The novel *Oblomov* represents the pinnacle of I. A. Goncharov’s literary career. Published in 1859, it elicited a mixed response from critics. Goncharov not only portrayed a remarkable and paradoxical type of Russian character but also turned the name into a household term, defining this specific lifestyle as ‘Oblomovism.’ Some viewed Oblomov as a symbol of Russia’s stagnation and a sign of...

A.I. Kuprin began writing the story 'The Pit' in 1909 and completed the work six years later. The book about the life of prostitutes evoked more condemnation than sympathy or understanding. The author was accused of immorality and excessive naturalism. The attitude to the story by Leo Tolstoy (by the way, the author of the scandalous 'Kreutzer Sonata') was sharply negative. ... And as if in...

Jack London was a master storyteller and one of the world's most popular American writers. His books are filled with thrilling adventures, rugged romance, and noble sentiments that remain with his characters even through the harshest trials. This is especially true of his works set in the American North—a region where the author himself experienced perilous adventures and about which he wrote...

*Doctor Faustus* (1943) is a seminal work by Thomas Mann and one of the most significant books of the 20th century. Under Mann’s pen, the old German legend of Doctor Johann Faustus—who sold his soul to the Devil not for money or fame, but for absolute knowledge—is transformed into a mysterious parable-like novel about the talented young composer Leverkühn. Whether in reality or merely in his...

This collection includes three plays by George Bernard Shaw. Foremost among them is *Pygmalion* (1912), which has inspired numerous film adaptations and the legendary Broadway musical *My Fair Lady*. The plot is based on the ancient Greek myth of a sculptor striving to bring a beautiful statue he has created to life; in Shaw’s play, the protagonist attempts to transform a simple flower girl...

For millions of readers worldwide, the Paris of the ‘Roaring Twenties’ will forever remain ‘Hemingway’s Paris’—a city where one could live, work, and be happy without a penny to one’s name. For decades, this work was published based on the 1964 edition, which appeared three years after the author's death. However, the author's son and grandson, Patrick and Seán, undertook a massive effort to...

Montaigne’s magnum opus, *Essays*—a work that occupied him for a decade—is written in a lively, free-flowing style, devoid of any rigid structure. The philosopher examines topics such as governance, interpersonal relationships, and mastery over one’s own will—among many others—through the lens of his personal experience, enriching his reflections with witty observations and quotations from both...

The lives of the inhabitants of the English estate are trivial and unremarkable; their interests—personal comfort, ambition, and money—are petty and insignificant. Lies, hypocrisy, and sanctimony destroy the well-being and order of the Mansfield Park household, depriving its owners, their children, and their relatives of mutual understanding and unity. How is one to live? How can a sense of...

‘Nausea is the essence of existence for those trapped in the 'bustle of the day'—people abandoned to the mercy of an alien, ruthless, and bleak reality. Nausea is the impossibility of love and trust; it is, quite simply, the inability of a man and a woman to understand one another. Nausea is that very 'other side of despair'—the side where Freedom lies.