? The biography of this person is simple and unique in its own way. But unlike the millions of copies of the author’s works, not much has been written about his life.

Alexander Belyaev was born on March 4, 1884 in the city of Smolensk. In family Orthodox priest From childhood, the boy was taught to love music, photography, and developed an interest in reading adventure novels and learning foreign languages.

Having graduated from theological seminary at the insistence of his father, the young man chooses the path to law, in which he has good success.

First steps in literature

While earning decent money in the legal field, Alexander Belyaev began to become more interested in works of art, travel and theater. He is also actively involved in directing and dramaturgy. In 1914 in Moscow children's magazine"Thawed Land" published his debut play "Grandma Moira".

An insidious disease

In 1919, tuberculous pleurisy suspended the young man’s plans and actions. Alexander Belyaev struggled with this disease for more than six years. The writer tried his best to eradicate this infection within himself. Due to unsuccessful treatment, it developed which led to paralysis of the legs. As a result, of the six years spent in bed, the patient spent three years in a cast. The indifference of the young wife further undermined the writer's morale. During this period, this is no longer the carefree, cheerful and cheerful Alexander Belyaev. His biography is full of tragic life moments. In 1930, his six-year-old daughter Lyuda died, and his second daughter Svetlana fell ill with rickets. Against the backdrop of these events, the illness tormenting Belyaev is also worsening.

Throughout his life, battling his illness, this man found strength and immersed himself in the study of literature, history, foreign languages ​​and medicine.

Long-awaited success

In 1925, while living in Moscow, the aspiring writer published the story “The Head of Professor Dowell” in Rabochaya Gazeta. And from that moment on, the works of Alexander Belyaev were published en masse in the then famous magazines “World Pathfinder”, “Knowledge is Power” and “Around the World”.

During his stay in Moscow, young talent creates many great novels- "Amphibian Man", " Last Man from Atlantis", "Island of Lost Ships" and "Struggle on the Air".

At the same time, Belyaev is published in the unusual newspaper “Gudok”, in which people like M.A. also left their mark. Bulgakov, E.P. Petrov, I.A. Ilf, V.P. Kataev,

Later, after moving to Leningrad, he published the books “The Wonderful Eye”, “Underwater Farmers”, “Lord of the World”, as well as the stories “The Inventions of Professor Wagner”, which Soviet citizens read with rapture.

The last days of the prose writer's life

The Belyaev family lived in the suburbs of Leningrad, the city of Pushkin, and found themselves under occupation. The weakened body could not withstand the terrible hunger. In January 1942, Alexander Belyaev passed away. After some time, the writer’s relatives were deported to Poland.

Before today It remains a mystery where Alexander Belyaev was buried, short biography which is filled with man’s constant struggle for life. And yet, in honor of the talented prose writer, a memorial stele was erected in Pushkin at the Kazan cemetery.

The novel "Ariel" is Belyaev's latest creation; it was published by the publishing house " Modern writer"shortly before the author's death.

"Life after death

More than 70 years have passed since the Russian science fiction writer passed away, but his memory lives on in his works to this day. At one time, the work of Alexander Belyaev was subjected to strict criticism, and sometimes he heard mocking reviews. However, the science fiction writer’s ideas, which previously seemed ridiculous and scientifically impossible, eventually convinced even the most inveterate skeptics of the opposite.

Many films have been made based on the novels of the prose writer. Thus, since 1961, eight films have been filmed, some of them are part of the classics of Soviet cinema - “The Amphibian Man”, “The Testament of Professor Dowell”, “The Island of Lost Ships” and “The Air Seller”.

The story of Ichthyander

Perhaps the most famous work of A.R. Belyaev’s novel “Amphibian Man,” which was written in 1927. It was this book that, together with The Head of Professor Dowell, was highly appreciated by Herbert Wells.

Belyaev was inspired to create “Amphibian Man”, firstly, by memories of reading the novel French writer Jean de la Hire “Ictaner and Moisette”, secondly, a newspaper article about the trial that took place in Argentina in the case of a doctor who conducted various experiments on people and animals. Today, it is practically impossible to establish the name of the newspaper and the details of the process. But this once again proves that, when creating his science fiction works, Alexander Belyaev tried to rely on real life facts and events.

