Andrei Bitov: The Ecology of Inspiration (Cambridge Studies in Russian Literature) [Hardcover]

'A brilliant analysis of one of the most difficult contemporary Russia n writers, one about whom many Soviet literary critics have gnashed their teeth. Ellen Chances' work is distinguished by a spirit of independence and by a genuine depth - qualities that link her writing with that of Bitov himself.' Natalia Ivanova, Moscow literary critic, , deputy editor of the literary journal Znamia

'A fine, impressive work … a very intelligent and sensitive analysis.' George Gibian, Cornell University

This is the first book on Andrei Bitov, one of contemporary Russia's most original writers. It plots his evolution from his early publications of the post-Stalin years to his mature masterpieces of the glasnost era. Ellen Chances assesses his place both in the Russian literary tradition from Pushkin onwards, and as part of a broader, international cultural heritage including Dickens, Fellini, and Proust. She explores his themes, from the psychological effects of Stalin on Soviet society to universal questions such as the human being's relationship with nature, history and culture, and discovers in his deeply philosophical and intensely psychological writings an innovative methodology, 'ecological prose', that goes beyond modernist and post-modernist fragmentation in search of the wholeness of life.

This is the first book-length study of Andrei Bitov, one of contemporary Russia's most original writers. It plots his evolution from the post-Stalin years to his mature masterpieces of the glasnost era and assesses his place in the Russian and international literary tradition. Ellen Chances explores his themes, from the psychological effects of Stalin on Soviet society to universal questions such as the human being's relationship with nature, history and culture, and describes how his writings go beyond modernist and post-modernist fragmentation in search of the wholeness of life.