The Village

by Ivan Alekseevich Bunin

"The Village" by Ivan Alekseevich Bunin is a short novel written in 1909 and first published in 1910. Set during the 1905 Revolution in rural Russia, it follows two peasant brothers—one a brutal drunk, the other more gentle and sympathetic. Bunin's unflinching portrayal of country life sparked immediate controversy by challenging the idealized image of Russian peasants common in literature of the time. Maxim Gorky praised it highly, calling it a work that would force Russian society to think seriously about the nation's future.