Be Charay Log [ Poor Folk ]

"Poor Folk" is Fyodor Dostoevsky's first novel, written between 1844 and 1845 during a period of financial difficulty. Inspired by authors like Gogol and Pushkin, the novel is composed of letters between poor relatives Makar Devushkin and Varvara Dobroselova. It explores themes of poverty and the relationship between the poor and the rich. The friendship between the characters wanes after Dobroselova receives a marriage proposal from a wealthy widower. The novel was praised for its humanitarian themes and considered Russia's first "social novel." It was published in 1846 and became a nationwide success, with the first English translation appearing in 1894.