In 1962, directors V. Chebotarev and G. Kazansky filmed “Amphibian Man.”

"The Last Man from Atlantis"

One of the author’s very first works, “The Last Man from Atlantis,” did not go unnoticed in Soviet and world literature. In 1927, it was included in Belyaev’s first author’s collection along with “The Island of Lost Ships.” From 1928 to 1956, the work was forgotten, and only since 1957 it was republished several times in the territory of the Soviet Union.

The idea of ​​​​searching for the disappeared Atlantean civilization dawned on Belyaev after reading an article in the French newspaper Le Figaro. Its content was such that in Paris there was a society for the study of Atlantis. At the beginning of the twentieth century, such associations were quite common; they enjoyed increased interest among the population. The insightful Alexander Belyaev decided to take advantage of this. The science fiction writer used the note as a prologue to The Last Man of Atlantis. The work consists of two parts and is perceived by the reader quite simply and excitingly. The material for writing the novel was drawn from the book by Roger Devigne “The Vanished Continent. Atlantis, the sixth part of the world."

Prophecies of a science fiction writer

Comparing the predictions of representatives science fiction, it is important to note that the scientific ideas of the books Soviet writer Alexandra Belyaev were 99 percent successful.

So, main idea novel "The Head of Professor Dowell" became an opportunity to revive human body after death. Several years after the publication of this work, Sergei Bryukhonenko, the great Soviet physiologist, carried out similar experiments. A widespread achievement in medicine today - surgical restoration of the lens of the eye - was also foreseen by Alexander Belyaev more than fifty years ago.

The novel “Amphibian Man” became prophetic in the scientific development of technologies for long-term human stay under water. Thus, in 1943, the French scientist Jacques-Yves Cousteau patented the first scuba gear, thereby proving that Ichthyander is not such an unattainable image.

Successful tests of the first in the thirties of the twentieth century in Great Britain, as well as the creation of psychotropic weapons - all this was described by the science fiction writer in the book “Lord of the World” back in 1926.

The novel "The Man Who Lost Face" tells the story of the successful development plastic surgery and the ethical issues that arise from this. In the story, the state governor transforms into a black man, taking upon himself all the burdens of racial discrimination. Here we can draw a certain parallel in the destinies of the mentioned hero and the famous American singer Michael Jackson, who, fleeing unjust persecution, underwent a considerable number of operations to change the color of his skin.

All my creative life Belyaev struggled with the disease. Deprived of physical capabilities, he tried to reward the heroes of the books with unusual abilities: communicate without words, fly like birds, swim like fish. But infecting the reader with an interest in life, in something new - isn’t that what it’s all about? true talent writer?

Born on March 4 (16 NS) in Smolensk in the family of a priest. Since childhood, I read a lot and was fond of adventure literature, especially Jules Verne. Subsequently, he flew airplanes of one of the first designs and made gliders himself.

In 1901 he graduated from theological seminary, but did not become a priest; on the contrary, he left there as a convinced atheist. He loved painting, music, theater, played in amateur performances, took up photography, and studied technology.

He entered the legal lyceum in Yaroslavl and at the same time studied violin at the conservatory. To earn money for his studies, he played in a circus orchestra and painted theater scenery, was engaged in journalism. In 1906, after graduating from the Lyceum, he returned to Smolensk and worked as a lawyer. Acted as music critic, theater reviewer in the Smolensky Vestnik newspaper.

He never stopped dreaming of distant countries and, having saved money, in 1913 he traveled to Italy, France, and Switzerland. He retained the impressions from this trip for the rest of his life. Returning to Smolensk, he worked at the Smolensky Vestnik, and a year later became the editor of this publication. A serious illness - bone tuberculosis - confined him to bed for six years, three of which he was in a cast. Without giving in to despair, he is engaged in self-education: he studies foreign languages, medicine, biology, history, technology, reads a lot. Having overcome the disease, in 1922 he returned to a full life, serving as an inspector for juvenile affairs. On the advice of doctors, he lives in Yalta, works as a teacher in an orphanage.

