The image of Beijing in travelogues of Russian literature in the 1920s: A gender aspect.

Abstract

This article examines Russian travelogues of the 1920s about China in the context of the gender aspect in literary studies. The study is based on two travelogues written by women writers - ‘7000 Kilometres by Air’ (1926) by Z. V. Richter and ‘Sketches of China’ (1927) by G. I. Serebryakova. The article analyses in detail the writers’ understanding of the conflict between the traditional way of life in China and modern trends in Beijing during the period of serious historical changes, the descriptions of traditional customs, social problems in the process of modernization and the women’s social status development. Comparing these travelogues with the works of male writers, the researcher concludes that Z. V. Richter and G. I. Serebryakova pay more attention to the fate and status of women in Beijing society than male writers do. They note that upper-class women follow European fashions, while the fate of women from the lower strata of society remained unchanged; at the same time, the movement for women’s emancipation became more vigorous due to the emergence of women revolutionaries. The description of the Beijing society modernization by female writers is more subjective, emotional and plot-oriented than the narrative of male writers.