From Kievan Rus to the Great Reforms

History Department Oberlin College Fall 2016 From Kievan Rus to the Great Reforms Dr. Christopher Stolarski HIST 170: Russian History I Monday, Wednesday, Friday 1:30-2:20 PM Location: King 321 Course Description Russia has been difficult to define for insiders and outsiders alike. Winston Churchill called it a riddle wrapped in a mystery inside an enigma, and the nineteenth-century Russian poet Fedor Tiutchev claimed that his nation could not be understood by reason alone. Russia, wrote Tiutchev, had a special character, more easily felt than comprehended. Defining Russia, or any modern nation for that matter, is a very difficult if not impossible task. What is Russia? What does it mean to be Russian? These are questions without precise, concrete answers. However, this should not stop us from asking them when exploring Russian history. For whatever the answers may be, they are surely hidden in the long shadows of the past. In this course, we will examine Russia, from its mythological beginnings (ca. 700) to the era of the Great Reforms (1860s). We will explore the lives of prominent rulers, such as Ivan the Terrible, Peter the Great, and Catherine the Great, but these political narratives will be also counterbalanced with explorations of everyday life, social identities, cultural dynamics, and gender issues. How did state power function in medieval Rus and early modern Muscovy? What factors influenced Russia s relationship with its neighbors and world powers? What institutions and ideologies affected Russians view of themselves? Is there anything unique about how Russians constructed their sense of self? These are a few of the questions we will wrestle with in the course of the semester. Required Texts Daniel H. Kaiser & Gary Marker, eds., Reinterpreting Russian History: Readings, 860-1860s. Oxford University Press, 1994. James Cracraft, The Revolution of Peter the Great. Harvard University Press, 2003. Ekaterina Dashkova, The Memoirs of Princess Dashkova, trans. Kiril Fitzlyon. Duke University Press, 1995. Ivan Turgenev, Fathers and Sons, trans. Richard Freeborn. Oxford World s Classics, 2008. Other readings will be available on Blackboard. The books listed above are available at the Oberlin College Bookstore and on reserve at the Mudd Center library. Contact Email: chris.stolarski@oberlin.edu Office: Rice Hall 310 Office Hours: MW 2:30-4:30 PM Telephone: 440-775-8059 The easiest way to reach me is by email or by coming to my office hours. I respond to email during weekday work hours and on Sunday evenings. Please note that it may take up to 24 hours for me to respond to your email.

HIST 170 Fall 2016 Course Objectives To identify key figures, concepts, and themes of Russian history, from the mythological beginnings of the Russian state (ca. 700) to the era of the Great Reforms (1860s); To recognize important historical debates in medieval and early modern Russia and to participate in these scholarly conversations through class assignments and discussion; To analyze a wide variety of written and visual primary sources, which cover the political, social, cultural, and economic histories of medieval and early modern Russia; To engage critically in discussion of historical problems with your classmates in a respectful and productive manner; To synthesize course readings in written assignments, and to communicate in clear and concise written prose. Image: Map of Muscovy (Russia), ca. 1613. Previous page: Andrei Rublev, Trinity, 1411 or 1425-27. Accommodations If you have a documented disability that may have some impact on your work in or out of class, and for which you may require accommodations, please let me know how your learning needs may be appropriately met. For documentation, please visit the Office of Disability Services in Peters Hall, Room G-27/28. For more information: http://new.oberlin.edu/office/disabilityservices/ Learning Community Image: The Barber Wishes to Cut off the Dissenter s [Old Believer s] Beard. Woodcut