Russian stenographer and memoirist, second wife of Fyodor Dostoevsky. Hired to transcribe his novel The Gambler, she became his collaborator, the manager of his affairs, and the publisher of his works after his death.
Anna Grigorievna Snitkina
Anna Grigorievna Snitkina (Dostoevskaya)
6 min read
Frequently asked questions
Key Facts
- Born in 1846 in Saint Petersburg, died in 1918 in Yalta
- In 1866, hired as a stenographer by Dostoevsky to write The Gambler in 26 days
- Married Fyodor Dostoevsky in 1867
- Managed the writer's finances and debts, and founded a self-publishing venture for his works
- Wrote her Reminiscences (Memoirs), a major source on Dostoevsky's life
Works & Achievements
A 26-day shorthand transcription of the novel dictated by Dostoevsky, which saved the writer from a ruinous contract. The starting point of their collaboration and their union.
A private diary kept in shorthand during the journey through Europe, a precious testimony to Dostoevsky's daily life and his passion for gambling.
Anna became her own publisher and distributor, cutting out the middlemen: a rare innovation for a woman in the Russia of that era.
After the writer's death, Anna brought out the definitive edition of his works and settled all his debts.
The gathering of manuscripts, letters, and objects, with a catalogue, which foreshadowed the museums devoted to the writer.
A detailed account of her life with Dostoevsky, which became a major historical source on the great novelist.
Anecdotes
In October 1866, Dostoevsky had signed a ruinous contract: if he did not deliver a novel before November 1st, his publisher Stellovsky would obtain the rights to his entire body of work for nine years. The young stenographer Anna, aged 20, was hired and, in just 26 days, she transcribed the novel *The Gambler* from his dictation, saving the writer from disaster.
A few months after this literary rescue, Dostoevsky, 25 years her senior, made her a disguised marriage proposal: he told her the story of an old artist in love with a young woman and asked what she would answer in her place. Anna understood at once and accepted. They married in February 1867.
During their travels in Europe, Dostoevsky was consumed by a passion for gambling and would lose even their wedding rings and Anna's dresses at the roulette tables. Rather than reproaching him, she patiently kept the accounts and supported him until he gave up gambling for good in 1871.
After her husband's death in 1881, Anna refused to sell the rights to publishers and decided to publish Dostoevsky's complete works herself. Having become a shrewd publisher and businesswoman, she paid off all the writer's debts and turned his work into a lasting legacy.
Anna was one of the first people in Russia to establish a true museum dedicated to a writer: she gathered Dostoevsky's manuscripts, letters, and personal objects and campaigned for their preservation, laying the foundations for the future museums devoted to him.
Primary Sources
When I first came to Fyodor Mikhailovich to take his dictation, I was a shy young woman, but determined to do my work as a stenographer well.
Fedya gambled again and we lost almost all our money; but I do not want to reproach him, for I see how much he suffers from his weakness.
My dear Anya, without you I would be lost; you are my guardian angel and the support of my whole life.
Key Places
Anna's native city and the place where she met Dostoevsky. It was there that she learned shorthand and where she spent most of her life as a wife and publisher.
A German city where the couple stayed during their long European journey. Anna kept her diary there and experienced the first joys and sorrows of her marriage.
German spa towns famous for their casinos, where Dostoevsky gave in to his passion for gambling. Anna faced the couple's worst financial moments there.
A small resort town where the family spent its summers and where Dostoevsky wrote part of *The Brothers Karamazov*. Anna watched over the children and her husband's work there.
A town on the shore of the Black Sea where Anna took refuge during the civil war and where she died in 1918, far from Petersburg.
Typical Objects
Small notebook in which Anna jotted down, at top speed and in abbreviated symbols, the words dictated by Dostoevsky. It was the tool that made it possible to produce an entire novel in less than a month.
Instruments with which Anna made fair copies of the shorthand texts before handing them to the printer. She spent long hours putting the manuscripts into legible form.
Ledger in which Anna recorded the household's expenses, debts and income. Her bookkeeping rigor saved the family from ruin and financed the publication of the works.
Corrected pages of novels such as The Idiot and The Brothers Karamazov, which Anna carefully preserved. She made them the heart of her collection devoted to the writer.
Wedding ring that Anna had to pawn on several occasions when her husband had gambled everything away in Europe. She would retrieve it as soon as their finances allowed.
Plain, practical outfit that Anna wore during the four years spent travelling in Europe. Some of her dresses were also pawned at the pawnshop.
School Curriculum
Vocabulary & Tags
Key Vocabulary
Tags
Daily Life
Morning
Anna would get up early to write out a fair copy, in pen, of the pages her husband had dictated to her the day before. She also organized the household's day and handled everyday matters before Dostoevsky woke up — he often worked through the night.
Afternoon
The afternoon was devoted to management: correspondence with printers and booksellers, keeping the accounts, dealings with creditors. An attentive mother, she also looked after their children between tasks.
Evening
In the evening, Dostoevsky dictated his novels to Anna, who sat with her shorthand notebook. These long sessions of shared work, sometimes late into the night, were the heart of their life as writers.
Food
Their meals followed the Russian customs of the time: soups such as shchi or borscht, kasha (porridge made from grains), black bread, and tea served from the samovar. While traveling and during the years of debt, the couple often had to make do with modest fare.
Clothing
Anna wore the long, plain dresses of educated middle-class women of the 19th century, complete with corset, petticoats, and shawl. During the periods of ruin at the gambling table, she sometimes had to pawn her finest outfits at the pawnshop.
Housing
The family lived in rented apartments in Saint Petersburg and spent their summers in Staraya Russa. For four years, the couple led a wandering life from hotel to boarding house across Germany, Italy, and Switzerland to escape their Russian creditors.
Historical Timeline
Period Vocabulary
Liens externes & ressources
Références
Œuvres
Transcription du roman Le Joueur
1866
Journal de l'année 1867
1867
Édition autonome des œuvres de Dostoïevski
à partir de 1873
Publication des Œuvres complètes de F. M. Dostoïevski
1883
Constitution d'une collection et d'un fonds Dostoïevski
vers 1900-1906
Souvenirs (mémoires)
publiés en 1925
