Works. What novel did Fenimore Cooper write as a bet with his wife? Pentalogy of Leather Stocking

James Fenimore Cooper is an American novelist and satirist. A classic of adventure literature.

James Fenimore Cooper was born in 1789 in Burlington, New Jersey. The boy's father was a large landowner. The future writer spent his childhood in the village of Cooperstown, located in New York state, on the shore of a lake. It was named after James's father. Fenimore preferred the lifestyle of “country gentlemen” and remained committed to large landownership.

At first, Cooper James Fenimore was educated at a local school, and then entered Yale College. After graduation, the young man had no desire to continue his studies. Seventeen-year-old James became a sailor in the merchant and then navy. The future writer crossed the Atlantic Ocean and traveled a lot. Fenimore also studied well the Great Lakes region, where the action of his works would soon unfold. In those years, he accumulated a lot of material for his literary work in the form of various life experiences.

In 1810, after his father's funeral, Cooper James Fenimore married and settled with his family in the small town of Scarsdale. Ten years later, he wrote his first novel called Precaution.

The War of Independence was a topic that James Fenimore Cooper was very interested in at that time. “The Spy,” written by him in 1821, was entirely devoted to this issue. The patriotic novel brought great fame to the author. We can say that with this work Cooper filled the void left in national literature and showed guidelines for its future development. From that moment on, Fenimore decided to devote himself entirely to literary creativity. Over the next six years, he wrote several more novels, including three works that were included in the future pentalogy about Leather Stocking.

In 1826, James Fenimore Cooper, whose books were already quite popular, went to Europe. He lived for a long time in Italy and France. The writer also traveled to other countries. New impressions forced him to turn to the history of both the Old and New Worlds. In Europe, the hero of this article wrote two sea novels (The Sea Sorceress, The Red Corsair) and a trilogy about the Middle Ages (The Executioner, Heidenmauer, Bravo).

Seven years later, Cooper James Fenimore came home. During his absence, America changed a lot. The heroic time of the Revolution was a thing of the past, and the principles of the Declaration of Independence were forgotten. A period of industrial revolution began in the USA, which destroyed the remnants of patriarchy both in human relations and in life. “The Great Moral Eclipse” is how Cooper dubbed the disease that has penetrated American society.

Cooper wrote the political allegory “Monikins” (1835), five volumes of travel notes (1836-1838), several novels from American life (“Satanstowe”; 1845 and others), and the pamphlet “The American Democrat” (1838). In addition, he also wrote “History of the United States Navy”, 1839. The desire for complete impartiality revealed in this work did not satisfy either his compatriots or the British; the controversy it caused poisoned the last years of Cooper's life.

Biography

Shortly after Fenimore's birth, his father, Judge William Cooper (English)Russian, a fairly wealthy Quaker landowner, moved to New York State and founded the village of Cooperstown there (English)Russian, turned into a town. Having received his initial education at a local school, Cooper went to Yale University, but without completing the course, he entered the naval service (1806-1811) and was assigned to the construction of a warship on Lake Ontario.

To this circumstance we owe the remarkable descriptions of Ontario found in his famous novel “The Pathfinder, or On the Shores of Ontario.” In 1811, Cooper married a Frenchwoman, Susan Augusta Delancey, who came from a family that sympathized with England during the Revolutionary War; its influence explains those relatively mild reviews of the English and the English government that are found in Cooper's early novels. Chance made him a writer. Once reading a novel aloud to his wife, Cooper noticed that it was not difficult to write better. His wife took him at his word, and in order not to seem like a braggart, he wrote his first novel, Precaution, in a few weeks. Precaution; ).

Novels

Assuming that, in view of the already begun competition between English and American authors, English criticism would react unfavorably to his work, Cooper did not sign his name for the first novel "Precaution"() and moved the action of this novel to England. The latter circumstance could only harm the book, which revealed the author’s poor familiarity with English life and caused very unfavorable reviews from English critics. Cooper's second novel, already from American life, became the famous "The Spy, or a Tale of No Man's Land"(“The Spy: A Tale of the Neutral Ground,”), which was a huge success not only in America, but also in Europe.

Cooper then wrote a series of novels about American life ( "Pioneers, or At the Sources of the Susquehanna", ; "The Last of the Mohicans", ; "Steppes", otherwise "Prairie", ; "Trace Opener", aka. "Pathfinder", ; "Doe Hunter", otherwise « » , ), where he depicted the wars of the European aliens among themselves, in which they involved the American Indians, forcing the tribes to fight against each other. The hero of these novels is the hunter Natty (Nathaniel) Bumppo, who appears under various names (St. John's Wort, Pathfinder, Hawkeye, Leather Stocking, Long Carbine), energetic and handsome, and soon became a favorite of the European public. In Cooper's work, not only this representative of European civilization, but also some of the Indians (Chingachgook, Uncas) are idealized, albeit with subtle humor and satire, usually accessible only to an adult reader.

The success of this series of novels was so great that even English critics had to recognize Cooper's talent and called him the American Walter Scott. In the city, Cooper went to Europe, where he spent seven years. The fruit of this journey was several novels - "Bravo, or in Venice", “The Headsman”, “Mercedes of Castile, or Journey to Cathay” (Mercedes of Castile), - which takes place in Europe.

