Can Art Fight War? A Presentation on the Siege of Leningrad by Polina Barskova

Polina Barskova, Associate Professor of Russian Literature at Hampshire College and one of Russia's most famous poets, presents The Living Pictures, a collection of short stories, essays, and a play that explore life during the World War II–era siege of Leningrad. The Living Pictures brought Barskova the Andrei Bely Prize, Russia’s oldest independent literary award, in November 2015, and has drawn praise from numerous critics. Polina Barskova received her B.A. from St. Petersburg State University and her M.A. and Ph.D. from the University of California at Berkeley. Her scholarly publications include articles on Nabokov, the Bakhtin brothers, early Soviet film, and the aestheticization of historical trauma, primarily, culture of the Siege of Leningrad (1941-1944). She is the author of eight books of poetry and one book of prose in Russian. Three books of her poetry in English translation have been published recently: This Lamentable City (Tupelo Press), Zoo in Winter (Melville House Press), and Relocations (Zephyr Press). Moderated by Alexis Peri, Assistant Professor of History at Boston University.