Russian Literature
The quarterly peer-review academic journal published since 1958.
Founders
- Russian Academy of Sciences
Publisher
- Russian Academy of Sciences
The journal is published under the supervision of the RAS Department of Historical and Philological Sciences (OIFN RAS).
About the journal
“Russkaia literatura” (Russian Literature) is the country's first and only periodical devoted to the history of Russian literature at all stages of its development. One of the most urgent tasks of "Russian Literature" is to present the current state of academic literary criticism and the most striking achievements in its individual fields. The same aim is pursued by the chronicles of current conferences and reviews of recently published scholarly monographs and anthologies. The volume is intended for specialists in the history of Russian literature and is aimed at a professional audience.
Key areas
- Folklore;
- Old Russian and 18th century literature;
- Classical heritage;
- Modern (20th century) literature;
- Theoretical and historical-literary studies;
- Biographical and textual research;
- Thematic sections on the anniversaries of classic writers, polemics and attribution;
- Critical reviews and critiques;
- Comprehensive information about current scientific life, including chronicles of international symposia and conferences.
Indexation
Media registration certificate: № 0110194 от 04.02.1993
Current Issue
No 1 (2026)
CESAR TRAVELLED, TITUS PETRONIUS AND I FOLLOWED HIM FROM AFAR (DESTINATIONS OF PUSHKIN’S IMAGINARY TRAVEL)
Abstract
The article proves that the special feature of Pushkin’s worldview that Dostoyevsky termed his sympathy for the whole world was largely determined by his idiosyncratic personal library, mostly composed of books on geography, history and culture of various countries and nations. Shaped by his readings, Pushkin’s imaginary travel across the world civilizations, historical events and life stories of outstanding personalities informed his artistic endeavors.
Russian Literature. 2026;(1):5-14
5-14
Публикации и сообщения
REcEPTION OF THE VITA OF LEO OF cATANIA IN THE RUSSIAN cULTURE: FROM JOSEPH VOLOTSKY TO THE 20TH cENTURY NOVELS
Abstract
The article examines the influence of the Vita of the Sicilian Bishop Leo of Catania on the Russian culture. Integrated into the early 16th century polemical disputes about the heretics, the episode of Leo of Catania conflagrating the sorcerer Heliodorus became a topos in the debates on religious tolerance. The interest in the figure of Bishop Leo was not limited, however, to the issue of punishing the heretics; memoirs and letters show that he was revered as a heavenly patron. The article also analyzes the similarities between the Vita and the episodes from M. A. Bulgakov’s novel The Master and Margarita.
Russian Literature. 2026;(1):15-26
15-26
WRITERS’ «VITAE» OF THE 18TH CENTURY: FEATURES OF THE GENRE
Abstract
One of the genres of the Russian literature of the Enlightenment period was the biographical sketch, supplementing the editions of the works by the Russian writers, mostly deceased. In European literature, the tradition of such supplements in the form of a preface goes as far back as the late Antiquity. The practice was introduced in Russia by A. D. Kantemir, who added the «vitae» of Anacreon and Horace to his translations. The article focuses on the process of shaping a writer’s reputation in the minds of his contemporaries as reflected in these sketches. It analyses the «life sketches» and «vitae» of both the secular (A. D. Kantemir, V. K. Trediakovsky, A. P. Sumarokov, I. I. Hemnitser etc.) and the religious (Feofan Prokopovich, Stefan Yavorsky, Platon Levshin etc.) writers of the 18th century.
Russian Literature. 2026;(1):26-30
26-30
The Reading Practices of Young I. S. Aksakov (Based on Unpublished Family Correspondence)
Abstract
The article deals with an obscure issue, the early years of I. S. Aksakov, and in particular with the evolvement of his reading practices in adolescence. The reconstruction of the formative years of the essayist-to-be, shaping of his self and his literary preferences was made possible by the unpublished family correspondence of the Aksakovs’ of 1836–1841. It features valuable evidence concerning I. S. Aksakov’s life at the time and reveals the sources that subsequently informed his Slavophile mentality.
