On the reasons for the removal of A.T. Tvardovsky from the position of head of the editorial office of the magazine “New World”

Van Chuyao ORCID: 0000-0001-6456-0953 Postgraduate, Department of Russian and Foreign Literature, Peoples' Friendship University of Russia 117198, Russia, Moscow region, Miklukho-Maklaya str., 6, of. - ChuyaoWang@yandex.ru Other publications by this author

Introduction

Twardowski twice served as editor-in-chief of the Novy Mir magazine. In total, he worked there for 16 years. The first time was from 1950 to 1954; the second time was from 1958 to 1970. During this period, Novy Mir published more than two hundred issues of magazines. It can be said that the "New World" is the epitome of the literature of that era. After Khrushchev's arrival, the authorities in the Soviet Union carried out some cultural reforms that marked a period of "thaw". From the field of political life of the state, this phenomenon of time inevitably had to move into the world of art and literature.

The relevance of the topic of this study lies in the fact that at the present stage scientific research is continuing in the field of studying the patterns of development of the Soviet literary process, which was almost entirely guided by the position of whitewashing reality in order to broadcast to the population the basic postulates of the Soviet regime. It should be noted that the first post-war years, to some extent, gave writers the hope of giving literary creativity greater freedom and its reorientation towards displaying an unadorned reality ^{[7, p. 150]}. However, the position of censorship only strengthened. And it was during this period that bold works for that time began to appear on the pages of the Novy Mir magazine, in the content of which liberal sentiments, different from the precepts of the Soviet government, were reflected. This, in particular, was facilitated by the activities of A. Tvardovsky, who clearly criticized the ideas of conflict-free literature, the attraction of excessive glorification of works that distract the reader from realizing the real state of affairs in the country, in society and public consciousness. The study of aspects of A. Tvardovsky's activity is of particular importance, since it was under his leadership that the New World allowed a turn in the course of the Russian literary process towards realism, which means that it is more in demand for readers.

The study of the problem

Undoubtedly, aspects of the issue raised in the article have already come to the attention of researchers. Thus, the innovative positions of the New World magazine were considered in the work of T. N. Tazeeva-Gritsenko ^[12], V. V. Kolobov ^[4], T. O. Ostroumova ^[8], S. V. Pluzhnikov ^[9], A. A. Revyakina ^[11].

T. O. Ostroumova rightly notes that it was on the pages of the publication in question that facts ("factual material") began to appear, a true representation of reality ^{[8, p. 600]}. It was the exposure of realities, as S. V. Pluzhnikov notes, that led readers to treat the magazine favorably, and this, in turn, also influenced their opinion about the editor-in-chief, who was dismissed from the post of head twice ^{[9, p. 305]}.

The scientific novelty of the research lies in the systematization of information about the reasons for the removal of A. Tvardovsky from the post of head of the editorial board of the journal "New World".

Goals and objectives of the study

The purpose of this article is to identify the peculiarities of the position of the Novy Mir magazine, which was under the leadership of A. Tvardovsky from 1950 to 1954 and from 1958 to 1970, and which became the basis for the writer's dismissal from the post of editor-in-chief.

This goal makes it necessary to solve the following tasks:

1. to identify the main range of "innovative" works that were published in the magazine "New World" and thus reflected the creative principles of the editor-in-chief A. Tvardovsky;

2. to identify the main reasons for the removal of A. Tvardovsky from the post of head of the publication in 1954 and 1970.;

3. To define the principles of the Novy Mir magazine and its role in the formation of the "thaw" in the Soviet literary process.

Research methods and techniques

The research is based on such research methods as comparative-historical, comparative-comparative and descriptive. The comparative historical method proved to be in demand in the process of conducting the first stage of the study - the study of the socio–cultural and political realities of the post-war period in the Soviet Union.

Descriptive and comparative methods made it possible to trace the peculiarities of the creative position of the editorial staff of the "New World" (the second stage). The same research methods were applied by the author in the implementation of the third stage – the formulation of conclusions and results of the work.

The theoretical significance of the work lies in the expansion of ideas about the activities of the Novy Mir magazine during the period when A. Tvardovsky was the editor-in-chief. In addition, the author of the work proves that the writer's return to office was not accidental, and his ideas continued to develop after his final departure from the editorial office, although they entailed an almost complete disintegration of the author's circle of the "New World".

The practical significance of the study lies in the fact that its results may be in demand in the further scientific development of issues related to the activities of the journal Novy Mir and A. Tvardovsky, whose work marked the period of the onset of the "thaw" in Soviet literature.

The main part

Under the leadership of A. Tvardovsky, Novy Mir magazine actively reacted to the new policy and paid great attention to such an issue as humanism in literary work, encouraging writers to create positive characters in their works and truthfully depict life. The ideas of the magazine became close to people and deeply ingrained in their minds. This position of the magazine attracted more and more writers to the publication, leaving many valuable and thought-provoking works for future generations.

