Fake Tolstoy as a Cultural Problem: The Case of "Tolstoy Prophecy" of World War I

press release: The UW-Madison Slavic Graduate Student Organization presents the 2021 Wisconsin Slavic Conference Keynote Lecture on April 9, 2021!

The Keynote Lecture by Professor Ilya Vinitsky (Princeton University), titled "Fake Tolstoy as a Cultural Problem: The Case of ‘Tolstoy Prophecy of WWI," will take place at 4:00pm -5:30pm on Friday, April 9 on Zoom. Professor Vinitsky’s description of the lecture is: “To the best of my knowledge, the real problem of the fake (or imaginary – “мнимый,” in Tynianov’s words) Tolstoy has never been examined by scholars. In this lecture, I will focus on a striking case of this phenomena, a sensational prediction of WWI communicated (arguably) by Tolstoy’s daughter (or grandniece) Countess Nastasia Tolstoi before his death and widely discussed in newspapers and pamphlets all over the world in the 1910s and 20s. I will try to identify the real author of this influential “vision” and interpret the latter within the context of the faker’s works, activities, and a system of beliefs. My project aims to develop a new interdisciplinary methodology for the analysis of the formation and cultural values of liars, forgers, and mystifiers.”

The event is free and open to the public. Registration is required for the Friday Keynote Lecture. All attendees are required to list their Organization and Job Title to comply with funding requirements and for security purposes. If you are associated with UW-Madison, please list your Department in the Organization field.

Register for the Keynote Lecture on Friday, April 9 at 4:00 PM.

This conference is organized by the Slavic Graduate Student Organization with funding from the Wisconsin Experience Grant.

If you need an accommodation to attend this event, please contact (Alexandra Portice, WSC secretary) at (aportice@wisc.edu). All accommodation requests should be made no less than two weeks before the event.