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News

February, 21, is Memory Day of M.A.Sholokhov

On these mournful days, beginning from that coldest February day of 1984, thousands and millions of people from different parts of the Earth mentally flock to the banks of the Don. Their inner sight reaches the Don and the steppe, and the low sky over it, and all that raised the genius of Sholokhov, and opened him the way to great literature.

On these days full of alarming reports from the neighbouring Donbass, again and again you return to the simple and seemingly obvious thought: really, are there people, who did not read, did not reread and did not understand the tragic Sholokhov’s lines about а fratricidal war, which cuts souls to the quick with no winner in the end? Can’t the power of Sholokhov’s word depicting horrible scenes of war, in the XXI century as well, have taught nobody a lesson? Or do the people read wrong things and in a wrong way?

Besides the artistic depiction of the national tragedy, the writer, in his journalistic writings, spoke directly about the brutal truth, which mustn’t be glossed over letting in a romantic haze. He noted: “The trenches overgrown with plantain and goose-foot (the sights that can be seen on the outskirts of each of the stanitsas) are silent witnesses of the recent battles; they could tell how outrageously simply the people died in them.” And more, much later: “Now put aside literature. Now we speak about the very existence of the human race and its cradle, the Earth, about tomorrow to come and our children and grandchildren to see the sun in the sky.”

Over 55 years lie between these two statements. But both the young writer of the late 20-s and the wise classic of the 80-s world literature, who reached the highest peaks in his profession, were greatly concerned about the main thing – peace and humanism in each person.

It is necessary that, not only on Memory Day of the writer, his words should sound louder from books and TV.

However, TV today is coldly indifferent to Sholokhov’s word, and publications in current newspapers and magazines are infrequent. Involuntarily we recall the words of the writer Anatoly Sofronov, which he said in 1974: “Only the people, who are alien to Russian culture, can dislike Sholokhov”.

We are full of hope that this year called the Year of Literature in Russia, the name of Sholokhov and Sholokhov’s traditions will take a due place not only in the hearts and minds of the readers, but also in the mass media.

Alexey Kochetov