Russian Literature. 2026;(1):30-39
30-39
THE QUEEN OF SPADES BY A. S. PUSHKIN AND THE MAGNETIZER BY E. T. A. HOFFMANN: LITERARY ALLUSIONS, REMINISCENCES, PARALLELS
Abstract
The article offers a detailed comparative analysis of A. S. Pushkin’s The Queen of Spades and E. T. A. Hoffmann’s The Magnetizer. The two works, examined in terms of their storylines, thematic elements, characters, and select images, feature numerous similarities, parallels, and coincidences. This leads to a deeper understanding of Hermann’s character, a new interpretation of the theme of animal magnetism, and a clarification of several obscure aspects of the narrative. Ultimately, this provides a richer and more nuanced reading of Pushkin’s masterpiece.
Russian Literature. 2026;(1):40-49
40-49
NEW AGE PHILOSOPHY IN PROSE AND EPISTOLARY LEGACY OF I. A. GONCHAROV
Abstract
The article examines the typological connections between I. A. Goncharov’s literary and epistolary texts and the ideas of the New Age philosophy. The research focuses on the origins of the rational doubt motive. The classification of passion in European philosophy of the 17th–18th centuries and its reflection in literature are also analyzed.
Russian Literature. 2026;(1):50-62
50-62
I. A. Goncharov, Anonymous (Golos Newspaper Feuilletons)
Abstract
The article explores the 1863–1864 ideological campaign in M. N. Katkov’s periodicals. It focuses on the polemics between Moskovskiye Vedomosty and Golos as an instance of covet political struggle between the two ruling parties. The Appendix features one of Goncharov’s Golos texts, attributed through thematic, lexical and phraseological analysis of the newspaper content.
Russian Literature. 2026;(1):63-79
63-79
EUGENE ONEGIN IN LITERATURE AND CRITICISM OF THE SECOND HALF OF THE 19TH CENTURY: IDEOLOGICAL TRANSFORMATIONS AND PLOT EMULATIONS
Abstract
The open and universal structure of Eugene Onegin was recognized by literature and literary criticism of the second half of the 19th century, which allowed for the utilization of its functional and semantic resources to address the goals that were in line with the demands of the time. In the second half of the 19th century, the «Onegin situation» underwent ideological transformations and character emulation in various narrative aspects. Both developments were, in one way or another, defined by the pattern of ideational changes.
Russian Literature. 2026;(1):80-88
80-88
Towards the History of the Folk Magazines in the Late 1850s: Folk Reading by G. D. Shcherbachyov and A. A. Oblonskiy (Based on Archival Sources)
Abstract
The article is the first attempt to reconstruct the censorship and publishing history of the journal Narodnoye Chtenie (Folk Reading) (1859–1862), one of the well-known pre-Reform publications for the common readership. It is shown that A. A. Obolonskiy and G. D. Shcherbachyov launched the magazine while competing with a similar project by Colonel I. G. Chekmarev of the same title, yet the latter did not receive the administrative support. The initiative of Obolonskiy and Shcherbachyov did receive it initially, only to lose it later. The article offers significant additions and iterations to Shcherbachyov’s memoirs concerning the censorship history of the magazine, the circle of its contributors and the circumstances of its transfer to another editor in 1861. The list of the employees is carefully analyzed, including Ukrainophiles (T. G. Shevchenko, Marko Vovchok, P. A. Kulish) and provincial self-taught peasants.
Russian Literature. 2026;(1):89-99
89-99
SIX PAGES FROM F. M. DOSTOEVSKY’S NOTEBOOK (1864–1867)
Abstract
The article offers a decoding of, as well as a historical and literary commentary to the unpublished texts from the last six pages of F. M. Dostoevsky’s notebook of 1864–1867 (RGALI. № 212.1.5. P. 151–154; IRLI. № 29491. P. 155–156), being a contribution to the project of complete diplomatic transcription of the writer’s notebooks that include the preparatory materials for his novels Crime and Punishment and The Idiot. The published entries contain new information on F. M. Dostoevsky’s editorial work during the formative period of the Epoch magazine in the fall of 1864, which was intended to replace the Time magazine banned in August 1863. The published texts contain new information concerning F. M. Dostoevsky’s work as an editor: together with his colleagues from the editorial office, he defined the circle of events in the Russian and European social and political life, intending to offer their coverage in his periodical.
