Understanding Russia
A Cultural History
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Understanding Russia
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Narrated by:
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Lynne Ann Hartnett
About this listen
From the earliest recorded history of the Russian state, its people have sought to define their place in the world. And while many of us look to make sense of Russia through its political history, in many ways a real grasp of this awe-inspiring country comes from looking closely at its cultural achievements.
The 24 lectures of Understanding Russia: A Cultural History survey hundreds of years of Russian culture, from the world of Ivan the Terrible to the dawn of the Soviet Union to the post-war tensions of Putin’s Russia. Blending history with cultural studies, they are designed to bring you closer than ever before to the Russian people - not just the authoritarian rulers like Peter the Great, the Romanovs, and Stalin but the everyday men and women who sought their own meaning in the poetry of Pushkin, the comfort of early folk tales, the faith of medieval iconography, the avant-garde films of Eisenstein, and more.
You’ll discover surprising insights into centuries of cultural history, including peasant superstitions, such as avoiding whistling indoors, and the culture of queuing for goods and services that defined everyday life for ordinary Soviets. You’ll also spend time in the company of novelists, painters, poets, filmmakers, impresarios, composers, revolutionaries, and intellectuals who shaped Russia in myriad ways, including The Five, a group of composers who created a distinctly national sound based in part on Russian folk music; and Sergei Eisenstein, the filmmaker whose Battleship Potemkin revolutionized the language of cinema.
In a time when the eyes of the Western world are constantly drawn to Russia, it’s amazing how little we really know about its culture. These lectures will help you finally understand that complex, thrilling, and undeniably fascinating spirit.
PLEASE NOTE: When you purchase this title, the accompanying PDF will be available in your Audible Library along with the audio.
©2018 The Great Courses (P)2018 The Teaching Company, LLCWhat listeners say about Understanding Russia
Average Customer RatingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Anonymous User
- 15-04-2022
Outstanding...
Such a wonderful series of lectures on an interesting, romantic, and at times brutal Russia. The lecturer/narrator made this so exciting to listen to - sometimes hard to turn off - Catherine; Peter the great; and even Ivan the terrible - so fascinating.
Catherine's reign was so pragmatic and sometimes with great compassion for her people.
Bravo Lynne Ann Hartnett. Thank you for a wonderful lecture series
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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- Emily
- 23-05-2022
Informative and well structured
An informative listen for anyone wishing to understand the historical and cultural background of Russia that influences the country today. Well structured into themes rather than pure chronology, the repetition of some concepts in separate lectures helped me to understand how certain events and personalities fit into different areas of Russian culture and history.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Anastasia Makshakova
- 05-07-2022
Great story telling about Russian culture
Great passionate narrating of a story with great level of significant details and explanations of why these details are important to Russian culture. Yet this passionately written story is not aimed at persuading the listener - rather it is aimed at explaining the history.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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- Jack McGreal
- 14-01-2024
Замечательный
A delightful introduction into Russian history and culture, I thoroughly enjoyed every moment of this book, I finished it in 2 sittings while driving through the Australian Outback.
Definitely has set my palette for more detailed history and I couldn’t be happier!!
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
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Performance4 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Elena Sukhaya
- 23-02-2021
Too polished for a lecture, too unpolished for an audiobook
Well-structured and well-read. However it’s confusing that the lecturer does not express any emotions on what she’s sharing. And music is disgusting, formidable, and depressing! Please stop using this ugly music to illustrate stories about Russia!! Music alone is enough to avert a listener from this otherwise good series of lectures.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Anonymous User
- 07-03-2022
great historical overview
good listen for anyone wanting to make better sense of the current Ukrainian crisis.
the one criticism I'd have is it jumps around a bit timewise. can be confusing especially because of a lot of similar names.
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
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- Anonymous User
- 16-04-2022
Information for today
A thoroughly interesting history of Russia and its culture to assist with the so important topic understanding Russia today
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