The mastery of the story and its ever-increasing interest, the vividness of the descriptions of nature, which emanate the primeval freshness of the virgin forests of America, the relief in the depiction of characters who stand before the reader as if alive - these are Cooper’s advantages as a novelist. He also wrote sea novels "Pilot, or Maritime History" (), "Red Corsair" ().

After Europe

Upon his return from Europe, Cooper wrote a political allegory "Monicins"(), five volumes of travel notes (-), several novels from American life (“Satanstowe”; and others), the pamphlet “The American Democrat” (The American Democrat, 1838). In addition, he also wrote “History of the United States Navy.” The desire for complete impartiality revealed in this work did not satisfy either his compatriots or the British; the controversy it caused poisoned the last years of Cooper's life. Fenimore Cooper died on September 14, 1851 from cirrhosis of the liver.

James Fenimore Cooper in Russia

The adventure novels of James Fenimore Cooper were very popular in the USSR; their author was quickly recognized by his second, rare name. Fenimore en. For example, in the film “The Mystery of Fenimore”, the third episode of the children's television mini-series “Three Merry Shifts” of 1977 based on the stories of Yu. Yakovlev, it tells about a mysterious stranger named Fenimore, who in the pioneer camp comes to the boys’ ward at night and tells amazing stories about Indians and aliens.

Bibliography

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  • composes a traditional novel of morals “Precaution” (Precaution) for his daughters.

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  • historical novel The Spy: A Tale of the Neutral Ground, based on local legends. The novel poeticizes the era of the American Revolution and its ordinary heroes. "Spy" receives international recognition. Cooper moved with his family to New York, where he soon became a prominent literary figure and leader of writers who advocated for the national identity of American literature.

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  • the fourth part of the pentalogy about Natty Bumppo “Pioneers, or at the origins of the Susquehanna”
  • short stories (Tales for Fifteen: or Imagination and Heart)
  • the novel “The Pilot: A Tale of the Sea”, the first of Cooper’s many works about adventures at sea.

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  • novel “Lionel Lincoln, or The Siege of Boston” (Lionel Lincoln, or The leaguer of Boston).

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  • the second part of the pentalogy about Natty Bumppo, Cooper’s most popular novel, the name of which has become a household name, is “The Last of the Mohicans”.

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  • the fifth part of the pentalogy is the novel “The Steppes”, otherwise “The Prairie”.
  • maritime novel “The Red Corsair” (The Red Rover).

• • Notions of the Americans: Picked up by a Traveling Bachelor

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  • the novel “The Valley of Wish-ton-Wish” (The wept of Wish-ton-Wish), dedicated to the Indian theme - the battles of the American colonists of the 17th century. with the Indians.

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  • the fantastic story of the brigantine of the same name “The Water-Witch: or the Skimmer of the Seas”.
  • Letter to General Lafayette politics

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  • the first part of a trilogy from the history of European feudalism “Bravo, or in Venice” (The bravo) is a novel from the distant past of Venice.

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  • the second part of the trilogy “Heidenmauer, or the Benedictines” (The Heidenmauer: or, The Benedictines, A Legend of the Rhine) is a historical novel from the time of the early Reformation in Germany.
  • short stories (No Steamboats)

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  • the third part of the trilogy “The headsman, or The Abbaye des vignerons” - a legend of the 18th century. about the hereditary executioners of the Swiss canton of Bern.

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  • (A Letter to His Countrymen)

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  • criticism of American reality in the political allegory “The Monikins”, written in the tradition of educational allegorism and satire of J. Swift.

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  • memoirs (The Eclipse)
  • Gleanings in Europe: Switzerland (Sketches of Switzerland)
  • Gleanings in Europe: The Rhine
  • A Residence in France: With an Excursion Up the Rhine, and a Second Visit to Switzerland

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  • Gleanings in Europe: France travel
  • Gleanings in Europe: England travel

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  • pamphlet “The American Democrat: or Hints on the Social and Civic Relations of the United States of America.”
  • Gleanings in Europe: Italy travel
  • The Chronicles of Cooperstown
  • Homeward Bound: or The Chase: A Tale of the Sea
  • Home as Found: Sequel to Homeward Bound

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  • “The History of the Navy of the United States of America”, testifying to an excellent mastery of the material and love for navigation.
  • Old Ironsides

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  • “The Pathfinder, or On the Shores of Ontario” or “The Pathfinder, or The inland sea” - the third part of the pentalogy about Natty Bumppo
  • a novel about the discovery of America by Columbus “Mercedes of Castile: or, The Voyage to Cathay”.

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  • “The Deerslayer: or The First Warpath” or “The Deerslayer: or The First Warpath” is the first part of the pentalogy.

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  • novel “The two admirals”, telling an episode from the history of the British fleet leading the war with France in 1745
  • a novel about French privateering, “Will-o’-the-wisp” (Wing-and-Wing, or Le feu-follet).

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  • the novel “Wyandotté: or The Hutted Knoll. A Tale” about the American Revolution in the remote corners of America.
  • Richard Dale
  • biography (Ned Myers: or Life before the Mast)
  • (Autobiography of a Pocket-Handkerchief or Le Mouchoir: An Autobiographical Romance or The French Governess: or The Embroidered Handkerchief or Die franzosischer Erzieheren: oder das gestickte Taschentuch)

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  • novel “Afloat and Ashore: or The Adventures of Miles Wallingford. A Sea Tale”
  • and its continuation “Miles Wallingford” (Miles Wallingford: Sequel to Afloat and Ashore), where the image of the main character has autobiographical features.
  • Proceedings of the Naval Court-Martial in the Case of Alexander Slidell Mackenzie, &c.

