Childhood and youth
The future academician Dmitry Likhachev was born in November 1906 in the family of engineer Sergei Mikhailovich and Vera Semyonovna. Parents, renting an exorbitantly priced apartment in the center of St. Petersburg, reasoned like this: “The main thing is that the Mariinsky Theater is nearby!” True, we still had to pay for a subscription for the whole season. I had to tighten my belts tighter. But how happy Dimka was! Seeing their son’s admiring face turned to the stage, the Likhachevs understood: everything was not in vain.
Culture, art, poetry, ballet and opera - all this was in Dima’s life since childhood. He could wander around his native St. Petersburg for hours, deeply inhale the city air, and memorize the architectural elements of buildings. During the holidays, I went to explore the world around me outside the city - to Kuokkala (now Repino). And while his peers were kicking the ball around, he listened with interest to the adult conversations at the table, trying to unravel the mysteries in them that were still unknown to him.
No one was surprised when, after school, in 1923, Dmitry Likhachev became a student at Petrograd State University.
The young man began to study ancient Russian literature, becoming seriously interested in philology. With teachers, he could study just a few lines of an ancient work for a whole year - this work was so painstaking.
Dmitry was surrounded by like-minded people - caring people with a warm heart. Together with friends, they organized a student group with the comic name “Space Academy of Sciences.” Young people prepared reports on current topics and talked about painful issues. Could Likhachev have thought that such a harmless activity would almost ruin his life?..
Scientific activity
The result of the scientist’s many years of research activity was 500 scientific and 600 journalistic works. Complex scientific facts in Likhachev’s works are presented simply and clearly, so they are of interest not only to specialists, but also to ordinary readers.
Some of the scientist’s books were addressed to the younger generation, including “Letters about the Good and the Beautiful.” In this book, Likhachev talks about love for people, modesty, morality, compassion and calls for walking “the paths of goodness,” based on eternal and unshakable principles.
Likhachev’s interests were not limited to scientific work; he was no less actively involved in educational and social activities.
The academician actively spoke out in defense of historical monuments, which, in his words, are “completely defenseless” and “destroyed forever.” The scientist was especially concerned about the preservation of Nevsky Prospect and the suburbs of St. Petersburg.
Arrest
On February 8, 1928, there was a knock on the door of the Likhachevs’ apartment. No one remembered the position of the guest, but it was impossible to forget what he said: Dmitry was arrested for counter-revolutionary activities. The young man saw his father cry for the first time. He and his mother ran after their son up the stairs, but could not do anything. Likhachev Jr. was only 22 years old.
Dmitry Likhachev did not fully understand what was the real reason for his arrest.
Either the report heard the day before, or the book “International Jewry” found on him during a search, or he simply fell under the hot hand - the so-called “circles” were mercilessly liquidated at that time. One way or another, the young man was sentenced to five years. He was sent to the Solovetsky special purpose camp. At first it was not easy for the intelligent Dmitry. Anyone who did not swear obscenely was not liked in the camp, and Likhachev did not even know swear words. “That means they will beat me!” - my cell friends mentally prepared me for the worst. But all that the modest philologist could do was put on a thicker hat - maybe the baton wouldn’t penetrate.
Over time, Likhachev became part of the prison environment. He even had a nickname - “Copper Shtim”, which meant a quick-witted, intelligent person. Together with other criminals, they created a theater troupe, acted out skits, and talked about science and culture. Dmitry was amazed at how many smart, educated and well-read people there are within the prison walls! It was on Solovki that he published his first scientific work. It was an article, “Card Games by Criminals,” published in a local newspaper.
In general, the years in prison passed quickly. Moreover, Likhachev was accustomed to treating them philosophically. But there were moments when the blood ran cold in my veins. One day his parents came to visit him on a date. Dmitry went to see them, and half an hour later a friend ran into the barracks and whispered: “You’ve been put on the execution list.” Dmitry knew what it was.
From time to time, the prison authorities, in order to weed out unnecessary people and to discourage others, shot prisoners. Not anyone in particular, but whoever comes to hand. And then Dmitry got caught. Without saying anything to his father and mother, he ran out of the barracks and hid in a safe place. Likhachev heard shots being fired nearby. And he understood: at that very moment someone was killed instead of him. He returned to his parents calm, but... different. Now he knew: he needed to appreciate every day he lived.
