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In this book, acclaimed Dostoevsky biographer Joseph Frank explores some of the most important aspects of nineteenth and twentieth century Russian culture, literature, and history. Delving into the distinctions of the Russian novel as well as the conflicts between the religious peasant world and the educated Russian elite, Between Religion and Rationality displays the cogent reflections of one of the most distinguished and versatile critics in the field.
Frank's essays provide a discriminating look at four of Dostoevsky's most famous novels, discuss the debate between J. M. Coetzee and Mario Vargas Llosa on the issue of Dostoevsky and evil, and confront Dostoevsky's anti-Semitism. The collection also examines such topics as Orlando Figes's sweeping survey of the history of Russian culture, the life of Pushkin, and Oblomov's influence on Samuel Beckett. Investigating the omnipresent religious theme that runs throughout Russian culture, even in the antireligious Chekhov, Frank argues that no other major European literature was as much preoccupied as the Russian with the tensions between religion and rationality. Between Religion and Rationality highlights this unique quality of Russian literature and culture, offering insights for general readers and experts alike.
Introduction 1
Part I. C lassics
Chapter One: Poor Folk and House of the Dead 9
Chapter Two: The Idiot 29
Chapter Three: Demons 46
Chapter Four: War and Peace 64
Part II. The Russian Tradition
Chapter Five: Natasha's Dance: A Cultural History of Russia 87
Chapter Six: A Life of Pushkin 107
Chapter Seven: Oblomov and Goncharov 118
Chapter Eight: Lydia Ginzburg, On Psychological Prose 129
Chapter Nine: Richard Pipes, Russian Conservatism and Its Critics 143
Part III. The Dostoevskian Orbit
Chapter Ten: Dostoevsky and Anti-Semitism 159
Chapter Eleven: In Search of Dostoevsky 173
Chapter Twelve: Arkady Kovner 185
Chapter Thirteen: J. M. Coetzee, The Master of Petersburg 196
Chapter Fourteen: Dostoevsky and Evil 204
Part IV. Twentieth-Century Issues
Chapter Fifteen: Anton Chekhov 219
Chapter Sixteen: The Triumph of Abram Tertz 230
Chapter Seventeen: D. S. Mirsky 249
Chapter Eighteen: Vladimir Nabokov: Lectures on Literature 261
Index 287
Overview
In this book, acclaimed Dostoevsky biographer Joseph Frank explores some of the most important aspects of nineteenth and twentieth century Russian culture, literature, and history. Delving into the distinctions of the Russian novel as well as the conflicts between the religious peasant world and the educated Russian elite, Between Religion and Rationality displays the cogent reflections of one of the most distinguished and versatile critics in the field.
Frank's essays provide a...