Exploring the character of Semyon Bashkin in Boris Zhitkov’s novel Viktor Vavich

This article explores historical and biographical ciphers present in the character system of Boris Stepanovich Zhitkov’s novel Viktor Vavich, which revolves around the Russian Revolution of 1905. The main focus is on the character of Semyon Bashkin, with the hypothesis proposing that his prototype was Korney Ivanovich Chukovsky. Memoir sources, particularly Zhitkov’s unpublished diary from 1936-1938, were consulted to support this claim. This diary indicates Chukovsky, the author’s childhood friend, as the inspiration for the character. The original entries from Zhitkov’s diary, now in the possession of the researchers, are introduced into scholarly discourse for the first time. The hypothesis is validated through a comparative analysis of the character development and the biographical narrative and portrayal of Chukovsky. Additionally, the study sheds new light on another character in the novel, the gymnasium student Kolya, revealing him as a childhood representation of Semyon Bashkin in the system of internal relations between the characters and from the historical and biographical perspective - referring us to the gymnasium relationship between Zhitkov and Chukovsky (Nikolay Korneychukov) as depicted in Chukovsky’s memoirs. The in-depth analysis of the character of Semyon Bashkin allows for a multidimensional assessment of all characters in Viktor Vavich, enhancing understanding of individual characters and the novel as a whole.