Inner fire
— What was Likhachev like in personal communication? I heard that he was extremely gentle with people, extremely intelligent, even, one might say, meek. This is true?
- Let's start with the word “intelligent.” Recently, in conservative circles, a fashion has arisen to treat the Russian intelligentsia derogatorily, to consider them guilty of the revolution and other Russian troubles. I don't like this approach. Dmitry Sergeevich loved the word “intellectual”, and this was a very important concept for him. As you know, in English and German the meaning of this word is intellectual. There is no moral component there. But in the Russian language, in Russian culture, there is. And it must be said that Likhachev played a big role in developing the meaning of this word. He said: “You can pretend to be smart, you can pretend to be educated, but you can’t pretend to be intelligent.” He emphasized that the word “intellectual” does not necessarily correspond to a certain social stratum. A peasant or a worker can be intelligent, while not every professor is intelligent. Recalling his imprisonment in Solovki, Dmitry Sergeevich said how many intelligent peasants he saw there. These people had a deep knowledge of their traditions and an amazing delicacy, even aristocracy.
Now regarding meekness. Likhachev was a man of enormous temperament - otherwise he simply would not have become what he became. But temperament is not necessarily expressed in any bright external manifestations. This is a huge internal fire, this is the energy that allows a person to move mountains. This kind of temperament, in my opinion, was typical of the quiet elder monks who founded monasteries in wild, desert places.
Likhachev least of all resembled the absent-minded scientist from classical fiction. He was not a kind of “father”. For example, in the 70s there was a case when he invited his student Rufina Petrovna Dmitrieva to work in the Department of Old Russian Literature, but the then director of the Pushkin House did not want to take her. So Dmitry Sergeevich turned over a marble table in the directorate! And she was accepted, of course, where did they go after that? Or, already when I was working in the Department, he was indignant when he saw the authorship of one of the scientific collections prepared by his employees. This collection includes works by a man with very dubious views. Likhachev threw this volume on the floor and asked in anger: “How could this happen? How could such an author get into our collection?!”
But this happened rarely. Usually, when communicating with people, he was soft, polite, and did not raise his voice. Moreover, which is typical, he could be tougher with peers than with younger people. And when he received the State Prize, he simply distributed it to his graduate students - quietly, without public statements. Then it supported me and my family.
— For several years, from 1986 to 1993, Likhachev was chairman of the board of the Cultural Foundation. How compatible was this activity with his personality traits?
“This work was very important to him.” By nature, Likhachev was a philanthropist, and then suddenly he has an instrument of charity. Moreover, having agreed to take this post, Dmitry Sergeevich refused to receive a salary - very decent, by the way. He believed that it was necessary to do charity work without receiving any income from it. However, this was his personal decision, he did not impose it on his subordinates.
But over time, work at the Foundation began to upset Dmitry Sergeevich. I remember one day he pulled out a report from some official from his briefcase and said: “Well, what is this? Here’s a man who was in Germany and writes a financial report: he established connections with German colleagues, drank so much beer, bills are attached...” Perhaps it was really necessary to establish connections, but gradually Dmitry Sergeevich began to get the impression that this kind of thing played too big a role in the activities of his subordinates. As a result of the disagreement, he was asked to become the honorary chairman of the Foundation, which he refused, noting that the difference between the chairman and the honorary chairman was the same as between the sovereign and the gracious sovereign. This ended his work at the Foundation.
Personal life
When the war began, Likhachev already had a family - his wife Zina and two little twin daughters, Vera and Lyuda.
All together they remained in the besieged city. Dmitry Likhachev could not go to the front due to health problems suffered in the camp. Only in June 1942, after the most difficult and hungry winter, the family was evacuated to Kazan along the Road of Life. There they met the long-awaited Victory. Since 1938, Dmitry Sergeevich worked at the Institute of Russian Literature - Pushkin House. Outstanding scientific works came from his pen. In 1951 he became a professor at Leningrad University and lectured at the history department. The students knew that this teacher could be asked about anything. Likhachev treated young people with even greater sensitivity than his peers.
Liberation
In November 1931, Likhachev was sent to build the White Sea-Baltic Canal. The following year, he was released early, having in his hands a certificate as a drummer for the construction of the White Sea-Baltic Canal, which gave him the right to live in any city.
Returning to Leningrad, Likhachev worked as a proofreader in various publishing houses; a criminal record prevented him from taking a higher position. In 1936, the criminal record was cleared, and in 1938 he was invited to the Institute of Culture to the position of junior researcher.
