Russian Language and Literature
Russian literature refers to the literature of Russia and its émigrés and to the Russian-language literature. The roots of Russian literature can be traced to the Middle Ages, when epics and chronicles in Old East Slavic were composed. By the Age of Enlightenment, literature had grown in importance, and from the early 1830s, Russian literature underwent an astounding golden age in poetry, prose and drama. Romanticism permitted a flowering of poetic talent: Vasily Zhukovsky and later his protégé Alexander Pushkin came to the fore. Prose was flourishing as well. The first great Russian novelist was Nikolai Gogol. Then came Ivan Turgenev, who mastered both short stories and novels. Leo Tolstoy and Fyodor Dostoevsky soon became internationally renowned. In the second half of the century Anton Chekhov excelled in short stories and became a leading dramatist. The beginning of the 20th century ranks as the Silver Age of Russian poetry. The poets most often associated with the "Silver Age" are Konstantin Balmont, Valery Bryusov, Alexander Blok, Anna Akhmatova, Nikolay Gumilyov, Osip Mandelstam, Sergei Yesenin, Vladimir Mayakovsky, Marina Tsvetaeva and Boris Pasternak. This era produced some first-rate novelists and short-story writers, such as Aleksandr Kuprin, Nobel Prize winner Ivan Bunin, Leonid Andreyev, Fyodor Sologub, Aleksey Remizov, Yevgeny Zamyatin, Dmitry Merezhkovsky and Andrei Bely.
After the Revolution of 1917, Russian literature split into Soviet and white émigré parts. While the Soviet Union assured universal literacy and a highly developed book printing industry, it also enforced ideological censorship. In the 1930s Socialist realism became the predominant trend in Russia. Its leading figure was Maxim Gorky, who laid the foundations of this style. Nikolay Ostrovsky's novel How the Steel Was Tempered has been among the most successful works of Russian literature. Alexander Fadeyev achieved success in Russia. Various émigré writers, such as poets Vladislav Khodasevich, Georgy Ivanov and Vyacheslav Ivanov; novelists such as Mark Aldanov, Gaito Gazdanov and Vladimir Nabokov; and short story Nobel Prize-winning writer Ivan Bunin, continued to write in exile. Some writers dared to oppose Soviet ideology, like Nobel Prize-winning novelist Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn, who wrote about life in the gulag camps. The Khrushchev Thaw brought some fresh wind to literature and poetry became a mass cultural phenomenon. This "thaw" did not last long; in the 1970s, some of the most prominent authors were banned from publishing and prosecuted for their anti-Soviet sentiments.
The end of the 20th century was a difficult period for Russian literature, with few distinct voices. Among the most discussed authors of this period were Victor Pelevin, who gained popularity with short stories and novels, novelist and playwright Vladimir Sorokin, and the poet Dmitri Prigov. In the 21st century, a new generation of Russian authors appeared, differing greatly from the postmodernist Russian prose of the late 20th century, which lead critics to speak about "new realism".
Russian authors have significantly contributed to numerous literary genres. Russia has five Nobel Prize in literature laureates. As of 2011, Russia was the fourth largest book producer in the world in terms of published titles. A popular folk saying claims Russians are "the world's most reading nation".
