Ivan Sergeyevich Turgenev was a Russian novelist, short story writer, poet, playwright, translator, and promoter of Russian literature in the West. His first significant publication, a short story collection titled A Sportsman's Sketches (1852), was a watershed moment for Russian realism. His novel Fathers and Sons (1862) is regarded as one of the most important works of nineteenth-century fiction. Ivan Sergeyevich Turgenev was born in Oryol (modern-day Oryol Oblast, Russia) to noble Russian parents Sergei Nikolaevich Turgenev (1793-1834), a Russian cavalry colonel who fought in the Patriotic War of 1812, and Varvara Petrovna Turgeneva (nee Lutovinova) (1787-1850). Ivan and his brothers Nikolai and Sergei were nurtured by their mother, an educated and dictatorial woman. Their home was the Spasskoye-Lutovinovo family estate, which was given to their ancestor Ivan Ivanovich Lutovinov by Ivan the Terrible. Varvara Turgeneva later provided as inspiration for the landlady in Turgenev's Mumu. The brothers had foreign governesses, and Ivan became fluent in French, German, and English. Family members utilized French in everyday situations, including prayers. Their father spent little time with his family. Although he was not antagonistic to them, his absence damaged Ivan's sentiments. Their relationship is portrayed in the autobiographical novel First Love. When Ivan was four years old, his family traveled across Germany and France.
