Tolstoy’s "Anna Karenina"

The “monographic” course is dedicated to the study of the most acclaimed of Tolstoy’s novels, Anna Karenina. Tolstoy wrote and published the novel by chapter in the monthly journal Russkiy vestnik over the years 1875-1877; readers remained in suspense each month, eagerly awaiting the next installment, not knowing what would happen next with the heroes. Students will repeat the experience of Tolstoy’s first readers of the 19th century during their six weeks of study. Tolstoy’s work is truly an encyclopedia of Russian culture of the second half of the 19th century, making our course interdisciplinary. We will examine the historical context of the novel, its politics and genesis, and the social, philosophical, religious, and cultural issues that concerned its author.