«A talent in the making». Lermontov in the journal Biblioteka Dlya Chteniya (1830S-1840S)
The article focuses on Lermontov's publications and their perceptions in the critical reviews that appeared in the journal Biblioteka Dlya Chteniya in the 1830s and 1840s. It was in this period that the poet's literary reputation was shaped, his works published during his lifetime as well as posthumously. In the latter case, some were previously unknown to the public. The journals of the time reveal heated discussions, in which Biblioteka Dlya Chteniya was also a participant. The paper challenges the established image of the journal's editor Senkovsky, whose reviews have been traditionally categorised as negative and contradictory. The article mentions the history behind Lermontov's first publication in Biblioteka Dlya Chteniya and offers its version of the editor's as well as the poet's respective strategies. The author also analyses anonymous reviews published in the 1840s and containing positive assessment of Lermontov's oeuvre, as well as reviews attributed to Senkovsky, who held an overall favourable opinion of Lermontov but remained a staunch critic of the rival journal Otechestvennye Zapiski.