Ovechkin Valenitin Vladimirovich

Ovechkin, Valentin (1904-1968), Russian novelist, dramatist. Born 9 (22) in June 1904 in Taganrog, in a family of small bank clerk, lost his mother seven years. After studying for 4 years in technical school, hired an apprentice to a cobbler, after his father's death in 1921 moved to the village to stay with relatives - rotten, a shoemaker, was in charge of the hut reading room, taught at the school liquidation of illiteracy. In 1925 Ovechkin, . Secretary of the Komsomol cell, . elected chairman of the first Priazovye agricultural communes, . successes that inspires the writer thought about the future of collective farms as the 'most humane' idea of organization of life in the village,
. From 1931 to the party and trade union work (from the Secretary of Agriculture of the Party committee of one of the Kuban Cossack villages to the head orgotdelom District Committee of the CPSU (b) and chairman of city union Kislovodsk)

. Since 1934, . began writing in mid-1920 (first published in the newspaper stories of "deep groove", . 1928, . and Savel'ev ", . 1929), . - A professional journalist: roving correspondent for 'The Hammer', . 'Kolkhoznaya truth' (Rostov-na-Donu), . 'Armavir municipality', . 'Bolshevik' (Krasnodar),
. His first Sat. "Kolkhoznye Stories" (1935), . Tales Praskovya Maksimovna "(1939), . "Guests in Stukach" (1940; on the competition between the two farms), . Blind driver ", . essay "Without family, . without a tribe "(1940) portrayed in the enthusiastic spirit, . however, without disguising the difficulties of establishing a new socialist countryside man,
. Since 1941 member of the SPSSSR.

During the Great Patriotic War, he worked in the army and front-line newspapers ( 'fighting the Crimean', 'Son of the Fatherland'). The most complete military experience of the writer are reflected in the novel "On the front line greeting" (1945). Sharing the confidence of many of his contemporaries in, . that war 'wash' flawed past years, . after demobilization passionately devoted himself to 'rough' journalistic work (the newspaper "Pravda Ukrainy ', . 1944-1945), . criticizing the disastrous administrative-command management style village, . laziness, . mismanagement and incompetence of local authorities,
. Identify and ridicule these vices and is dedicated to post-war arts Ovechkin. Back in 1946 in Taganrog, he wrote the play "Indian Summer" (1947) on postwar Ukrainian Village. A year later, wanting to get closer to its main theme, moved to the city Lgov - Regional Center of the Kursk region, where he worked brought him recognition from the public play "Anastasia Kolosova" (1 st ed. 1949, 2 nd ed. 1950), which affects, in contrast to officially fostered in those years 'varnished' Indeed, the acute problem of ostensible success, 'fraud' in the collective and conceal errors and failures of many heads of households. Less fortunate apologetic piece Ovechkin "National Academy" (co-authored with G. Fishem, 1953) of the farmers, innovators, honorary academician VASKhNIL TS Maltsev.

All-Union fame to the writer after a cycle of five essays related to common themes and actors, "Regional daily life" (1952-1956; District weekdays at the forefront, in the same area, with hands, a difficult spring). This 'business' prose, . based on the fact, . real event (though sometimes with fictional characters and plot), . the first time in modern Soviet literature has made economic, . social and internal subject matter profound aesthetic experience, . phenomenon of 'high' literature, . conducive to the comprehension of current psychological and existential problems,
. Produced radical shifts in public consciousness, . coping with 'the personality cult of Stalin and the resulting symptoms of degradation of Soviet socialism, . this work has received broad resonance in the various layers of the reading public, and marked the, . along with similar works GN Troepol'skaya, . VF Tendryakova and E. Dorosh, . early development of an entire line of modern Russian literature - factual-accusatory, . strict, . devoid of external effects, . wondering prose sketch,
. In this catastrophic situation of the Soviet peasant (unpaid 'work days', . without passports and virtually serfdom from the collective farm of the authorities), writer, and extrapolated to other areas of life in a totalitarian state, . thereby acquiring the character of large-scale socio-critical analysis,
.

At the same time Ovechkin was not the enemy of the Soviet system, seeing the main enemy of those who pervert - in the bureaucracy with their immutable commandments (do not choose a vice smarter, more ban, etc.). Personified the most characteristic features of such a figure in the form of an official of sufficiently high rank - 1 st Secretary of the District Committee of the CPSU (which itself was at that time considerable audacity) Borzov, . Ovechkin gave to life a few decades the concept of a common noun 'borzovschina',
. 'Negative' and callous functionaries opposed to 'positive' and 'soul' 2 nd Secretary of the Communist Martynov, . who does not think so much about the plans of grain, . many of the peasants, . and thus reduces the task of changing the system to the question of changing individuals within it ( 'There is a brilliant Secretary of the Communist, . have a great collective farm chairman - it will go smoothly ', . - Wrote Ovechkin in 1953 Tvardovsky),
. In the last part of the cycle, however, question the need for systemic change, a fundamental democratization of society as a condition of its prosperity ('... people want greater control of their country ...'). Peculiar, though less severe were the continuation of the theme of the play Ovechkin "against the wind" (1958), "Summer Rains" (1959), "The time to reap" (1960) and "Let it come true" (1961).

In autumn 1960, arrived in Omsk region in the virgin lands, which became the basis for the development of economic policies of Khrushchev's time, the writer was appalled by the disorder that prevails in the 'backyard' hands-virgin campaign. His dramatic performance at the Kursk Party Conference against subjectivism and 'showing off' (largely consonant with his ostropolemicheskomu unfinished documentary essay-meditation 1950 No fiction) has angered listeners. Experiencing a nervous breakdown, the writer has attempted suicide, lost an eye. In the same year he moved to Tashkent.

Died Ovechkin in Tashkent, 27 January 1968.