Combination of the Noncompatible: K.P. Pobedonostsev and the Cultural Figures of the Silver Age

Abstract

In the article the author examines the attitude of the main actors of the Silver Age culture to the Chief Procurator of the Holy Synod K.P. Pobedonostsev, one of the most famous conservative statesmen of that time, as well as the perception of this era by Pobedonostsev himself. The author demonstrates that the interest of writers, artists and publicists at the turn of the century to this fi gure was caused by their desire to fi nd a living, fi gurative and symbolic embodiment of autocratic statehood. The head of the clerical department, who played a signifi cant role in the political life of Russia in the 1880s – early 1900s, stubbornly blocking attempts at liberal reforms throughout this period, was the best suited for the role of such an incarnation. There were also certain ideological prerequisites for the cooperation of certain cultural fi gures of the Silver Age with the Chief Procurator. Those prerequisites were associated with their general dislike for the ideological legacy of the 1860s and 1870s, the principles of utilitarianism, positivism and sociopolitical radicalism. However, in the end, such cooperation did not become long and lasting, since the activities of Pobedonostsev were based on fundamentally different worldview principles than those of the Silver Age cultural fi gures.