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Joseph T. Fuhrmann. Tsar Alexis: His Reign and His Russia. Gulf Breeze, Florida: Academic International Press, 1981. viii, 250 pp.

Joseph T. Fuhrmann. Tsar Alexis: His Reign and His Russia. Gulf Breeze, Florida: Academic... cussion. Indeed, he did not intend to. The importance of all this, he observes, is that his- torians have mistaken despotism for some necessary, useful historical process. Here along with many other commentators on Russia's past Yanov expresses his moral outrage at the facile essays which depict Ivan IV warring with "treasonous" elements in society. As he aptly puts it, these justifications o f terror and despotism resemble rather too closely similar justifications from other times in Russia's past. Despots are never happy with dis- sidents, nor could they be expected to be. But what troubles Yanov is that the historical profession, and consequently popular opinion at large, has caved in to the despots and agreed to view them as historically progressive and necessary. Ivaniana, as he calls it, has imprisoned Russia's present and doomed it to repeat the terror and despotism o f the six- teenth century. Such a view fails to take into account a great deal, but it is nevertheless provocative. On the other hand, much o f Yanov's prose is tendentious, and occasionally difficult to get through. The language of typologies is at one and.the same time frustratingly dense and overly simplistic (see the http://www.deepdyve.com/assets/images/DeepDyve-Logo-lg.png Canadian-American Slavic Studies Brill

Joseph T. Fuhrmann. Tsar Alexis: His Reign and His Russia. Gulf Breeze, Florida: Academic International Press, 1981. viii, 250 pp.

Canadian-American Slavic Studies , Volume 16 (3-4): 539 – Jan 1, 1982

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Publisher
Brill
Copyright
© 1982 Koninklijke Brill NV, Leiden, The Netherlands
ISSN
0090-8290
eISSN
2210-2396
DOI
10.1163/221023982X01172
Publisher site
See Article on Publisher Site

Abstract

cussion. Indeed, he did not intend to. The importance of all this, he observes, is that his- torians have mistaken despotism for some necessary, useful historical process. Here along with many other commentators on Russia's past Yanov expresses his moral outrage at the facile essays which depict Ivan IV warring with "treasonous" elements in society. As he aptly puts it, these justifications o f terror and despotism resemble rather too closely similar justifications from other times in Russia's past. Despots are never happy with dis- sidents, nor could they be expected to be. But what troubles Yanov is that the historical profession, and consequently popular opinion at large, has caved in to the despots and agreed to view them as historically progressive and necessary. Ivaniana, as he calls it, has imprisoned Russia's present and doomed it to repeat the terror and despotism o f the six- teenth century. Such a view fails to take into account a great deal, but it is nevertheless provocative. On the other hand, much o f Yanov's prose is tendentious, and occasionally difficult to get through. The language of typologies is at one and.the same time frustratingly dense and overly simplistic (see the

Journal

Canadian-American Slavic StudiesBrill

Published: Jan 1, 1982

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