Issac Babel-The soviet journalist

Issac Babel is a renowned soviet journalist, playwright and short story writer. Issac Babel,the great Russian author was born on 13th July in the year 1894 to a Jewish family of Odessa. At that time there was a social unrest due to which the jews were escaping from Russian empire. Issac Babel survived the 1905 pogrom with the help of Christian neighbors. In spite of receiving passing grade Isaac did not get to the preparatory class in Nicholas I Odessa Commercial School. Apart from the regular school subjects he studied Talmud and music at home. He also took interest in French language.

After graduating from Kiev Institute of Finance and business Issac Babel moved to Petrograd to defy the law that restricted Jews to stay Within Pale. Here he met famous Russian writer Maim Gorky.

His advice gave valuable insight to Babel. He faught on the communist side in the Russian Civil war. During the Russian Civil war he was appointed as a journalist to field Marhsal Semyon Budyonny's 1st Cavalry Army. Issac Babel witnessed the ravages of war and documented the horrifying account that he saw during the period in the 1920 war in 1920 Diary that he used to write Red Cavalry a semi documentary work with a mix of fiction. After the war was over Issac Babel came back in Odessa and wrote several short stories in th backdrop of Odessan Ghetto of Moldavanka. In these stories he described the life of Jewish underworld before and after the 1917 October Revolution.


Issac Babel witnessed the brutal collectivization of in the USSR in Ukraine. He afterwards withdrew himself form public eyes and was criticized by the government for doing that. After much request he got the chance to meet his family in France. Returning from France He joined hands with famous director Sergei Eisenstein on the film Bezhin Meadow. Issac Babel was arrested in May 1939 in cottage. He faced the trial, was found guilty ad was shot in the prison.