Image courtesy of Katharine Hodgson

Strengthening of collaborations between Exeter and Peking University in study of Russian literature and culture

Earlier this academic year, Professor Katharine Hodgson from the Modern Languages Department attended a conference on the Russian poet Mikhail Lermontov, hosted by the Department of Russian Language and Literature, of the Faculty of Modern Languages at Peking University in China.

2014 marked the 200th anniversary of Lermontov’s birth and Professor Katharine Hodgson was delighted to present a paper on the first day of this prestigious conference. Both academic staff and postgraduate students from a number of Chinese universities attended the conference, and important relationships were forged. Katharine said, “The Lermontov conference was a wonderful occasion for sharing with Chinese colleagues, through our common language of Russian, a fascination with Lermontov’s poetry. Colleagues and postgraduates at Peking University were most welcoming. Contact between Chinese and European Slavists is unfortunately still rare, so it was a privilege to have the chance to meet colleagues and discover the depth and liveliness of their engagement with Russian culture.”

In a reciprocal visit, the College was delighted to welcome Professor Li Xinmei from Fudan University to Exeter at the start of March. Professor Li’s major research areas include contemporary Russian prose fiction and Russian émigré culture in Shanghai, a topic on which Prof Li spoke during her visit.

The research synergies shared by Russian colleagues in China and Exeter are exciting developments in the College’s ongoing commitment to increasing Exeter’s international research standing. In the upcoming months Dr Muireann Maguire will attend a conference in Xi’an University, China and the College will welcome Professor Wang Xinyi, Dean of the Department of Russian Language and Literature at Peking University.

Date: 20 March 2015

Read more University News