“Esenin was killed twice...”: versions of the death of the poet

2020 marks the 125th anniversary of the birth of the iconic Russian poet Sergei Alexandrovich Esenin, whose work, life and fate, in particular, the mysterious circumstances of his death, continue to haunt the minds of researchers and numerous fans of his talent. Many different kinds of publications are devoted to this issue; in the next anniversary year, their number is only growing. This article is a brief overview and description of the versions of the death of the poet, put forward mainly by serious scientists and criminologists, in order to systematize their research and designate certain benchmarks, clearing reliable information from excessive sensationalism and guesswork. The calculation takes into account works that contain a convincing layer of professional evidence of the proposed ideas, as well as serious academic research, in particular, the conclusions of a special commission of the Esenin Committee to clarify the circumstances of S. A. Esenin, created on the basis of the IWL RAS and headed by the famous Esenin scholar Yu. L. Prokushev. The opinion of both experienced criminologists and authoritative doctors, and philologists, who have been studying the life and creative destiny of the poet for many years, is taken into account. However, the systematization of the entire palette of the expressed versions once again shows that the final point in the study of the circumstances of the death of Esenin has not yet been delivered.