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Reading Russian Literature

This course aims to impart an understanding of the main lines of development in Russian literature from Pushkin, with a particular emphasis on prose fiction. It examines the careers of a selection of writers in the context of Russia's social, political and cultural history and focuses on a representative text by each writer studied, as well as techniques of literary analysis.

Set Texts are likely to include: 

  • Alexander Pushkin, Пиковая дама (Queen of Spades) 
  • Nikolai Gogol, Шинель (The Overcoat) 
  • Mikhail Lermontov, Герой нашего времени (A Hero of Our Time) 
  • Katerina Pavlova, Двойная жизнь (A Double Life)
  • Fyodor Dostoevsky, Сон смешного человека (Dream of a Ridiculous Man) 
  • Lev Tolstoy, Смерть Ивана Ильича (The Death of Ivan Ilych) 
  • Anton Chekhov, Дама с собачкой (The Lady with a Lapdog) 
  • Nadezhda Teffi, За стеной (Walled Up) 
  • Anna Akhmatova, Реквием (Requiem) 

Coordinator: Dr Sarah Vitali

Further details of pre-requisites, co-requisites, aims, contact hours and assessment.