from the first quarter of the eighteenth century. It is important that everyone in this course help make our classroom a supportive learning community. Our work in this class will thrive if we create a space where we all are allowed to explore new ideas, perhaps change our minds, and participate in honest yet respectful debate. Since everyone comes to this course with different sets of skills and knowledge, we may have differences of opinion at times and it is not the aim of this course for us all to reach consensus. We do need to consider each other s perspectives respectfully, however, and to sharpen our own skills and perspectives through dialogue and learning from each other. 2

Graded Assignments I will provide more detailed instructions about these assignments during the semester. See page 9 for due dates. Participation Students are expected to participate actively in class. This will be the sole criterion considered in regards to your grade in this category. Most classes will combine a formal lecture with a more informal discussion of the week s readings; classes designated as discussion in the syllabus will be entirely based on oral analysis of assigned readings. Please come prepared to talk about course content. Students are advised to bring copies of assigned texts in order to ground class discussion in documentary evidence. Quizzes (3) Each quiz will consist of a map, visual source, and/or short answer section (term identification). Study guides will be distributed one week in advance. Reading Responses (7) You will select a minimum of ONE primary source and ONE secondary source and write a brief (300 word) critical analysis of their contents in connection to the week s readings more broadly. You may select any of the given week s readings, except in Weeks 7, 9, and 14 when you must select The Revolution of Peter the Great, The Course Etiquette This class depends on discussion and community learning, and thus it is important that you attend every class. If you are unable to attend class, it is your responsibility to get caught up. Throughout the semester, I will not keep track of attendance, but I shall rely on your observance of the Honor Code when you miss class due to illness, family emergencies, or other extenuating circumstances. Please make sure to turn off and put away your cell phones. Laptops and tablets are allowed for consulting the readings. However, I recommend taking notes with pen and paper. If it becomes clear Memoir of Princess Dashkova, and Fathers and Sons, respectively, as one of your sources. Each response will be graded individually and is meant to reflect your meaningful engagement with the readings. These responses are meant to help you to express your thoughts precisely and concisely in any academic or professional setting. Your SIX best papers will contribute to the final grade for this assignment. Final Web-based Learning Resource Project In your final project, you will select an aspect of Russia s pre-1860s history and create a web-based learning resource, such as an original Wikipedia entry, a series of blog posts, an image gallery, or another type of online publishing or presentation. This assignment should be around 1000-1250 words. In addition to exploring an aspect of Russian history you find interesting, this project will allow you to consider the implications and responsibilities involved in creating and publishing publicly accessible information. that laptops are used for other purposes, I will no longer allow laptops or tablets in class. You are expected to participate actively in class discussions. As our discussions are an important component of the course, it is crucial that you come to class prepared to discuss the readings. Please come see me to discuss strategies if you feel uncomfortable or unable to participate in class discussion. Please do not eat during class. You may, however, bring something to drink. 3

