The University of Wisconsin Press

---

Slavic Studies / Literature & Criticism

---

Taboo Pushkin Topics, Texts, Interpretations Edited by Alyssa Dinega Gillespie Publications of the Wisconsin Center for Pushkin Studies David M. Bethea and Alexander Dolinin, Series Editors “There is truly a need for an ‘other Pushkiniana,’ a volume that seeks to push Pushkin studies to the borders of subjects that have been off-limits for many Pushkinists.” —Angela Brintlinger, author of Writing a Usable Past: Russian Literary Culture, 1917–1937 Since his death in 1837, Alexander Pushkin—often called the “father of Russian literature”—has become a timeless embodiment of Russian national identity, adopted for diverse ideological purposes and reinvented anew as a cultural icon in each historical era (tsarist, Soviet, and post-Soviet). His elevation to mythic status, however, has led to the celebration of some of his writings and the shunning of others. Throughout the history of Pushkin studies, certain topics, texts, and interpretations have remained officially off-limits in Russia—taboos as prevalent in today’s Russia as ever before. The essays in this bold and authoritative volume use new approaches, overlooked archival materials, and fresh interpretations to investigate aspects of Pushkin’s biography and artistic legacy that have previously been suppressed or neglected. Taken together, the contributors strive to create a more fully realized Pushkin and demonstrate how potent a challenge the unofficial, taboo, alternative Pushkin has proven to be across the centuries for the Russian literary and political establishments. Alyssa Dinega Gillespie is associate professor of Russian at the University of Notre Dame. She is the author of A Russian Psyche: The Poetic Mind of Marina Tsvetaeva, also published by the University of Wisconsin Press, and editor of Russian Literature in the Age of Realism. Praise: “This book impressively unites essays on diverse topics by authors with various methodologies for the singular purpose of unveiling and challenging ‘ the Pushkin myth.’ ” —Slavonica “An important contribution to our understanding of Pushkin’s life, personality, and work, as well as to the ongoing uses and abuses of these topics in contemporary Russia. . . . [An] almost gargantuan feast.” —Slavonic and East European Review Media & bookseller inquiries regarding review copies, events, and interviews can be directed to the publicity department at publicity@uwpress.wisc.edu or (608) 263-0734. (If you want to examine a book for possible course use, please see our Course Books page. If you want to examine a book for possible rights licensing, please see Rights & Permissions.)   Of Related Interest: The Uncensored Boris Godunov The Case for Pushkin's Original Comedy, with Annotated Text and Translation Chester Dunning with Caryl Emerson, Sergei Fomichev, Lidiia Lotman, and Antony Wood Persuasively argues for including the original, 1825 version of the play Boris Godunov (later eclipsed by the "politically correct" edition) in the canon of Pushkin's works

July 2012 LC: 2011042002 PG 490 pp.   6 x 9   8 b/w illus. Paper $34.95 s ISBN 978-0-299-28704-7 ADD TO CART "Taboo Pushkin draws on Pushkin’s more canonical texts to interpret those once seen as questionable, and vice versa; and it looks at past interpretations of Pushkin’s work that ran afoul of official approval at one time or another, consistently asking hard questions about religious strictures, obscenity, aesthetic tastes, and institutions that seek to control reader access. It is sure to attract readers, both specialists in Pushkin and those interested in questions of sexual transgression, political edginess, and blasphemy." —Stephanie Sandler, author of Commemorating Pushkin: Russia’s Myth of a National Poet

Home | Books | Journals | Events | Textbooks | Authors | Related | Search | Order | Contact

If you have trouble accessing any page in this web site, contact our Web manager. E-mail: webmaster@uwpress.wisc.edu Updated February 15, 2012 © 2012, The Board of Regents of the University of Wisconsin System