Love, Sex and Modernism

3 Credits · Level: Graduate, Undergraduate

At the turn of the 20th century Russian culture witnessed unprecedented experimentation in romantic relationships and sex. Many cultural figures of the modernist period rejected procreative sex and traditional gender roles in favor of less individualist and individualizing alternatives, capable of uniting humanity into a tight-knit collective. This course examines literature and art created between 1889 and 1930, with an eye to how these cultural products view romantic and erotic relationships and construct more ideal alternatives. Alongside novellas, poems, plays, essays, visual and performance art, students will consider writers’ and artists’ personal biographies through the lens of zhiznetvorchestvo, or modeling life as a work of art. Central to our pursuit will be the exploration of romantic and sexual problems, “pathologies,” and possibilities, as they are depicted in the artistic works. Taught in Russian