HIS 242
Unit 3: A Silver Age of Russian Culture
An illustration
of the Firebird costume designed by Lev Bakst (Lev Rosenberg,
1866-1924), one of the primary stage designers for the Ballets Russes
of Sergei Diagilev (1872-1929). Bakst begin painting in the 1890s
and became associated with the Mir iskusstva (World of Art) art
movement in Russia where he worked on the path-breaking journal
for the movement. He was an absolute brilliant illustrator and
one of the key figures in the Russian "Silver Age." |
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What you must do this unit
What you can do this unit
- These chapters from Russia of the
Russians offer a contemporary assessment of Russian cultural
accomplishments in these different areas during the Silver age:
Some videos that you can watch for this unit
Extra Credit Options
- For 50 points maximum extra credit, watch Dama S Sobachkoy (The Lady with the
Little Dog) and write a one-page paper about the "little dog."
- For 50 points maximum extra credit (maybe more), visit Hillwood Estate, Museum & Gardens and comment on the Faberge eggs and the Russian art collection there as respresentative of the Russian Silver Age.
- For 50 points maximum extra credit, watch Neokonchenaya Piesa dlia Mekhanicheskogo
Pianino (Unfinished Piece for the Player Piano) and write a one-page paper of what was so fascinating in the movie.
- For 50 points maximum extra credit, listen to Igor Stravinskii's The Rite of
Spring--You can watch the version in Fantasia (1940) and write a one-page paper in which you explain the historical impact of this piece.
- For
50 points maximum extra credit, watch a production of one of the
performances/choreographies of Diagilev's Ballets Russes and write a one-page paper in which you explain to
me what you found so exciting.
- For 50 points maximum extra credit, read
John Bowlt, The Silver Age (1982) and
write a one-page paper describing the author's identification of the main features of the Silver Age.
- For 50 points maximum extra credit, read
Aleksandr Blok (1880-1921), Verses on a Beautiful Lady (1904) and
write a one-page paper describing some of the main themes of the poems in the context of Russian symbolism.
- For 50 points maximum extra credit, read
Maksim Gorkii (1868-1936), Mother
(1906) and write a one-page paper in which you answer the question,
"How did Gorkii portray elements of Russian society previously not
found suitable for the Russian reading public?"
- For 50 points maximum extra credit, read
Mikhail Artsybashev, Sanin (1908) and
write a one-page paper explaining what Russian society found so offensive about the novel.
- For 50 points maximum extra credit, read
Anton Chekhov (1860-1904), Uncle Vanya (1899) or The Cherry Orchard
(1904) and
write a one-page paper comparing Chekhov's work to that of Henrik Ibsen (1828-1906).
- For 25 points maximum extra credit, after looking through some of the recommended
websites for the Unit, write a long paragraph that identifies some of the unifying
features of the Russian silver age.
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