Билет 30. A.F.Koni Read the text.

A.F.Koni is the great Russian lawyer, judicial and public man, senator, member of State Council, academician ( since 1900).

He was born in Saint-Petersburg in 1844 into the family of a writer and a theatrical critic. He got a good education at St.Petersburg university where he studied law and after graduation he started his career as a lawyer. His interests were in the sphere of criminal judiciary where he was a great success. A brilliant speaker, Koni used to persuade the audience easily to take his party because he could find true and prepondering arguments in the process of defence. A bright example of his activity was the trial in connection with prosecution of Vera Zasulich. After the process he became a very well-known person in the judicial world. In 1878 Zasulich made an attempt on Petersburg’s governor Trepov. After that she was arrested and tried as a criminal. At the process Koni worked as a barrister so he delivered a speech to defend the accused woman, trying to prove that there had been many reasons which made her fight against the governor. For her, according to his proofs, Trepov was he embodyment of causes bringing the people a difficult life. V.Zasulich was acquitted, but the ruling clique of the tzar Russia registered “liberal behavior” of the court chairman Koni. That’s why he was moved away from the work at the crime court.

Later the outstanding judicial speaker Koni published several volumes of his own court speeches and articles which are still popular .

His interests were versatile: he loved Russian literature very much and were on good terms with the outstanding writers , his contemporaries, Nekrasov, Korolenko, Tolstoi, Dostoevski. It is known that Koni prompted the topics for Tolstoi’s “Voscresenie” and “Zhivoi trup” which were taken from his judicial practice.

After the Great October Socialist Revolution Koni didn’t emigrate abroad. He was a professor of criminal trial at Petrograd University. He worked a lot in the sphere of literature, history, law.

There are many valuable literature portraits, characteristics, pictures on the history of Russian culture in his 5 volumes of essays and memories. These essays also keep material on history of the court of pre-revolutionary Russia.

The last years of his life Koni delivered lectures and wrote papers on literature, history and legal topics.

Topical Vocabulary

-to start a career – начать карьеру

- to be on good terms - быть в хороших отношениях

- volumes тома

- governor - губернатор

- prompted - подсказал

- delivered lectures - давал лекции

-contemporaries - современники

- memories - воспоминания

- prepondering - перевешивающие

Answer the questions.

1.What was A.F.Koni?

2.When and where was he born?

3.What were his parents?

4.What University did he graduate?

5.When did he start his career as a lawyer?

6.Why did he become a very well-known man in 1887 ?

7.Why was V.Zasulich tried?

8.Why was she aquitted?

9. Why did the tzar clique move Koni away from the work at the crime court?

10.Do you think he was a gifted judicial speaker? Prove.

11.Why did he love and value the Russian literature?

12. Can we say that Koni was a co-author with Tolstoy because he had prompted the writer the topics for some of his creations?

13.Did he emigrate abroad after the Great October Socialist Revolution?

14. Where did he work?

15.What did he do as a public man?

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