Foundations of Russian Culture

Alexander Dmitrievich Schmemann (1921-1983) was born in Estonia, raised and educated in France. He spent most of his working life in the United States as an Orthodox priest, educator, author and radio broadcaster, serving as Dean of St Vladimir's Seminary in Yonkers, New York from 1962 until his death in 1983. All of his many books remain in print both in English, Russian and other languages. Nathan K. Williams is a professional translator. He studied Russian at Holy Trinity Seminary (Jordanville, NY), where he earned a bachelor’s degree in Theology, and went on to receive a master’s degree in Russian from Middlebury College,Vermont. In addition to his work as a translator he serves as an Orthodox priest at St. Alexander Nevsky Church in Gardiner, Maine. Serge Schmemann is an award winning journalist, writer and broadcaster. He won the Pulitzer Prize in 1991 for coverage of the reunification of Germany and an Emmy in 2003 for his work on a television documentary about the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. He was the deputy foreign editor of the New York Times from 1999 to 2001, having previously served as a Times correspondent and bureau chief in Moscow, Bonn and Jerusalem and at the United Nations. From 2003 to 2013 he worked as editorial page editor of The International Herald Tribune in Paris from 2003 to 2013. A graduate of Harvard College he holds an M.A. from Columbia University. He has authored two books and is a member of the editorial board of the New York Times. He lives in Washington DC.

Foreword HTM

Foreword by Maria Vasilyeva



THE CULTURAL DEBATE IN THE USSR: A PROTEST
THE DISPUTE OVER CULTURE IN THE SOVIET UNION
“CULTURE” IN RUSSIAN SELF-IDENTITY


PARADOXES OF RUSSIAN CULTURAL DEVELOPMENT

    4. MAXIMALISM



MINIMALISM
UTOPIANISM


THE “EXPLOSION” OF RUSSIAN CULTURAL IDENTITY IN THE NINETEENTH CENTURY



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RENUNCIATION OF CULTURE IN THE NAME OF PRAGMATISM
RENUNCIATION OF CULTURE IN THE NAME OF RELIGION
RENUNCIATION OF CULTURE IN THE NAME OF SOCIAL UTOPIA
TOLSTOY AND CULTURE
DOSTOEVSKY AND RUSSIAN CULTURE


CULTURAL IDENTITY AT “THE BEGINNING OF THE CENTURY”



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ABANDONMENT OF THE MORAL FOUNDATIONS OF CULTURE
THE INITIAL REACTION TO THE REVOLUTION
THE ENSLAVEMENT OF CULTURE


CREATIVE RESISTANCE



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THE PAST AND TRADITION
THE WEST
TECHNOLOGY AND SCIENCE
SOCIAL TOPICS
RELIGIOUS THEMES
AT A CROSSROADS


ON THE PATH TO SYNTHESIS  



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CONCLUSION


Notes

Index of Names