Marvelous Decade; the Russian 1840s

Although Russia in the 1840s was ruled by the strictly authoritarian tsar Nicholas I, and although Russian intellectual life had sharp boundaries to it as a result of the tsarist censorship and secret police, there still existed within Russia in the 1840s a lively debate carried out about the nature of Russian society and the its future. That debate took place in private drawing rooms, in coffee houses, in lecture halls at the University of Moscow and even in the published press. There was such a variety of terms in that discussion and such a diversity of areas explored that later historians, and indeed some of the participants themselves, called it a golden age, a marvelous decade. It was a time during which many of the foundations were set for future intellectual and cultural developments in Russia (Need we only mention the names of Belinskii, Dostoevskii, Tolstoi, Herzen...) One caveat to remember is that although this was truly a ferment, it only involved a very small portion of the country's population as Russia remained, in the 1840s, overwhelmingly rural, overwhelmingly peasant and overwhelmingly illiterate.

Sparrows Point

Not sure how many of you saw the short notice in the Washington Post's business section the other day about the imminent sale of the Sparrows Point steel plant in Baltimore to the Russian steel company OAO Severstal, which is controlled by the super wealthy Alexei Mordashov (top 100 of Forbe's richest people in the world). The Sparrows plant was once the pride of Bethlehem steel, one of the great American steel firms that went bankrupt in 2001--though it had long before that ceased to be a force in the steel industry. For someone who grew up near the main plant of the "steel," as it was always known, in Bethlehem, PA, and as someone who knew a lot of older men who worked there to support their families through the twentieth century, it has always felt a little unsettling that the management of the company could end up letting that company come to nothing. Strangely, this purchase of the Sparrows Point plant could benefit a lot of people in Baltimore and also turn out to be a very good deal for the US steel-making industry

Russian Winter

Well, winter is just about over here in Northern Virginia, and while it may have been a snwoy winter in much of the Midwest, we had a mild winter (about 3 degrees above normal) with little snowfall (about 5 inches total!). My impression was that much of European Russia also had a relatively mild winter with little snow through mid-February, but I am not sure of the end.

Russian Current Events Sources Available Online

Just found a very useful list of online Russian newspapers and news sources available in English (and Russian) at worldnewspapers.com.

Russian Presidential Elections

The 2008 Russian presidential elections are underway now, as voters are expected to choose Vladimir Putin's choice of Dmitrii Medvedev to take over as president. It is expected that Putin will move from the presidential office in May when his term is over, to the office of prime minister. Experts expect that he will continue to dominate Russian politics from that post, but no one knows quite what to make of Medvedev who has never held elective office before.

Midterm, Alexander I and Napoleon

You should be taking your midterm exam now, with the essay question dealing with Alexander I and the creation of the Holy Alliance. (Remember that you must take the exam by 26 March to avoid being automatically removed from the course).

Washington Post's Russia Advertising Section

Well, today is Wednesday, and the Washington Post includes every Wednesday a special, pull-out "Russia: Beyond the Headlines" special advertising supplement produced by Rossiyskaya gazeta. I'm curious if any of you are reading it (or even aware of it) and what your thought might be. Is it news, or what kind of news is it? Why publish a special supplement? Who wants it published? I've got a lot of questions.

Eating and Drinking Russian Style

There are few truly "Russian" food items found in the major supermarkets in Northern Virginia, but there are at least two specialized stores located in Herndon and McLean that carry Russian (and also East European) food and drink items--I tend to buy a lot of Russian chocolates and some very good Polish beer. (In reality, the Zywiec brewery. is now run by Heinekin. ) Although you can't find a lot of Russian prepared food items at the market, you can easily cook like a Russian as cabbage, beets, fresh vegetables, fish, etc are always around.

Kosovo and the Russians

A diplomatic crisis of sorts is in the works now as a result of the Declaration of Independence issued by the Republic of Kosovo on the night of February 17th 2008. Both Serbia and Russia are upset, and much of Russia's anger seems directed at the United States (always a convenient target), the UN and NATO. Russia has long seen itself as the protector/liberator of the Slavic populations of the Balkans. Russia was at war with Turkey a number of times, usually for purely Russian goals, but Russian always espoused a rhetoric of liberating the oppressed peoples of the Turkish empire. So that Russian messianic view of manifest destiny in the Balkans dates back to the nineteenth century and the gradual creation of the independent Balkan countries from the Ottoman Empire. The main beneficiary of Russian support over the years has been Serbia, which has set its mission as the rightful unifier of all Balkan peoples, even though many of those peoples do not necessarily want to live with the Serbs. Kosovo aka Montenegro has played an important part of the historical memory of Serbs and and other South Slavs, because Kosovo Field was the site of an important battle in 1389 when the Sultan's army was temporarily stopped by an army under Serb command. That, of course, did not stop the Ottomans from extending their control over most of the Balkans. So, the Serbs view Kosovo as an inherent part of Serbdom, the Russians support the Serbs as an inherent mission of Russiandom, and neither listens to the wishes of the people (Albanians and Serbs) of Kosovo. Remember that World War I (not to mention other ethnic crises that appeared after the breakup of Yugoslavia such as in Bosnia) started over similar kind of Balkan issues.

Peter the Great

Peter the Great so changed the course of Russian history that it simply is difficult to imagine what would have happened to Russia if he had not assumed the throne--and that assumption of the throne itself was no given--and been able to impose his will on Russia. Russians have long been trying to come to grips with the Petrine legacy, and the duality of that legacy (the desire to be West European yet uniquely Russian at the same time). In this course we have the examples to view of Pushkin and Catherine the Great (via Falconet) trying to understand Peter the Great.