THE CONCEPT OF GENRE SHORTHAND DIARY A. G. DOSTOEVSKАYA

The shorthand diary of Anna G. Dostoevskaya, the writer’s wife, comprises her notes on the creative and family life of the couple in 1867?68 during their stay in Europe. Scholars of Dostoevsky have looked at the diary of his wife as a source of biographic data, with little to no attention paid to its value as a literary text. In this article, we aim to analyse Anna Dostoevskaya’s shorthand diary as a piece of literature, with a special emphasis on the history of its writing and publication, as well as on the diary’s genre implications, structure, spatial and temporary features, its author and the main protagonist. This diary was the first in Russia to be written by the wife of a famous author. Since the diary was never intended for print, it was written in a very frank manner. Our conclusion is that Anna Dostoevskaya was the originator of the genre of personal shorthand diary.