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Professor Toma Longinovic lecturing at theJagiellonian University in Krakow.

Slavic Languages and LiteraturesUniversity of Wisconsin-Madison

Department Newsletter

Volume 10 Summer 2009

Letter from the Chair Toma LonginovicIt seems as if another academic

year has just whizzed by, this time againstthe background of shrinking budgets andserious challenges to the mission of thehumanities in general and foreignlanguages in particular. Yet, SlavicLanguages and Literatures at Madison hascoped with the overall atmosphere ofcrisis with a sense of optimism andresilience characteristic of our growingcommunity of students, faculty, staff,alumni, and benefactors. It was withparticular joy that I handed out anastounding number of awards to themembers of our small but vibrant MadisonSlavic Community in late April 2009.Sensing almost palpable excitement in our

legendary 1418 Van Hise seminar roomoverlooking Lake Mendota, I came to theconclusion that despite the challenges, ourdepartment will remain strong and healthyin the days ahead.

Here are just few of the highlights of the past year – more from individualmembers of our community is to be found on the pages of the newsletter that follow. Wehave managed to hire one new faculty member last year and one this year and would like

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to welcome Irina Shevelenko and Karen Evans-Romaine to our department and wishthem much happiness and success in Madison. Our graduate students have done verywell both locally and nationally, with Naomi Olson winning the Early TeachingExcellence Award at UW-Madison and Molly Thomasy landing a stipend from Fulbrightto carry out her research on Russian theater in Moscow. Brian (a.k.a. Rufus) Johnson,Molly Peeney and Matt Walker have secured teaching positions for next year, aformidable achievement in this lean year on the job market. Judith Kornblatt’s bookDivine Sophia just came out from Cornell University Press and our faculty havecontinued to publish and deliver lectures at national and international conferences anduniversities. Our Polish program continues to grow and prosper thanks, in large part, tothe generosity of Gasiorowska, Lapinski, and Zawacki families.

We have a Japanese post-doctoral scholar, Dr. Shunichiro Akisusa, visiting thedepartment during the next academic year on a prestigious fellowship provided by thegovernment foundation of Japan, a fact that will further increase our visibility andreputation in a global context. Our new class of graduate students looks very promisingindeed and we hope to make their graduate school experience at the Slavic department aworthwhile and meaningful one. I am personally looking forward to the next year andam confident that we will maintain our high standards of scholarship, teaching andservice. I would like to thank the faculty, staff, students, alumni and supporters formaking 2008-2009 yet another successful year at the Madison Slavic department.

Have a great summer!

In This Issue:

In Memory of Yuri Konstantinovich Shcheglov………… 3

GSO Fundraiser……………………………………………. 10

Welcome to Karen Evans-Romaine……………………… 11

Department News and Awards……………..…………….. 13

News from Former Students……………………..………. 18

News from Abroad…………………………..…..…….….. 19

AATSEEL-Wisconsin Conference………………….….. 20

First-Year Funnies………………………………….….…. 21

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In Memory of Yuri Konstantinovich Shcheglov

Dan Ungurianu (PhD 1995)The news of Yuri

Konstantinovich Shcheglov’s deathcame to me with a substantial delay. Itwas Good Friday, and I had just finisheddiscussing "The Death of Ivan Ilych" inmy Tolstoy class. As always happens onsuch sad occasions, one's memorybegins to extract reminiscences of thedeparted from one’s personal archive.Here is the first episode.

Fall of 1990. The elevator doorson the fourth floor of Van Hise Hallopen to let out Yuri Konstantinovichwith his eternal briefcase and a gazefixed beyond the concrete confines ofthe building. As he encounterssomething familiar amid the scenery(me), his face brightens: "Dan, do youknow where is the exit here?" (By thenhe had worked in Van Hise for over ayear.) Yuri Konstantinovich's good-natured absent-mindedness became thestuff of graduate student lore. (In life, hecould afford to be absent-minded andimpractical, since his wife Lera tookcare of all every-day matters.)

His erudition was even morelegendary. I remember that once,when he entered the classroom, theblackboard was still covered with

inscriptions from a previous class.Before erasing them YuriKonstantinovich paused for a moment:"This is in Swahili. It says..." He thenproceeded with his lecture oneighteenth-century Russian literature,freely drawing parallels betweenRussian, French, German, Greek, andLatin subjects. As much as we wereawed by his tremendous erudition, Icannot recall a single instance when hetried to impress the audience. It was,rather, something that came as naturallyas breathing and was always directedtowards one goal: to elucidate thematerial in question. Equallymemorable were his modesty,tactfulness, and respect for theinterlocutor, although YuriKonstantinovich did not hesitate toexpress substantive criticism of our workwherever necessary. He remained in hisrole of teacher outside the classroom aswell, sharing his love for rare books andrecordings, travel, and good cuisine.

In the same way, his attitude toliterary texts was always tactful andgentle, characterized by a kind ofgenuine and quiet friendliness. It was asif he were conversing with good friendsor old acquaintances. With some of

We are extremely saddened to report the passing ofYuri Konstantinovich Shcheglov, professor, mentor andfriend. On behalf of the entire Slavic family, we extend oursympathies to his widow, Lera Shcheglov. Below arereminiscences and remembrances of Yuri Konstantinovichfrom eleven former graduate students.

