Les Pauvres Gens
Panaev became acquainted with Vissarion Belinsky in 1839; their friendship significantly influenced Panaev's literary career. Between 1839 and 1846 his works were published in "Otechestvennye Zapiski". They included the novellas "The Onager" (1841) and "Actaeon" (1842), the novel "Mama's Boy" (1845), essays, satires, and short stories. Panaev's satire "The Literary Aphid" (1843) was highly praised by Belinsky. He abandoned his civil service career in 1844, in order devote his full attention to literature. Panaev was introduced to Fyodor Dostoyevsky by Nikolay Nekrasov and Dmitry Grigorovich, and often met Dostoyevsky at meetings of the Belinsky circle. In 1845 Dostoyevsky read his first novel Poor Folk to a literary gathering organized by Panaev and his wife. Dostoyevsky was a frequent visitor to the important literary salon run by Avdotya Panaeva. Dostoyevsky stopped attending the salon after quarreling with Ivan Turgenev, a fellow visitor.