In 1923 he moved to Moscow and began serious literary activity. He publishes science fiction stories and novellas in the magazines “Around the World”, “Knowledge is Power”, “World Pathfinder”, earning the title of “Soviet Jules Verne”. In 1925 he published the story “The Head of Professor Dowell,” which Belyaev himself called an autobiographical story: he wanted to tell “what a head without a body can experience.”

In the 1920s these came out famous works, like “Island of Lost Ships”, “Amphibian Man”, “Above the Abyss”, “Struggle in the Air”. He writes essays about great Russian scientists - Lomonosov, Mendeleev, Pavlov, Tsiolkovsky.

In 1931 he moved to Leningrad, continuing to work hard. He was especially interested in the problems of space exploration and the ocean depths. In 1934, after reading Belyaev’s novel “ Airship", Tsiolkovsky wrote: "... wittyly written and scientific enough for imagination. Let me express my pleasure to Comrade Belyaev.”

In 1933 the book “Leap into Nothing” was published, 1935 - “The Second Moon”. In the 1930s, “KETS Star”, “Wonderful Eye”, “Under the Arctic Sky” were written.

He spent the last years of his life near Leningrad, in the city of Pushkin. I met War in the hospital.

On January 6, 1942, Belyaev died of starvation in occupied Pushkin.
Books:

No series

Witches Castle

(Heroic Fantasy)

Star KEC

(Heroic Fantasy)

At one time, the writer Alexander Belyaev preferred the financially unstable profession of a writer to the brilliant career of a lawyer. In his works, the science fiction writer predicted such scientific discoveries, such as the creation of artificial organs, the emergence of systems for studying the earth's crust and the emergence of orbital space stations.

Throughout his life, Soviet criticism ridiculed his seemingly insane prophecies, not suspecting that in his novels, short stories and tales, the creator, who had a keen sense of the world, lifted the veil of secrecy, allowing readers to see the world of the coming future.

Childhood and youth

One of the founders of Soviet science fiction literature was born on March 16, 1884 in the hero city of Smolensk. In the Belyaev family, besides Alexander, there were two more children. His sister Nina died in childhood from sarcoma, and his brother Vasily, a student at the veterinary institute, drowned while boating.

The writer's parents were deeply religious people, often helping poor relatives and pilgrims, which is why there were always a lot of people in their house. Alexander grew up restless, loved all kinds of pranks and jokes. The boy was unbridled in his games and hobbies. The consequence of one of his pranks was a serious eye injury, which subsequently led to deterioration of vision.

Belyaev was an enthusiastic person. From an early age he was attracted illusory world sounds. It is known for certain that the writer learned to play the violin and piano without anyone’s help. There were days when Sasha, skipping breakfast and afternoon tea, selflessly played music in his room, ignoring the events happening around him.

The list of hobbies also included photography and learning the basics acting. Home theater Belyaev toured not only around the city, but also around its environs. Once, during the visit of the capital’s troupe to Smolensk, the writer replaced a sick artist and played in his place in a couple of performances. After resounding success he was offered to stay in the troupe, but for some unknown reason he refused.

Despite the craving for creative self-realization, by the decision of the head of the family, Alexander was sent to study at a theological seminary, from which he graduated in 1901. The young man refused to continue his religious education and, cherishing the dream of a career as a lawyer, entered the Demidov Lyceum in Yaroslavl. After the death of the father, the family's funds were limited. Alexander took on any job to pay for his studies. Until release from educational institution He managed to work as a tutor, a theater decorator, and even a circus violinist.

After graduating from the Demidov Lyceum, Belyaev received the position of private attorney in Smolensk. Having established himself as a good specialist, Alexander Romanovich acquired a regular clientele. A stable income allowed him to furnish an apartment, purchase an expensive collection of paintings, build a library, and also travel around Europe. It is known that the writer was especially inspired by the beauty of France, Italy and Venice.

