FYSP 017 - Madness and Modernity in Russian Literature

Russian literature is deservedly well-known for its exploration of extreme states of consciousness. It contains compelling diagnoses of the malaise that haunts modernity: alienation, historical traumas, and the destructive influence of hyperrationality. Covering Russian literature’s first modern treatments of madness to the Silver Age, we will read works by Pushkin, Gogol, Dostoevsky, and Tolstoy which use images of madness to explore social, historical, and existential questions. As we look along with them into the depths of the human soul, we will study their connection to literary traditions and use them to think through the issues that we face today.

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