Academic Domesticity: Juri Lotman as a Scholar and Mentor from Lectures on Structural Poetics to Conversations on Russian Culture

• In Event: The Art and Science of Teaching: Authors and Filmmakers as Educators

Abstract

Juri Lotman’s intellectual trajectory as a scholar of literature and culture is well-documented, yet his reputation as a lecturer—while widely recognized—has received far less scholarly attention. Even less explored are the interconnections between his research and pedagogical practices. This paper examines how Lotman’s academic work blended institutional forms of teaching and mentorship within the late Soviet university system. His general and special topic courses attracted audiences well beyond their intended scope, while his research seminars often took place at home rather than in a formal classroom. Lotman’s academic writing shaped his teaching, and vice versa: for example, his Lectures on Structural Poetics (1964), as the book’s title suggests and its summary states, is “a revised course of lectures delivered at Tartu University in 1958-1963.” His communication strategy blurred the lines between a public talk and a home conversation. Notably, his widely broadcast TV lecture series, Conversations on Russian Culture (1986-1991), was filmed not in a studio or university setting but in his own apartment, reinforcing the interplay between academic and domestic spaces. By tracing these dynamics, my study explains why this approach resonated so strongly with various audiences and how it contributed to Lotman’s success as a scholar, a university lecturer, and a public intellectual.

Author

• Igor Pilshchikov, UCLA