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them he would become more animated.(A random recollection: YuriKonstantinovich brightened upwhenever he encountered the DativusAbsolutus construction in Old Russian).His focus was not on the transient but onthe unchanging; it is reflected in hissearch for invariants that underlies muchof his scholarly work and also goesbeyond it. I remember him discussingwith me (in the early 1990s) the ragingpandemic of "political correctness." "Inessence,” he said, “there is nothing newabout this, it is all very muchreminiscent of the Soviet Proletkult ofthe 1920s..." Instead of irritation, therewas a joy of recognition, perhaps even asomewhat "childish" joy, since his takeon "nothing is new under the Sun" wasdevoid either of Ecclesiastes's existentialdespair or of any mysticism in the veinof quasi-Symbolist "correspondences."

His immersion into the universeof culture seemed to have given himgenuine pleasure. Perhaps it alsoincreasingly became a refuge fromimpinging reality after the tragic death ofhis and Lera's only son, Roman.Confronted with a loss, we inevitably tryto compensate for it with notions ofimmortality and eternity. Let me try tooffer one that Yuri Konstantinovichmight have appreciated: to wander in theinfinite spaces of world culture, but thistime without the need to look for a wayout.

Memory eternal!

Shannon and Dima Spasov (PhD 2007& ABD Emeritus)

We remember YuriKonstantinovich for his amazing breadthand depth of knowledge, his talent for

lecturing, his sense of humor, and hislove for his subject. We, along with allother students of Russian language andliterature, will miss him.

Ann Komaromi (PhD 2001)Yuri Konstantinovich was my

advisor, and I initially planned to writeabout a few late Soviet novelists,including Vasilii Aksenov. YuriKonstantinovich was probably notobliged to spend long sessions goingover the minutiae of cultural material inAksenov's prose with me, but he did. Wespent a lot of time on the allusions inSurplussed Barrelware, which he liked,and even more time on The Burn, whichhe did not. "These are very obviousreferents," he would point out. He wouldadd, "This is popular cultural material."That was helpful to learn. I was humbledby the amount I didn't know, andchallenged to imagine a world whosemost basic texture still eluded me,despite years of studying Russianlanguage and literature. "Aksenov'sprose is like jewelers' work," YuriKonstantinovich would say. May thememory of his careful, appreciativeattention be an inspiration for my workand that of all his students.

Megan Dixon (PhD 1999)Yuri Konstantinovich will

remain my idea of what a perfect scholaris—and I mean “scholar” in an older,more universal sense than we generallymean now, although he was in what wecall “academia.” But YuriKonstantinovich clearly did not readbooks or write articles or teach becausehe had his career in mind—he read and

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wrote and taught because this came asnaturally to him as breathing. He hadthat gentle preoccupation with wordsand books that I know sometimes woulddrive Valeria Alexeevna kind of crazy,but was so humane and kind andendearing. I remember that there were somany books in the house that many ofthem had to be moved to the basement,so that they wouldn’t warp the floor.Somehow I heard that he read Horacebefore bed, in the original, just for thedelight of it. He would talk aboutvisiting book fairs all around the world,down some narrow street in Denmark orGermany or Austria, in search of onemore book to fill out his rich library.

My favorite class with him was aseminar on 20th century Russianliterature; his own intimate knowledgeof communal apartments from childhoodin Moscow tempered Zoshchenko’sfurious satire, and we got the sense ofthe gentler niches in Soviet life thatcould produce such a person. I think thegift I treasure most is that of Soviet-erasongs that he played for me during visitsto his house: later I learned to sing “DarkNight,” still one of my favorites, that Ithink was performed by Mark Bernes.Playing these songs for me reflectedYuri Konstantinovich’s care thatstudents understand something of thewhole cultural fabric of Russian andSoviet life, its human touches, and thefull dimensionality of culturalknowledge that a “native” would learn.For that reason, we all had him to thankfor the section of our preliminary examsthat required us to identify famousquotations. Those will still keep mereading and searching through Russianliterature of all periods, trying to acquire

the friendly intimacy with the texts thatYuri Konstantinovich demonstrated.

Alice Harris (ABD Emerita) and ClintWalker (PhD 2006)

As a teacher and scholar YuriKonstantinovich inspired and enrichedus with his far-ranging and deepknowledge, but it was his soft-spoken,gentle nature and his unassumingmodesty in the face of such eruditionthat stood out more than anything else inhis person. He helped generations ofgraduates and undergraduatesunderstand Russian perceptions ofthemselves and the world, and many ofhis former students who have sincebecome professors in their own rightcontinue to draw on his insightfullectures on Russian literature andculture. One thread which ran through anumber of his courses was the strongtragicomic element in Russian literaturehidden under the surface of picaresquebuffoonery and hyperbole. Heencouraged his students to visualize thesobering realities behind the humor, butalways with a glimmer in his eye and aslight grin playing on his lips.

The overwhelmingly academicnature of most of our interactions withYuri Konstantinovich make certain lessscholarly moments stand out inparticular. His undergraduate Tolstoyclass was very surprised, for example, tohear someone with as encyclopedic aknowledge of War and Peace as YuriKonstantinovich begin a lecture praisingthe potential benefits of Cliffs Notes. Analmost unbelievable lack ofpretentiousness in the face of vasterudition—this is undoubtedly the mostprecious lesson he conveyed to his many

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students, and he did so as naturally andunaffectedly as if he were one ofTolstoy’s peasants harmoniouslymowing in the fields. Perhaps for thisreason, Yuri Konstantinovich’s anecdoteabout how he literally fell right out of hisseat laughing the first time he watchedStanley Kramer’s “It’s a Mad, Mad,Mad, Mad World” will always remain asdear in our memory as his rich,insightful lectures on Ilf and Petrov,Chekhov, Tolstoy and Kantemir.