Plagiarism & the Honor Code: The word plagiarism derives from the Latin roots: plagiarius, an abductor, and plagiare, to steal. The expropriation of another author s work and the presentation of it as one s own, constitutes plagiarism and is a serious violation of the ethics of scholarship. [American Historical Association, Statement on Standards of Professional Contact]. Presenting the work of others as one s own goes against everything that a liberal education is about. It is a serious affront to the other students in the course, to me as the instructor, and to the plagiarizer him/herself. The College requires that students sign an Honor Code for all assignments. This pledge states: I affirm that I have adhered to the Honor Code in this assignment. For further information, see the student Honor Code, which you can access via Blackboard. If you have questions about what constitutes plagiarism, please see me or raise it in class. Late Work Reading response papers will be graded on a five-point scale: 5 for excellent, 4 for good, 3 for adequate, 2 for inadequate, 1 for incomplete, and 0 for no submission. These papers are typically due before our class discussion sections on Friday. Any paper submitted after this deadline will receive a deduction of 0.5 points, and an extra 0.5 points will be deducted for every day late following. Late final project assignments will receive deductions of one-third of a letter grade per day. So, an A Final Project Proposal handed in one-day late will receive a B+, two-days late, a B, and so on. Extensions will be considered on a case-by-case basis and will be given in case of emergency/illness or if you ask for an extension because of a heavy workload during the week. In the latter case, an extension will be granted if students provide me with no less than two (2) days notice. All written work must be turned in for students to achieve a passing grade. All course work must be received by Friday, December 16, 2015 at noon (12 PM). Support If you find yourself unable or struggling to finish the assigned readings, or to contribute to class discussion, please meet with me so that we can discuss some possible strategies going forward. Please reach out if you ever feel you need extra help, or if you would like to discuss the readings more fully, or if there is anything else that concerns you. I am available during my regularly scheduled office hours, as well as by appointment. Image: Film still from Ivan the Terrible, Part I, dir. Sergei Eisenstein, 1943. Grading Participation: 15% Quiz 1: 10% Quiz 2: 10% Quiz 3: 10% Reading Responses 30% Final Project Proposal 5% Final Project 20% If you wish to dispute a grade, I request that you do so in writing. Please explain your justification carefully. After writing, we shall follow up in person during office hours. Disputes must be submitted to me at least twenty-four hours in advance of an appointment. Please note that a dispute does not guarantee a better grade. 4

Class Schedule WEEK 1 Monday 8/29: Introduction No readings Wednesday 8/31: The State and Structure of Kievan Rus The Primary Chronicle on the Early Settlers of Rus (ca. 600-860s), pp. 9-11 King Harald s Saga: Harald Hardradi of Norway (ca. 1050), pp. 11-13 Runic Inscriptions on Viking Stellae in Western Europe (11 th Century), p. 13 I.V. Dubov, The Ethnic History of Northeastern Rus in the Ninth to Thirteenth Centuries, pp. 14-20 Friday 9/1: Discussion The Primary Chronicle on Dissension Among the Princes of Rus (1012-54), pp. 22-25 The Primary Chronicle on the Rebellion in Kiev (1068-69), pp. 25-26 Pravda Russkaia: The Short Redaction (Eleventh Century), pp. 26-29 Ia. Fromianov and A. Iu. Dvornichenko, The City-State in Kievan Rus (Eleventh-Twelfth Centuries), pp. 30-37. WEEK 2 Monday 9/5: Labor Day (no class) Wednesday 9/7: Orthodox Christianity in Kievan Rus The Statute of Grand Prince Iaroslav, pp. 50-54 N. Pushkareva and E. Levin, Women in Medieval Novgorod from the Eleventh to the Fifteenth Century, pp. 54-59 The Christianization of Rus According to the Primary Chronicle (978-88), pp. 63-67 The Life of St. Theodosius (Eleventh Century), pp. 