Conference dedicated to the giant of world literature

A significant event in the world of culture and literature began in the city of Semey. As part of the events dedicated to the 55th anniversary of the Literary and Memorial Museum of F.M. Dostoevsky, representatives of the intelligentsia, scientists and connoisseurs of literature gathered.

In honor of this significant date, an international scientific and practical conference “Dostoevsky and world culture: artistic heritage and spirituality” was organized at Shakarim University. The conference was attended by scientists, researchers from Kazakhstan and Russia, cultural figures, public representatives and students. The main topic of discussion was the place of the great writer’s creative heritage in world civilization and its influence on the spiritual development of society.

The conference was opened by the vice-rector for science of the university, Zhanar Kalibekkyzy. In her speech, she emphasized that Dostoevsky’s legacy has become an integral part of world culture. She paid special attention to the role of Semey in the fate of the writer, noting that it was here that one of the most difficult, but at the same time spiritually mature periods of his life passed.

The Kazakh land has always hosted outstanding personalities. One of them was the world famous Russian writer Fyodor Dostoevsky. It is known that after the Omsk hard labor, Fyodor Mikhailovich was exiled to Semey, where he spent about five years of his life. Therefore, holding such a large-scale international conference in this city has a special historical and spiritual significance.

One of the most striking presentations of the conference was the report of Associate Professor of Shakarim University, Candidate of Philological Sciences Toleubek Demezhanov “Memory, which has become the work of life.” The scientist spoke about the history of the formation of the Dostoevsky Museum in Semey and the dedicated work of its founders. He especially noted the contribution of Zinaida Grigorievna Furtseva, who devoted a significant part of her life to the museum.

Vice Consul of the Consulate General of the Russian Federation in Ust-Kamenogorsk Alexander Dyachenko highly appreciated the activities of the Dostoevsky Museum in Semey. He expressed gratitude to the museum staff for their dedicated work in preserving the writer’s heritage and emphasized that such cultural centers help strengthen spiritual ties between peoples.

The leading researcher at the State Museum of the History of Russian Literature named after V.I. Dahl in Moscow, candidate of cultural studies Olga Sakhnik, also made a presentation. She spoke about the history of the Moscow Dostoevsky Museum, about the people who influenced the writer’s fate, as well as the invaluable contribution of his wife Anna Grigorievna to the preservation of the author’s literary heritage.

The speaker especially noted the merits of the Soviet literary critic and researcher of Dostoevsky’s work, Vera Stepanovna Nechaeva, who collected the writer’s manuscripts and became the first director of the museum in Moscow.

The USSR State Prize laureate, Doctor of Physical and Mathematical Sciences, Professor of the M.V. Keldysh Institute of Applied Mathematics of the Russian Academy of Sciences Viktor Vedenyapin also spoke at the conference. In his report “F.M. Dostoevsky: science, religion, Russia,” he touched upon the depth of philosophical ideas reflected in the writer’s work.

In addition, Candidate of Historical Sciences, Professor, Senior Lecturer of the Department of History and Geography of Alikhan Bokeikhan University Alexander Pashentsev presented an analysis of publications about Semey and Semipalatinsk merchants in periodicals of the second half of the 19th century, and local historian Irina Durnovo spoke about the scientific continuity of Altai researchers.

As part of the conference, participants visited the traveling exhibition “Episodes”, dedicated to the most important stages of the writer’s life. The exhibition presented rare materials related to the biography and creative destiny of Dostoevsky.

On May 16, the museum opened the exhibitions “With a Brush in the Footsteps of Dostoevsky,” “A Look Through Time,” and “The Whole World is Reading Dostoevsky.” Visitors got acquainted with translations of the writer’s works into different languages ​​of the world.