Vasilii Grigor'evich Ruban
Vasilii Grigor'evich Ruban was a notable Russian civil servant and writer, born on March 14, 1742, in Belgorod, near Kiev. His early education took place at the Kiev Academy, followed by studies at the Moscow Academy and the University of Moscow, where he excelled academically. Ruban began his career in the Department of Foreign Affairs, dealing with Ukrainian and Turkish relations, and later served in various government roles in St. Petersburg. He garnered support from influential figures, including Prince Aleksandr Viazemsky and Prince Grigorii Potemkin, which helped him navigate the complexities of the Russian civil service.
As a writer, Ruban produced a range of works, including journals, almanacs, and translations, while also engaging in satirical writing. His early humorous journal met with limited success, leading him to compile a compendium of his writings. Despite his significant contributions to poetry, particularly occasional verse commemorating events, Ruban faced criticism from the literary establishment, which often dismissed his work as insincere. Ultimately, despite his efforts to gain favor with the nobility, Ruban passed away on September 24, 1795, in St. Petersburg, experiencing financial difficulties and declining health in his later years. His legacy continues to evoke discussions about the interplay of art, social status, and literary merit in 18th-century Russia.
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Vasilii Grigor'evich Ruban
Writer
- Born: March 14, 1742
- Birthplace: Belgorod, Russia
- Died: September 24, 1795
- Place of death: St. Petersburg, Russia
Biography
Vasilii Grigor’evich Ruban was born in Belgorod, Russia, a small town near Kiev, on March 14, 1742, and his family may have been of Cossack origins. He started his formal education in the Kiev Academy, but soon moved to the Moscow Academy and ultimately to the University of Moscow. There he received medals for his scholarship and attracted the attention of poet Mikhail Lomonosov’s former protege, Nikolai Popovsky, then the university’s lecturer in rhetoric and poetics. Once Ruban finished his university degree, he obtained a job with the Russian civil service, and he worked as a civil servant throughout his life. He started in the Department of Foreign Affairs in Moscow, working on relations with Ukraine and the Turks, but later moved to St. Petersburg and worked in a number of government offices.
Ruban also acquired his first high-placed patron, Prince Aleksandr Viazemsky. He forged alliances with Prince Grigorii Potemkin, notorious favorite of Czarina Catherine the Great. Even as Ruban was working his way up in the civil service, he began to write in earnest, producing journals and almanacs as well as compiling various historical materials. He also did a wide range of translations from Western languages in both prose and poetry and produced a fair number of volumes of occasional verse. He got his start in the satirical journals that were first appearing after Catherine the Great produced her own journal. However, Ruban’s first humorous journal ceased publication soon after it began, suggesting that it found little or no audience. Although scholarly opinion has generally dismissed his first attempt, more recent scholarship has suggested that his tongue- in-cheek humor actually succeeded better than many people have been willing to give him credit for. His next several attempts left him with an enormous volume of contributions he had not used, so he decided to produce a compendium volume to get all his work published.
Although Ruban produced many books as an editor, assembling and arranging the works of others, his real interest was in the production of original verse. Whenever he could get the opportunity, he produced large volumes of occasional verse, that is, poetry written specifically to commemorate an occasion, such as a wedding or a funeral. Although his verse reflected a considerable familiarity with classical literature, it was generally attacked and met with disapproval from the Russian literary establishment, which often regarded it as hollow flattery, even stupid. There has been considerable debate on whether the flattery in which he indulged in order to obtain the opportunity to write should be considered as a debasement of his skill as a writer, or if technique should be considered independently of content. In spite of his efforts to ingratiate himself with the high nobility, Ruban died in poverty and ill health on September 24, 1795, in St. Petersburg.