As minister of education and president of the Academy of Sciences, Count Sergei Uvarov was one of the most important statesmen in nineteenth-century Russia. But, because he has often been labeled as a reactionary and sycophant, his ideas and policies have tended to be dismissed as examples of the bankruptcy of the Russian "cold regime."

Whittaker's intellectual biography, based on research in Russia and Finland, offers a striking reinterpretation of Uvarov's career and of the quality of Russian intellectual life in his age and in assuring his country's place in the mainstream of European educational development. With its wealth of new insights, The Origins of Modern Russian Education will be of interest to readers, specialists and nonspecialists alike who are concerned with nineteenth-century Russia and with the history of education in general.

About the Author

Cynthia H. Whittaker is Professor of History at Baruch College of the City University of New York. She is the author of Russian Monarchy among other works.

Reviews

This book is an important contribution to historical scholarship, rich both in pertinent details and insightful observations on the labyrinthine complexities of the political structure of Russian society.

* Slavic Review *

Whittaker has demonstrated beyond possibility of debate that the traditional picture of Uvarov the reactionary is simply wrong and must be revised. There was a need for a soundly researched, intelligently conceived, and clearly presented biography of Uvarov. Whittaker's book meets that need quite completely.

* Russian Review *

For those interested in the history of Russian education this book is an invaluable source of information on the first half of the nineteenth century.

* Scottish Slavonic Review *

This book is well written and thoroughly researched, with a wealth of documentary support. Whittaker's "revisionism" rings true.

* Canadian Slavonic Papers *

This volume is a stimulating intellectual experience providing many insights into the origins and development of Russian education and it explains many of the contradictions still found there.

* Choice *

Cynthia Whittaker's excellent book is a tour de force of the educational, intellectual, and social history of Russia from 1800 until the Russian Revolution.

* Vitae Scholasticae *



Book Information
ISBN 9780875809847
Author Cynthia H. Whittaker
Format Paperback
Page Count 358
Imprint Northern Illinois University Press
Publisher Cornell University Press
Weight(grams) 907g
Dimensions(mm) 229mm * 152mm * 24mm