A gentle smile, slightly sad eyeswith a soft twinkle, and a quiet butsteady voice that made you strain yourears so as not to miss a single wordabout Kantemir’s allusions to classicalmyth, Tolstoy’s conception ofchildhood, or Mel Brooks’ film versionof “The Twelve Chairs.” We feeltremendously grateful to have hadcourses with such an astonishingly broadscholar and such a wonderfully humble,humane and endearing human being.

Peyton Engel (ABD Emeritus)It was at least a decade ago when

I last spoke to Professor Shcheglov, butthe years I spent in his classes had aprofound effect on me. I took as manyof his classes as I could, because I foundhis particular style of lectures to be soengrossing. Every class would beginwith a statement that seemed eitherobvious or trivial, and the discussion thatfollowed seemed to take baby steps atfirst. As he developed the idea over theremainder of the class, though, theimplications of what he had said wouldbecome more involved, and the ideawould take on greater importance. Theperiod would end essentially with arestatement of the original proposition,

but by that point I would have acompletely new appreciation for it, and amore intense experience of whateverpoem or book we were discussing.

My career has taken me far afieldfrom Russian Literature, but I draw onProfessor Shcheglov's examplewhenever I give a lecture or do anypublic speaking. His ability to findimportance and profundity in whateverwas before him, and to explain it in waysthat the listener could hardly fail toaccept, remain an inspiration to me.

Angela Brintlinger (PhD 1994)Yuri Konstantinovich arrived at

Wisconsin when I had been in graduateschool for some years already. In someways he personified the "absent-mindedprofessor." I remember asking Jean whatshe was up to one day in the office, andshe replied "Ordering a stapler for Yuri.Again." This made me curious, and Iinterrogated her until she admitted thatabout once every week or two, YuriKonstantinovich would come in and askher sheepishly for a stapler. His keptgetting lost. We graduate students beganto wonder... where were they going?Was there a closet-full of staplerssomewhere? No one ever found out.

I am fortunate to have studiedwith Yuri Konstantinovich in a numberof courses: 18th century Russianliterature, Formalism and Structuralism,the 1920s. I still use many of my notesand knowledge from those courses in myown teaching today, and I retain some ofmy favorite expressions as well (such asreferring in Russian to copies as"khandauty"). His brilliant commentariesto Il'f and Petrov's Twelve Chairs stillamaze me, and I once tried to convince

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him to publish a selection in Englishtranslation so that my undergraduateswould be able to benefit from them.The most wonderful thing YuriKonstantinovich did for me as a studentwas to advise my independent work onYuri Tynianov's fiction, a project thateventually morphed into my dissertationand first book. We met weekly over thecourse of a semester to discuss the threehistorical anecdotes ("PodporuchikKizhe," "Maloletnii Vitushishnikov," and"Voskovaia Persona"): their stylizedlanguage, their structure, scholarshipabout them. After each of our veryintense sessions ("you'll need to write apaper at the end," he told me, "at least20-25 pages"), Yuri Konstantinovichwould pull out his dog-eared copy of thenovel Silence of the Lambs and ask meone or two questions about the English.Living in the United States, he wanted toget a sense of what native speakers sawas normal expressions and what seemedstylized; but he didn't want to interferewith my education. He would save upany further questions for the nextsession. Yuri Konstantinovich was akind, brilliant, inspiring teacher andscholar. I will treasure these memoriesand more in the years to come.

Mary Petrusewicz (PhD 1996)I took a class with Yuri

Konstantinovich my first semester as agraduate student and remember that afterthe first meeting he asked about myfamily background. He apparently knewthe city in Belorussia where my fatherwas born.  He was a kind, gentle,thoughtful man, and a fine scholar whowas all substance and no show.  In hisseminars, each of us was required to lead

the class through our analysis of a text,and they were thus valuableopportunities for individual thought andexpression.  They were also wonderfulopportunities to study the lesser-knownworks of major writers.  I shall alwaysremember Yuri Konstantinovich with thegreatest respect and regard.  The worldhas lost a unique and irreplaceable soul.

Alyssa Gillespie (PhD 1998)In thinking through how I would

set about writing my memories of YuriKonstantinovich Shcheglov, I wasmoved to return to the notes I had takenin the many courses he taught me duringmy time in graduate school. Sheathed fora decade now in tidy rows of forestgreen file folders coffined in a steelcabinet, the words I had transcribedyears ago, capturing them like birds inflight as they left his lips, had lain silentfor too long. So I went to the cabinet andretrieved folder after folder: I had notremembered there were so many. OldRussian Literature, 18th-CenturyRussian Literature, 19th-CenturyRussian Poetry, Tolstoy, Chekhov.Professor Shcheglov was able to teachpractically every course in thecurriculum, and he did. I took morecourses with him than with any otherprofessor; and he served on mydissertation committee too, offeringspare but always discerning commentaryon my manuscript—with an emphasis onthe goal of, as he phrased it,“philological perfection” (i.e., theaccuracy of my poetic translations),which he viewed as his particularresponsibility.

Now, as I open the thick files ofnotes, his words again take careful,

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poised flight, and the image of him risesanew before me: a gentle giant withalways-smiling eyes no matter howmuch sadness was in his heart, dressedin a warm sweater, slightly hunched inconcentration, a shabby briefcase by hisside and a stack of note cards covered intiny writing before him on the table. Hewas eloquent beyond belief in alanguage that was not his native tongue,and he had an ear and a knack for thesubtlest twists of linguistic humor. Atonce modest and exalted, he was gracedwith the unassuming, unalterable dignityof the true Russian intelligent.