Academician
In 1953, Dmitry Sergeevich became a corresponding member of the USSR Academy of Sciences, and since 1955 he became seriously involved in the struggle for the preservation of historical monuments. He did not do this alone, of course. Likhachev managed to gather around himself such influential leaders that all he had to do was set the direction. His opinion began to be taken into account, and he himself was recognized as an unspoken authority in the field of culture. And not only in our country, but also abroad, where Dmitry Sergeevich began to regularly travel with his lectures.
Being an honest and frank person, Likhachev always openly said everything he thought and did not curry favor with the authorities.
When in October 1975 Dmitry Sergeevich spoke out against the expulsion of Andrei Dmitrievich Sakharov from the Academy of Sciences, he was not afraid of anything. As usual, I went to bed, and the next morning I began to get ready for a lecture at the university. I put the notes and a thick notebook under my coat - it’s more convenient. This saved him: right outside the apartment doors, two people attacked Likhachev and started beating him. But we ran into the wrong thing! Remembering the years spent in the camps, Dmitry Sergeevich fought back and ran after them, driving away the scoundrels. I went to the doctor only after the lecture, it turned out that two ribs were broken. But Likhachev was already 70 years old at that time...
Another time, he refused to sign a letter from cultural figures against the writer Alexander Solzhenitsyn. The result is that they tried to set fire to his apartment while he was relaxing at the dacha. They didn’t have time - the alarm went off, and the neighbors called the firefighters. And then they advised the academician: “You should at least put a peephole in the door!” Isn’t it scary?” To which he replied: “If they want to destroy me, no peephole will help.”
Likhachev belonged to that category of people who say little but do a lot. When Brodsky was about to be tried for parasitism in 1963, he obtained a translation order for him, and with it an employment contract. When his students needed a description, Dmitry Sergeevich printed it personally, without hiding behind being busy. When the Leningrad Hotel was being built, I tried my best to prevent it from being made multi-story and thereby spoiling the architectural appearance of the city.
Legal channel
— During the perestroika years, Likhachev was called one of the spiritual leaders of society. What was the meaning of this expression then and how do you understand it yourself?
— In Soviet times, the meaning of the words “spiritual”, “spirituality” was different than before the revolution; it did not necessarily imply religious content. Spirituality was understood as moral perfection, decency, the desire for higher, non-utilitarian values and meanings. Therefore, the expressions “spiritual leader” and “spiritual authority” meant, first of all, high moral authority. A spiritual leader is a person whose ethical judgments are trusted, who is not only listened to with interest, but who is also ready to follow his words and act as he advises.
There have always been such authorities in Russia. But if before, relatively speaking, the 18th century these were mainly people of clergy, then already in the 19th century writers became the rulers of minds. After 1917, writers continued to play this role, but already somewhere in the 60s and 70s they to a certain extent faded into the background compared to scientists. The credibility of science at that time was great; scientists were expected not only to make specific discoveries and inventions, but also to find some higher truth. As a matter of fact, by the 80s of the last century, who were the main masters of minds among us, the Soviet intelligentsia? Two academicians - Sakharov and Likhachev, and the writer Solzhenitsyn. It is clear that I am simplifying, that many other authoritative names could be named, but if we single out the “top three”, this is exactly what happens.
Moreover, it is completely clear why Dmitry Sergeevich Likhachev became such a ruler of thoughts. On the one hand, he was a representative of scientific knowledge - strict, rational, objective. On the other hand, the field of science in which he specialized, that is, ancient Russian literature, is maximally imbued with religious meanings, because almost all ancient Russian literature is about God, about faith, and even when we are talking about seemingly earthly, this-worldly things - wars, troubles, dynastic strife and so on - all this is presented in the Orthodox perspective, everything is assessed from a spiritual point of view. Therefore, in Soviet times, medieval studies (a section of history and cultural studies dedicated to the Middle Ages - editor's note) became, in fact, the only legal, permitted channel through which it was possible to broadcast the Christian vision of the world, Christian values.
Of course, there was the Church - also a legal channel, despite all the Soviet atheistic propaganda. But the difference is that the Church became such a channel mainly for those people who had already made their spiritual choice. And thanks to research on ancient Russian culture, a much wider audience, not just believers, could learn something about Christianity. To many, all this seemed interesting, if only because it was completely un-Soviet, it seemed exotic. And then things turned out differently. Some were not particularly attracted to the Christian component of ancient Russian writing, but others, on the contrary, seriously believed. For example, the editor of the book series “Monuments of Literature of Ancient Rus',” a completely secular lady, having edited 12 volumes of this publication, came to faith.
