Yuri Tynianov's The Death of Vazir-Mukhtar: Futilities of Fact and Fruits of Fiction
By (Author) Anna Kurkina Rush
Bloomsbury Publishing PLC
Bloomsbury Academic
5th February 2026
United Kingdom
Professional and Scholarly
Non Fiction
Hardback
256
Width 152mm, Height 229mm
This edited collection is the first critical collection on the author in English and it approaches the breadth and depth of Tynianovs thought by focusing on his fiction, specifically his major, most cryptic and experimental novel The Death of Vazir-Mukhtar (1928). Deeply rooted in and showcasing the practical application of Formalist theory, the novel is as significant for the history of literary theory as it is for Russian Modernism and it is a major missing link in the history of Formalist thought.
Thematically, the topics in this volume are: the representation of Persia in Russian literature, the history of Russias military engagements in the Caucasus and Iran, Griboedovs commercial plans in Transcaucasia, the fascinating and lethal Great Game Russo-British diplomatic rivalries in the region and the web of diplomatic intrigue that led to the tragic end of the Russian embassy; the aftermath of the Decembrist uprising of 1825 and the fates of its survivors, and, of course, the elusive Russian author.
Anna Kurkina Rush is an independent scholar of literary studies and literary translator.