Description
Book SynopsisHow did enlightened Russians of the eighteenth century understand society? And how did they reconcile their professed ideals of equality and justice with the authoritarian political structures in which they lived? Historian Elise Wirtschafter turns to literary plays to reconstruct the social thinking of the past and to discover how Enlightenment Russians understood themselves.
Opening with an illuminating discussion of the development of theater in eighteenth-century Russia, Wirtschafter goes on to explore dramatic representations of key social questions. Based on an examination of nearly 300 secular plays written during the last half of the century, she shows how dramas for the stage represented and debated important public issues—such as the nature of the common good, the structure of the patriarchal household, the duty of monarchs, and the role of the individual in society.
Wirtschafter presents a striking reconstruction of the way educated Russian
Trade Review
"A work of meticulous scholarship.... Readers will attain a rare sense of emotional and moral engagement in the Russian society of the era."
-Richard Stites, Georgetown University
"A wonderfully conceived work of cultural history, well researched in its chosen primary sources, well structured, and well written."—James Cracraft, University of Illinois at Chicago
"A path-breaking and fascinating book from a prolific scholar."—Christine D. Worobec, author of Possessed
Table of ContentsTable of Contents
Preface
1. Theater and Society
2. The Social Meaning of Plays
3. The Patriarchal Household
4. Civic Society
5. The Common Good
6. Moral Monarchy
Conclusion—The Individual in Society and Polity
Appendix—Biographies of Authors
Abbreviations
Notes
Bibliography
Index
