Russia's Capitalist Realism examines how the literary tradition that produced the great works of Leo Tolstoy, Fyodor Dostoevsky, and Anton Chekhov responded to the dangers and possibilities posed by Russia's industrial revolution. During Russia's first tumultuous transition to capitalism, social problems became issues of literary form for writers trying to make sense of economic change. The new environments created by industry, such as giant factories and mills, demanded some kind of response from writers but defied all existing forms of language.
This book recovers the rich and lively public discourse of this volatile historical period, which Tolstoy, Dostoevsky, and Chekhov transformed into some of the world's greatest works of literature. Russia's Capitalist Realism will appeal to readers interested in nineteenth-century Russian literature and history, the relationship between capitalism and literary form, and theories of the novel.
Russia's Capitalist Realism examines how the literary tradition that produced the great works of Leo Tolstoy, Fyodor Dostoevsky, and Anton Chekhov responded to the dangers and possibilities posed by Russia's industrial revolution. During Russia's first tumultuous transition to capitalism, social problems became issues of literary form for writers trying to make sense of economic change. The new environments created by industry, such as giant factories and mills, demanded some kind of response from writers but defied all existing forms of language.
This book recovers the rich and lively public discourse of this volatile historical period, which Tolstoy, Dostoevsky, and Chekhov transformed into some of the world's greatest works of literature. Russia's Capitalist Realism will appeal to readers interested in nineteenth-century Russian literature and history, the relationship between capitalism and literary form, and theories of the novel.
Vadim Shneyder is an assistant professor in the Department of Slavic, East European and Eurasian Languages and Cultures at the University of California, Los Angeles.
“It is commonplace to acknowledge, often in vague and passing
terms, the rising importance of money, capitalism, and
industrialization on Russian literature of the nineteenth century.
Vadim Shneyder brilliantly brings the many aspects of this complex
historical, political, social, and above all, economic reality to
bear with stunning clarity along with important new readings of
Tolstoy, Chekhov, and especially Dostoevsky, as well as a host of
less-examined writers.” —Robin Feuer Miller, author of Dostoevsky’s
Unfinished Journey
“Russia’s Capitalist Realism represents a major contribution to the
vibrant and growing body of scholarship on literature and
economics. Russia’s inexorable move toward industrial capitalism in
the mid-to-late nineteenth century brought on a clash in value
systems, which became a central focus in the literature of the
time. Beginning with the collapse of serfdom in mid-century,
writers struggled to create a narrative and descriptive language
adequate to reflect the dizzying changes taking place in the
economy. To tell this story, Shneyder offers bracing new readings
of money plots in familiar works by Dostoevsky, Tolstoy, Chekhov
and their contemporaries. Refreshingly interdisciplinary, incisive,
and highly readable, this compelling book shows literature’s
enduring power to make sense of its time and place.” —Carol
Apollonio, author of Dostoevsky’s Secrets: Reading Against the
Grain
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