Leonid Andreyev and World War I: Materials for Historical and Literary Commentary on the Story "The Yoke of War"

The aim of the study is to gather material for a historical and literary commentary on L. Andreyev's novel "The Yoke of War". Efforts are being made to comprehend the author's perspective on war, which was perceived differently by his contemporaries (ranging from the “pacifist” position in "The Red Laugh" to the “chauvinistic” view during "The Yoke of War"). Despite containing passages that may be difficult to understand for a modern reader (e.g., mass sentiment during World War I, events in Petrograd at the time, the impact of rumors on society, particular attention to periodicals), the work has not been thoroughly analyzed. The novel is considered in relation to Andreev's overall body of work and journalistic output during World War I, and the themes and motifs of the story are compared to images from his earlier works. "The Yoke of War", in detail, correlates with the newspaper chronicles of that time. Direct matches have been found with articles and notes from the "Kopeyka" and "Birzhevye vedomosti" publications.