Who is Nikolay Chernyshevsky from Russian Thinkers and what is their importance?

Nikolay Chernyshevsky was a revolutionary leader of the radical Populist movement in mid-19th century Russia. The movement sought to build a new society on the model of the Russian peasant commune. Chernyshevsky, the son of a parish priest, was "from the people" and served as an example to the "new men" of the 1860's and 1870's. Unlike the literary men of the 1840's, Chernyshevsky was willing to delve into the actual conditions of the Russian serfs, and his books detailed plans for communal reforms.