University discusses preparation to Leo Tolstoy’s anniversary

The celebration’s organizing committee convened via video conference on 16 May.

The meeting was held by Chief of Staff of the Presidential Executive Office Anton Vaino. He was appointed head of the organizing committee in August 2022.

Tatarstan was represented by Rais Rustam Minnikhanov, Chief of Staff of the Office of the Rais of Asgat Safarov, Minister of Education and Science Ilsur Khadiullin, Mayof of Kazan Ilsur Metshin, Rector of KFU Lenar Safin, and others.

The participants talked about their preparations for the 195th anniversary of the great Russian writer – he studied at Kazan University from 1844 to 1847, following the steps of his three older brothers. He chose to enroll in Eastern languages and showed excellent results in admission tests but failed to reach the benchmarks of the freshman year. To avoid repeating the program of the first year, he transferred to the department of law where his performance improved, and he was allowed to advance to the sophomore year in 1846. However, his interest in formal education declined rapidly, and he decided to withdraw from the university in 1847. He later remembered Juris Doctor Dmitry Meyer (1819 – 1856) as one of his favorite lecturers.

Tolstoy’s experiences in Kazan were reflected in such short stories as A Landowner’s Morning (1856) and After the Ball (1911), as well as Childhood / Boyhood / Youth trilogy.