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  • two parts of the “trilogy in defense of land rent”: “Satanstoe” (Satanstoe: or The Littlepage Manuscripts, a Tale of the Colony) and “The Land Surveyor” (The Chainbearer; or, The Littlepage Manuscripts).

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  • the third part of the trilogy is the novel “The Redskins” (The Redskins; or, Indian and Injin: Being the Conclusion of the Littlepage Manuscripts). In this trilogy, Cooper portrays three generations of landowners (from the mid-18th century to the struggle against land rent in the 20s).
  • Lives of Distinguished American Naval Officers biography

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  • The pessimism of the late Cooper is expressed in the utopia “The Crater; or, Vulcan’s Peak: A Tale of the Pacific,” which is an allegorical history of the United States.

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  • the novel “Oak Grove” or “Clearings in the oak groves, or the Bee Hunter” (The Oak Openings: or the Bee-Hunter) - from the history of the Anglo-American war.
  • novel “Jack Tier: or the Florida Reefs”

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  • Cooper's latest sea novel, The Sea Lions: The Lost Sealers, is about a shipwreck that befalls seal hunters in the ice of Antarctica.

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  • Cooper's latest book, The Ways of the Hour, is a social novel about American legal proceedings.
  • play (Upside Down: or Philosophy in Petticoats), satirization of socialism

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  • short story (The Lake Gun)
  • (New York: or The Towns of Manhattan) - an unfinished work on the history of New York City.

Memory

• In philately

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Notes

Literature

• // Encyclopedic Dictionary of Brockhaus and Efron: in 86 volumes (82 volumes and 4 additional). - St. Petersburg. , 1890-1907.
• Lowell, "American Literature" (vol. I);
• Richardson, "Amer. Literature" (vol. II);
• Griswold, The Prose Writers of America;
• Knortz, "Geschichte der nordamerikanischen Literatur" (vol. I);
• Lounsbury, Life of J. F. Cooper (Boston, 1883);
• Warner, “American Men of Letters: J.-F. Cooper."
• (ZhZL)

Links

Excerpt characterizing Cooper, James Fenimore

In addition to the general feeling of alienation from all people, Natasha at this time experienced a special feeling of alienation from her family. All her own: father, mother, Sonya, were so close to her, familiar, so everyday that all their words and feelings seemed to her an insult to the world in which she had lived lately, and she was not only indifferent, but looked at them with hostility . She heard Dunyasha’s words about Pyotr Ilyich, about misfortune, but did not understand them.
“What kind of misfortune do they have there, what kind of misfortune can there be? Everything they have is old, familiar and calm,” Natasha mentally told herself.
When she entered the hall, the father was quickly leaving the countess's room. His face was wrinkled and wet with tears. He apparently ran out of that room to give vent to the sobs that were crushing him. Seeing Natasha, he desperately waved his hands and burst into painful, convulsive sobs that distorted his round, soft face.
- Pe... Petya... Come, come, she... she... is calling... - And he, sobbing like a child, quickly mincing with weakened legs, walked up to the chair and fell almost on it, covering his face with his hands.
Suddenly, like an electric current ran through Natasha’s entire being. Something hit her terribly painfully in the heart. She felt terrible pain; It seemed to her that something was being torn away from her and that she was dying. But following the pain, she felt an instant release from the ban on life that lay on her. Seeing her father and hearing her mother’s terrible, rude cry from behind the door, she instantly forgot herself and her grief. She ran up to her father, but he, helplessly waving his hand, pointed to her mother’s door. Princess Marya, pale, with a trembling lower jaw, came out of the door and took Natasha by the hand, saying something to her. Natasha didn’t see or hear her. She entered the door with quick steps, stopped for a moment, as if in a struggle with herself, and ran up to her mother.
The Countess lay on an armchair, stretching out strangely awkwardly, and banging her head against the wall. Sonya and the girls held her hands.
“Natasha, Natasha!..” shouted the countess. - It’s not true, it’s not true... He’s lying... Natasha! – she screamed, pushing those around her away. - Go away, everyone, it’s not true! Killed!.. ha ha ha ha!.. not true!
Natasha knelt on the chair, bent over her mother, hugged her, lifted her with unexpected strength, turned her face towards her and pressed herself against her.
- Mama!.. darling!.. I’m here, my friend. “Mama,” she whispered to her, without stopping for a second.
She did not let her mother go, gently struggled with her, demanded a pillow, water, unbuttoned and tore her mother’s dress.
“My friend, my dear... mamma, darling,” she whispered incessantly, kissing her head, hands, face and feeling how uncontrollably her tears flowed in streams, tickling her nose and cheeks.
The Countess squeezed her daughter's hand, closed her eyes and fell silent for a moment. Suddenly she stood up with unusual speed, looked around senselessly and, seeing Natasha, began squeezing her head with all her might. Then she turned her face, wrinkled in pain, towards her and peered at it for a long time.
“Natasha, you love me,” she said in a quiet, trusting whisper. - Natasha, won’t you deceive me? Will you tell me the whole truth?
Natasha looked at her with tear-filled eyes, and in her face there was only a plea for forgiveness and love.
“My friend, mamma,” she repeated, straining all the strength of her love in order to somehow relieve her of the excess grief that was oppressing her.
And again, in a powerless struggle with reality, the mother, refusing to believe that she could live when her beloved boy, blooming with life, was killed, fled from reality in a world of madness.
Natasha did not remember how that day, that night, the next day, the next night went. She did not sleep and did not leave her mother. Natasha’s love, persistent, patient, not as an explanation, not as a consolation, but as a call to life, every second seemed to embrace the countess from all sides. On the third night, the Countess fell silent for a few minutes, and Natasha closed her eyes, resting her head on the arm of the chair. The bed creaked. Natasha opened her eyes. The Countess sat on the bed and spoke quietly.
– I’m so glad you came. Are you tired, do you want some tea? – Natasha approached her. “You have become prettier and more mature,” the countess continued, taking her daughter by the hand.
- Mama, what are you saying!..
- Natasha, he’s gone, no more! “And, hugging her daughter, the countess began to cry for the first time.

