The Gambler is a short novel by Fyodor Dostoyevsky about a young tutor in the employment of a formerly wealthy Russian general. The novella reflects Dostoyevsky's own addiction to roulette, which was in more ways than one the inspiration for the book: Dostoyevsky completed the novella under a strict deadline to pay off gambling debts. The Gambler treated a subject Fyodor Dostoevsky himself was familiar with-gambling.
Fyodor Dostoevsky gambled for the first time at the gaming tables at Wiesbaden in 1863. From that time till 1871, when his passion for gambling subsided, he played at Baden-Baden, Homburg, and Saxon-les-Bains frequently, often beginning by winning a small amount of money and losing far more in the end. He wrote to his brother Mikhail on 8 September: "And I believed in my system ... within a quarter of an hour I won 600 francs. This whetted my appetite. Suddenly I started to lose, couldn't control myself and lost everything. After that I ... took my last money, and went to play ... I was carried away by this unusual good fortune and I risked all 35 napoleons and lost them all. I had 6 napoleons d'or left to pay the landlady and for the journey. In Geneva I pawned my watch. " Fyodor Dostoevsky then agreed to a hazardous contract with F. T. Stellovsky that if he did not deliver a novel of 12 or more signatures by 1 November 1866, Stellovsky would acquire the right to publish Dostoevsky's works for nine years without any compensation to the writer.
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Produkt-Hinweis
Broschur/Paperback
Klebebindung
Maße
Höhe: 229 mm
Breite: 152 mm
Dicke: 11 mm
Gewicht
ISBN-13
978-1-77441-645-7 (9781774416457)
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Schweitzer Klassifikation
Fyodor Dostoyevsky was a Russian novelist, journalist, and philosopher born on November 11, 1821, in Moscow. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest literary figures in Russian and world literature. Dostoyevsky was the second son of a former army doctor. His mother died when he was young, and his father was murdered by his own serfs when Dostoyevsky was 18. These events greatly influenced his writing, which often explores themes of suffering, redemption, and the human condition. Dostoyevsky began his writing career in the 1840s, with works like "Poor Folk" and "The Double." He was arrested in 1849 for participating in a political group, and spent several years in prison and exile in Siberia. This experience would later inform his writing, particularly in his novel "The House of the Dead." After his release, Dostoyevsky wrote several of his most famous works, including "Crime and Punishment," "The Idiot," and "The Brothers Karamazov." He was known for his psychological depth and his exploration of philosophical and religious themes. Dostoyevsky died on February 9, 1881, in St. Petersburg, Russia, leaving behind a legacy of literary masterpieces that continue to be read and studied to this day.