Literature

In 1914, Belyaev left jurisprudence and devoted himself to theater and literature. This year he made his debut not only as a theater director, participating in the production of the opera “The Sleeping Princess,” but also published his first art book(before this there were reports, reviews, notes) - a children's play-fairy tale in four acts “Grandma Moira”.

In 1923, the writer moved to Moscow. During the Moscow period, Belyaev published his fascinating works in the genre of fiction in magazines and individual books: “The Island of Lost Ships,” “The Last Man from Atlantis,” “Struggle on the Air,” “Amphibian Man” and “The Head of Professor Dowell.”

IN last novel The collision is based on the personal experience of a man, encased in plaster and paralyzed, having no control over his body and living as if without a body, with only one living head. During the Leningrad period, the writer wrote the works “Leap into Nothing”, “Lord of the World”, “Underwater Farmers” and “The Wonderful Eye”, as well as the play “Alchemists”.

In 1937, Belyaev was no longer published. There was nothing left to live on. He went to Murmansk, where he got a job as an accountant on a fishing boat. Depression became his muse, and the cornered creator wrote a novel about his unfulfilled dreams, giving it the title “Ariel.” In the book, published in 1941, experiments with levitation are carried out on the main character and, in the course of successful experiments, he gains the ability to fly.

Personal life

The writer met his first wife, Anna Ivanovna Stankevich, while still studying at the Lyceum. True, this union was short-lived. A couple of months after the wedding, a person who had not had enough fun cheated on her husband with his friend. It is worth noting that, despite the betrayal, after the divorce, the former lovers kept in touch.

It was Anna who introduced the science fiction writer to his second wife, a student at the Moscow Higher Women’s Courses Vera Vasilyevna Prytkova. For a long time the young people communicated by correspondence, and after a personal meeting, following the lead of the emotions raging inside, they legitimized their relationship. It is known that the love fuse new darling the author of the novel “The Air Seller” did not last long. After Vera learned about her husband’s illness, their amorous story was put to rest.

In 1915, fate dealt Belyaev a cruel blow, which forever disrupted the usual course of life and broke it into two parts. The writer fell ill with bone tuberculosis of the vertebrae, complicated by paralysis of the legs. The search for qualified medical personnel led the writer’s mother, Nadezhda Vasilievna, to Yalta, where she transported her son. The doctors who dressed the body of the 31-year-old science fiction writer in a plaster corset did not give any guarantees, stating that Alexander could remain crippled for life.

Belyaev's strong will did not allow him to lose heart. Despite the torment he experienced and unclear prospects, he did not give up, continuing to write poetry, which was often published in the local newspaper. The creator also educated himself (he studied foreign languages, medicine, biology, history) and read a lot (he gave preference to creativity, and).

As a result, the master of the pen defeated the disease, and the disease subsided for a while. During the six years that the science fiction writer was bedridden, the country changed beyond recognition. After Alexander Romanovich stood firmly on his feet, the writer, with his characteristic natural energy, became involved in the creative process. Within a couple of months, he managed to work as a teacher in an orphanage, and as a librarian, and even as a criminal investigation inspector.

In Yalta, the creator met his third wife, Margarita Konstantinovna Magnushevskaya, who became his faithful life partner and irreplaceable assistant. Together with her, Belyaev moved to Moscow in 1923. There he got a job at the People's Commissariat of Posts and Telegraphs, and in free time was engaged in writing.

On March 15, 1925, his wife gave birth to his daughter Lyudmila, who died at the age of 6 from meningitis. The second heiress, Svetlana, was born in 1929 and, despite the illness inherited from the head of the family, managed to realize herself in life.

Death

Weakened by illness, swollen from hunger and cold, Alexander Romanovich died on the night of January 5-6, 1942. Margarita Konstantinovna, two weeks after her husband’s death, managed to draw up documents, get a coffin and take his body to the crypt located at the Kazan cemetery. There, the remains of the famous science fiction writer, along with dozens of others, were waiting in line for burial, which was scheduled for March.

In February, the Germans took the writer’s wife and daughter captive to Poland. When they returned to their native land, the former neighbor gave his wife the writer’s glasses that miraculously survived. On the bow Margarita found a tightly wrapped piece of paper on which was written:

“Don’t look for my traces on this earth. I'm waiting for you in heaven. Yours, Ariel."

