Ekaterina Nikolaevna Tumanik,
Candidate of Historical Sciences, State Public Scientific and Technical Library of the Siberian Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Novosibirsk, Russia, This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
The Debate on the “Literary Monument”: Publishing I.D. Yakushkin’s Legacy in Light of M.K. Azadovsky’s Criticism
DOI: 10.31518/2618-9100-2025-6-8
The publication in 1951 of the volume “Notes, Articles and Letters of the Decembrist I.D. Yakushkin” in the series “Literary Monuments” became a phenomenon of book culture. The publication was prepared by S.J. Shtraich. The successful composition of the volume and the selection of materials for publication made the legacy of I.D. Yakushkin in demand not only as an integral historical source, but also elevated it to a number of phenomena of Russian literature. However, along with the positive aspects, the publication revealed a number of glaring shortcomings in the field of scientific commentary, which caused fair criticism in the scientific community, which was expressed in the press by M.K. Azadovsky. The appearance of M.K. Azadovsky’s review of the edition of I.D. Yakushkin’s writings and letters was preceded by a discussion of the volume among scientists, in particular, between the reviewer himself and Yu.G. Oxman, as well as researchers from their social circle. The correspondence between M.K. Azadovsky and Yu.G. Oxman expresses an opinion about S.J. Shtraich as a publisher, as well as his methods of scientific work. This information is important for recreating the scientific biography of S.J. Shtraich. The article highlights the main provisions of M.K. Azadovsky’s critical analysis of the publication of the legacy of I.D. Yakushkin in the series “Literary Monuments”, as well as his views on the principles of scientific commentary on historical sources relevant to modern science. Additionally, the topic of the circumstances of M. K. Azadovsky’s life and scientific career during the creation of the review, partly prepared by scientific communication with Yu.G. Oxman, is disclosed.
Publishing: 28/12/2025
The article has been received by the editor on 25/08/2025
How to cite: Tumanik E.N. The Debate on the “Literary Monument”: Publishing I.D. Yakushkin’s Legacy in Light of M.K. Azadovsky’s Criticism // Historical Courier, 2025, No. 6 (44), pp. 123−141. [Available online: http://istkurier.ru/data/2025/ISTKURIER-2025-6-08.pdf]
The article was prepared according to the plan of research work of the State Public Scientific and Technical Library of the Siberian Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences, project No. 122041100088-9 “Transformation of Book Culture in Social Communications of the 19th−21st Centuries”.
Links: Issue 6 2025
Keywords: I.D. Yakushkin; writings; epistolary heritage; “Literary Monuments”; S.Ya. Shtraikh; M.K. Azadovsky; Yu.G. Oksman