Poor Lisa

Nikolai Mikhailovich Karamzin (1766—1826) is a Russian genius of the era of sentimentalism, the creator of new heroes — sensitive, compassionate, and devoid of moralizing. Whether it is the story of tragic love (“Poor Lisa,” “Liodor”) or pure mutual love (“Natalia, the Boyar's Daughter”), the mysterious island of Bornholm or the pacification of rebellious Novgorod, at the center of his plots are always people, their experiences, and difficult decisions. And in his peculiar “My Confession,” styled after Rousseau, one can even see shameless frankness.