My Apprenticeship (Classics) - Softcover

Maxim Gorky; Ronald Wilks

Softcover

ISBN 10: 014044291X ISBN 13: 9780140442915

Publisher: Penguin Classics, 1974

Synopsis

Maxim Gorky (1868-1936) was sent out into the world at the age of 11 to fend for himself. This second volume of his autobiographical trilogy records his first encounters with the senseless, violent side of Russian society during the later years of the 19th century.

About this title

From the Author:

"Two beings dwelt within me: one of them, having seen too much of filth and loathsomeness, had become chastened. Life’s dreadful humdrum had made him skeptical and suspicious, and he looked with helpless compassion upon all people, including himself. This individual longed to lead a quiet, retired life far away from cities and people. He dreamed of going to Persia, of entering a monastery, of living in a forester’s hut or the lodge of a railway guard, or becoming a night watchman somewhere on the outskirts of town. The fewer the people and the more remote, the better.
" The other individual, baptized by the holy spirit of wise and truthful books, realized that life’s dreadful humdrum exerted a ruthless power which might easily lop off his head or crush him under a grimy heel. And so he summoned all his strength in self- defense, baring his teeth, clenching his fists, ever ready for a fight or an argument."

About the Author:

Maxim Gorky was born in 1868 in Nizhny Novgorod. After a grim childhood and some years of wandering he began to write stories and by his thirties had become famous both for fiction and plays. He became involved in revolutionary activity against the tsarist regime in Russia and had a confused, difficult relationship with the Soviet dictatorship, partly living abroad and yet becoming the USSR's most feted and widely read author. He died in 1936 under suspicious circumstances and Stalin and Molotov were among the bearers of his coffin.

About this edition

• Publisher: Penguin Classics
• Publication date: 1974
• ISBN 10: 014044291X
• ISBN 13: 9780140442915
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 368