The Spirit of Laws and the Debate about Russian Despotism
Journal Title: Studia Litterarum - Year 2017, Vol 2, Issue 4
Abstract
The fate of The Spirit of Laws by Ch.-L. Montesquieu in Russia in the second half of the 18th century is an example of ambiguous reception that the French enlightener and his ideas received at that time prompting both imitation and polemics. The origin of these controversies is in the unfavorable image of Russia that Montesquieu represented as a country of despotism and slavery. The ideas developed in the treatise incited various Russian authors to nourish their own thinking about the country, especially concerning such problems as liberty and equality. The article attempts to trace the emergence of this debate in political literature, including the works by F.-H. Strube de Piermont, Catherine II, and Prince M.M. Shcherbatov. Since the examined texts are interdependent, it allows me to speak of the literary polemics of a kind. It is argued that each author develops her own writing strategy in accordance with her specific position in society and intention. A comparative analysis shows the following tendencies. (1) The book by Strube de Piermont is a typical literary refutation intended to rehabilitate Russia’s reputation compromised by the author of The Spirit of Laws. (2) Prince Shcherbatov uses Montesquieu’s statements about Russia as a reference point for his own deep and original study of the phenomena and processes that existed in Russia. (3) The ambiguous position of Catherine II as both a private person and a monarch is the most vulnerable of the three and forces her to adapt her ideas to this peculiar role.
Authors and Affiliations
Ekaterina N. Vasilyeva
Keywords
Related Articles
- EP ID EP26185
- DOI 10.22455/2500-4247-2017-2-4-64-81
- Views 276
- Downloads 20
The Lower Depths on the German Stage
This article examines the stage history of M. Gorky’s play The Lower Depths in Germany. The author discusses German stage history of Gorky’s work against the social background and in the context of major artistic tendenc...
Russian Folk Culture in the 20 th Century: Oral Evidence of the Villagers (On the Materials of Folklore Expeditions)
Folk culture is capable of developing certain adaptation mechanisms that help it promptly react to the changing conditions of natural, socio-political, and economic environment. This is evidenced by the stories of the v...
THE MOTIF OF THE STAGE PLAY IN THE 19th CENTURY AUSTRIAN FICTION
The article discusses the evolution of the stage play motif in the Austrian fction during the 19th Century. Occupying a special place in the Austrian culture, theater becomes a peculiar form of conceptualizing the most...
DISCUSSION ON THE TYPES OF LITERARY TRANSLATION IN THE SOVIET TRANSLATION STUDIES
The article discusses the theory and history of literary translation in the Soviet Union, namely, the dispute between Moscow and St. Petersburg schools of translation. The main focus is on the chapter from an unfinishe...
David’s Psalms by Taras Shevchenko: From the Sacred Text to the Poetical Text
The article attempts to compare a poetic circle David’s Psalms by Taras Shevchenko with its origin — Book of Psalms in The Old Testament. It singles out, in the synchronical aspect, major factors and key attributes tha...