Princess Marya postponed her departure. Sonya and the Count tried to replace Natasha, but they could not. They saw that she alone could keep her mother from insane despair. For three weeks Natasha lived hopelessly with her mother, slept on an armchair in her room, gave her water, fed her and talked to her incessantly - she talked because her gentle, caressing voice alone calmed the countess.
The mother's mental wound could not be healed. Petya's death took away half of her life. A month after the news of Petya’s death, which found her a fresh and cheerful fifty-year-old woman, she left her room half-dead and not taking part in life - an old woman. But the same wound that half killed the countess, this new wound brought Natasha to life.
A mental wound that comes from a rupture of the spiritual body, just like a physical wound, no matter how strange it may seem, after a deep wound has healed and seems to have come together at its edges, a mental wound, like a physical one, heals only from the inside with the bulging force of life.
Natasha’s wound healed in the same way. She thought her life was over. But suddenly love for her mother showed her that the essence of her life - love - was still alive in her. Love woke up and life woke up.
The last days of Prince Andrei connected Natasha with Princess Marya. The new misfortune brought them even closer together. Princess Marya postponed her departure and for the last three weeks, like a sick child, she looked after Natasha. The last weeks Natasha spent in her mother’s room had strained her physical strength.
One day, Princess Marya, in the middle of the day, noticing that Natasha was trembling with a feverish chill, took her to her place and laid her on her bed. Natasha lay down, but when Princess Marya, lowering the curtains, wanted to go out, Natasha called her over.
– I don’t want to sleep. Marie, sit with me.
– You’re tired, try to sleep.
- No no. Why did you take me away? She will ask.
- She's much better. “She spoke so well today,” said Princess Marya.
Natasha lay in bed and in the semi-darkness of the room looked at the face of Princess Marya.
“Does she look like him? – thought Natasha. – Yes, similar and not similar. But she is special, alien, completely new, unknown. And she loves me. What's on her mind? All is good. But how? What does she think? How does she look at me? Yes, she is beautiful."
“Masha,” she said, timidly pulling her hand towards her. - Masha, don’t think that I’m bad. No? Masha, my dear. I love you so much. We will be completely, completely friends.
And Natasha, hugging and kissing the hands and face of Princess Marya. Princess Marya was ashamed and rejoiced at this expression of Natasha’s feelings.
From that day on, that passionate and tender friendship that only happens between women was established between Princess Marya and Natasha. They kissed constantly, spoke tender words to each other and spent most of their time together. If one went out, then the other was restless and hurried to join her. The two of them felt greater agreement among themselves than apart, each with herself. A feeling stronger than friendship was established between them: it was an exceptional feeling of the possibility of life only in the presence of each other.
Sometimes they were silent for hours; sometimes, already lying in bed, they began to talk and talked until the morning. They talked mostly about the distant past. Princess Marya talked about her childhood, about her mother, about her father, about her dreams; and Natasha, who had previously turned away with calm incomprehension from this life, devotion, humility, from the poetry of Christian self-sacrifice, now, feeling herself bound by love with Princess Marya, fell in love with Princess Marya’s past and understood a side of life that was previously incomprehensible to her. She did not think of applying humility and self-sacrifice to her life, because she was accustomed to looking for other joys, but she understood and fell in love with this previously incomprehensible virtue in another. For Princess Marya, listening to stories about Natasha’s childhood and early youth, a previously incomprehensible side of life, faith in life, in the pleasures of life, also opened up.
They still never spoke about him in the same way, so as not to violate with words, as it seemed to them, the height of feeling that was in them, and this silence about him made them forget him little by little, not believing it.
Natasha lost weight, turned pale and became so physically weak that everyone constantly talked about her health, and she was pleased with it. But sometimes she was suddenly overcome not only by the fear of death, but by the fear of illness, weakness, loss of beauty, and involuntarily she sometimes carefully examined her bare arm, surprised at its thinness, or looked in the mirror in the morning at her elongated, pitiful, as it seemed to her , face. It seemed to her that this was how it should be, and at the same time she became scared and sad.
Once she quickly went upstairs and was out of breath. Immediately, involuntarily, she came up with something to do downstairs and from there she ran upstairs again, testing her strength and observing herself.

