From Disbelief to Dislocation: Russophone Authors Resisting Putin's War in Ukraine In brief Date - 11 February 2025Venue - Lecture Theatre G.03, 50 George SquareSpeaker - Julia NemirovskayaTitle - From Disbelief to Dislocation: Russophone Authors Resisting Putin's War in Ukraine About the eventWe are delighted to host Julia Nemirovskaya, a distinguished Russian poet, prose writer, and literary scholar, for a talk on her latest project.Since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, Julia has been compiling and analysing protest poetry by a diverse group of Russophone authors. Collaborating with translators from the US, UK, and Canada, she has created Kopilka (Russian for "coin bank"), a closed database containing thousands of pages of protest poetry.In her talk, Julia will examine the initial poetic responses of shock and grief from both Ukrainian and Russian poets, as well as the emerging themes of guilt, shame, and responsibility that defined the early months of the war. These works are showcased in 'Disbelief' (Smokestack Books, 2022), the first anthology based on the Kopilka collection, which she published with her team.She will then discuss the evolution of poetic responses as the war progressed, focusing on themes such as children at war, the collapse of language and culture, displacement, resilience, and hope—organised into thematic clusters in the second anthology, 'Dislocation' (Slavica, 2024), co-edited with Anna Krushelnitskaya.Julia will also explore how poetic styles have adapted under the pressures of conflict and displacement, and how the third anthology she is currently working on will reflect these stylistic changes. Offering a nuanced perspective on the role of poetry in times of crisis, this talk will illuminate the power of poetry to document, resist, and respond to the tragedies and complexities of war.About the speakerJulia Nemirovskaya is a poet, prose writer, and literary scholar. She obtained her PhD from Moscow State University in 1991. Before emigrating to the US in 1991, she was a member of the renowned Kiril Kovaldzhi "New Wave Poets" seminar and the Moscow Poetry Club.She has published four collections of poetry and short stories, a novel, and a book on Russian cultural history, 'Inside the Russian Soul: A Historical Survey of Russian Cultural Patterns' (McGraw-Hill, 1997, 2001). Her work has appeared in Asymptote, GLAS, Literary Review, Znamya, LRS-Lettres Russes, Bonniers Litterära Magasin, and more, and has been translated into several European languages.Her plays (of which there are 26) have been staged in theaters across Russia, the United States, Germany, and France. Mother of three, she lives in the US, regularly travels to her youngest child's native Ethiopia, and teaches and directs student theater at the University of Oregon.How to attendThis event is open to all, and free to attend. No registration is necessary - just come along.Are you interested in studying European Languages and Cultures?Our interdisciplinary environment brings together specialists in nine European languages, and the many cultures worldwide in which they're spoken, with experts in film, literature, theatre, translation and intermediality. Working with colleagues elsewhere in LLC, and across the wider University, we are able to support research which crosses boundaries between disciplines and/or languages. Find out more about studying with us Feb 11 2025 17.30 - 19.00 From Disbelief to Dislocation: Russophone Authors Resisting Putin's War in Ukraine A talk by Russian poet Julia Nemirovskaya about her latest project on protest poetry off the back of the invasion of Ukraine in 2022. Lecture Theatre G.03 50 George Square University of Edinburgh EH8 9LH Find the venue: 50 George Square
From Disbelief to Dislocation: Russophone Authors Resisting Putin's War in Ukraine In brief Date - 11 February 2025Venue - Lecture Theatre G.03, 50 George SquareSpeaker - Julia NemirovskayaTitle - From Disbelief to Dislocation: Russophone Authors Resisting Putin's War in Ukraine About the eventWe are delighted to host Julia Nemirovskaya, a distinguished Russian poet, prose writer, and literary scholar, for a talk on her latest project.Since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, Julia has been compiling and analysing protest poetry by a diverse group of Russophone authors. Collaborating with translators from the US, UK, and Canada, she has created Kopilka (Russian for "coin bank"), a closed database containing thousands of pages of protest poetry.In her talk, Julia will examine the initial poetic responses of shock and grief from both Ukrainian and Russian poets, as well as the emerging themes of guilt, shame, and responsibility that defined the early months of the war. These works are showcased in 'Disbelief' (Smokestack Books, 2022), the first anthology based on the Kopilka collection, which she published with her team.She will then discuss the evolution of poetic responses as the war progressed, focusing on themes such as children at war, the collapse of language and culture, displacement, resilience, and hope—organised into thematic clusters in the second anthology, 'Dislocation' (Slavica, 2024), co-edited with Anna Krushelnitskaya.Julia will also explore how poetic styles have adapted under the pressures of conflict and displacement, and how the third anthology she is currently working on will reflect these stylistic changes. Offering a nuanced perspective on the role of poetry in times of crisis, this talk will illuminate the power of poetry to document, resist, and respond to the tragedies and complexities of war.About the speakerJulia Nemirovskaya is a poet, prose writer, and literary scholar. She obtained her PhD from Moscow State University in 1991. Before emigrating to the US in 1991, she was a member of the renowned Kiril Kovaldzhi "New Wave Poets" seminar and the Moscow Poetry Club.She has published four collections of poetry and short stories, a novel, and a book on Russian cultural history, 'Inside the Russian Soul: A Historical Survey of Russian Cultural Patterns' (McGraw-Hill, 1997, 2001). Her work has appeared in Asymptote, GLAS, Literary Review, Znamya, LRS-Lettres Russes, Bonniers Litterära Magasin, and more, and has been translated into several European languages.Her plays (of which there are 26) have been staged in theaters across Russia, the United States, Germany, and France. Mother of three, she lives in the US, regularly travels to her youngest child's native Ethiopia, and teaches and directs student theater at the University of Oregon.How to attendThis event is open to all, and free to attend. No registration is necessary - just come along.Are you interested in studying European Languages and Cultures?Our interdisciplinary environment brings together specialists in nine European languages, and the many cultures worldwide in which they're spoken, with experts in film, literature, theatre, translation and intermediality. Working with colleagues elsewhere in LLC, and across the wider University, we are able to support research which crosses boundaries between disciplines and/or languages. Find out more about studying with us Feb 11 2025 17.30 - 19.00 From Disbelief to Dislocation: Russophone Authors Resisting Putin's War in Ukraine A talk by Russian poet Julia Nemirovskaya about her latest project on protest poetry off the back of the invasion of Ukraine in 2022. Lecture Theatre G.03 50 George Square University of Edinburgh EH8 9LH Find the venue: 50 George Square
Feb 11 2025 17.30 - 19.00 From Disbelief to Dislocation: Russophone Authors Resisting Putin's War in Ukraine A talk by Russian poet Julia Nemirovskaya about her latest project on protest poetry off the back of the invasion of Ukraine in 2022.
