Alexander Skabichevsky

Alexander Skabichevsky
Skabichevsky in 1895
Born	(1838-09-27)September 27, 1838 Saint Petersburg, Russian Empire
Died	January 11, 1911(1911-01-11) (aged 72) Saint Petersburg, Russian Empire
Occupation	literary historian, critic, memoirist
Years active	1859-early 1900s
Signature

Alexander Mikhailovich Skabichevsky (Russian: Алекса́ндр Миха́йлович Скабиче́вский, September 27 (o.s., 15), 1838, Saint Petersburg, Russian Empire – January 11, 1911, o.s., December 29, 1910) was a Russian literary historian, critic and memoirist, part of the Narodnik movement, best known for his series of biographies of the 19th century Russian writers.

Skabichevsky was born in Saint Petersburg into the family of a minor state official, the descendent of an old noble Ruthenian family. He studied first at the Larin gymnasium, then (in 1856-1861) at the Saint Petersburg University. After graduation, Skabichevsky went to work for a short while at the office of Saint Petersburg governor Prince Suvorov. 1864 saw him editing the stock market bulletin in Yaroslavl. For several years he worked as a teacher in different schools, including the Larin gymnasium.

Skabichevsky debuted as a published author in 1859 with an article called "The Hunter's Notes", in Rassvet (The Dawn), a magazine for young ladies. In 1862 Otechestvennye zapiski published his drama Kruglitskye. In 1866 Nikolai Nekrasov invited Skabichevsky to Sovremennik, but the magazine was closed later that year following the attempt on Alexander II's life. Skabichevsky moved to Otechestvennye zapiski where he became one of the major proponent of the Narodnik doctrine; many saw him as its co-creator, alongside Nikolai Mikhailovsky. Unlike the latter, though, Skabichevsky was more of a literary critic and scholar than a publicist and sociologist. His major sociology study, "Notes on Progressive Ideas in Our Society" (1870–1872) was, in effect, a philological treatise.