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North America, XIX century. The leader of the Sioux tribe fell in a duel. According to custom, in order for his spirit to calm down, it is necessary to fill the grave with the blood of the enemy... It was decided to sacrifice the famous white Bear Hunter. Martin, his son, must free his father from captivity! Together with the tribal leader Apache Winnet, he sets off to meet incredible adventures... The publication also includes the novels of T. Mine Reed “Warpath” and J. Fenimore Cooper “St. John’s Wort”, which have become classics of adventure literature.... Further

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  “The Last of the Mohicans” is one of the most popular novels by the American writer Fenimore Cooper, which brought him worldwide fame. This is a novel about brave, stern and noble people; this is the story of the struggle and death of the Indians of North America under the onslaught of “civilization.” We We bring to your attention one of the most famous adventure books in an abridged retelling, which completely preserves the author's plot and style, while making the narrative even more exciting and dynamic.... Further

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  “The Red Corsair” is one of the most famous maritime novels by the classic of American literature J. F. Cooper. The hero of the novel, a pirate and a smuggler, an outcast and a dreamer, a romantic and a rebel, challenges the navy of the English king. And his team is just as courageous, fearless and desperate people who are able to tame the elements of the sea and rebel against the tyranny of Great Britain. Expanses of the ocean, salty wind, exciting adventures, the clanking of blades and volleys of cannons await you.... Further

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  James Fenimore Cooper is a master of the historical adventure novel, a classic of children's literature, who became famous thanks to a series of novels from American life. He was one of the first to describe the life of American Indians involved in military conflicts of the European civilizations, their colorful customs and morals. His most famous novel, “The Last of the Mohicans,” tells about the events of the French and Indian War, about fearless Indians, about their selfless struggle and heroic death under the onslaught of “civilization.”... Further

The book is the first of the famous historical adventure series of five novels by the wonderful writer James Fenimore Cooper, the main theme of which was the struggle of the Indians against the American colonialists. The novel takes place in the 40s of the 18th century. Hordes of colonizing predators, thrown out by the Old World to the rich shores of the New, encountered an ancient race of natives, who created a unique statehood, and in some places, a high culture. It was at this time that the exciting adventures of the young hunter St. John's Wort take place (this is one of the nicknames of the hero Nathaniel Bumpo). He is a Hunter, an expert in Indian customs. He sets out on the first warpath with his friend, the Mohican Chingachgook.... Further

An exciting adventure novel by the famous American writer James Fenimore Cooper. The author brilliantly shows the traditions, life and customs of the American Indians. Pathfinder Natty Bumppo (Long Carbine), Chief Chingachgook the Great Serpent and his son Uncas are true heroes, brave, sincere, strong in spirit - they evoke genuine respect and admiration. "The Indians walked forward with the same confidence with which a traveler walks along a wide road. If it happened that some block of stone, a stream or a piece of land harder than the surrounding soil interrupted the links of the trail along which they were walking, a keen eye The scout invariably found the trail at some distance, and this rarely required a delay of more than one minute." J.F. Cooper... Further

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  Put on your moccasins, jump on the mustang and go ahead into the vast expanses of the Prairie. Once again, incredible adventures and fatal passions await you. Your good friend, Fenimore Cooper, has never failed you. And in this final part of the famous pentalogy they are waiting for you Nathaniel Bumppo and Leatherstocking. You will find out how the fate of the noble Indian will be resolved. But not only that, in "The Prairie" Cooper will summarize the entire history of the colonization of America.... Further

"The Spy, or a Tale of No Man's Land" is a novel by Fenimore Cooper that brought real recognition to his talent as a novelist. At the center of the novel is the fate of a man forced to hide his feelings and beliefs, to experience the bitterness of accusations of betrayal, without being able to say at least a word in your defense, even under the threat of the death penalty. And all because he is a spy for Washington in the service of His Britannic Majesty King George. Events take place in the American States during the Revolutionary War of 1776-1783.... Further

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  James Fenimore Cooper is a famous American writer of the 19th century, the author of many interesting adventure novels, including St. John's Wort, The Pioneers, and The Last of the Mohicans, which were repeatedly filmed around the world. The novel "St. John's wort" is the first in the famous a cycle of five novels dedicated to the history of the colonization of North America. The tragic events of the death of the Indian civilization serve as the backdrop against which the exciting adventures of the hunter and tracker Natty Bumppo, nicknamed St. John's Wort, unfold. An honest and modest hunter, who grew up among the Delaware Indians, lives one life with nature. The novel tells the story of the hero's youth, gradually transforming from a hunter into a brave and wise warrior. The plot is based on the story of Thomas Hutter and his daughters, who live on a houseboat on a lake. The unexpected appearance of Indians from a hostile tribe in these places turns a peaceful lake into a battlefield...... Further

“Sea Lions” is one of the best works of James Fenimore Cooper, one of the greatest classics of adventure literature, telling the story of the fearless sailors and captains of two whaling ships, struggling every day with the sea, winds and ice in a long and unpredictable campaigning for his dangerous prey in the northern latitudes of the ocean. Suddenly, everyone had to make a choice so as not to become prey to the elements and... to each other.... Further

This is the fourth book in the pentalogy of the American classic writer, dedicated to the adventures of the hunter Nathaniel Bumppo, nicknamed Leatherstocking. Between the adventures recounted in The Pathfinder and the cruel trials that befell Leatherstocking in The Pioneers, More than thirty years have passed. Another plot point of the novel is the relationship between young people - Elizabeth Temple, the daughter of a judge, and Oliver Effingham, who have to overcome many obstacles on the path to happiness.... Further