Russian Literature. 2026;(1):100-110
100-110
THE TURGENEV BROTHERS AND THE SOKOVNIN SISTERS. THE EPILOGUE OF A RELATIONSHIP: A. M. PAVLOVA (SOKOVNINA)’S LETTERS TO N. I. TURGENEV, 1868–1869
Abstract
The letters in question are of particular interest both as a memoir and as an autobiographic source. A. M. Pavlova (nee Sokovnina), a love interest of A. I. Turgenev, a witness to the amorous drama between her sister E. M. Sokovnina and An. I. Turgenev, a member of his circle of friends, an acquaintance of Zhukovsky, shares her reminiscences of these long-gone days with N. I. Turgenev. Autobiographically, the letters are particularly valuable as a retrospective of a lifetime; they offer insights into the largely obscure late period of her life when her great-grandchildren, A. I. Ziloti and S. V. Rakhmaninov, were born. The new data are instrumental for providing a concise life story of A. M. Pavlova; it is included into the introduction to the publication.
Russian Literature. 2026;(1):110-121
110-121
UNKNOWN LETTERS OF A. A. FET TO K. N. LEONTIEV (1884–1891)
Abstract
The article introduces fifteen letters of A. A. Fet to K. N. Leontiev, discovered in 2021 and currently preserved in a private collection in Russia. Until recently, it was believed that Fet’s part of the fairly regular eight-year correspondence had been almost entirely lost. This exceptional discovery restores the epistolary dialogue between Fet and Leontiev in almost the whole of its diversity, shedding new light on the history of the relationship between the poet and the «Optina Hermit».
Russian Literature. 2026;(1):122-150
122-150
YU. I. AYKHENVALD’S LETTERS TO V. YA. BRYUSOV (1900–1907)
Abstract
The article traces the literary contacts and interactions between Yu. I. Aykhenvald and V. Ya. Bryusov. A review of Aykhenvald’s publications about Bryusov is provided; an attempt is made to interpret the critic’s nihilistic attitude to the latter’s work. Aykhenwald’s letters to Bryusov (Research Department of Manuscripts, Russian State Library), dating from 1900–1907 are introduced into the academic circulation. Two letters describe Bryusov’s efforts to arrange a lecture by Dmitry Merezhkovsky on Leo Tolstoy’s religious views in Moscow. Four letters are concerned with Aykhenvald’s activities as the editor of the Russkaya Mysl magazine fiction section in 1907–1908.
Russian Literature. 2026;(1):150-161
150-161
PARANOIA PRIMARIA: DYNAMICS OF ARDAL’ON BORISOVICH PEREDONOV’S DISEASE IN THE LIGHT OF THE EXPERIMENTAL METHOD
Abstract
The article deals with the psychopathological aspect of F. Sologub’s novel The Petty Demon. A detailed description of a mental illness highlights the hidden dynamics of the text, that might be associated with the influence of E. Zola on Sologub’s work in the 1880s and 1890s. The article analyzes the accuracy of the depiction of the main character’s psychological traits.
Russian Literature. 2026;(1):162-171
162-171
VLADIMIR GIPPIUS. HELLO TO THE POET
Abstract
The publication introduces into academic circulation an essay by Vl. V. Gippius on the work of K. D. Balmont and the social significance of his poetry into academic circulation. The essay describes a literary event that has not yet been covered in the history of Russian literature: laudation of the poet at a meeting of the All-Russian Literary Society on November 22, 1913. The essay by Vl. Gippius Hello to the Poet expands the ideas concerning Russian literary life and the development of the national criticism in the early 20th century.
Russian Literature. 2026;(1):171-183
171-183
THE «PETERSBURG TEXT» FROM THE MOUTH OF «HAS-BEEN»: DEKABR’ MOROZIT V NEBE ROZOVOM… BY M. A. KUZMIN
Abstract
This article offers a novel close reading of Mikhail Kuzmin’s «Dekabr’ morozit v nebe rozovom…» («December is Freezing in the Pink Sky…», 1920) – as a «Petersburg text». Kuzmin’s poem is shown to be a unique variation of its master plot thanks to: 1) an ekphrasis of a foundational symbol of Petersburg, Kuzmin’s original contribution to Russian poetry; 2) an unconventional lexical pattern: a minimal number of words of foreign origin vs. maximum of everyday Russian vocabulary; 3) Petersburg intertexts (Pushkin, Blok, Anna Radlova); 4) pre-revolutionary rather than post-revolutionary speech patterns; and 5) the overarching metaphoric ekphrasis «Menshikov in Berezovo».
