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Anna Grigoryevna Dostoevskaya (née Snitkina) (russian: link=no, Анна Григорьевна Достоевская; 12 September 1846 – 9 June 1918) was a Russian
memoirist A memoir (; , ) is any nonfiction narrative writing based in the author's personal memories. The assertions made in the work are thus understood to be factual. While memoir has historically been defined as a subcategory of biography or autobiog ...
, stenographer, assistant, and the second wife of
Fyodor Dostoevsky Fyodor Mikhailovich Dostoevsky (, ; rus, Фёдор Михайлович Достоевский, Fyódor Mikháylovich Dostoyévskiy, p=ˈfʲɵdər mʲɪˈxajləvʲɪdʑ dəstɐˈjefskʲɪj, a=ru-Dostoevsky.ogg, links=yes; 11 November 18219 ...
(since 1867). She was also one of the first female
philatelist Philately (; ) is the study of postage stamps and postal history. It also refers to the collection and appreciation of stamps and other philatelic products. Philately involves more than just stamp collecting or the study of postage; it is possi ...
s in Russia. She wrote two biographical books about Fyodor Dostoevsky: ''Anna Dostoyevskaya's Diary in 1867'', which was published in 1923 after her death, and ''Memoirs of Anna Dostoyevskaya'' (also known as ''Reminiscence of Anna Dostoyevskaya''), published in 1925.


Early life

Anna Grigoryevna Snitkina was born to Maria Anna and Grigory Ivanovich Snitkin. She graduated from an academic high school ''
summa cum laude Latin honors are a system of Latin phrases used in some colleges and universities to indicate the level of distinction with which an academic degree has been earned. The system is primarily used in the United States. It is also used in some Sou ...
'' and subsequently trained as a stenographer.


Marriage

On 4 October 1866, Anna Snitkina started working as a stenographer on Fyodor Dostoevsky's novel '' The Gambler''. A month later they became engaged. In the ''Memoirs'', Anna describes how Dostoevsky began his marriage proposal by outlining the plot of an imaginary new novel, as if he needed her advice on female psychology. In the story an old painter makes a proposal to a young girl whose name is Anya. Dostoevsky asked if it was possible for a girl so young and different in personality to fall in love with the painter. Anna answered that it was quite possible. Then he told Anna: "Put yourself in her place for a moment. Imagine I am the painter, I confessed to you and asked you to be my wife. What would you answer?" Anna said: "I would answer that I love you and I will love you forever". On 15 February 1867, the couple were married. Two months later they went abroad, where they remained for over four years (until July 1871). Shortly before their departure two of Dostoevsky's creditors filed charges against him. During a stop in
Baden Baden (; ) is a historical territory in South Germany, in earlier times on both sides of the Upper Rhine but since the Napoleonic Wars only East of the Rhine. History The margraves of Baden originated from the House of Zähringen. Baden is ...
, Dostoevsky lost all of his money playing
roulette Roulette is a casino game named after the French word meaning ''little wheel'' which was likely developed from the Italian game Biribi''.'' In the game, a player may choose to place a bet on a single number, various groupings of numbers, the ...
, as well as his wife's clothes and belongings. Anna seems to have succeeded, like Dostoevsky himself, in divorcing his gambling mania from his moral personality, and in regarding it as something extraneous to his true character. At that time Anna started writing the diary. For almost a year they lived in Geneva. Dostoevsky worked very hard to regain his fortune. On 22 February 1868 their first daughter Sofia was born, but she died on 24 May at the age of three months. In 1869, in Dresden, their second daughter was born, named
Lyubov Dostoyevskaya Lyubov Fyodorovna Dostoevskaya (russian: Любо́вь Фёдоровна Достое́вская; 14 September 1869 – 10 November 1926), also known by the name Aimée Dostoyevskaya, was a Russian literature, Russian writer, memoirist, and th ...
(died in 1926). Back in St. Petersburg Anna gave birth to two sons Fyodor (16 July 1871 – 4 January 1922) and Alexey (10 August 1875 – 16 May 1878). Anna took over all finance issues, including publishing business matters and negotiations, and soon liberated her husband from debt. In 1871, Dostoevsky gave up gambling.


