Novelist. He emerged as a writer of great promise with his first novel, "The Rout" (1927). A taut, exciting tale of a besieged band of Red partisans during the Russian Civil War, it reintroduced psychological realism to Soviet Literature. Greatly inferior was "The Last of the Udege" (1930-40), a would-be epic written to curry favor with the communist regime. His third novel, "The Young Guard" (1945), won a Stalin Prize and was made into a film, only to be withdrawn after critics claimed it insufficiently stressed the Party's role in fighting the Nazis during World War II. Fadeyev had to rewrite the book twice before it was allowed to appear again, posthumously, in 1958. As a leading literary bureaucrat in the 1930's and then head of the Union of Soviet Writers (1939-53), Fadeyev helped enforce his government's endlessly shifting cultural policies; this included sanctioning the denunciation and arrest of fellow writers. Removed from his post after Stalin's death, he turned alcoholic and finally shot himself. In his suicide note, suppressed by the KGB for 30 years, Fadeyev blamed the "ignoramuses" of the Politburo for the destruction of Russian art. Fadeyev's case is an tragic example of a gifted artist selling out his personal and creative integrity in exchange for power and privilege.
Novelist. He emerged as a writer of great promise with his first novel, "The Rout" (1927). A taut, exciting tale of a besieged band of Red partisans during the Russian Civil War, it reintroduced psychological realism to Soviet Literature. Greatly inferior was "The Last of the Udege" (1930-40), a would-be epic written to curry favor with the communist regime. His third novel, "The Young Guard" (1945), won a Stalin Prize and was made into a film, only to be withdrawn after critics claimed it insufficiently stressed the Party's role in fighting the Nazis during World War II. Fadeyev had to rewrite the book twice before it was allowed to appear again, posthumously, in 1958. As a leading literary bureaucrat in the 1930's and then head of the Union of Soviet Writers (1939-53), Fadeyev helped enforce his government's endlessly shifting cultural policies; this included sanctioning the denunciation and arrest of fellow writers. Removed from his post after Stalin's death, he turned alcoholic and finally shot himself. In his suicide note, suppressed by the KGB for 30 years, Fadeyev blamed the "ignoramuses" of the Politburo for the destruction of Russian art. Fadeyev's case is an tragic example of a gifted artist selling out his personal and creative integrity in exchange for power and privilege.
Bio by: Bobb Edwards
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