Poor Folk (1894)

Poor Folk is a novel written by Fyodor Dostoevsky and published in 1846. The story is told through letters exchanged between two impoverished friends, Makar Devushkin and Varvara Dobroselova. Both characters are struggling to make ends meet in St. Petersburg, Russia, and their letters reveal their daily struggles with poverty, illness, and social isolation. Makar is a low-level government clerk who lives in a cramped apartment with his landlady, who constantly reminds him of his debts. He is deeply in love with Varvara, a young woman who works as a seamstress and lives with her aunt. Despite their mutual affection, Makar and Varvara are unable to be together due to their financial circumstances. Throughout the novel, the characters' letters reveal their hopes, fears, and dreams, as well as their deep sense of loneliness and despair. Despite their hardships, Makar and Varvara find solace in their friendship and their shared love of literature and art. As one of Dostoevsky's early works, Poor Folk offers a poignant portrayal of poverty and social injustice in 19th-century Russia. The novel explores themes of love, friendship, and the human spirit's resilience in the face of adversity. It is a powerful and moving work that remains relevant today.This scarce antiquarian book is a facsimile reprint of the old original and may contain some imperfections such as library marks and notations. Because we believe this work is culturally important, we have made it available as part of our commitment for protecting, preserving, and promoting the world's literature in affordable, high quality, modern editions, that are true to their original work.