Vasylchenko, Stepan

Vasylchenko, Stepan [Васильченко, Степан; Vasyl’čenko; pseud of Степан Панасенко; Stepan Panasenko], b 8 January 1879 in Ichnia, Borzna county, Chernihiv gubernia, d 11 August 1932 in Kyiv. Writer, teacher, and journalist. He became well known for his short stories, which were published in the collections Eskizy (Sketches, 1911) and Opovidannia (Short Stories, 1915). Vasylchenko’s short stories are filled with humanism and a gentle sense of humor. They are marked by a combination of realism and fantasy (eg, ‘V tiniakh lypnevoï nochi’ [In the Shadows of the July Night], ‘Kriz' drimoty’ [Through Slumber], ‘Solov’ï’ [Nightingales]) and by the richness of a language gleaned from folk oral literature. Vasylchenko was also the author of numerous plays, which were published in the collection Dramatychni tvory (Dramatical Works, 1917). He could not countenance Soviet rule and consequently turned to writing stories for children. Vasylchenko’s works have been republished a number of times; the most complete editions are Povna zbirka tvoriv (Complete Collection of Works, vols 1–4, 1928–30) and Tvory (Works, vols 1–4, 1960).

[This article originally appeared in the Encyclopedia of Ukraine, vol. 5 (1993).]