Peterson R. A History of Russian Symbolism

Amsterdam; Philadelphia: John BenjaminS Publishing Company, 1993. — 267 p. — ISBN: 90-272-1534-0.The era of Russian Symbolism (1892-1917) has been called the Silver Age of Russian culture, and even the Second Golden Age. Symbolist authors are among the greatest Russian authors of this century, and their activities helped to foster one of the most significant advances in cultural life (in poetry, prose, music, theater, and painting) that has ever been seen there. This book is designed to serve as an introduction to Symbolism in Russia, as a movement, an artistic method, and a world view. The primary emphasis is on the history of the movement itself. Attention is devoted to what the Symbolists wrote, said, and thought, and on how they interacted. In this context, the main actors are the authors of poetry, prose, drama, and criticism, but space is also devoted to the important connections between literary figures and artists, philosophers, and the intelligentsia in general. This broad, detailed and balanced account of this period will serve as a standard reference work an encourage further research among scholars and students of literature.The Beginnings of Symbolism in Russia 1892-1895
Individualism and Decadence 1896-1898
Scorpio Rising: Modernism in Art and Literature 1899-1903
Symbolism as a Unified Movement 1904 - April 1906
Proliferation, Polemics, and Mystical Anarchism May, 1906 -1908
Years of Crisis and Transition: Art vs. World View 1909-1910
The Beginning of the Decline 1911-1914
Symbolism in the Past Tense, War, Revolution 1915-1917Epilogue: The Symbolists' Fates and Their Influence