The Invention of Mikhail Lomonosov: A Russian National Myth (Imperial Russia)

This Study Explores The Evolution Of Lomonosov's Imposing Stature In Russian Thought From The Middle Of The Eighteenth Century To The Closing Years Of The Soviet Period. It Reveals Much About The Intersection In Russian Culture Of Attitudes Towards The Meaning And Significance Of Science, As Well As About The Rise Of A Russian National Identity, Of Which Lomonosov Became An Outstanding Symbol. Idealized Depictions Of Lomonosov Were Employed By Russian Scientists, Historians, And Poets, Among Others, In Efforts To Affirm To Their Countrymen And To The State The Pragmatic Advantages Of Science To A Modernizing Nation. In Setting Forth This Assumption, Usitalo Notes That No Sharply Drawn Division Can Be Upheld Between The Utilization Of The Myth Of Lomonosov During The Soviet Period Of Russian History And That Which Characterized Earlier Views. The Main Elements That Formed The Mythology Were Laid Down In The Eighteenth And Nineteenth Centuries; Soviet Scholars Simply Added More Exaggerated Layers To Existing Representations -- Steven A. Usitalo. Includes Bibliographical References (pages 261-289) And Index. This study explores the evolution of Lomonosov's imposing stature in Russian thought from the middle of the eighteenth century to the closing years of the Soviet period. It reveals much about the intersection in Russian culture of attitudes towards the meaning and significance of science, as well as about the rise of a Russian national identity, of which Lomonosov became an outstanding symbol. Idealized depictions of Lomonosov were employed by Russian scientists, historians, and poets, among others, in efforts to affirm to their countrymen and to the state the pragmatic advantages of science to a modernizing nation. In setting forth this assumption, Usitalo notes that no sharply drawn division can be upheld between the utilization of the myth of Lomonosov during the Soviet period of Russian history and that which characterized earlier views. The main elements that formed the mythology were laid down in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries; Soviet scholars simply added more exaggerated layers to existing representations -- Provided by Publisher

This study explores the evolution of Lomonosov's imposing stature in Russian thought from the middle of the eighteenth century to the closing years of the Soviet period. It reveals much about the intersection in Russian culture of attitudes towards the meaning and significance of science, as well as about the rise of a Russian national identity, of which Lomonosov became an outstanding symbol. Idealized depictions of Lomonosov were employed by Russian scientists, historians, and poets, among others, in efforts to affirm to their countrymen and to the state the pragmatic advantages of science to a modernizing nation. In setting forth this assumption, Usitalo notes that no sharply drawn division can be upheld between the utilization of the myth of Lomonosov during the Soviet period of Russian history and that which characterized earlier views. The main elements that formed the mythology were laid down in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries; Soviet scholars simply added more exaggerated layers to existing representations.

For more than two hundred years, the eighteenth-century polymath Mikhail Vasil?evich Lomonosov (1711?1765) has been glorified in Russian culture as the?father? of Russian science, literature, and, more generally, learning. This study traces the evolution of Lomonosov?s imposing stature in Russian thought from the middle of the eighteenth century to the closing years of the Soviet period. It reveals much about the attitudes toward the meaning and significance of science in Russian culture, as well as about the rise of a Russian national identity, of which Lomonosov became an outstanding symbol. Steven Usitalo argues that Lomonosov?s fame has surpassed any realistic association with the known details of his life; he is of interest primarily as a symbolic figure who fulfilled the tangible intellectual and emotional requirements that Russian pride demanded in a national myth ""Front "" ""Contents"" ""Acknowledgements"" ""Introduction"" ""1"" ""2"" ""3"" ""4"" ""5"" ""Afterlife of the Myth"" ""Bibliography"" ""Index"" ""Imperial encounters in Russian history""