Russian Literature. 2026;(1):183-208
183-208
A «POST-NIETZSCHEAN» PERSONALITY IN THE NIGHT SEA: I. A. BUNIN AND J. A. BRODSKY’S CHARACTERS ON THE RENDEZVOUS WITH THE «EXISTENTIAL ABYSS»
Abstract
The article examines the locus of the night sea as the metalanguage of Bunin and Brodsky’s «autopsychological» characters’ «encounters with the abyss». In a character with the Modernist world view, with his individualism, neo-paganism and skepticism, Christianity is substituted by pantheism and other metaphysical ideas. Brodsky modernizes the type, compensating, unlike Bunin, for the inescapable evil of the universe not with the «vitality» of the lonely self, but with the ambivalent quasi-religion of «The Language». Despite their similar foundations, the artistic strategies of Bunin and Brodsky offer two different approaches to the principle of ascent from sensuality to ontology.
Russian Literature. 2026;(1):208-222
208-222
THE HISTORY OF THE DEPARTMENT OF RUSSIAN AND FOREING LITERATURE RELATIONS
Abstract
This report marking the 70 years of the Department of Russian and Foreign Literature Relations of Pushkin House traces the history of the foundation of this research entity in 1955, its evolution from a group to a sector and the two first decades of its activities, while it was directed by the outstanding Soviet philologist, Academician M. P. Alexeev (1896–1981). All the principal projects of the sector are outlined, its works and publications are listed. A detailed account of its public activities is also offered, focusing on the numerous assemblies (over 300 altogether) where Soviet and foreign scholars, Moscow celebrities and modest provincial teachers made their presentations. The authority of the sector was very high at the time, and it was recognized far beyond our country.
Russian Literature. 2026;(1):223-227
223-227
Literary parody and stylization in the poetic legacy of translator and sinologist L. E. Cherkassky
Abstract
The article examines the features of the poetic works of the translator and sinologist L. E. Cherkassky, whose contributions to translating Chinese poetry served as a foundation for stylization and parodies. Based on his collections of poetry I Will Repose my Soul by the Root (2001), Poems about a Fair Lady and a Gentleman (1996), techniques of stylization and parody of liushi, one of the forms of traditional Wenyan poetry, are considered at the level of composition, stanza, and imagery.
Russian Literature. 2026;(1):227-234
227-234
JOSEPH BRODSKY AND CARL PROFFER: THE STORY OF AN EDITOR’S REVISION
Abstract
The article analyzes J. A. Brodsky’s unpublished essay On Teaching, preserved in the poet’s manuscript archive at the Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library. The history of the text’s emergence is recreated, Carl Proffer’s revisions are analyzed, as well as the key aspects of his polemics with the author of the essay. The article focuses on Brodsky’s attitudes to teaching at the university, creative writing courses, the role of poetry in modern world, as well as on his critique of the American academic system and politicization of education.
Russian Literature. 2026;(1):234-243
234-243
Обзоры и рецензии
MEDIA CRITICISM AS AN OBJECT OF LITERARY STUDEIS
Abstract
[Review:] Istoriia mediakritiki v Rossii: ocherki i materialy / Pod red. V. V. Prozorova. Saratov: Izdatel’stvo Saratovskogo gosudarstvennogo universiteta, 2019. 352 s.; Ocherki po istorii mediakritiki v Rossii XIX–XX vekov / Pod red. V. V. Prozorova. Saratov: Izdatel’stvo Saratovskogo gosudarstvennogo universiteta, 2024. 208 s.
Russian Literature. 2026;(1):244-245
244-245
246-249
249-251
Хроника
28TH ACADEMIC READINGS OF THE MANUSCRIPT DEPARTMENT, PUSHKIN HOUSE
Russian Literature. 2026;(1):252-255
252-255
All the Mirages of the World: Illusions in Literature and Art Twelfth April International Interdisciplinary Conference
Russian Literature. 2026;(1):255-259
255-259
Daniil Kharms: Poetics, History, Contexts International Research Conference
Russian Literature. 2026;(1):259-262
259-262
Russian Literature in the Soviet Era Eighth Research Seminar
Russian Literature. 2026;(1):263-264
263-264
XLIX Malyshev Readings
Russian Literature. 2026;(1):264-269
264-269
PAMYaTI SERGEYa ALEKSANDROVIChA FOMIChEVA
Russian Literature. 2026;(1):270-271
270-271
SUMMARIES
Russian Literature. 2026;(1):272-320
272-320