67-71 Nestor: The Martyrdom of Boris and Gleb & The Narratives of the Kievan Crypt Monastery, pp. 87-92 Friday 9/9: Discussion/RESPONSE 1 Birchback Charters from Novgorod, pp. 71-72 Simon Franklin, Literacy in Kievan Rus, pp. 73-78 Graffiti from St. Sophia Cathedral, Kiev (Eleventh- Twelfth Centuries), pp. 72-73 The Lay of Igor s Campaign, pp. 137-160 WEEK 3 Monday 9/12: The Coming of the Mongols The Novgorod Chronicle on the Mongol Invasion (1235-38), pp. 99-101 Mongol Immunity Charter (Iarlyk) to Metropolitan Peter (ca. 1313), pp. 101-102 Charles Halperin, Interpreting the Mongol Yoke, pp. 104-107 Orison on the Downfall of Russia, pp. 173-174 Tale of the Destruction of Riazan, pp. 175-185 Wednesday 9/14: Appanage Russia Northwest Rus : The First Treaty of Novgorod with Tver Grand Prince Iaroslav Iaroslavich (ca. 1264-65), pp. 84-85 Southwest Rus : Extracts from the Galician-Volhynian Chronicle (1240-41), pp. 85-87 Northeast Rus : The Second Testament of Moscow Grand Prince Dmitrii Donskoi (1389), pp. 87-90 Serapion of Vladimir, Sermon on the Merciless Heathens, pp. 199-204 Friday 9/16: Discussion/RESPONSE 2 Minstrels in Rus : An Immunity Charter, pp. 131-133 Russell Zguta, Russian Minstrels: A Modern View, pp. 133-137 A. M. Sakharov, The Mongol Yoke and Socioeconomic Change, pp. 124-126 A. M. Sakharov, The Mongols and Cultural Change, pp. 137-140 WEEK 4 Monday 9/19: The Rise of Muscovy The Annexation of Novgorod According to the Moscow Nikonian Chronicle (1471-78), pp. 90-99 5

Class Schedule (continued) The Novgorod Judicial Charter (Late Fifteenth Century), pp. 109-114 A Muscovite Judicial Charter (ca. 1463), pp. 114-117 Ann M. Kleimola, Justice in Medieval Russia, pp. 117-122 S. F. Platonov, Statebuilding in Moscow: The Birth of Autocracy, pp. 103-104 Sofony of Riazan: Zadonshchina, pp. 185-198 Wednesday 9/21: Ivan the Terrible A Foreigner Describes the Oprichnina of Tsar Ivan the Terrible (1565-70), pp. 151-154 Robert O. Crummey, Ivan IV: Reformer of Tyrant, pp. 158-163 The Kurbsky-Ivan Correspondence, pp. 289-299 Friday 9/23: Discussion/QUIZ 1 Nancy Shields Kollmann, The Façade of Autocracy, pp. 154-158 E. I. Kolycheva, The Economic Crisis in Sixteenth Century Russia, pp. 165-171 WEEK 5 Monday 9/26: Time of Troubles Documents Recording Self-Sale into Slavery, pp. 173-176 Avraamy Palitsyn: Pseudo-Dmitry & Answer of the Defenders of the Holy Trinity St. Sergius Monastery to the Polish Request of Surrender, pp. 300-309 Prince Ivan M. Katyrev-Rostovsky: A Description of the Tsars and Their Families, pp. 309-311 Wednesday 9/28: Russia of the Early Romanovs Grigorii Kotoshikhin on Boyar Weddings (ca. 1666), pp. 176-179 A Marriage Contract (1668), pp. 179-180 Robert O. Crummey, The Boyars of Muscovy: A Modern View, pp. 183-187 Richard Hellie, The Law and Enserfment of the Russian Peasantry, pp. 180-183 The Law Code of 1649, pp. 154-161 Friday 9/30: Class @ Allen Museum/RESPONSE 3 Leonid Ouspensky and Vladimir Lossky, The Technique of Iconography, & The Nativity of Christ, pp. 157-163 Mikhail Alpatov, The Historical Significance of Andrei Rublev, pp. 140-145 WEEK 6 Monday 10/3: Orthodox Schism The Life of Iuliania Osor ina (Late Sixteenth-Early Seventeenth Centuries), pp. 194-197 D. S. Likhachev, Individualism in Muscovite Literature, pp. 197-205 Gary Marker, Literacy and Literacy Texts in Muscovy, pp. 205-212 Avvakum s Autobiography (excerpts), pp. 128-140 Wednesday 10/5: Discussion Letters to stol nik Andrei Ill ich Bezobrazov from his Wife (1687), pp. 213-216 Adam Olearius on Food and Dining (1630s), pp. 216-217 Nancy Shields Kollman, The Seclusion of Elite Muscovite Women, pp. 187-192 Eve Levin, Sexuality in Moscow, pp. 218-222 Friday 10/7: Peter the Great: War and Imperial Expansion The Table of Ranks of All Grades: Military, Administrative, and Court (1722), pp. 228-229 Helju Bennett, Russia s System of Ranks and Orders, pp. 232-237 James Cracraft, The Revolution of Peter the Great, preface, chapters 1-2. WEEK 7 Monday 10/10: Peter s Cultural Revolution The Responsibilities of the Parish Priest: The Spiritual Regulation of Peter the Great (1721), pp. 334-336 James Cracraft, The Revolution of Peter the Great, chapters 3-4, conclusion Wednesday 10/12: Yom Kippur (no class) 6