A popular novel by a famous American writer, telling about the smart and fair hunter Natty Bumppo. (third part of the pentalogy about Natty Bumppo) Have you been to the USA? Yes? Wonderful! You got an unforgettable experience! Are you familiar with American cinema? Yes? You You can congratulate. You have imbued with the true spirit of nobility and self-sacrifice of true Yankees! Did you know that the foundations of all plots, all romance, the very American spirit were laid by D. F. Cooper in his novel “Pathfinder?” You can easily verify this by plunging into the world of endless adventures and meeting the beautiful Mabel and her fans. You will also meet other true Americans - the Red Indians. You will begin to compare their heroism and nobility, their love and passion with the same qualities of the immigrants... and you will find it difficult to choose... Wait, are you saying that you have not been to the USA? What are you waiting for? However, before you leave, get acquainted with the new, brilliant world of D.F. Cooper.... Further

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  Hunter Nathaniel Bumpo, along with his friends Chingachgook and Uncas, Indians from the Mohican tribe, come to the aid of two beautiful girls Cora and Alice, who are trying to get to their father in an English fort besieged by the French. ... Further

“The Red Corsair” is one of the most famous works of the famous American novelist James Fenimore Cooper. Pirates, corsairs, the sea, fights to the death, fiery love, courage and self-sacrifice of heroes. Everything that youth and life itself are made of! Each of us in our youth read the exciting adventure novels of the great writer. If, suddenly, you missed this work, and, perhaps, you already read it once in childhood, then, undoubtedly, it is worth once again immersing yourself in colorful worlds, where the heroism and honor of the villains makes them more likable, but the characters of the heroes are not so are as clear as they seem at first glance. The intrigue of the novel is twisted and cannot be solved until the very end. The classic to this day will give odds to many modern writers, and his books have already been forever included in the catalogs of the best examples of world literature.... Further

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  The novel by the famous American writer James Fenimore Cooper “The Pioneers, or At the Origins of the Susquehanna” is the first of the pentalogy about “Leatherstocking”. The novel takes us several centuries ago, when friendship with an Indian could cost one’s life, but a faithful hand and a sharp eye were the only allies of the free hunter. It was a time of brave, courageous and desperate men. On the pages of this book you will be able to understand the depth of the soul of the great hunter, scout and tracker Nathaniel Bumpo, and you will also empathize with the romantic adventures of the young people Elizabeth Temple and Oliver Effingham.... Further

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  “Perhaps along the entire vast length of the border that separated the possessions of the French from the territory of the English colonies of North America, there are no more eloquent monuments of the cruel and ferocious wars of 1755-1763 than in the region lying at the source of the Hudson and around their neighboring lakes. This area provided such convenience for the movement of troops that they could not be neglected..."... Further

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  "School Library" introduces its listeners to the work of James Fenimore Cooper, a classic of children's literature, author of the most popular adventure novels. The novel "St. John's Wort" is part of the famous cycle of five novels dedicated to the history of the colonization of vast expanses North America. Do you have a brave heart and love dangerous adventures? Do you dream of helping the weak and defenseless and punishing the treacherous and cruel? – this book is for you! You are ready? – the noble hunter and tracker Natty Bumppo, nicknamed St. John's Wort, goes on the warpath!... Further

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  American writer James Fenimore Cooper is a classic of world adventure literature, the author of popular novels dedicated to the history of the colonization of North America. Cooper's main character is hunter and tracker Nathaniel Bumpo, nicknamed St. John's Wort, also known as names Pathfinder, Hawkeye, Leather Stocking and Long Carbine - an unsurpassed shooter and defender of the Indians. "Deerslayer" - the first of the "Leatherstocking" series of books - is dedicated to Bumpo's youth, when his friendship begins with the last leader of the Mohicans, the wise and brave warrior Chingachgook. Dangerous adventures and a sharp, rapidly developing plot, the beauty of pristine nature and the storm of human feelings, cruelty, deceit and betrayal, which are opposed by courage, fortitude and nobility - all this is skillfully intertwined, forming the unique fabric of the novel.... Further

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James Fenimore Cooper(eng. James Fenimore Cooper; September 15, 1789, Burlington, USA - September 14, 1851, Cooperstown, USA) - American novelist and satirist. A classic of adventure literature.

Biography

Soon after Fenimore's birth, his father, Judge William Cooper, a fairly wealthy Quaker landowner, moved to New York State and founded the settlement of Cooperstown there, which turned into a town. Having received his initial education at a local school, Cooper went to Yale University, but without completing the course, he entered the naval service (1806-1811) and was assigned to build a warship on Lake Ontario.

To this circumstance we owe the remarkable descriptions of Ontario found in his famous novel “The Pathfinder, or On the Shores of Ontario.” In 1811, Cooper married a Frenchwoman, Susan Augusta Delancey, who came from a family that sympathized with England during the Revolutionary War; its influence explains those relatively mild reviews of the English and the English government that are found in Cooper's early novels. Chance made him a writer. Once reading a novel aloud to his wife, Cooper noticed that it was not difficult to write better. His wife took him at his word, and in order not to seem like a braggart, he wrote his first novel, Precaution (1820), in a few weeks.