We who were his students werefortunate to encounter such a man, andto be taught by him. As I read throughmy notes today, a phrase here and theretakes wing, as I recognize in YuriKonstantinovich’s observations onliterature, dispassionate and meticulousthough they be, fleeting glimpses intoboth the depth and the humor of his ownsoul: “Aphorisms were very popular in18th-century Russia, and this was not atedious genre by any means; it isinsensitive not to value their wit andbeauty”; “Baratynskii’s ‘Nedonosok’ isat base about the fateful intermediacy ofhuman nature; the human is conscious ofthe futility of his attempts to fuse withhigher entities”; “Words in Chekhov’sstories are often inadequate forexpressing how people think and feel;there exists a basic, universal obstacle tohuman communication”; “Tolstoy’ssympathetic heroes gradually freethemselves of superficial barriers; thisexorcism of false values that are deeplyinculcated in people is an excruciatingexperience with an uncertain outcomethat occurs sometimes at great personalcost”… Professor Shcheglov’s keen

words, always beautifully crafted, sprangfrom a winning combination ofunmatchable erudition and a deepwellspring of exacting intellectual andpersonal integrity. His lectures shapedmy understanding of the vast expanse ofRussian literature and my immeasurablerespect for the life of the dedicatedscholar.

In later years, I came to knowYuri Konstantinovich outside theclassroom, too. He and ValeriaAlekseevna generously took me intotheir home on several occasions during adifficult period in my life; in their owngrief, they only increased theirgenerosity and openness to me and toothers. I shared many glad momentswith them at their table; YuriKonstantinovich, disarmingly charmingin his sincere joy at the little things inlife, was as eager as a child to share hisvarious culinary pleasures: pickled eggs,caviar, choice liqueurs, fine cheeses. Hislove for his little dog Fritz was childlike,too, in its delight and unrestraint, and heindulged him shamelessly. He was kindand often wryly funny; I remember histelling me that perhaps it was for the bestthat he had never learned to drive a car,as it had saved him from the temptationof drunk driving! Above all, he waseven-tempered and serene and had aknack for taking refuge from thecoarseness and cruelty of real life in thecomforting sphere of literature. I heardhim express anger on only one occasion:in response to an overenthusiastictelemarketer.

Yuri Konstantinovich cherishedhis books and loved to display the mostprecious among them, rare and oldeditions, gently caressing their pages.(When I stayed with the Shcheglovs with

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my then nearly two-year-old twins whenI returned from Boston to Madison todefend my dissertation in December1998, I lived in terror that those tworambunctious little boys, who in thosedays enjoyed nothing better than pullingbooks off shelves and building giantforts with them, would do irreparabledamage to his collection; in reality,thankfully, all the damage they did wasconfined to their spilling a bottle ofcough syrup on the rug of the basementguest room.) He was also fond of hiscollection of travel post cards andenjoyed showing them off and telling metheir histories; his erudition in regard tohis hobbies was no less than hisscholarly erudition, and here, too, hishumble enthusiasm was impressive andinspiring.

Even Yuri Konstantinovich’sthorough impracticality was immenselyendearing. Once when I planned a visitto Madison at a time when ValeriaAlekseevna was away from homevisiting her sister in Yalta, he wrote tome as follows: “I would be very glad tosee you, Evan and the boys if you cometo Madison. You can stay with us; theonly thing I feel a bit uneasy about, isthe logistics of your visit (finding thebedclothes for all the family; it’s ValeriaAlekseevna’s domain, in which I am notan expert), but hopefully I'll solve thisproblem if I start working in advance(probably by calling Valeria at Yalta toask her about the whereabouts ofeverything).” Needless to say, myhusband and I decided not to take YuriKonstantinovich up on his selfless offerto accommodate us at his home in hiswife’s absence, but we did spend alovely, peaceful afternoon sipping winewith him in the garden while watching

the children run wild with his belovedlittle dog, Fritz’s successor. As duskbegan to fall, the three small creatureschased fireflies together at the base ofthe hill, much to Yuri Konstantinovich’sdelight.

Now I am even more grateful forthe memory of that afternoon, as itturned out to have been my last meetingwith dear Yuri Konstantinovich. Therelentless numbing burdens of daily lifeintervened during these last years, and,sadly, my contact with him grew sparse.A silence came between us; a silencethat I had hoped was temporary. The lastletter he wrote to me, in response to mycongratulations on his retirement, wasunfortunately swallowed up by the voidwhen my computer hard drive crashedlast summer—but I remember that onthat occasion, as always, his words werewarm, measured, and full of kindness.Shining golden birds in flight…

Yuri Konstantinovich, in hissimplicity and his profundity, embodiedperhaps the greatest human goodness ofanyone I have ever known. He was apowerful teacher, not only of literature,but also of life. I will miss him always.

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T-Shirt Fundraiser aRousing SuccessSupporting the SlavicDepartment has neverlooked so good!Naomi Olson

The Slavic departmentappreciates the financial assistance itreceives from graduate alumni, formerstaff, faculty, and our undergraduatestudents. We would like to thank you foryour generosity with a token of ourappreciation –a Slavic department t-shirt!! Starting in 2009, we will offercertain donors a departmental t-shirt oftheir choice:

We have two options for shirt-styles: The black “Bucky” shirt, withBucky Badger in a Russian-style hat,which reads, “Russian is spoken here!!”on the front, and “UW SlavicDepartment” on the back.

