Erotic Utopia: The Decadent Imagination in Russia’s Fin De Siecle

This title is printed to order. This book may have been self-published. If so, we cannot guarantee the quality of the content. In the main most books will have gone through the editing process however some may not. We therefore suggest that you be aware of this before ordering this book. If in doubt check either the author or publisher’s details as we are unable to accept any returns unless they are faulty. Please contact us if you have any questions.

The first generation of Russian modernists experienced a profound sense of anxiety. What made them unique was their utopian prescription for overcoming the inevitability of decline and death. They theorized their defiance of death by suggesting the immortalization of the body through the power of erotic love. Matich suggests that same-sex desire underlay their most radical proposal of abolishing the traditional procreative family in favor of erotically induced abstinence. She shows how a brilliant group of Russian writers - among them the late Tolstoy, Vladimir Solov'ev, Zinaida Gippius, Alexander Blok, and Vasilii Rozanov - addressed the pressing concerns of a culture in transition, ranging from physical and psychological health, marriage, sexuality, and gender to anti-Semitism and the meaning of history.