To this day, biographers have never found the writer’s burial place. It is known that the marble stele at the Kazan cemetery was installed by the widow of the author of the novel “Leap into Nothing”. The muse of Alexander Romanovich, having discovered on the site the grave of a friend who died on the same day as her lover, placed a symbolic monument next to it, which depicts an open book and a quill pen.

Belyaev was called the domestic Jules Verne, but, despite all the flattery of such a comparison, he was and remains a distinctive, original writer, by and large, unlike anyone else, for which he has remained loved by many generations of readers for decades.

Bibliography

• 1913 - “Ascent of Vesuvius”
• 1926 - “Lord of the World”
• 1926 - “Island of Lost Ships”
• 1926 – “Neither life nor death”
• 1928 - “Amphibian Man”
• 1928 – “Eternal Bread”
• 1933 – “Leap into Nothing”
• 1934 – “Airship”
• 1937 – “The Head of Professor Dowell”
• 1938 – “Horned Mammoth”
• 1939 – “The Witch’s Castle”
• 1939 – “Under the Arctic Sky”
• 1940 – “The Man Who Found His Face”
• 1941 – “Ariel”
• 1967 – “I see everything, I hear everything, I know everything”

Alexander Romanovich Belyaev(March 4 (16), 1884 - January 6, 1942) - Soviet science fiction writer, one of the founders of Soviet science fiction literature. Among his most famous novels are: “The Head of Professor Dowell”, “The Amphibian Man”, “Ariel”, “The Star of KEC” and many others. He is sometimes called the Russian "Jules Verne".

Born on March 4 (16 NS) in Smolensk in the family of a priest. Since childhood, I read a lot and was fond of adventure literature, especially Jules Verne. Subsequently, he flew airplanes of one of the first designs and made gliders himself.

In 1901 he graduated from theological seminary, but did not become a priest; on the contrary, he left there as a convinced atheist. He loved painting, music, theater, played in amateur performances, took up photography, and studied technology.

He entered the legal lyceum in Yaroslavl and at the same time studied violin at the conservatory. To earn money for his studies, he played in a circus orchestra, painted theatrical scenery, and studied journalism. In 1906, after graduating from the Lyceum, he returned to Smolensk and worked as a lawyer. He acted as a music critic and theater reviewer in the Smolensky Vestnik newspaper.

He never stopped dreaming of distant countries and, having saved money, in 1913 he traveled to Italy, France, and Switzerland. He retained the impressions from this trip for the rest of his life. Returning to Smolensk, he worked at the Smolensky Vestnik, and a year later became the editor of this publication. A serious illness - bone tuberculosis - confined him to bed for six years, three of which he was in a cast.

Not giving in to despair, he is engaged in self-education: he studies foreign languages, medicine, biology, history, technology, and reads a lot. Having overcome the disease, in 1922 he returned to a full life, serving as an inspector for juvenile affairs. On the advice of doctors, he lives in Yalta, works as a teacher in an orphanage.

In 1923 he moved to Moscow and began serious literary activity. He publishes science fiction stories and novellas in the magazines “Around the World”, “Knowledge is Power”, “World Pathfinder”, earning the title of “Soviet Jules Verne”. In 1925 he published the story “The Head of Professor Dowell,” which Belyaev himself called an autobiographical story: he wanted to tell “what a head without a body can experience.”

In the 1920s, such famous works as “The Island of Lost Ships,” “Amphibian Man,” “Above the Abyss,” and “Struggle on the Air” were published. He writes essays about great Russian scientists - Lomonosov, Mendeleev, Pavlov, Tsiolkovsky.

In 1931 he moved to Leningrad, continuing to work hard. He was especially interested in the problems of space exploration and the ocean depths. In 1934, after reading Belyaev’s novel “Airship,” Tsiolkovsky wrote: “... wittily written and scientific enough for fantasy. Let me express my pleasure to Comrade Belyaev.”

He spent the last years of his life near Leningrad, in the city of Pushkin. I met War in the hospital.