Jane Austen in Russia?

[cn29 at COLUMBIA.EDU]

Dear Svetlana,

Thanks for bringing up the language issue.  As you will see from the
message I am resending below (which was rejected by SEELangs the
first time because, mea culpa, I left in all the attached
correspondence), I had the same reservations.  Please note my other
questions below.  And please keep the wonderful and informative help
coming.  I will summarize the answers I have received for the list
when the thread has run its course.  Regards, Cathy

Dear Miriam,

I am replying to the list, since a number of people have expressed
interest.
Thank you very much for this information, since it is something I
have
indeed been trying to find out.  Do you remember which Jane Austen
works
were there?  And did you get a close enough look to see the
publication
dates?  You point out that they were in English, which at least
suggests
they may have been there in Pushkin's time, since the French
translations,
if memory serves, did not come out until after Pushkin had graduated
from
the lycee.  Any further information would be greatly appreciated.

By the way, if anyone has an email address for the director of the
lycee,
I'd be grateful for the information.

And, at the risk of setting off another Pushkin thread, I'd be happy
to hear
thoughts on whether Pushkin might have been able to read Austen's
novels in
English when he was at the lycee.  I suspect not, but I'd be happy
to be
convinced otherwise.

Best wishes, Cathy


Quoting Svetlana Grenier <greniers at GEORGETOWN.EDU>:

> Dear Masha,
>
> Thank you for this very interesting piece of information.  Did
> you see
> what language Jane Austen's books were in, in the Litsej's
> library?
> Were they in French or English?  Because, of course, Pushkin did
> not
> learn English (to the extent he did learn it) until 1820s, as far
> as I
> remember.
>
> Svetlana Grenier
>
>
> Shrager, Miriam wrote:
>
> > Last summer I was visiting in Carskoe Selo and Licej. Among the
> > English books of Licej's library I saw Jane Austin's books. I
> was told
> > that the present museum library contains the original books
> which were
> > in Licej. If it is true, it means that Pushkin had access to
> Austin's
> > novels. Whether he indeed read them, I don't know. I don't
> recall it
> > being mentioned in his dairy.
> > There is also another possibility that these books were added
> to
> > Licej's library later. I would appreciate any information on
> that
> > subject.
> >
> > Best,
> > Miriam Shrager (Masha)
> >
> >
> >
> ------------------------------------------------------------------
>
>
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
>  Use your web browser to search the archives, control your
> subscription
>   options, and more.  Visit and bookmark the SEELANGS Web
> Interface at:
>                     http://seelangs.home.comcast.net/
>
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
>

-------------------------------------------------------------------------
 Use your web browser to search the archives, control your subscription
  options, and more.  Visit and bookmark the SEELANGS Web Interface at:
                    http://seelangs.home.comcast.net/
-------------------------------------------------------------------------