Novels

Assuming that, due to the already begun competition between English and American authors, English criticism would react unfavorably to his work, Cooper did not sign his name for the first novel, “Precaution” (1820), and transferred the action of this novel to England. The latter circumstance could only harm the book, which revealed the author’s poor familiarity with English life and caused very unfavorable reviews from English critics. Cooper’s second novel, already from American life, was the famous “The Spy, or the Tale of the Neutral Ground” (1821), which had enormous success not only in America, but also in Europe.

Cooper then wrote a series of novels about American life:

• "Pioneers, or At the Sources of the Susquehanna", 1823;
• "The Last of the Mohicans", 1826;
• “Steppes”, otherwise “Prairie”, 1827;
• “Discoverer of Trace”, otherwise “Pathfinder”, 1840;
• "The Deer Hunter", aka "St. John's Wort, or the First Warpath", 1841).

In them, he depicted the wars of the European aliens among themselves, in which they involved the American Indians, forcing the tribes to fight against each other. The hero of these novels is the hunter Natty (Nathaniel) Bumppo, who appears under various names (St. John's Wort, Pathfinder, Hawkeye, Leather Stocking, Long Carbine), energetic and handsome, and soon became a favorite of the European public. In Cooper's work, not only this representative of European civilization, but also some of the Indians (Chingachgook, Uncas) are idealized, albeit with subtle humor and satire, usually accessible only to an adult reader.

The success of this series of novels was so great that even English critics had to recognize Cooper's talent and called him the American Walter Scott. In 1826, Cooper went to Europe, where he spent seven years. The fruit of this journey was several novels - "Bravo, or in Venice", "The Headsman", "Mercedes of Castile", - set in Europe.

The mastery of the story and its ever-increasing interest, the vividness of the descriptions of nature, which emanate the primeval freshness of the virgin forests of America, the relief in the depiction of characters who stand before the reader as if alive - these are Cooper’s advantages as a novelist. He also wrote maritime novels “The Pilot, or a Maritime Story” (1823), “The Red Corsair” (1827).

After Europe

Upon returning from Europe, Cooper wrote the political allegory “Monikins” (1835), five volumes of travel notes (1836-1838), several novels from American life (“Satanstowe”; 1845 and others), the pamphlet “The American Democrat” (The American Democrat, 1838). In addition, he also wrote “History of the United States Navy”, 1839. The desire for complete impartiality revealed in this work did not satisfy either his compatriots or the British; the controversy it caused poisoned the last years of Cooper's life. Fenimore Cooper died on September 14, 1851 from cirrhosis of the liver.

James Fenimore Cooper. Born September 15, 1789 in Burlington, USA - died September 14, 1851 in Cooperstown, USA. American novelist and satirist. A classic of adventure literature.

Soon after Fenimore's birth, his father, Judge William Cooper, a fairly wealthy landowner, moved to New York state and founded the village of Cooperstown there, which turned into a town. Having received his initial education at a local school, Cooper went to Yale University, but without completing the course, he entered the naval service (1806-1811) and was assigned to build a warship on Lake Ontario.

To this circumstance we owe the remarkable descriptions of Ontario found in his famous novel “The Pathfinder, or On the Shores of Ontario.”

In 1811, Cooper married a Frenchwoman, Susan Augusta Delancey, who came from a family that sympathized with England during the Revolutionary War; its influence explains those relatively mild reviews of the English and the English government that are found in Cooper's early novels. Chance made him a writer. Once reading a novel aloud to his wife, Cooper noticed that it was not difficult to write better. His wife took him at his word, and in order not to seem like a braggart, he wrote his first novel, Precaution (1820), in a few weeks.

Assuming that, due to the already begun competition between English and American authors, English criticism would react unfavorably to his work, Cooper did not sign his name for the first novel, “Precaution” (1820), and transferred the action of this novel to England. The latter circumstance could only harm the book, which revealed the author’s poor familiarity with English life and caused very unfavorable reviews from English critics.

Cooper’s second novel, already from American life, was the famous “The Spy, or the Tale of the Neutral Ground” (1821), which had enormous success not only in America, but also in Europe.

Then Cooper wrote a whole series of novels from American life (“The Pioneers, or At the Sources of the Susquehanna,” 1823; “The Last of the Mohicans,” 1826; “The Barrens,” otherwise “The Prairie,” 1827; “The Discoverer of Trace,” otherwise “The Pathfinder,” 1840; “The Deer Hunter,” otherwise known as “The Deerslayer, or the First Warpath,” 1841), which depicted the wars of the European aliens among themselves, in which they involved the American Indians, forcing the tribes to fight against each other. The hero of these novels is the hunter Natty (Nathanael) Bumppo, who appears under various names (St. John's Wort, Pathfinder, Hawkeye, Leather Stocking, Long Carbine), energetic and handsome, and soon became a favorite of the European public. In Cooper's work, not only this representative of European civilization, but also some of the Indians (Chingachgook, Uncas) are idealized, albeit with subtle humor and satire, usually accessible only to an adult reader.

The success of this series of novels was so great that even English criticism had to recognize Cooper's talent and called him American. In 1826 Cooper went to Europe, where he spent seven years. The fruit of this journey was several novels - "Bravo, or in Venice", "The Headsman", "Mercedes of Castile", - set in Europe.