Also available is the “Slavic”shirt, which features a Russian studentcarrying wheat and her Russian textbookin front of the capitol building inMadison on the front, and lists all of theSlavic languages taught at the Universityof Wisconsin. These shirts vary in colorso please call the Slavic department toinquire!

Both shirts come in either amen’s and women’s style in sizes Sthrough XL.

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Thank you for your support!!

Please make checks out to:Slavic Graduate Student OrganizationUniversity of Wisconsin - Madison1432 Van Hise HallMadison, WI 53706

*We welcome donations in all amounts, but to cover costs, we request a minimum of a$30 donation per single shirt request. If you would like two shirts, a donation of $50.00would cover costs.

Misha and Kira (Karen Evans-Romaine) at Lake Mendota

In last year’s spring departmentalnewsletter, Irina Shevelenko made amysterious reference to a third memberof the family she hoped would join herand Misha in Madison in the nextacademic year. Well, here I am! I amdelighted to be joining Irina and Mishain Madison after a long period of virtuallife-by-phone, as I listened to Misha’sRussian and especially English developand blossom mostly by long distance. Hecalls me “2-Mom.”

I am also thrilled to be joiningwhat already feels in many ways likeanother family, the UW Madison SlavicDepartment. I have gotten to know manyof you in a variety of professionalcapacities over the past two decades: Ihad the honor to study with YuriKonstantinovich Shcheglov at NorwichRussian School in 1988 and feel aPasternakian turn of fate in his havingpassed away the same day as my mother,this past April 6. I have long followedand admired, along with his work, thatof Russian literary scholars whom I cannow proudly call my departmentalcolleagues, including David Bethea,Alexander Dolinin, and AndrewReynolds – as well as, of course, IrinaShevelenko. Over the past nine years atthe Middlebury School of Russian I haveworked side by side with UW Slavicgrad students and recent alumni,including Stuart Goldberg, Vika Ivleva,Brian Johnson, Laura Little, KatScollins, and Molly Thomasy. I have hadthe great pleasure of watching Kat,

Joining the UW Madison Slavic DepartmentFamily

Karen Evans-Romaine

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Molly, and other UW Slavic graduateand undergraduate students make greatprogress in their Russian throughMiddlebury’s intensive program – somany students, in fact, that I am afraid totry to name them, lest I leave someoneout. Through Middlebury I also began towork with Anna Tumarkin, with whom Icorresponded for years on mattersrelated to our testing programs, and Ilook forward to collaborating moreclosely with her. Middlebury is, asNorwich was, a great and growingfamily, and I feel profoundly blessed tohave played a part in its development,following as well as I could in thefootsteps of such distinguishedpredecessors as David Bethea andBenjamin Rifkin. Ben and I studiedtogether at the University of Michigan:he was my first TA coordinator, my firstteaching mentor, and my first co-teaching partner, so I am happy to beable to continue his legacy in mentoringteachers at Middlebury and now at UWMadison. Finally, on the AATSEELProgram Committee, which I chaired forseveral years, I worked closely with UWMadison Slavic Department alumnaeAngela Brintlinger and Alyssa DinegaGillespie. Thus I feel truly fortunate tojoin a department with whom I havebeen linked in so many ways for somany years.

For those of you who don’t knowme, I’ll say a little about myself. Igraduated with two bachelor’s degrees inRussian and Soviet Studies and PianoPerformance from Oberlin College &Conservatory of Music. My MA andPhD are from the University ofMichigan, where I wrote on “Pasternakand the Tradition of GermanRomanticism” under the direction of

Omry Ronen. I completed mydissertation while working for threeyears in Moscow as FulbrightRepresentative to the RussianFederation, following in the footsteps ofUW Madison Slavic Departmentalumnus Eliot Borenstein, whom I hadknown since we studied Russian atOberlin. During my three years runningthe Moscow Fulbright Office, I wasfortunate to travel all over Russia, fromPetrozavodsk to Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky, during a very excitingperiod in Russia’s history, 1993-96.After defending my dissertation in 1996,I joined the Department of ModernLanguages at Ohio University, where Ihave regularly taught first-year Russian,nineteenth- and twentieth-centuryRussian literature in translation, andtwentieth-century literature and Russiancultural history in Russian to third-yearstudents. I also directed a biannual ten-week study abroad program in Moscowevery even spring.

My publications have continuedto focus on Pasternak, particularly withregard to intersections in his work withboth German Romanticism and withmusic. I have also worked in languagepedagogy as co-author of the two-volume Russian language textbookGolosa, together with first author RichRobin and Galina Shatalina. We are nowworking on the fifth edition. WithTatiana Smorodinskaya and HelenaGoscilo I co-edited the RoutledgeEncyclopedia of Contemporary RussianCulture, published in 2006. Thus mywriting and teaching have spannedlanguage pedagogy, literature, andculture, and I look forward to working inall of those realms at UW Madison.

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Notes From the 14th

FloorFaculty/Staff NewsIn February 2009, Jennifer RyanTishler offered a continuing-educationcourse through the UW-MadisonDepartment of Liberal Studies and theArts. "Introduction to Russian OrthodoxArt and Architecture" presented anoverview of icons, church architecture,early Russian history, and discussions offolk tales on religious themes.

David Bethea says hello to all hisformer and present grads and wishesthem well. Don’t be strangers! His newbook, The Superstitious Muse: ThinkingRussian Literature Mythopoetially, iscoming out this summer at AcademicStudies Press. Despite all the badfinancial news facing the state andcountry, he reports there is an excellentfeeling of positive energy lately in thedepartment – a good sign for the future.

