Reception of A. I. Solzhenitsyn’s Works in Chinese Social, Political, and Cultural Context
https://doi.org/10.24224/2227-1295-2023-12-5-386-407
Abstract
The article analyzes the reception of A. I. Solzhenitsyn in Chinese translations and literary studies. The history of Solzhenitsyn’s texts and research on the Russian writer in the Chinese socio-political and cultural context is studied. It is noted that the perception of Solzhenitsyn in China was not exclusively a literary event, but was closely linked to the Sino-Soviet split in the late 1950s. It is established that the translation and study of Solzhenitsyn’s work in China was asynchronous: translations began in the 1960s, while research started in the mid-1980s. An analysis of the political-cultural background and ideological atmosphere during the translation and study of Solzhenitsyn’s work by Chinese scholars is conducted. The evolution of the perception of the writer’s personality and work is shown to have shifted from negative to positive, which is attributed to a change in literary criticism approach from vulgar sociological critique to artistic text critique. It is revealed that with the disappearance of ideological pressure, Chinese academic circles began to differentiate between Solzhenitsyn as a writer and Solzhenitsyn as a political figure. This division has contributed to a more adequate understanding of Solzhenitsyn and his literary legacy. Currently, Chinese scholars highly value Solzhenitsyn’s literary legacy and objectively and rationally relate to his political position and statements.
Keywords
Supporting agencies: The reported study was funded by the China Scholarship Council as a part of the programme “Scholarship of the Government of the People’s Republic of China and the Russian Federation”, № 202108370082
About the Authors
Lulu Zhou
Peoples’ Friendship University of Russia named after Patrice Lumumba; Dezhou University
China
China
Zhou Lulu - postgraduate student, Department of Russian and Foreign Literature PFUR named after Patrice Lumumba; senior lecturer, Department of the Foreign languages Dezhou University.
Moscow, Dezhou
A. G. Kovalenko
Peoples’ Friendship University of Russia named after Patrice Lumumba
Russian Federation
Russian Federation
Alexander G. Kovalenko - Doctor of Philology, Professor, Head of the Department of Russian and Foreign Literature.
Moscow
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Review
For citations:
Zhou L., Kovalenko A.G. Reception of A. I. Solzhenitsyn’s Works in Chinese Social, Political, and Cultural Context. Nauchnyi dialog. 2023;12(5):386-407. (In Russ.) https://doi.org/10.24224/2227-1295-2023-12-5-386-407
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