Yevgeny Ivanovich Zamyatin (; January 20 (
Julian) / February 1 (
Gregorian), 1884 – March 10, 1937) was a
Russian author of
science fiction and
political satire. He is most famous for his
1921 novel
We, a story set in a
dystopian future
police state. Despite having been a prominent
Old Bolshevik, Zamyatin was deeply disturbed by the policies pursued by the
CPSU following the
October Revolution. In 1921,
We became the first work banned by the Soviet censorship board. Ultimately, Zamyatin arranged for
We to be smuggled to the West for publication. The subsequent outrage this sparked within the Party and the
Union of Soviet Writers led directly to Zamyatin's successful request for exile from his homeland. Due to his use of literature to criticize Soviet society, Zamyatin has been referred to as one of the first
Soviet dissidents.