Irina Shevelenko reports that she hasbeen actively researching toddler filmand literary culture in the US lately, andthat Misha, now three but still red-haired, has been extraordinarilysupportive in that. He says, "hellopeoples," and commits to be asinstrumental in Mom's future researchendeavors as he has been before. He isexcited about having his "two moms" inplace soon, and so is Irina who plots toswitch her research focus a little bit onthis occasion.

Jean Hennessey has been namedEmerita staff, and she has her wisc.eduemail for life: jlhennes@wisc.edu.

Judith Deutsch Kornblatt is delightedto announce that her book, DivineSophia: The Wisdom Writings ofVladimir Solovyov , has been publishedthis year by Cornell University Press.She recommends that you all go out andbuy a copy!

David Danaher’s article “FramingVáclav Havel” was published in thejournal Slovo a smysl/Word and Sense,and he has a forthcoming article,“Translating Havel: Three Key Words”in Slovo a slovesnost. See his websitefor pdfs of his main publications,http://cokdybysme.net/publicatinos.html.David is looking forward to an October2009 conference in Prague that resultedfrom his Fulbright stint at CharlesUniversity in 2006,http://ucjtk.ff.cuni.cz/sclc/sclc_eng.htm.

Halina Filipowicz was on a year-longsabbatical doing research for her newbook, Drama After Auschwitz. InOctober, she gave a keynote lecture atthe 4th International Congress of PolishStudies that was held at the JagiellonianUniversity in Krakow. While inKrakow, she also led workshops inscholarly methodologies for interestedstudents and faculty members.

Congratulations to Toma Longinovicand Djana Mitrovic on their marriage!

Congratulations to Ewa Miernowskafor Department Recognition for theNomination for UW Madison AcademicStaff Excellence Award.

Congratulations to Anna Tumarkin, forDepartment Recognition for the L&SEarly Career Award.

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Grad News and Awards

On April 9, 2009, Lara AlexandraMcGarry was born to proud parentsMatt and Nadya McGarry.Congratulations!

On June 17, 2008, Vika Thorstenssongave birth to her second son, Steven(Stiva) Lukas. Congratulations, Vika,Martin and Stiva!

Matt Walker accepted a position atUPenn as a visiting lecturer for the2009-2010 academic year. In addition toteaching Russian language classes, hewill teach surveys of nineteenth andtwentieth century Russian literature aswell as a course on Dostoevsky.

On June 14, Darya Ivashnova andAaron Schuck were married.Congratulations!

In October, Erik McDonald’s article“Russia’s Juvenal or Russia’s Horace?Nekrasov’s Satirical Personae” waspublished in Russian Review.

On May 24, 2009 in a ceremony atForestall’s Gallery in Middleton, WI,Molly Thomasy and Keith Blasingwere married.

Molly plans to spend the summerteaching at Middlebury before flying offto Moscow to conduct dissertationresearch on a Fulbright fellowship.In addition, thanks to support from aVilas Travel Grant Molly traveled toBoston for the Northeast MLAconference in late February and gave apaper called "Joseph Brodsky and thePoetics of Photography." StephanieRichards was also on the panel with herpaper "JA POET! Koz'ma Prutkov AsLiterary Reformer."

Lara Alexandra McGarry

Molly and Keith Blasing

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Mary Violet Minier

On May 15, 2008, a baby boy namedLuke Gideon Townsend was born toEmily Shaw and Gideon Townsend.

Brian Johnson has accepted a three-year visiting assistant professorship inthe Russian Department at SwarthmoreCollege beginning fall of 2009. Theposition may be renewed for anotherthree years upon review. Brian will beteaching first-year Russian and a varietyof literature courses, including TheRussian Novel fall of 2009 andDostoevsky spring of 2010.Swarthmore’s Russian department offersa major in Russian Language andCulture, along with a wide variety ofcourses in literature, language andculture. Congratulations, Brian!

At 1:41 pm on May 13, 2009, MaryViolet Minier was born, coming in at 7pounds 14 ounces and 20.5 inches.Congratulations, Kat, Brian, Ivan andMary!

Molly Peeney accepted a teachingposition at Notre Dame. She will be"Special Professional Faculty," and herduties will include teaching threecourses per semester as well as variousadministrative and programmingresponsibilities such as being theDirector of Undergraduate Studies forthe Russian program and coordinator ofRussian-related events (films and theconversation table). Molly was alsoawarded an ACTR Flagship Fellowshipto study in St. Petersburg for theacademic year 2009-2010, and NotreDame has granted her leave to do so.Congratulations, Molly!

Brian as Stalin in an adapted version ofOlesha’s play “A List of Good Deeds” atMiddlebury 2008

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Lapinski scholarship recipient Nick Ramptonwith Dr. Elsie Lapinski

On October 9, 2008, Anna GuigauriMcGill gave birth to Alice PolinaMcGill. Congratulations, Anna andAlice!

Ben Jens and Vika Thorstenssonreceived Dissertator Fellowships.

Naomi Olson was awarded an L&SEarly Teaching Award.

Nick Rampton and Katie Weigelreceived Michael and Emily LapinskiScholarships.

Lisa Woodson is the 2008 winner of theJ.T. Shaw Prize-AATSEEL Wisconsin.

Naomi Olson and Jesse Stavis will beparticipating in ACTR’s SummerTeaching Program in Moscow.

Molly Thomasy was named anAlternate 2009 L&S Teaching Fellow.

Congratulations to Nick Rampton andOdette van Velsen, who completed theirMAs.

Congratulations to Naomi Olson onpassing prelim exams and successfullydefending her dissertation proposal,“Law and the Self: Legal Encounters inNineteenth-Century Russian Literature.”