Class Schedule (continued) Friday 10/14: Discussion/RESPONSE 4 James Cracraft, The Revolution of Peter the Great, chapters 5-6, conclusion October 15-23: Fall Recess! WEEK 8 Monday 10/24: The Era of Palace Revolts Ivan Pososhkov and Merchants and Artisans in the Early Eighteenth Century (1727), pp. 312-318 Manifesto Freeing the Nobility from Compulsory Service (1762), pp. 230-232 Events Surrounding the Assumption of Power by Empress Elizabeth, 1741, pp. 57-64 Lomonsov s Challenge of the Normanist Theory, 1749, pp. 64-69 Wednesday 10/26: Enlightened Absolutism in Russia The Statute on Provincial Administration, pp. 242-244 The Charter of the Nobility 1785, pp. 244-246 Marc Raeff, The Well-Ordered Police State, pp. 246-250 Isabel de Madariaga, Catherine the Great, an Enlightened Autocrat, pp. 250-255 The Nakaz, or Instruction, of Catherine II to the Legislative Commission of 1767-1768, pp. 79-93 Friday 10/28: Discussion/QUIZ 2 The Dowry of Avdot ia Boganova, A Nobleman s Daughter (1787), pp. 354-356 Marc Raeff, The Home and School Life of a Young Nobleman, pp. 366-369 Brenda Meehan-Waters, Catherine the Great and the Problem of Female Rule, pp. 379-385 WEEK 9 Monday 10/31: Catherine the Great and Empire Landlords Instructions on Estate Administration (Late Eighteenth Century), pp. 292-294 Fedor Karzhavin on the Moscow Plague Riots (1771), pp. 318-321 Wallace Daniel, The Merchants View of the Social Order in Russia, pp. 325-328 Arcadius Kahan, The Character of the Russian Economy, pp. 273-280 Wednesday 11/2: The Culture and Legacy of Catherine The Charter of Towns (1785), pp. 321-324 Richard Wortman, The Development of a Russian Legal Consciousness, pp. 408-412 M.G. Rabinovich, The Russian Urban Family at the Beginning of the Eighteenth Century, pp. 362-366 B.N. Mironov, The Price of Revolution of the Eighteenth Century, pp. 280-285 The Pugachev Rebellion, pp. 104-107 Friday 11/4: Discussion/RESPONSE 5 The Memoirs of Princess Dashkova (whole book) WEEK 10 Monday 11/7: Paul, Alexander, and The Napoleonic Wars An Imperial Edict Forbidding Sunday Labor by Serfs (1797), pp. 294-295 Moskovskie vedomosti, Newspaper Advertisements Listing Serfs for Sale (1797), pp. 295-296 Czartoryski s Account of the Events Surrounding the Assassination of Paul, 1801, pp. 153-165 The War or 1812 (documents) Wednesday 11/9: Russia in the Age of European Restoration The Statute Establishing State Ministries (1802), p. 256 An Edict Defining the Responsibilities of the Ministries (1810), pp. 256-257 The Memoirs of Ann Evdokimovna Labzina, An Eighteenth Century Noblewoman (1810), pp. 270-376 Friday 11/11: Discussion Nikolai M. Karamzin, On the Book Trade and the Love for Reading in Russia, pp. 412-414 7

Class Schedule (continued) William Mills Todd III, The Literary World of Polite Society, pp. 418-420 Blackbaord: Nikolai Gogol, The Overcoat, pp. 394-424 WEEK 11 Monday 11/14: Country Life, City Life, & Serfdom The Noble Head of the Household: The Memoirs of Sergei Aksakov (Nineteenth Century) pp. 352-354 Nadezhda Durova, The Cavalry Maiden (1836), pp. 376-379 Steven L. Hoch, The Peasant Commune, pp. 297-303 Peter Kolchin, Peasant Patterns of Resistance, pp. 303-311 Wednesday 11/16: Discussion/RESPONSE 6 Aleksandr Nikitenko, from Up from Serfdom, pp. 6-17 Liubov Nikulina-Kositskaia, in Russia Through Women s Eyes: Autobiographies from Tsarist Russia, pp. 109-130 Friday 11/18: Conference (no class) WEEK 12 Monday 11/21: Nicholas and Official Nationality An Edict Creating the Third Section of His Majesty s Own Chancery (1826), pp. 257 A Speech by Emperor Nicholas I on Serfdom (1842), pp. 295-296 A Report from the Ministry of Internal Affairs on Serf Disorders (1847), pp. 296-297 Peter Czap Jr., A Large Family: The Peasant s Greatest Wealth, pp. 356-362 The Decembrist Movement (documents), pp. 