On the specific features of the biographical method of Alexei Varlamov, the author of the books from “ Life of remarkable people” series

Abstract

Six biographies of well-known Russian writers, created by a well-known modern Russian writer Alexei N.Varlamov and published by “Molodaya gvardiya” publish house in the “Life of remarkable people” series of books became an event in modern Russian literature. Although the biography is not a pure fiction genre the personality of the author and his creative method allow us to consider the biographies of A.Grin, M.Prishvin, A.Tolstoy, M.Bulgakov, V.Shukshin and A.Platonov to be works of literature. The main character of Varlamov’s creative method – using various sources (memoirs, letters, diaries and even oral stories). It helps him to observe an even or a person as well as to present them to readers from different points of view. At the same time the author doesn’t declare his position openly but hides it within the documents and memoirs of his heroes’ contemporaries. It is the author’s credo to show historical true without imposing his own position. Among the principles of the biographic method of Alexei Varlamov we can point out the following ones: 1. Thorough investigation of life and creative biography of the author, special attention to the facts, building up a research instrumentary; 2. Working with the documents and their analyzing, comparison and different ways of integration them into the books; 3. Strict observance of the chronology of the facts really happened; 4. Actualization of the common thematic space of the biographies; 5. Exploring the mutual influence of a hero and the environment: creating the writers portraits with the epoch background and from different points of view, in the surrounding of friends, opponents, witnesses of the events.