In August, Anna Tumarkin will defendher dissertation. Erik McDonald willalso defend his dissertation “Nekrasovand Russian Modernism.”

Congratulations to Brian Johnson ondefending his dissertation, “The Art ofDostoevsky's Falling Sickness,” andcompleting his PhD!

Congratulations to Vika Ivleva ondefending her dissertation, “Fashion andSartorial Discourse in Eighteenth-Century Literature and Culture,” andcompleting her PhD!

Viktoria Kononova received theZawacki Award for OutstandingAchievement in the study of the PolishLanguage, Literature and Culture.

Janice Zawacki with Adam Pankratz andViktoria Kononova, winners of theZawacki award

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Tyler Henderson, winner of the J.Thomas Shaw prize, and AnnaTumarkin

Undergrad News andAwards

Edward Chien completed his SeniorThesis entitled "Looking for Love Lost:Lermontov's Laments of Loneliness"under the direction of Andrew Reynolds.

Tyler Henderson was awarded the J.T.Shaw Prize for UndergraduateExcellence.

Congratulations to Magdalena Bojda,Catherine Kuzmicki, ElizabethMowinski and Tomasz Samek, winnersof the Michael and Emily LapinskiScholarship.

Hannah Calkins and Maoria Kirkerreceived the November Fund Prize forOutstanding UndergraduateAchievement in Czech.

Dmitry Svetlov placed 2nd in the ACTRNational Post Secondary Russian EssayContest.

Matthew O’Brien and Laura Weigelwere inducted into the Dobro SlovoNational Honor Society.

Ryan Prinz placed 3rd in the ACTRNational Post Secondary Russian EssayContest.

Virginia Armour received HonorableMention in the ACTR National PostSecondary Russian Essay Contest.

Margaryta Bondarenko wasrecognized for Outstanding BeginningPolish.

Meagan Parrish was recognized forOutstanding Progress in AdvancedRussian.

Ryan Prinz was recognized forOutstanding Progress in IntermediateRussian.

Adam Pankratz received the ZawackiAward for Outstanding Achievement inthe study of the Polish Language,Literature and Culture.

Dr. Elsie Lapinski with ElizabethMowinski and Catherine Kuzmicki,undergraduate winners of theLapinski scholarship

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News From FormerStudents

Evan Parks, who studied Polish at UW-Madison, is currently living and studyingin Poland and was awarded a Fulbrightto Poland for 2009-2010.

Amanda Volbert, a Czech student whograduated in 2008, has completed aFulbright over the academic year 2008-2009.

Wendy Johnson and Jillian Bau arefeatured in a UW-Madison LanguageLearning Video, available online athttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EQb2x6C_tGA. Wendy (narration) is aformer PhD student in our departmentwho now works at UW’s LanguageInstitute. Jillian, a former Russianmajor, appears in the video starting at3:00.

Frank Poulin (PhD 1995) writes DavidBethea in response to last year’s Letterfrom the Chair:

I have three children now.Charles is almost 5. James is 3, andFlorence is 1. My wife once worked atHughes Networks as an analogue circuitdesigner for satellite communicationsystems. But now she’s busy with ourthree children. It’s an enjoyable life.We live in Germantown, Maryland,which is part of the Washington DCarea. I’m working for Unisys. Myspecializations are in large-scaleinfrastructure computer network testing,computer network security and projectmanagement. Work is fun, interesting,rewarding and rarely exceeds 45 hours aweek. So I get to keep up somewhat

with Russian literature, as well as withmuch history and other literatureswhenever I’m not trying to corral thekids. Recently I’ve been re-reading a lotof Turgenev – obviously in Russian. Istill have about 600 books I bought inMoscow.

Your letter at the front of thenewsletter talked about fragile morale inthe face of budget cuts. I wish I couldprovide better input than just stating theobvious – that the department doesimportant work. Everyone in thedepartment already knows that. I oftenfind myself reflecting on the importanceof literature, history, classical music, andthe humanities in general – when all thewhile I’m struggling in the commercialword with day-to-day technical issuesthat must be resolved quickly. I’vefound that people with broader mindstend to solve problems more efficiently.And I’ve found that a strong foundationin the humanities helps develop abroader mind. The research and writingaspects of the Slavic program were veryrewarding to me personally. So everyday before work for about 30 minutes inmy car in the Unisys parking lot, I findmyself reading chapters from Turgenev,or Chekhov, or Tolstoy, or Dostoevsky.And then I rush into our building, whereI direct a team of 10 test engineers andbegin solving problems that demandimmediate attention. It’s a strangecombination of interests.

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Notes from the FieldJennifer Ede, a former Russianundergraduate major, develops onlinelanguage-learning tools

I've partnered with anentrepreneurial software developer andtogether we're developing a site,langolab.com. The site is designed as asupplement to help ourselves and otherslearn foreign languages with the help ofL2 texts and L2 videos. The idea behindthe site is that the endless supply ofauthentic cultural material from the web(texts, videos, and people) can beleveraged to provide foreign languagestudents with endless input in the foreignlanguage they're learning. At this point,we are developing tools (one-clickdictionary lookup, flash cards, notes, anda foreign language Q&A feature) toallow even beginners to approach andlearn from the media easily and withoutbeing intimidated.

