Brian Kilgour

My research looks at the various ways tragedy appears in Russian literature, theater, and film of the 1920s. Key questions addressed by my research include the following: In what ways did contemporary art consider the Russian Revolution tragic? How did competing definitions of tragedy impact the art of the early Soviet era?What can Russian art of this period teach us about tragedy and social change today? I also write about Kazakh cinema of the 1960s and the ways it imagines and creates a modern Soviet Kazakh society. My interest in the Russophone world was strongly impacted by the time I spent in Ulan-Ude, a medium-sized city in southern Siberia. Having grown up on the plains of Kansas, I felt at home in the steppes of Buryatia, but it was the mix of Buryat and Russian culture that captivated me. In Buryatia, I experienced first hand the multi-national character of the Russian Federation and the importance of centering the periphery to understand modern Russia. This perspective serves as the foundation of my teaching and research.