Later life

In the year of Dostoevsky's death (1881) Anna turned 35 years old. She never remarried. After the death of her husband she collected his manuscripts, letters, documents and photographs. In 1906 she created a room dedicated to Fyodor Dostoevsky in the
State Historical Museum The State Historical Museum ( Russian: Государственный исторический музей, ''Gosudarstvenny istoricheskiy muzyey'') of Russia is a museum of Russian history The history of Russia begins with the histories of ...
.


Career

Anna Dostoevskaya née Snitkina trained to be a stenographer and planned to earn her own living. She was recommended by her professor to
Fyodor Dostoevsky Fyodor Mikhailovich Dostoevsky (, ; rus, Фёдор Михайлович Достоевский, Fyódor Mikháylovich Dostoyévskiy, p=ˈfʲɵdər mʲɪˈxajləvʲɪdʑ dəstɐˈjefskʲɪj, a=ru-Dostoevsky.ogg, links=yes; 11 November 18219 ...
to help him complete his novel '' The Gambler''. Dostoevsky had agreed to a contract with publisher F. T. Stellovsky which would have forfeited his copyright for this novel and future novels for nearly 10 years if he did not meet a deadline. Anna's family were great admirers of Dostoevsky, particularly her father, who had read all of his books. They did not have much time, but Anna was determined. Initially Dostoevsky dictated too fast but once they established a pace they completed the project just in time. They also fell in love. Anna did not have the career she planned but she was essential to Dostoevsky's work. She took over sales of his novels, particularly ''
Demons A demon is a malevolent supernatural entity. Historically, belief in demons, or stories about demons, occurs in religion, occultism, literature, fiction, mythology, and folklore; as well as in media such as comics, video games, movies, anime, ...
'', from their apartment in St Petersburg, and began managing his business affairs.


Philately

Her stamp collection was established in 1867 in
Dresden Dresden (, ; Upper Saxon: ''Dräsdn''; wen, label=Upper Sorbian, Drježdźany) is the capital city of the German state of Saxony and its second most populous city, after Leipzig. It is the 12th most populous city of Germany, the fourth larg ...
. It started, as explained in the ''Memoirs of Anna Dostoyevskaya'', with a dispute between Anna and Fyodor Dostoyevsky, who made some critical comments about female inconstancy. Anna was annoyed that her husband did not consider women of her generation capable of persistence or devotion to anything. She told her husband that she would prove him wrong and show him that a woman may pursue one goal for years. She decided to collect stamps and filled up her collection throughout her life. According to the ''Memoirs'', she didn't buy a single stamp. All of them were either her own discoveries or donations from friends. The fate of this collection is unknown.


See also

*''
Twenty Six Days from the Life of Dostoyevsky ''Twenty Six Days from the Life of Dostoyevsky'' (russian: Двадцать шесть дней из жизни Достоевского, Dvadtsat shest dney iz zhizni Dostoevskogo) is a 1981 Soviet biographical film about writer Fyodor Dostoevs ...
'' *''
Oru Sankeerthanam Pole ''Oru Sankeerthanam Pole'' () is a 1993 Malayalam novel written by Indian novelist and writer Perumbadavam Sreedharan. Set in the city of Saint Petersburg, it deals with the life of the Russian author Fyodor Dostoyevsky and his love affair with ...
''


References


Further reading

*''Dostoevsky: Reminiscences''. New York: Liveright Publishing Company, 1977.
Reminiscences of Dostoyevsky by His Wife
in ''Dostoyevsky: Letters and Reminiscences''. London: Chatto and Windus, 1923, pp. 97–155. * Kaufman, Andrew. (2021). ''The Gambler Wife: A True Story of Love, Risk, and the Woman Who Saved Dostoyevsky.'' Riverhead Books. *


External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Dostoyevskaya, Anna 1846 births 1918 deaths Fyodor Dostoyevsky Women writers from the Russian Empire Russian philatelists Women philatelists Russian memoirists 19th-century women writers from the Russian Empire
Anna Anna may refer to: People Surname and given name * Anna (name) Mononym * Anna the Prophetess, in the Gospel of Luke * Anna (wife of Artabasdos) (fl. 715–773) * Anna (daughter of Boris I) (9th–10th century) * Anna (Anisia) (fl. 1218 to 1221) ...
Women memoirists 19th-century writers from the Russian Empire Burials at Tikhvin Cemetery