Unearthing Dostoevsky's Use of John 12:24 in the Brothers Karamazov (Kathryn Brossa)
Dostoevsky begins his work with the epigraph "Verily, verily, I say unto you, except a corn of wheat fall into the ground and die, it abideth alone; but, if it die, I bringeth forth much fruit," a section of Scripture he returns to and revises the verse twice in the course of the novel. The primacy he gives to the Russian native soil merges into the contest between the importance of Christianity to the well-being of Russian souls and the wicked outside influences of corruption. This essay focuses on the sanctity of the Russian soil with special attention to the holiness of Elder Zosima, transference of this holiness to Alyosha after Zosima's death, Mitya's redemption, Smerdyakov's wickedness, and Ilusha's role as a means of salvation for the new generation of real Russians committed, in the end, to Russian Orthodoxy.
Devil, Nature and nature (Maxwell Bolno)
This paper seeks to arrive at the essence of devil in Dostoevsky's The Brothers Karamazov, specifically through examination of the devil's work in the village monastery. For the purposes of this paper, two uses of the word 'nature' will persist. The first, nature (referred to as first nature), makes reference to the primordial amorality which Darwin took as the foundry of man; the second use of the word, Nature (referred to as second Nature), will be arrived at gradually. The first nature, though, is the domain of beasts. In first nature, violence retains an abiding tenure, but cruelty is an extraneous imposture of mankind. "People talk sometimes of 'bestial' cruelty, but that's a great injustice and insult to the beast; a beast can never be so cruel as a man, so artistically, so artfully cruel." (Brothers Karamazov, Norton Critical, 206). That is to say, man is characteristically distinct from nature's beast. Man has a special sort of consciousness, and for man there exists a second (at least, apparently second) Nature, from which are born faith and heightened freedom, but also the devil. But is the devil so at odds with faith and freedom? Examination of the devil's work will bring us to a better understanding of Dostoevsky's stance on second Nature.
Tolstoy's Sonata: The Author's Conception of Art (Kevin McNulty)
Tolstoy had a very particular perspective on what constituted 'good art'. In, What is Art, he offers particular attention to the relation between a works form and substance, the sincerity of the artist, and the moral merit of the notions conveyed. These three criteria are not only used to judge other artists' work, but appear evident in the way Tolstoy constructed many of his own writings. The Kreutzer Sonata, in particular, is shaped on many levels by the author's convictions concerning proper art. Its characters, themes, and narrative structure can be properly understood in relation to the artistic criteria Tolstoy outlines in What is Art. The relation between the author's essay and his fiction is not only interesting but leads to a deeper understanding of the literature itself.
T.B. or Not to Be? Two Visions of Consumption in Dostoevsky's Artistic Martyrology (Jacqueline Yue)
Described as a "disease of the soul" by Susan Sontag, tuberculosis captivated the cultural imagination during the nineteenth century. Because of its presence in crowded, dirty districts, its prevalence among the young and the artistically gifted, and the physical toll it took on its victims' health and its role as an essential death sentence, consumption took on a dual cultural image as an illness that both condemns and redeems.This dichotomy is captured by Philippe Ariès in his book The Hour of Death, where he argues for the classification of two types of death in Western literature since the age of sensibility—the belle mort ("beautiful death") and the mort sale ("dirty death")—and incidentally illustrates both with dying consumptives. ¶ The goal of this paper is to contrast two of Dostoevsky's characters, Ippolit from The Idiot and Ilyusha from The Brothers Karamazov, in the context of the tubercular tradition, Dostoevsky's artistic philosophy and Ariès's typology. It will then conclude with the argument that, according to Dostoevsky, whereas the adult's world experience grounds him in the brutal reality of his disease, it is the child's innocence and faith that allows him to transcend it.
"Let's Go to Bed": Reactions to the Process of Dying in "A Boring Story" and "Gusev" (Jessica Bawgus)
This paper compares two of Anton Chekhov's short stories – "A Boring Story" and "Gusev" – and the differences in language associated with and surrounding the deaths of the primary characters. Though the two stories were read in translation, by Richard Pevear and Larissa Volokhonsky, the subtle differences in approach to verb tense, grammatical time and narration are still consistent with the original language; both stories serve as examinations on how Anton Chekhov was working through ideas of mortality and death in 1889 and 1890. Chekhov, who at this point knew of his own impending death, presents two different reactions to dying – in "A Boring Story" it is the end of mediocrity and endless repetition, where in "Gusev" there is freedom from illness and a return to the natural world. In looking at these two similar stories written at the same time period, it is possible to gain a better understanding towards Chekhov's reactions towards human mortality and legacy – a recurring theme throughout his body of work.
"Skazka," "The Bet," and the Chekhovian Problematic (Laura Christians)
Anton Chekhov's place in the history of Russian literature and the exact nature of his relationship with the Russian Realist movement have been debated from the time of his contemporaries until now, such that it has been referred to by one scholar as the "Chekhovian problematic." The difficulty in placing Chekhov within this literary tradition is that his works display an illusiveness that makes defining his style a challenge to the critic. An example of this is Chekhov's short story "Skazka," or "Fairy Tale," written in December 1888, and republished as "The Bet" in his 1901 Collected Works. The revised version contained only a few changes, yet entailed the removal of the entire concluding third chapter that had made the tale didactic, producing in effect a different story. This essay examines the differences between the two versions that are illustrative of the development of Chekhov as a writer and thinker, providing a glimpse into his mentality. This paper concludes that while he remains in the tradition of Russian Realism, his development in regards to his literary style and beliefs on life's meaning reveal that he was progressively distancing himself from the Russian Realist movement. The differences between "Skazka" and "The Bet," and his sense of need to rewrite the story, illustrate the Russian author's uniqueness and corroborate why the so-called "Chekhovian problematic" exists.
