Yama Town

Author: (Russia) Kuprin
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2002-12-01
Features: Considering that a large number of readers are very familiar with the famous Russian writers Leo Tolstoy and Anton Chekhov, most have read renowned works such as "Resurrection," "Anna Karenina," and "The Cherry Orchard." However, many know little about Kuprin. This outstanding realist critic also left behind many brilliant works. This book includes Kuprin's masterpiece "Yama Town," which is a highly worthwhile read. "Yama Town" is the representative work of the late 19th and early 20th-century Russian realist writer Kuprin. The novel mercilessly exposes the sores of old Russia—the corruption, cruelty, and tragic fate of the prostitution system. The author, with profound humanitarian ideals, truthfully portrays the misfortunes of numerous prostitutes, mercilessly denouncing the social system that breeds all evils, and revealing the shamelessness, hypocrisy, and loss of humanity in the upper class. The author's scathing critique of the prostitution system reaches an unprecedented intensity, to the point that the book, when first published in early 1909, shook the entire Russian society. Russian writer called this novel a "great book of anger." The several prostitutes in the novel—Renia, Lyubka, Pashka, and Tamara—all have a history of blood and tears. They are pure, kind, and self-respecting women, but harsh social life forces them onto the path of prostitution. Their downfall is a result of society, and they themselves are a group of innocent victims. The author also demonstrates through the failed attempt of the university student Likhonin to save the prostitute Lyuba that a capitalist society cannot be reformed through means, leaving the question of societal transformation for the readers to ponder.