Keynote Address

Thursday, April 15, 6:30 — 8:00PM EDT

Dr. Yvonne Howell, University of Richmond

“The Geography of Joy: Alex Dubas, Voices of Russian Happiness, and the Art of Translation”

The keynote will be held via a Zoom webinar. Every person who wishes to attend MUST register INDIVIDUALLY in advance. You can register here.

It’s a cliché that the word “happiness” is not what springs to mind when one delves into Russian literature and culture. Yet, Alex Dubas (Latvian-Russian journalist and performer; host of Silver Rain radio in Moscow) hit a resonant chord with his recent book of first-person accounts of Moments of Happiness (Momenty schast’ia, ACT, 2016). The book has already been reissued several times, and it thrives as a performance piece in theaters as well. In this unusually happy (but actually rather serious) presentation, I will argue that Dubas’ documentary prose, while paradoxically similar to Svetlana Alexievich’s fiction/non-fiction, functions as an inquiry into what it means to be an urban, educated post-Soviet citizen in Russia today: primarily by trying on modes and definitions of “happiness” that one is not ashamed of, that one can aspire to, and that help one make sense of competing narratives about Russian national identity. Along the way, we will also revisit Jakobson’s characterization of “metaphorical” and “metonymic” axes of communication to illuminate the ways in which Moments of Happiness can work as either an emotionally evocative text, or as a unprecedented ethnographic text.

Plenary Panel

Friday, April 16,10:00 — 11:30AM EDT

The plenary panel will be held via a Zoom webinar. Every person who wishes to attend MUST register INDIVIDUALLY in advance. You can register here.

Dr. Hannah S. Chapman, Miami University

“Manufacturing Consent: The Politics of Showmanship in Putin’s Russia”

From call-in programs to reality shows following the daily life of Vladimir Putin, the Kremlin frequently utilizes entertainment as a means of shaping the political narrative. But do these strategies actually “manufacture consent” and improve public attitudes toward Putin and his regime? This talk examines the use of showmanship as a tool of regime resilience in Russia—and its potential long-run drawbacks.

Dr. Smoki Musaraj, Ohio University

“Temporalities of Concrete: Housing Imaginaries at the Margins of Europe”

Over the past decade, numerous protests have erupted in major cities in Albania, targeting new construction and urban redevelopment projects. These protests often use the idiom of anti-betonizim (anti-concrete-ization, from beton, concrete). The critique of the betonizim of the city tap onto different meanings associated with the material of concrete. Indeed, concrete has represented different temporalities in Albanian public discourse—from that of modernity and progress to that of authoritarianism and decay. In this presentation, I explore the changing temporalities of concrete in Albanian discourse from the communist period to the postcommunist period, noting continuities and shifts in the broader cultural imaginaries of the present and future of the city.

Dr. Karen Petrone, University of Kentucky

“War Memory as Entertainment in 21st Century Russia”

While it seems somewhat incongruous that remembrance of “The Great Patriotic War of the Fatherland,” which cost the Soviet Union 27 million lives, might be associated with joyful entertainment, it turns out that this is a common phenomenon in contemporary Russia. This paper will investigate contemporary Russian video games, 3-dimensional war dioramas and multi-media museum exhibits to explore connections between war memory, entertainment and leisure activities, and joyful affective attachments to the contemporary Russian nation.

Midwest Slavic Association Meeting

Friday, April 16, 5:15-5:45PM EDT

The Midwest Slavic Association will hold its annual meeting on Friday, April 16 at 5:15PM. During the meeting, the association will vote on new leadership, clarify any questions about the recently passed bylaws, and discuss any other pending matters. Join.

Student Events

Friday, April 16, 6:00 – 7:30PM EDT

Student Roundtable: Research and Academic Career Goals

This student roundtable will be an open discussion for a variety of topics related to research and academic career goals. Students will be able to discuss their own research interests, strategies for staying motivated and focused, how they stay connected with their colleagues both online and in-person, and more.

This event is open to all undergraduate and graduate students participating in or attending the Midwest Slavic Conference.

Please make sure to register for this event using this link.

Saturday, April 17, 6:00 – 7:30PM EDT

Virtual Student Mixer

Need to take a break from conference panels and want to meet other students in your field of study? Join us for the Midwest Slavic Conference’s student mixer. While we can’t meet in person this year, we welcome students to join us for a period of relaxation and fun where they can meet some of their fellow colleagues, talk shop, enjoy some informal conversation, and maybe even join in some online trivia.