The twenty-two essays in Cultural Mythologies of Russian Modernism, six of which appear in Russian, display the enormous advances that have taken place among Slavists in the study of the fascinating, but tragically circumscribed period in Russian literature that extends from the turn of the century to the Stalinist holocaust. This collection offers a definitive statement of how features of the Pushkin era were transformed during the Modernist age into a cultural mythology that encompassed personal and literary behavior, and such far-reaching issues as national identity and cultural destiny.
This book explores the unique way in which Russian culture constructs the notion of everyday life, or byt, and offers the first unified reading of Silver-age narrative which it repositions at the centre of Russian modernism. Drawing on semiotics and theology, Stephen C. Hutchings argues that byt emerged from a dialogue between two traditions, one reflected in western representational aesthetics for which daily existence figures as neutral and normative, the other encapsulated in the Orthodox emphasis on iconic embodiment. Hutchings identifies early 'Decadent' formulations of byt as a milestone after which writers from Chekhov to Rozanov sought to affirm the iconic potential hidden in Russian realism's critique of representationalism. Provocative, yet careful, textual analyses reveal a consistent urge to redefine art's function as one not of representing life, but of transfiguring the everyday.
This book is the first detailed history of the Russian Symbolist movement, from its initial hostile reception as a symptom of European decadence to its absorption into the mainstream of Russian literature, and eventual disintegration. It focuses on the two generations of writers whose work served as the seedbed of Existentialism in thought and of Modernism in prose and the performing arts, and reassesses their achievements in the light of modern research. At the centre of the study are the texts themselves, with prose quoted in English translation and poetry given in the original Russian with prose translations. There is a valuable bibliography of primary sources and an extensive chronological appendix. This book will fill a long-felt gap, and will be invaluable to students and teachers of Russian and comparative literature, Symbolism, modernism, and pre-revolutionary Russian culture.
Essay from the year 2002 in the subject Russian / Slavic Languages, grade: A, University of Canterbury (School of European Culture and Languages), course: Seminar, language: English, abstract: Before we look at individual poems and the many allusions to Greek Mythology, it is necessary - as always it seems - to make a few remarks on translation. Afterwards, it might be helpful to ask ourselves a few general questions as to why and to what effect authors have used or are still using myth in their writing; so that we can then try to establish which of these approaches is closest to Mandelstam′s use of Greek Mythology. Fortunately, Mandelstam has commented widely on general questions of poetics, in his essays, which often take the form of reviews of other authors and their shortcomings. By then applying these criteria to Mandelstam′s own work and thus knowing his poetic aspirations, his poetry should appear less enigmatic. Especially, as Greek Myth lies at the centre of Mandelstam′s poetic thought, an analysis of these statements is a valid and useful approach in order to gain access to his demanding poetry. Using a variety of examples of Mandelstam′s use of Greek Myth, I will quote from various poems from his two earlier collections Kamen (The Stone) and Tristia and then finally take a closer look at his poem Silentium. Unfortunately, I will not be able to individually interpret all the poems which I have searched for Greek allusions, nor can I print them here in full. Yet, I will attempt to give a full picture of the context that these quotes come from.
Recent decades have been decisive for Russia not only politically but culturally as well. The end of the Cold War has enabled Russia to take part in the global rise and crystallization of postmodernism. This volume investigates the manifestations of this crucial trend in Russian fiction, poetry, art, and spirituality, demonstrating how Russian postmodernism is its own unique entity. It offers a point of departure and valuable guide to an area of contemporary literary-cultural studies insufficiently represented in English-language scholarship. This second edition includes additional essays on the topic and a new introduction examining the most recent developments.
Montaging Pushkin offers for the first time a coherent view of Pushkin’s legacy to Russian twentieth-century poetry, giving many new insights. Pushkin is shown to be a Russian forerunner of Baudelaire. Furthermore it is argued that the rise of the Russian and European novel largely changed the ways Russian poets have looked at themselves and at poetic language; that novelisation of poetry is detectable in the major works of poetry that engaged in a creative dialogue with Pushkin, and that polyphonic lyric has been achieved. Alexandra Smith locates significant examples of Pushkin’s cinematographic cognition of reality, suggesting that such dynamic descriptions of Petersburg helped create a highly original animated image of the city as comic apocalypse, which followers of Pushkin appropriated very successfully even as far as the late twentieth century. Montaging Pushkin will be of interest to all students of Russian poetry, as well as specialists in literary theory, European studies and the history of ideas.
"Joanna Hubbs has found the trace of Baba Yaga and the rusalki and Moist Mother Earth and other fascinating feminine myths in Russian culture, and has added richly to the growing interest in popular culture." -- New York Times Book Review ..". brave... fascinating... immensely enjoyable... " -- Times Higher Education Supplement ..". a stimulating and original study... vivid and readable." -- Russian Review "An immensely stimulating, beautifully written work of scholarship." -- Francine du Plessix Gray "Joanna Hubbs has provided scholars... with a wealth of significant interpretive material to inform if not reform views of both Russian and women's cultures." -- Journal of American Folklore A ground-breaking interpretation of Russian culture from prehistory to the present, dealing with the feminine myth as a central cultural force.
