In A Sentimental Mode: The Literary and Philosophical Strains of Dissent in Alexander Radischev's Journey from St. Petersburg to Moscov

Abstract

The act of traveling lends perspective and provides the sojourner with unexpected novelties. In the case of Alexander Radishchev, the fictional written account of an anonymous traveler became a medium for political and literary expression in Imperial Russia under Catherine the Great. His most famous work, the sentimental travelogue Journey from St. Petersburg to Moscow, served as a form of critical examination, not just of the locations between two cities, but of the political and social landscape during the twilight decades of the 18th century. His enlightenment-based critique was, however limited in its effectiveness.