A Tale of Two Moscows (Daniel Lipsman)
The French epigram by Jean-Baptiste Alphonse Karr goes, "the more things change, the more they stay the same". Though written and taking place more than 100 years apart, Alexander Griboyedov's Woe from Wit and Mikhail Bulgakov's Master and Margarita have a lot in common regarding their portrayals of Russia's privileged society. Furthermore, despite a complete revolution in government, eradication of illiteracy, and change in religion, Griboyedov and Bulgakov showed the privileged class as behaving themselves almost without any change. Perhaps Bulgakov specifically meant to highlight this in chapter 5 of Master and Margarita, entitled "The Affair at Griboyedov's", where Homeless, one of the novel's protagonists, visits the House of Griboyedov in search of Professor Woland, the devil's manifestation. Meanwhile, Chatsky, the protagonist of Woe from Wit, visits the House of Famusov, longing for Sofia's love. Examining the works side-by-side, as well as taking literary criticisms into considerations, Woe from Wit and Master and Margarita reveal themselves as functioning together to illustrate the hellish bacchanalia and petty senselessness of the privileged, as well as their selfish obsession with reputation. Both novels also touch on the topic of insanity and how it can be easily construed depending on the eyes of the beholder. Through these and other themes, the two authors paint a similar, satirical Moscow riddled with problems created by the same people who suffer from them.
Building a Soviet Religion (Joshua Spector)
While relatively little scholarship has been done on the literary works of Andrey Platonov, critical consideration has been given to Ayleen Teskey's analysis linking Platonov to the Russian Orthodox philosophe Nikolay Fyodorov. Platonov and Fyodorov: The influence of Christian Philosophy on a Soviet Writer has stirred debate among literary critics concerning the placement of Platonov, a Soviet author, in the continuum of Russian Christian thinkers. While Teskey's book discusses some of Platonov's more well-known stories such as Chevengur and Kotlovan, analysis and subsequent criticism overlooks one of Platonov's earlier works: Dzhan. I would contend that careful reading of Dzhan reveals an abundance of references and allusions to classical Christian stories and ideas. Rather than view the usage of Christian imagery in connection to preceding Russian Christian theologians, however, I would interpret the employment and portrayal of religion as a means to promote early Soviet ideology. The Jesus of Platonov's gospel is a Central Asian Soviet seeking to resurrect a downtrodden people oppressed by the bourgeoisie. His father is Stalin, and the story is even replete with a Judas symbolizing the evil influence of traditional religion itself. One of the prominent features of Soviet ideology was the casting of religion as a tool of manipulation by the bourgeoisie. The denigration of religion, especially Islam, was particularly important for Soviet strategy in Central Asia, as Islam was often a rallying call for resistance to Communist takeover. Thus, a concerted campaign to supplant traditional religion with Soviet ideology is a common theme in Soviet films and literature from the early days of the USSR. Through Platonov's usage of Biblical imagery in Dzhan, the reader can witness the attempt of an early Soviet writer to build a new, Soviet religion out of the ashes of the discarded theology of the bourgeoisie.
Searching for the Right Nail: Trauma and Survival in Tarkovsky's Ivan's Childhood (Amalia Lund)
Cities and the armies that fought for them were devoured by the violence of the second World War, leaving traumatized survivors in its wake. Andrei Tarkovsky was a young boy at the onset of the second World War. Previous Soviet expressions of the war starred the illustrious war hero of Socialist Realism; in both films and life the government repressed any consequences of the war except this hero. Tarkovsky's first major film, Ivan's Childhood, was released forty years later. Though the film may first appear to be a depiction of the war, it is instead a discussion of the aftermath of the war that intimately addresses those left to suffer in silence and broader ideas on the nature of trauma in a way that previous Soviet art and society had not. The blurred lines between dreams and reality, front and rear, manifest Tarkovsky's understanding of trauma––one that is deeply rooted in the tension between the experience of death and having survived it. Through the analysis of specific scenes, the dense lyricism of the film will be explored and contextualized.
In Defense of Sovereignty: An Analysis of Russian Voting Behavior in the United Nations Security Council (1995-2012) (Brian Mund)
This paper explores the motivations for Russian voting behavior in the United Nations Security Council from 1995-2012. Specifically, why does Russia vote with the West in many situations, but not in others? What motivated Russia to veto three Western-backed resolutions in the ongoing Syrian conflict? These are not arbitrary votes—Russia invests considerable energy in both explaining and justifying its voting decisions in the Security Council. Thus, even if one believes that Security Council resolutions do not significantly affect state behavior (a claim that international relations research increasingly disputes), such voting decisions still matter because Russia deems them important. ¶ I contend that Russia's concern for 1) international stability and 2) state sovereignty norms drives Russia's voting patterns in the Security Council. The evidence for the subsequent analysis comes from 1095 Security Council resolutions and vetoed draft resolutions as well as their accompanying United Nations press releases. Both the statistical analysis and the qualitative case analyses found that a consistently conservative interpretation of Security Council jurisdiction and the promotion of state sovereignty norms influenced Russian voting. I also find that Russia views the entirety of the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) making up the former Soviet Union as part of Russia's sovereign sphere. I test these hypotheses against hypotheses predicting an expansion-motivated Russia and a status-seeking Russia, but neither alternative viewpoint receives the same empirical support that a defensive Russia receives. Finally, the findings in this paper have a number of implications. First, the paper finds that Russia has internalized a strict legalist approach to Security Council affairs. Therefore, the Western diplomatic approach for compromise should not focus on Russian interests, but should rather engage Russia through the compatibility of legal principles. Second, the paper emphasizes the lack of normative consensus and highlights the importance of further codification of legitimate international legal behavior.
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