I have taken responsibility for theRussian language portion of this site andhave already uploaded and captionednumerous linguistically-useful videos. Iwould greatly appreciate it if you wouldtake a look at our website and, if youlike it, please feel free to use it andrecommend it to your students. I intendto send the same proposal to MAPRYALand ACTFL in the hopes of getting adialogue going. We have a lot of greatideas, but we would love to connect withother foreign language teachers,advisors, and mentors who might wish totake an active interest in the project. Use of the site is totally free, and weintend for all non-premium content (atthis point, this means everything exceptvideo we license from broadcasting

companies) to remain free. The site iscurrently in beta, so it might have somebugs and quirks. If you find one, or ifyou have any suggestions whatsoever,please leave feedback for us at the site.You will never find ears more open thanours.

Notes from AbroadMagdalena Bojda (Polish major whostudied abroad spring 2009)

When I chose Warsaw, Poland asmy Study Abroad destination six monthsago, I had no idea that my study abroadexperience would be as rewarding as itwas. I was born in Poland, but my familymoved to the US when I was veryyoung, so it was important for me touncover the history, culture andtraditions of my birthplace. I participatedin courses that were taught by dynamicprofessors that offered a personalnarrative of events I had only read aboutin books. Hearing the first-hand accountsof Poles who survived the communistperiod and were involved in thesolidarity movement was inspiring. I didnot only learn in the classroom, but Ilearned by traveling around the countryas well. Poland is a beautiful nationfilled with many lovely parks, romanticcastles and gorgeous churches that I waslucky enough to see. I have also learnedthat it is a country filled with strong anddedicated individuals who have haddownfalls in their history but who haveconstantly persevered. I am proud to callmyself a Pole. This experience hashelped me fill in the gaps in my origins,and in myself as well. I recommend thisprogram to anyone.

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2008 AATSEEL-Wisconsin Conference

Viktoriya Kononova

The annual AATSEEL-Wisconsin Conference was held onOctober 17-18, 2008 at UW-Madison’sPyle Center. The keynote speaker for theevent was Dr. James Bailey, ProfessorEmeritus of the University ofWisconsin-Madison, who spoke on thetopic “Memories of a Career in Slavic.”The program featured a diverse set ofpanels, with paper topics including exilein the writings of Bunin, Nabokov,Akhmatova and Brodsky, creativedialogue and appropriation in Slavicliteratures, transcending boundaries ofgenre, medium and gender in works byvarious Slavic authors, and exploring theun/real in Russian and Polish literatureand post-Soviet television. As part of theconference weekend, current gradstudents had an informal meeting withUW-Madison alumnus and professor ofRussian at Vassar College DanUngurianu; Dan also delivered a paperon the theme of waxworks in theliterature of Russian modernism. The2008 J. Thomas Shaw Prize for bestgraduate student paper went to LisaWoodson for her presentation entitled“Living Martyrdom in AnnaAkhmatova’s The Way of All the Earth.”

2009 AATSEEL-WisconsinConference

Call for papers

Abstracts for 20 minute paperson any aspect of Slavic literatures andcultures (including film, music, thevisual arts, and language pedagogy) areinvited for 2009 conference to be heldon October 16-17. Comparative topicsand interdisciplinary approaches arewelcome. 

Recent conference programs andguidelines for preparing abstracts areposted on the AATSEEL-WI website athttp://slavic.lss.wisc.edu/new_web/?q=node/7

To present a paper at theAATSEEL-WI conference, pleasesubmit a proposal by 31 August 2009. A complete proposal consists of:1.  Author's contact information (name,affiliation, postal address, telephone andemail).2.  Paper title3.  300-500 word abstract4.  Equipment request (if necessary)

Please send proposals by email to:Melissa Miller, mmiller8@wisc.edu

All submissions will be acknowledged.

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First-Year FunniesSome of the more hilarious bloopers from first and second-year Russian

Q: Who was Alexander Pushkin?A: Chekhov

Q: List vocabulary nouns related to studying:A: Стипенд, твойка, зачерт

Q: What do you wish for?A: Я хочу есть собака.

Excerpts from essays and homework:

Вот моя кредитная картошка.

--Чье ето домашнее животное?--Это мой словарь, Спот.

Я хочу стать историей.

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University of Wisconsin – Madison NonprofitDepartment of Slavic Languages and Literatures Org.1432 Van Hise Hall U.S. Postage1220 Linden Drive PAIDMadison, WI 53706-1525 Permit No.ADDRESS SERVICE REQUESTED 658

Madison, WI

SUPPORT SLAVIC STUDIES AT UW MADISON!

The Department is grateful to those who have made donations to support its activities in the past. Your donations help us to produce this newsletter and finance many of the events that we tell you about. We appreciate gifts to support fellowships, conference travel, and summer study for graduate students; visiting speakers and adjunct lecturers for mini_courses; undergraduate prizes for progress in language and literature and special events. Visit us at http://slavic.lss.wisc.edu_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ Please detach along the line above and return this form with your check to: Slavic Languages & Literatures, 1432 Van Hise Hall, UW_Madison, Madison, WI 53706 You may choose to support one of the following Slavic Department activities: __ Russian Language and Literature Fund __ Polish Language and Literature __ November Fund for Czech Language, Literature & Culture (novemberfund.org) __ Serbo-Croatian Language and Literature __ Jean’s Fund for Community Building __ Fund in support of graduate student conference travel. Name__________________________ Address_______________________City________________________________ State _______ Zip__________

Enclosed is my contribution of: __ $1000 __ $500 __ $250 __ $100 __ $50 __ $_______ Please make your check payable to the UW Foundation. Your gifts are tax-deductible as allowed by law.Contributions can also be made by credit card via the UW Foundation website athttp://www.uwfoundation.edu/. Click on one of the “Make a Gift” buttons.