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Matching Russian Language and Literature Colleges
Brigham Young University
Four or more years; Private not for profit; $6,120 average out-state tuition; $6,120 average in-state tuition |
University of Arizona
Four or more years; Public; $33,739 average out-state tuition; $10,990 average in-state tuition |
Portland State University
Four or more years; Public; $25,746 average out-state tuition; $8,106 average in-state tuition |
Florida State University
Four or more years; Public; $19,084 average out-state tuition; $4,640 average in-state tuition |
University of Georgia
Four or more years; Public; $28,830 average out-state tuition; $9,790 average in-state tuition |
United States Military Academy
Four or more years; Public |
Pennsylvania State University-Main Campus
Four or more years; Public; $32,644 average out-state tuition; $17,416 average in-state tuition |
Scholarships for Russian Language and Literature Majors
Beinecke Scholarship - Dartmouth CollegeDartmouth College |
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award $34,000 |
deadline Varies |
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DescriptionThe Beinecke Scholarship is open to juniors at Dartmouth College who plan to enter a master's or doctoral program in the arts, humanities or social sciences. You must be a U.S. citizen or a U.S. national from American Samoa or the Commonwealth of the Northern Marian Islands and demonstrate financial need to qualify for this award. In addition,... View Scholarship Details |
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Rapoport Service ScholarshipUniversity of Texas, Austin, College of Liberal Arts |
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award Up to $30,000 |
deadline February 01, 2025 |
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DescriptionThe Rapoport Service Scholarship is available to freshmen enrolled in the College of Liberal Arts at the University of Texas at Austin. You must have a desire to perform community service, agree to perform at least 200 hours of community service each summer, and take coursework that provides an intellectual foundation for your experience in... View Scholarship Details |
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Rebecca E. Pitts Memorial ScholarshipIndiana University - Indianapolis |
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award Up to $12,000 |
deadline February 01, 2025 |
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DescriptionThe Rebecca E. Pitts Memorial Scholarship is available to Liberal Arts students at Indiana University Purdue University, Indianapolis. You must have completed between 90 and 110 credit hours with at least a 3.3 GPA and plan to continue on to graduate studies in humanities or social sciences to be eligible for this award. View Scholarship Details |
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Margaret A. Cook Foreign Study AwardIndiana University - Indianapolis |
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award Up to $10,000 |
deadline February 01, 2025 |
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DescriptionThe Margaret A. Cook Foreign Study Award is available to liberal arts majors at Indiana University Purdue University, Indianapolis. You must have at least a 2.75 GPA and plan to study abroad to be eligible for this award. View Scholarship Details |
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Lorretta Lunsford ScholarshipIndiana University - Indianapolis |
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award $10,000 |
deadline February 01, 2025 |
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DescriptionThe Loretta Lunsford Scholarship is available to liberal arts students at Indiana University Purdue University Indianapolis. You must have completed at least 30 credits with at least a 3.4 GPA. You must also plan to pursue graduate studies in humanities or social studies to be eligible for this award. View Scholarship Details |
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James R. East ScholarshipIndiana University - Indianapolis |
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award $10,000 |
deadline February 01, 2025 |
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DescriptionThe James R. East Scholarship is available to students entering the School of Liberal Arts at Indiana University Purdue University, Indianapolis. You must be a former member of the Boys and Girls Club of Indianapolis and have at least a C or higher high school grade average to be eligible for this award. View Scholarship Details |
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Humanities Scholars Program - University of Maryland, Baltimore CountyUniversity of Maryland, Baltimore County |
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award Up to $22,000 |
deadline January 15, 2025 |
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DescriptionThe Humanities Scholars Program is open to incoming freshmen at University of Maryland, Baltimore County. You must major in: Africana or American studies, English, history, modern languages, linguistics, philosophy or any interdisciplinary humanities program to be eligible for this award. View Scholarship Details |
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CU Boulder Arts & Humanities Achievement ScholarshipUniversity of Colorado Boulder |
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award $4,000 |
deadline January 15, 2025 |
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DescriptionThe CU Boulder Arts & Humanities Achievement Scholarship is available to incoming freshman undergraduate students at the University of Colorado-Boulder who are non-residents. To be considered for this renewable award, you must have a minimum weighted GPA of 3.85. Additionally, you must major in one of the following areas: Art History, Asian... View Scholarship Details |
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Mary F. Crisler ScholarshipIndiana University - Indianapolis |
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award Up to $4,500 |
deadline February 01, 2025 |
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DescriptionThe Mary F. Crisler Scholarship is available to liberal arts students at Indiana University Purdue University, Indianapolis. You must have at least a 3.5 GPA in your course of study and have taken a minimum of two courses, one of which must be at the 300 level or above, in your course of study, to be eligible for this award. View Scholarship Details |
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IUPUI-Liberal Arts Dean’s RISE ScholarshipIndiana University - Indianapolis |
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award $3,800 |
deadline February 01, 2025 |
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DescriptionThe IUPUI-Liberal Arts Dean’s RISE Scholarship is available to incoming freshman liberal arts majors at Indiana University Purdue University, Indianapolis. View Scholarship Details |
Russian Language and Literature Related Majors
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