Sons of the Pioneers

Givens, John

Harcourt Brace Jovanovich - New York, London

Sons of the Pioneers (Harvest/HBJ Book)

Harcourt

A wildly prolific director, actor, and writer, Vasilii Shukshin (1929-74) reached more Soviets in more media than perhaps any other artist in the post-Stalinist USSR. This first English-language study of Shukshin and his work is thus a portrait of the culture of Soviet Russia after Stalin. John Givens begins with Shukshin's position between cultural realms and social strata: his abandoned peasant heritage in Siberia as the son of a purged kulak on the one hand and his life as a successful artist in Moscow on the other. Givens shows how this clash of cultures and identities was both a burden and the driving force of Shukshin's art-and how it represents a central dichotomy between rural and urban culture in Soviet Russia.This work provides new terms for rereading the culture of Shukshin's time- terms that take up notions of demographic displacement, class difference, and blurred boundaries among genres, audiences, and arts.

Prodigal Son: Vasilii Shuksin in Soviet Russian Culture (Studies in Russian Literature and Theory)

Arts & Photography

Northwestern University Press

Prodigal Son

Vladimir Nabokov complained about the number of Dostoevsky's characters "sinning their way to Jesus." In truth, Christ is an elusive figure not only in Dostoevsky's novels, but in Russian literature as a whole. The rise of the historical critical method of biblical criticism in the nineteenth century and the growth of secularism it stimulated made an earnest affirmation of Jesus in literature highly problematic. If they affirmed Jesus too directly, writers paradoxically risked diminishing him, either by deploying faith explanations that no longer persuade in an age of skepticism or by reducing Christ to a mere argument in an ideological dispute. The writers at the heart of this study understood that to reimage Christ for their age, they had to make him known through indirect, even negative ways, lest what they say about him be mistaken for cliché, doctrine, or naïve apologetics. The Christology of Dostoevsky, Leo Tolstoy, Mikhail Bulgakov, and Boris Pasternak is thus apophatic because they deploy negative formulations (saying what God is not) in their writings about Jesus. Professions of atheism in Dostoevsky and Tolstoy's non-divine Jesus are but separate negative paths toward truer discernment of Christ. This first study in English of the image of Christ in Russian literature highlights the importance of apophaticism as a theological practice and a literary method in understanding the Russian Christ. It also emphasizes the importance of skepticism in Russian literary attitudes toward Jesus on the part of writers whose private crucibles of doubt produced some of the most provocative and enduring images of Christ in world literature. This important study will appeal to scholars and students of Orthodox Christianity and Russian literature, as well as educated general readers interested in religion and nineteenth-century Russian novels.

The Image of Christ in Russian Literature: Dostoevsky, Tolstoy, Bulgakov, Pasternak (NIU Series in Orthodox Christian Studies)

Literature & Fiction

History & Criticism

Northern Illinois University Press

Vladimir Nabokov complained about the number of Dostoevsky's characters "sinning their way to Jesus." In truth, Christ is an elusive figure not only in Dostoevsky's novels, but in Russian literature as a whole. The rise of the historical critical method of biblical criticism in the nineteenth century and the growth of secularism it stimulated made an earnest affirmation of Jesus in literature highly problematic. If they affirmed Jesus too directly, writers paradoxically risked diminishing him, either by deploying faith explanations that no longer persuade in an age of skepticism or by reducing Christ to a mere argument in an ideological dispute. The writers at the heart of this study understood that to reimage Christ for their age, they had to make him known through indirect, even negative ways, lest what they say about him be mistaken for cliché, doctrine, or naïve apologetics. The Christology of Dostoevsky, Leo Tolstoy, Mikhail Bulgakov, and Boris Pasternak is thus apophatic because they deploy negative formulations (saying what God is not) in their writings about Jesus. Professions of atheism in Dostoevsky and Tolstoy's non-divine Jesus are but separate negative paths toward truer discernment of Christ. This first study in English of the image of Christ in Russian literature highlights the importance of apophaticism as a theological practice and a literary method in understanding the Russian Christ. It also emphasizes the importance of skepticism in Russian literary attitudes toward Jesus on the part of writers whose private crucibles of doubt produced some of the most provocative and enduring images of Christ in world literature. This important study will appeal to scholars and students of Orthodox Christianity and Russian literature, as well as educated general readers interested in religion and nineteenth-century Russian novels. &nbsp;

Dozens of photographs, maps and illustrations recounting the history of Dublin Bay, the historic seaport of Dublin City Ireland.

A Guide to Dublin Bay: Mirror to the City

Travel

Europe

The Liffey Press

Ireland's history can literally be found in its walled towns. The Vikings in 9th century Dublin, the Anglo-Normans in 13th century Fethard, and the English Planters in 17th century Derry all found themselves surrounded by intransigent belligerents and responded by building walls. These walls were instrumental in the history, development, and layout of Ireland's key towns and cities and are essential to an overall understanding of Irish history. In Irish Walled Towns the story of each of 20 key settlement areas throughout Ireland is told. Illustrated with contemporary photographs as well as historical maps and drawings, Irish Walled Towns explores a fascinating aspect of Ireland's history and heritage.

Irish Walled Towns

History

Liffey Pr

The Plum Rains & Other Stories brings to life the uniquely beautiful and violent world of Japan in the last decade of the seventeenth century. The tales include young `peony girls' yearning for a life outside the pleasure quarters, a rogue samurai seeking solace in Zen Buddhism, a teenage sociopath carving a bloody swathe across the landscape, and many more...                            ""Givens simply writes unforgettably lyrical stories about the mysteries located right in the heart of life.""-Irish Voice, Aug. 25, 2010     ""An intriguing collection of stories of Japan with plenty of poignancy and excitement""-The Midwest Book Review

The Plum Rains & Other Stories

Short Stories & Anthologies

The Plum Rains & Other Stories brings to life the uniquely beautiful and violent world of Japan in the last decade of the seventeenth century.

The Plum Rains: And Other Stories

Genre Fiction

See the best price to sell, buy, or rent books by Givens, John. BookScouter helps to compare book prices from 25+ online bookstores and 30+ buyback vendors with a single search.

Books by Givens, John

See the best price to sell, buy, or rent books by Givens, John. BookScouter helps to compare book prices from 25+ online bookstores and 30+ buyback vendors with a single search.

Sons of the Pioneers

Sons of the Pioneers (Harvest/HBJ Book)

Prodigal Son: Vasilii Shuksin in Soviet Russian Culture (Studies in Russian Literature and Theory)

Prodigal Son

The Image of Christ in Russian Literature: Dostoevsky, Tolstoy, Bulgakov, Pasternak (NIU Series in Orthodox Christian Studies)

The Image of Christ in Russian Literature: Dostoevsky, Tolstoy, Bulgakov, Pasternak (NIU Series in Orthodox Christian Studies)

A Guide to Dublin Bay: Mirror to the City

Irish Walled Towns

The Plum Rains & Other Stories

The Plum Rains: And Other Stories