There are two main reasons why Tvardovsky was fired twice from the post of editor-in-chief of the Novy Mir magazine: the "ideological consciousness" of the magazine was incorrect from the point of view of the ruling regime of that time: the creative thought of the published works contradicted the prevailing state position.

Tvardovsky believed that democracy was possible in literary creativity, and writers could speak freely and get rid of the total control that stifled literature during the Stalinist period. This freedom could allow readers to truly experience the spirit of the times, which would undoubtedly resonate in the hearts of Soviet citizens. However, these ideas, which run counter to the ideas of government representatives, attracted the attention of a bureaucratic conservative group led by the CPSU.

In 1954, Tvardovsky tried to publish his work "Terkin in the next World" in the magazine, where his lyrical hero analyzed the world of his day. The work was not published for obvious reasons – the content of the work and the author's pronounced position criticizing Soviet realities could not go unnoticed by censorship.

In 1970, Tvardovsky tried to publish his last poem "By Right of Memory" (the work was written in 1964). After Khrushchev's resignation, power passed into the hands of the bureaucratic-conservative bloc in the leadership of the CPSU. Neo-Stalinists also joined this bloc, demanding the resumption of "selective" repression and expressing nostalgia for the "order" ^[6]. In his poem, Tvardovsky strongly denounced the Stalinist crimes that had occurred in the Soviet Union since the second half of the 1960s, and once again called for understanding the role of literature, which, according to the writer, consisted in describing the truthful reality.

In general, during his editorial work, Tvardovsky received many works that did not correspond to the traditional literary aesthetics of that period. These works were rejected by leading magazines. Twardowski, on the other hand, agreed to the publication of works of this kind, because he considered them innovative for his time. As an example of the "oppositional" existence of the magazine, one can cite the fact of the publication of the work "District Weekdays" by V. Ovechkin, which was rejected by many magazines.

"District Weekdays" was published in 1952, when Soviet society had not yet reached the stage of the "thaw", before Stalin died. This work boldly exposed the negative factors and dark sides of bureaucracy in rural life, accusing them of really interfering with the lives of ordinary citizens. Thus, the book of essays itself had a pronounced critical character.

A year later (in 1953), the work of Gavriil Nikolaevich Troepolsky "Notes of an agronomist" was published. This is another work that opposes the "conflict-free theory" in literature and dares to expose the dark side of life. In the same year, A. Tvardovsky publishes V. Panova's novel "The Seasons" on the pages of his publication. This work describes the peculiarities of the life of ordinary workers after the victory of the revolution, it ridicules the obvious lack of culture in society. Critics sharply negatively perceived the work of V. Panova, describing it as "a work that slanders reality" ^[5].

In December 1953, Novy Mir published an article by V. Pomerantsev "On Sincerity in Literature." The article criticized literary works that whitewashed life, pointing out that "insincere words of writers" are the main literary disease ^[10]. After the publication of the article, she immediately became the object of criticism. The author was accused of setting moral standards that transcend time and society.

The influence of Novy Mir magazine on society quickly attracted the attention of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union. The Central Committee of the CPSU noted that the editorial board of this publication made serious political mistakes in its work, expressed in the publication of a number of articles containing incorrect and harmful trends (articles by V. Pomerantsev, M. Lifshits, F. Abramov, M. Shcheglov).

In this connection, the Central Committee of the CPSU decides:

1. To condemn the wrong line of the Novy Mir magazine in matters of literature, as well as the ideologically vicious and politically harmful poem by A. Tvardovsky "Terkin in the next world".

2. Release T. A. T. Tvardovsky from the duties of the editor-in-chief of the Novy Mir magazine and approve T. as the editor-in-chief of this magazine. Smirnova K.M.

3. Recommend to the Presidium of the Union of Soviet Writers of the USSR to discuss the mistakes of the Novy Mir magazine and make a detailed decision on this issue" ^[3].

Despite his resignation from the post of editor-in-chief, A. Tvardovsky laid the foundation for his return. Through his work in the magazine, he firmly rooted the idea of the need for freedom of literary creativity in the public consciousness. In addition, N. S. Khrushchev always highly appreciated Tvardovsky and considered him a very talented writer.

Twardowski worked hard to regain his position as editor-in-chief. Four years later, on June 28, 1958, "The Secretariat of the Board of the USSR Writers' Union granted K. M. Simonov's request to relieve him of his duties as editor-in-chief of the Novy Mir magazine. "A. T. Tvardovsky has been approved as the editor–in-chief of the magazine," wrote Literaturnaya Gazeta. As a result, Twardowski continued his 12-year career as editor-in-chief ^[14].

