In 1863, Fyodor Dostoevsky came to rest in Wiesbaden. There, in a few days, he lost not only all his money, but also the cash of his girlfriend Polina Suslova. To get out of debt, he signed a contract with a publisher to write a new novel "The Gambler" as soon as possible.
"But gamblers know how a man can sit for almost twenty-four hours at cards, without looking to right, or to left." ― Fyodor Dostoyevsky, The Gambler
Dostoevsky visited Bad Homburg three times and lost in a casino, repeatedly lost a lot of money at roulette, finding himself in desperate situations. Impressions from Bad Homburg were used in the writing of the novel. According to one version, the novel The Gambler was written in St. Petersburg in Stolyarny Lane.
While working on the novel, Dostoevsky, on the advice of his friend A.P. Milyukov, first decided to use the services of a stenographer, instead of writing with his own hand. Dostoevsky did not agree immediately, since such a method was unfamiliar to him. In the course of his work, he mastered dictation, soon became close to his stenographer Anna Snitkina and married her. After the wedding, we went on a honeymoon to Europe, in particular to Baden-Baden, where the story with the roulette was repeated. After that, Dostoevsky gave his wife a promise not to play anymore and, indeed, did not play for the last 10 years of his life.
The theme of the novel is an all-consuming passion for gambling. It is Suslova who is considered the prototype of the heroine of the novel - Polina Alexandrovna. The tormenting relationship of the protagonist with Polina is a reflection of Dostoevsky's uneasy relationship with must.
The story of passion, which has become for a person no longer the meaning of the game and not even the meaning of life, but the only, existential essence of being. The plot takes place in a German resort town with the fictitious name of Roulettenburg. The main character, Aleksey Ivanovich, travels with the family of a retired general as a teacher for his children. Everyone in the family is waiting for the death of their grandmother in order to receive a huge inheritance. Alexei is in love with Polina, the general's stepdaughter. The girl herself is in love with a Frenchman, the Marquis de Grieux. Meanwhile, the grandmother arrives in town completely healthy, is fond of playing roulette and loses part of her fortune. Alexei tries to help Polina by winning a huge amount of money for her, but the proud girl does not accept it. All the heroes of the story lose sight of each other for some time, Alexei himself becomes a roulette player, and two years later he learns that in fact all this time Polina really loved him.
This article was sponsored by Shawn Mostyn
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