This work was also translated as The Friend of the Family (by Frederick Whishaw, 1887; and by Constance Garnett, 1920).
Sergey, a student in St Petersburg, receives a confused, panic-ridden letter in which his uncle, ex-Colonel Yegor Ilyich Rostanev, summons him to his country seat Stepanchikovo, ostensibly to marry his beautiful ward Nastya. Reading between the lines, Sergey realises that this is by no means the only reason why his uncle needs him. An encounter with a former resident on the estate reveals that apparently there is a mysterious interloper, Foma Opiskin, who has installed himself in the house and is making everybody’s life a living hell. Sergey sets off and, upon arrival, finds the situation to be m…
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Citation: Avsey, Ignat Igor. "Selo Stepanchikovo i ego obitateli. Iz sapisok neizvestnogo". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 08 September 2007 [https://staging.litencyc.com/php/sworks.php?rec=true&UID=11264, accessed 21 November 2024.]