— Was it really possible in Soviet times, when working in the field of medieval studies, to speak so directly and openly about the Orthodox faith? Did the authorities try to somehow control this?
- Of course, not everything was so bright. Yes, the pressure was very strong. When I started working - and it was already at the end of Soviet power! - It was very difficult, for example, to publish the life of some saint under the title “Life”. It should have been called a “story of life”, “biography”, but in no case a hagiography. Sometimes things got funny. For example, they allowed the publication of a certain text, but demanded that the word “seraphim” be removed from it everywhere. Then the authorities were shown what it would look like: “six-winged <…>”, and they backed down. But in the series “Monuments of Literature of Ancient Rus',” Metropolitan Hilarion’s “Sermon on Law and Grace” was published only in the last volume, which was published already in 1994.
Nevertheless, in the format of medieval studies, it was possible to talk about a lot, and not only Likhachev, but also, for example, Sergei Sergeevich Averintsev, whose books “From the Shores of the Bosporus to the Shores of the Euphrates” and “The Poetics of Early Byzantine Literature” then opened up the vast world of Orthodoxy for many.
But let’s return to your question about Likhachev as the spiritual authority of society. Here it is necessary to clarify that although the very name of Likhachev and his books were known to many, his influence on the masses began in 1986, when he was invited to perform at the Ostankino studio. After this, those who had not previously been particularly interested in ancient Russian literature learned about him. During the perestroika years, Dmitry Sergeevich became known to many, and his word gained great influence. It seemed to people - and it seemed absolutely right! - that when Dmitry Sergeevich speaks out not only on scientific, but also on socially important issues, he relies on lost cultural traditions. Someone clearly realized what kind of traditions these were, someone only intuitively felt, but everyone for whom he was an authority understood that Likhachev was speaking not only “on his own”, that in his words, in his personality, in his something meaningful and real shines through fate.
- And in science? In a nutshell, what is the most important thing Dmitry Sergeevich has done?
— Let me start with the fact that Likhachev owns the most authoritative edition of The Tale of Bygone Years, and more than one generation of researchers has been using this annotated edition.
But the most important thing, in my opinion, is that Likhachev’s works made it possible to understand ancient Russian literature as a whole. First of all, I mean his books “Man in the Literature of Ancient Rus'”, “Development of Russian Literature of the X-XVII Centuries: Epochs and Styles” and “Poetics of Old Russian Literature”. Dmitry Sergeevich comprehensively explained how ancient Rus' differs from our time, and how it is similar to it. And he did it with such clarity, depth and brilliant simplicity as no one had done before.
Moreover, we are not talking about the popularization of science - these are works written for specialists, but they are written in such clear language that they can be read and understood by non-professionals. Very complex things are presented there, but they are presented without any gibberish, without scientific idle talk. Sometimes scientists are divided into fact collectors and interpreters. So, Likhachev was both. For example, in his book “Textology” there are many facts that he established himself. On the other hand, he managed to combine numerous disparate facts into a single system.
Death
Dmitry Likhachev continued to work and help people and his hometown until he fell ill. On October 4, 1999, when the academician was buried, the small cemetery in Komarov could hardly accommodate everyone who wanted to say goodbye to him. Many were perplexed: why not choose a more significant place? But this was what Dmitry Sergeevich was all about: modest, quiet, unpretentious in life, he preferred to rest away from the bustle.
Books about D.S. Likhacheve:
Dmitry Likhachev and his era: Memoirs. Essay. Documentation. Photos / Comp. E.G. Vodolazkin. 2nd ed. St. Petersburg, Logos, 2006.
Valery Popov. Dmitry Likhachev / Series Life of Remarkable People. M., Young Guard, 2013.
Reading D.S. Likhacheva. Seven lessons from the life and books of academician Dmitry Sergeevich Likhachev: Educational and methodological manual for teachers and students of gymnasiums, lyceums and secondary schools. Novosibirsk, Publishing house NIPKiPRO, 2006.
Interviewed by Vitaly Kaplan
Text “Ten interesting facts about Dmitry Likhachev” - Asya Zanegina
