Karamzin, Nikolay (1766-1826), was the leader of the Sentimentalist movement in Russian literature. Sentimentalism came to Russia from Europe in the 1790’s. Followers of the movement emphasized the importance of feeling and imagination, making them forerunners of the Romantic movement during the early and middle 1800’s in Russia.
Karamzin’s Letters of a Russian Traveler (written in 1789 and 1790) is filled with the excitement of a young man’s trip to the West and his meetings with famous writers. The work was published in 1791 and 1792 in the Moscow Journal, which Karamzin founded after returning from his trip. “Poor Liza” (1792) is a tale about a peasant girl who takes her own life after being abandoned by her upper-class lover. The story became the most celebrated work of the Sentimentalist school.
Nikolay (also spelled Nikolai) Mikhailovich Karamzin was born on Dec. 12, 1766, on his family’s estate in Simbirsk province. In 1803, he formed a friendship with Czar Alexander I that led to his appointment as court historian. Karamzin concentrated for the rest of his life on the 12-volume History of the Russian State (1816-1829). The work is a fundamental work of Russian historical scholarship that remains important today. In the work, Karamzin departed from earlier writing styles by using the style of educated Russian speech. The History is credited with contributing much to the development of a Russian literary language. Karamzin died on June 3, 1826.