The mastery of the story and its ever-increasing interest, the vividness of the descriptions of nature, which emanate the primeval freshness of the virgin forests of America, the relief in the depiction of characters who stand before the reader as if alive - these are Cooper’s advantages as a novelist. He also wrote maritime novels “The Pilot, or a Maritime Story” (1823), “The Red Corsair” (1827).

Upon returning from Europe, Cooper wrote the political allegory “Monikins” (1835), five volumes of travel notes (1836-1838), several novels from American life (“Satanstowe”; 1845 and others), the pamphlet “The American Democrat” (The American Democrat, 1838). In addition, he also wrote “History of the United States Navy”, 1839. The desire for complete impartiality revealed in this work did not satisfy either his compatriots or the British; the controversy it caused poisoned the last years of Cooper's life.

In the early 1840s, Cooper's novels were very popular in Russia. The first translations into Russian were made by children's writer A. O. Ishimova. In particular, the novel “The Pathfinder” (Russian translation of 1841), published in the journal Otechestvennye Zapiski, aroused great public interest, which was described as a Shakespearean drama in the form of a novel.

The adventure novels of James Fenimore Cooper were very popular in the USSR; their author was quickly recognized by his second, rare name, Fenimore. For example, in the film “The Mystery of Fenimore,” the third episode of the children’s television mini-series “Three Merry Shifts” of 1977 based on the stories of Yu. Yakovlev, it tells about a mysterious stranger named Fenimore, who in a pioneer camp comes to the boys’ ward at night and tells amazing stories about Indians and aliens.

Bibliography of Fenimore Cooper:

1820 - “Precaution”
1821 - The Spy: A Tale of the Neutral Ground
1823 - short stories (Tales for Fifteen: or Imagination and Heart)
1823 - “The Pilot: A Tale of the Sea”
1825 - “Lionel Lincoln, or The Siege of Boston” (Lionel Lincoln, or The leaguer of Boston)
1826 - “The Last of the Mohicans”
1827 - “The Steppes”, otherwise “The Prairie” (The Prairie)
1827 - “The Red Corsair” (The Red Rover)
1828 - Notions of the Americans: Picked up by a Traveling Bachelor
1829 - “The valley of Wish-ton-Wish” (The wept of Wish-ton-Wish)
1830 - “The Water-Witch: or the Skimmer of the Seas”
1830 - Letter to General Lafayette politics
1831 - “Bravo, or in Venice” (The bravo)
1832 - “The Heidenmauer: or, The Benedictines, A Legend of the Rhine”
1832 - short stories (No Steamboats)
1833 - “The headsman, or The Abbaye des vignerons”
1834 - A Letter to His Countrymen
1835 - “The Monikins”
1836 - memoirs (The Eclipse)
1836 - Gleanings in Europe: Switzerland (Sketches of Switzerland)
1836 - Gleanings in Europe: The Rhine
1836 - A Residence in France: With an Excursion Up the Rhine, and a Second Visit to Switzerland
1837 - Gleanings in Europe: France travel
1837 - Gleanings in Europe: England travel
1838 - pamphlet “The American Democrat” (The American Democrat: or Hints on the Social and Civic Relations of the United States of America)
1838 - Gleanings in Europe: Italy travel
1838 - The Chronicles of Cooperstown
1838 - Hommeward Bound: or The Chase: A Tale of the Sea
1838 - Home as Found: Sequel to Homeward Bound
1839 - The History of the Navy of the United States of America
1839 - Old Ironsides
1840 - “The Pathfinder, or The Inland sea”
1840 - “Mercedes of Castile: or, The Voyage to Cathay”
1841 - “The Deerslayer: or The First Warpath”
1842 - “The two admirals”
1842 - “Will-o’-the-wisp” (Wing-and-Wing, or Le feu-follet)
1843 - “Wyandotté: or The Hutted Knoll. A Tale”
1843 - Richard Dale
1843 - biography (Ned Myers: or Life before the Mast) (Autobiography of a Pocket-Handkerchief or Le Mouchoir: An Autobiographical Romance or The French Governess: or The Embroidered Handkerchief or Die franzosischer Erzieheren: oder das gestickte Taschentuch)
1844 - “On Sea and on Land” (Afloat and Ashore: or The Adventures of Miles Wallingford. A Sea Tale)
1844 - Miles Wallingford: Sequel to Afloat and Ashore
1844 - Proceedings of the Naval Court-Martial in the Case of Alexander Slidell Mackenzie, &c
1845 - “Satanstoe” (Satanstoe: or The Littlepage Manuscripts, a Tale of the Colony)
1845 - “The Land Surveyor” (The Chainbearer; or, The Littlepage Manuscripts)
1846 - “The Redskins; or, Indian and Injin: Being the Conclusion of the Littlepage Manuscripts”
1846 - Lives of Distinguished American Naval Officers biography
1847 - “The Crater; or, Vulcan’s Peak: A Tale of the Pacific”
1848 - “The Oak Grove” or “Gleades in the Oak Groves, or the Bee-Hunter” (The Oak Openings: or the Bee-Hunter)
1848 - “Jack Tier: or the Florida Reefs”
1849 - The Sea Lions: The Lost Sealers
1850 - “New Trends” (The ways of the hour)
1850 - play (Upside Down: or Philosophy in Petticoats), satirization of socialism
1851 - short story The Lake Gun
1851 - New York: or The Towns of Manhattan (unfinished work on the history of New York City)