Hopkins at Home: The Firebird and the Fox: Russian Culture under Tsars and Bolsheviks

Description

Jeffrey Brooks, a professor of history at Johns Hopkins, will give a Hopkins at Home lecture about his recent book The Firebird and the Fox: Russian Culture under Tsars and Bolsheviks.

During his talk, Brooks will emphasize three insights readers might take away from the book. The first is that the century roughly between 1850 and 1950 in Russia was uniquely dynamic in ways that shaped the culture. Change was at once political, economic, social, and technological, and all dimensions had cultural ramifications. A second and related insight is that the direction of influence was two-way. Not only did common people and popular traditions color the great works of high literature and art—the works of high culture influenced popular and commercial works. Lastly, the formation of a uniquely Russian mix of creators and consumers, which arose as early as the 1860s.

Watch the conversation live.