Mr. Otradin holds the view that the major features of literature during the period in question were the following: strong influence of the novel on literature in general and interpenetration of poetry and prose. Not only do poetry and prose "argue" with each other, taking turns in coming to the foreground of the literary life, but they also mutually enrich each other. "Injections" of prose into poetic works expand the possible aesthetic reaction from the reader. The literature of that period provides us with excellent examples of co-existence of different genres inside one novel (V.Krestovsky's "Petersburg Slums", I.Goncharov's "The Precipice"). Ivan Goncharov's trilogy of novels shows to perfection how the image of St. Petersburg can radically change in the works of one and the same author.