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Of Leeches and Men: The South Caucasus in the Global Trade in Medicinal Leeches in the Nineteenth Century
Supply chain disruptions, scarcity of commodities, and inflation wrought by the global pandemic are on everyone’s mind nowadays. Woes of this kind are, of course, nothing new. In fact, if...
Excerpt From Colleen Lucey's "Love for Sale: Representing Prostitution in Imperial Russia," Part I
The Great Reforms, initiated by Tsar Alexander II in the aftermath of Russia’s crushing defeat in the Crimean War (1853–56), brought significant changes to the country’s social and legal institutions...
Excerpt From Colleen Lucey's "Love for Sale: Representing Prostitution in Imperial Russia," Part II
Hoodwinked by the establishment’s malicious and conniving madam, Aleksandra Pakhomovna, Luiza agrees to join the brothel.
What “Shooter” Gets Wrong about Russian Conspiracies: The Real Thing Is Way Worse.
To make a long story short, the Ukrainian President is shot in the face by a sniper, and Bob Lee is framed.
The Drag Queen in Vyshyvanka
Socially progressive politicians of Eastern Europe, never neglect the power of vyshyvanka!
Seeing Russia from Alaska
On April 13, 2016, a group of scholars met in Moscow to discuss the history and future of Alaska, or Russian America, as it was known before Russia sold it...
Open Letter on the Termination of Russian Studies Faculty at Ohio University
Like you, we are wholeheartedly invested in the survival and recovery of higher education in the United States amid the COVID-19 pandemic. That recovery depends on the will of universities...
Alexis in America: The Grand Tour of a Russian Grand Duke, 1871-1872
The story of the Grand Duke’s trip is more than just a tale of forbidden love, political intrigue and colorful characters. It also touches upon important developments and events in...
Marital Happy Endings and Cultural Politics in a Contemporary Australian Adaptation of Anna Karenina
In our time, there is a definite expectation that people know what they want and ensure their own happiness.
The Americans: The Marriage Plot against America
Even if our heroes survive the season, their future looks bleak.
Balanchine’s Neoclassical Serenade and the Washington Ballet’s New Signature Style
The Washington Ballet’s production of George Balanchine’s Serenade this past weekend at the Kennedy Center was a watershed moment for the company. The program heralded the emergence of a Washington...
Fictional Gays and Real Meteorites in Chelyabinsk
Chelyabinsk is about the last place in Russian you’d expect to find any kind of gay movement, and comedians have taken advantage of this.
Eastern Europe, Humanitarian Parole, and US Civil Rights
A look at the voting records for the civil rights and immigration bills passed during Eisenhower's presidency reveals a remarkable but unsurprising consistency: those who opposed racial integration also opposed...
Russia’s Grasp on Okhotsk Will Intensify South China Sea Tensions
The closing of the Sea of Okhotsk will also greatly exacerbate maritime tensions in the greater Pacific.
Universal Pictures: Zvyagintsev, Dostoevsky and the Politics of the Particular
By the end of Andrei Zvyagintsev’s Leviathan, I wanted to scream.
Russian Riddles Unsolved by Americans
Russians don’t encounter many who speak Russian imperfectly, as a second language.
Welcome to Ukrainian 101
Even as our textbook rejects so-called “Russified” grammar structures and vocabulary, it does not offer the word “zhid” as a proper term for "Jew." I think you would be hard...
Gothic Doubling and The Double, Gothically
Dostoevsky was well aware of the power of the gothic.
December 1989: An Immigrant Story
One could find bards at every immigrant gathering singing The Tales of What Could Go Wrong At the Interview.
Spring Reading Series: Andrei Egunov-Nikolev's "Beyond Tula," Part III
Darya Fyodorovna came in and asked whether to serve them dinner, but the co-op operator was loping dreamily around the room. A porcelain Easter egg was hanging in the corner...