The new directions of the New World magazine – liberalism in the field of art, consciousness and economics – caused discontent among N. S. Khrushchev, the highest political parties, V. I. Brezhnev and officials of the ideological sphere, namely the so-called supporters of neo-Stalinism in Soviet society. The New World combined ideological liberalism with aesthetic tradition. Tvardovsky was indifferent to modernist prose and poetry, preferring realism developed in traditional forms. In the 1960s, many famous writers published their articles and works in the New World magazine. Some new names were discovered, such as T. Beck, V. Mazaev, A. Solzhenitsyn, etc.

 A fierce literary and ideological polemic developed between Novy Mir magazine and Oktyabr magazine, headed by V. Kochetov (Novy Mir and Oktyabr took the positions of "liberal" and "conservative", respectively). After the Soviet invasion of Czechoslovakia and the suppression of the Prague Spring in August 1968, the Soviet Union quickly reacted to changes in popular sentiment and increased censorship. Strict verification of books and periodicals led to the fact that the publications of the Novy Mir magazine often could not be published on time, but readers expressed their understanding of this situation.

In the summer of 1969, a "letter of eleven" appeared in Ogonyok, which was a sharp and accusatory response to an article by publicist Alexander Dementiev "On Traditions and Nationality" published in Novy Mir. Soon, the magazine and the editor-in-chief found themselves in the center of public discussion. The newspaper "Socialist Industry" published an "Open letter to the editor-in-chief of the "New World" Comrade. In this letter, the traditionally fictional "voice of the people" wrote about the articles published in the magazine by writer Andrei Sinyavsky: "It was on the pages of the New World that A. Sinyavsky printed his "critical" articles, alternating them with foreign publications of anti-Soviet lampoons." The publication of this letter caused a great public outcry against the editor-in-chief, although some liberal writers and colleagues still supported A. Tvardovsky. However, due to pressure from public opinion, in February 1970 he officially resigned as editor-in-chief of Novy Mir magazine ^[2].

At the same time, some employees of the magazine quit one by one, thus supporting their supervisor. As a result, the editorial board of the New World magazine was actually destroyed. Shortly after, Brezhnev received “a letter from some writers. They jointly wrote him an open letter, hoping to restore Tvardovsky to the post of editor-in-chief ^[1]. Despite this, the authorities have not reinstated the writer.

After Tvardovsky was forced to resign, he was in a very depressed state. The New World magazine was his life, the embodiment of his wisdom, talent and hard work. After leaving the post of editor–in-chief, Tvardovsky became seriously ill, and died just a year later - in 1971.

In Soviet literary circles, Novy Mir magazine, a publication of the All-Union Association of Writers edited by Tvardovsky, was a translator of freedom of speech in literature. Liberal writers gathered within the framework of the magazine. In addition to speaking out against the cult of personality and dictatorship, they put forward literary slogans, calling for writing about ordinary people, their complex inner world, about the "little man" and about the facts of real reality. Since people at that time usually disliked false optimism and distorted literary models of heroism, this new slogan immediately became widespread. Human values, difficult human feelings, respect, trust and caring for people have become relevant topics, and this has become an important topic of a new literary trend.

Tvardovsky has repeatedly expressed the opinion that "sincerity", which was promoted by Novy Mir in the 1950s, is a "criterion of literature", saying that readers are most concerned about whether works can reflect "the truth of life, that an extremely sincere artist speaks fearlessly and unrestrainedly" ^{[10, p. 305]}. In the poem "By Right of Memory", Tvardovsky systematically outlined the literary and artistic position on "non-heroization", which was repeatedly promoted by the "New World". He criticized the pursuit of a high image of the hero and his extraordinary qualities in literature and art in the past at the expense of the authenticity of the character's image. He noted that "excessive exaltation of the hero will inevitably lead to the contempt of ordinary people, will conceptualize and idealize the characters and cause them to lose their "human charm". On the contrary, "the basis of the world reputation of great Russian literature lies in its close attention to ordinary people, even such as "little people", as we usually call them" ^[13].

The results of the study

The experience of two dismissals of Tvardovsky's editor-in-chief shows the importance of the Soviet thaw period. Thanks to Tvardovsky's adherence to his creative credo "from sincerity to freedom", readers gain a deeper understanding of the history of the Soviet Union and the living conditions of people at that time.

As the editor-in-chief of the New World, Tvardovsky resolutely tried to resist the gray, officially propagandized literary ideology. He carefully and purposefully published several "innovative" works in each issue of his magazine. The New World, under the leadership of Tvardovsky, represented a new direction in the development of literature in the 1950s and 1960s. Although his ideas were not fully realized, he still had a profound influence on the literary consciousness of society.

Conclusions

Novy Mir magazine made an outstanding contribution to Soviet literature. Publications in that period were always faced with strict censorship and a ban on open publication by the central government. Tvardovsky opposed this, demonstrating with his position that the most important thing for the media is to use their mechanisms to spread innovative ideas. It seems to us that the New World magazine, headed by Tvardovsky, has fully coped with this task.