207-229 Wednesday 11/23: Bon voyage! (no class)/final PROJECT PROPOSAL Friday 11/25: Thanksgiving (no class) WEEK 13 Monday 11/28: The Empire s Borderlands Russo-Polish Relations, 1815-1835, pp. 195-201 Russo-Ukrainian Relations in the Nineteenth Century, pp. 261-271 Wednesday 11/30: The Russian Intelligentsia W. Bruce Lincoln, The Genesis of an Enlightened Bureaucracy, 1825-56, pp. 257-263 Nicholas N. Riasanovsky, The Split between the Government and the Educated Public, pp. 421-427 P.V. Annenkov, The Extraordinary Decade: Literary Memoirs (1840s), pp. 414-417 Peter Ia. Chaadaev s Critical Comments on Russian History and Culture, 1829, pp. 245-252 Vissarion Belinsky, Letter to Gogol, pp. 321-328 Friday 12/2: Discussion/QUIZ 3 Ivan Turgenev, Fathers and Sons, chapters 1-17 WEEK 14 Monday 12/5: Alexander II and the Crimean War I.S. Belliustrin s Description of the Clergy in Rural Russia (1858), pp. 336-339 From the A.N. Afanas ev Collection of Popular Legends (1859), pp. 391-394 M.M. Gromyko, Peasant Culture in the Eighteenth and Nineteenth Centuries, pp. 394-399 Walter M. Pinter, The Russian Higher Civil Service on the Eve of the Great Reforms, pp. 263-267 Wednesday 12/7: The Era of the Great Reforms The Political Debates (1856-61), pp. 430-432 The Reform Statues (1861-1866), pp. 432-436 Larissa Zakharova, The Government and the Great Reforms of the 1860s, pp. 436-441 Terence Emmons, The Emancipation and the Nobility, pp. 441-445 Friday 12/9: Discussion/RESPONSE 7 Ivan Turgenev, Fathers and Sons, chapters 18-28 8

History Department Oberlin College Fall 2016 Overview of Due Dates Reading Responses See syllabus schedule In class* Quiz 1 September 23 (Week 4) In class Quiz 2 October 28 (Week 8) In class Final Project Proposal November 23 (Week 12) 5 PM Quiz 3 December 2 (Week 13) In class Final Project December 16 5 PM * Please upload your reading response on Blackboard before the class discussion meetings, typically at the end of the week. Image: Il ia Repin, Ivan Turgenev, 1874. NB. I reserve the right to change the syllabus over the course of the semester. Any changes will be discussed in class at least one week prior to their implementation. Bibliography Billington, James. The Icon and the Axe. New York, 1966. Chew, Allen F. An Atlas of Russian History. Eleven Centuries of Changing Borders. 2d ed. New Haven, 1970. Dixon, Simon. The Modernization of Russia 1676-1825. Cambridge, U.K., 1999. Franklin, Simon. Writing, Society, and Culture in Early Rus, c. 950-1300. Cambridge, U.K., 2002. Hellie, Richard. The Economy and Material Change of Russia, 1600-1715. Chicago, 1999. Hughes, Lindsey. The Courts of Moscow and St. Petersburg. In The Princely Courts of Europe 1500-1750, edited by John Adamson. London, 1992. Kahan, Aracadius. The Plow, the Hammer, and the Knout. Chicago, 1985. Kappler, Andreas. The Russian Empire: A Multiethnic History. Harlow, U.K., 2001. Levin, Eve. Sex and Society in the World of the Orthodox Slavs, 900-1700. Ithaca, 1989, Marker, Gary. Publishing, Printing, and the Origins of Intellectual Life in Russia, 1700-1800. Princeton, 1985. Moon, David. The Russian Peasantry 1600-1930. The World Peasants Made. London, 1999. Ostrowski, Donald. Muscovy and the Mongols. Cross-Cultural Influence on the Steppe Frontier, 1304-1589. Cambridge, U.K., 1998. Pushkareva, Natalia. Women in Russian History: From the Tenth to the Twentieth Century. Translated and edited by Eve Levin. Armonk, N.Y., 1997. Raeff, Marc. Origins of the Russian Intelligentsia. The Eighteenth-Century Nobility. New York. 1966. * Riasnovsky, Nicholas and Mark Steinberg, A History of Russia. Oxford, 2011. Rogger, Hans. National Consciousness in Eighteenth-Century Russia. Cambridge, Mass., 1960. Walicki, Andrzej. A History of Russian Thought from the Enlightenment to Marxism. Translated from the Polish by Hilda Andrews-Rusiecka. Stanford, 1979. Wortman, Richard. Scenarios of Power: Myth and Ceremony in Russian Monarchy. 2 vols. Princeton, 1995-2000. * Available on reserve in the Mudd Center library.