On Thursday, November 6, Northwestern’s Orthodox Christian Fellowship (NU OCF) hosted Professor Gary Saul Morson at Willard Residential College for a discussion about the exploration of faith in Russian literature. Professor Morson began the discussion by describing how 19th century Russian literature focused intensely on the meaning of good and evil, and what it means to believe in either. In response to students’ questions, Professor Morson shared insights from Tolstoy and Dostoevsky about how people, both real and fictional, can navigate the tension between belief and disbelief.

NU OCF was grateful for this opportunity to engage with Prof. Morson and learn more about what literature can teach us about faith. 

Anyone who is interested in joining or attending NU OCF can reach out to the group by email ocf.northwestern@gmail.com or Instagram @nu.ocf

The Evil in Russian Thought & Literature Conference Schedule is now available to view.

 

Congratulations to our outstanding graduate students!

Slavic Departmental Awards 2024-2025

RADULOVAKI AWARD

Congratulations to our undergraduate award winners for the 2024-2025 academic year!

 

Graduating seniors majoring in Slavic, from L-R: Izzy Mroczek, Henry Patton, Chris Skawiniak, Pete Wang, Kasia Ostrowski 

KULTURA I LINGVISTIKA HONOR IN RUSSIAN WINNERS

KULTURA I LINGWISTYKA HONOR IN POLISH WINNERS

IRWIN WEIL AWARD FOR OUTSTANDING ESSAYS IN SLAVIC LITERATURES AND CULTURES

RADULOVAKI AWARD 

The Slavic department was thrilled to once again invite the Northwestern community to take part in the Ancient Art of Pysanky.  On a Saturday morning in May, we all rolled up our sleeves and settled in for a spiritual and almost meditative 8hr experience. Phones were put away, and hollow eggs came alive with intricate hand-drawn designs - some inspired by traditional Ukrainian designs-, layers of beeswax and dyes while workshop participants from age 18 to 80 enjoyed the soothing chants of monks and each others' company.

Pysanky (pes-un-kee) is an ancient matriarchal folk art from Ukraine that uses eggs as a canvas.  Pysanky artist, Janet Hundrieser, led the workshop in a cultural presentation that grounded us all in the history and meaning of this rich Ukrainian folk art before moving onto the creative process of decorating our eggs. 

Some came to dive deeper into Slavic culture after taking Russian or Polish language classes, others because they had seen family Pysanka but hadn't taken part in it themselves, still others thought it just sounded fun.  Whatever the reason, workshop participants had a great time together celebrating the Ancient Art of Pysanky.

 

Photos above show student Vani Bansal's progression in making her Pysanka: pattern is drawn onto egg with wax, dipped into dye, pattern is added to with more wax and dipped into different colored dye.  When layered pattern is finished, the egg is warmed up to melt the wax off to reveal the final Pysanka.

Photos above show student Sophia Mitton Fry's dual design celebrating Spring.

Egg by Hyrum Rich	Egg by Katya Nogin	Eggs by Andi Griñé
Egg by Micah Sandy	Eggs by Deanne Puloka	Egg by Zeta Whitmer
Egg by Sophia Mitton-Fry	Eggs by Zeta Whitmer

This cultural workshop was made possible by the Xenia Youhon Memorial Fund.

Look out for our next Pysanky workshop and be added to the Slavic listserv by emailing slavic@northwestern.edu.  We'd love to see you there!

Professor Wilczewski and students from Intermediate Polish (POLISH 208) recently visited Staropolska Restaurant where they enjoyed authentic Polish food and practiced their language skills.

To register for the conference, please visit here.

On Friday, April 11, the Slavic Department hosted a joyful celebration of Nowruz, the Persian and Central Asian New Year. The event was co-organized by Professor McReynolds, Chair of the Slavic Department, and Bita Takrimi, a PhD student in Slavic Languages and Literatures, with co-sponsorship from Middle East and North African Studies (MENA) and the South Asia Research Forum (SARF). 

The event aimed to introduce the cultural and historical significance of Nowruz and showcase how it is celebrated. Guests enjoyed a vibrant program featuring live music and dance performances from Azerbaijan and Tajikistan, traditional Persian food, and activities such as egg painting, one of the cherished customs of the Nowruz. A beautifully arranged Haft-Seen table welcomed attendees, symbolizing hopes for prosperity, renewal, and joy in the new year. The celebration brought together students, faculty, and community members to honor cultural diversity and build cross-cultural connections through music, food, and shared tradition.

 

Dear Colleagues,

On behalf of the full editorial team, I am pleased to present the inaugural issue of Northwestern University Studies in Russian Philosophy, Literature and Religious Thought, the annual online, open-access journal of the Northwestern University Research Initiative in Russian Philosophy, Literature, and Religious Thought. Published by Northwestern University Libraries as an important digital humanities initiative, the journal will be distributed electronically to research libraries around the world. The journal is posted to our main website "Journal" tab here and has its own dedicated webpage.

The journal's publication is another significant milestone for the NU RPLRT Research Initiative. We have already begun work on the second volume (2025), which will feature articles first presented at our November 2024 conference co-sponsored by the Hamilton Center at the University of Florida: Religion, Human Dignity, and Human Rights: New Paradigms for Russia and the West. We hope that the third volume (2026) will feature articles from our summer 2025 conference at the University of Cambridge, Evil in Russian Thought and Literature.

We welcome submissions for research articles, critical and interpretive essays, reviews, and translations. Please send submissions to Susan McReynolds and Randall Poole.

 

Best wishes,

Brad Underwood

Associate Editor