内容简介

1839年法国作家屈斯蒂纳开启俄国之行。此行是受到巴尔扎克的鼓励，更主要的刺激来自托克维尔，后者在1835年出版《论美国的民主》并获得巨大赞誉。托克维尔在书中不情愿地承认美国模式不可避免的胜利，同为贵族和保守派的屈斯蒂纳对此却表示怀疑，想通过俄国与美国之间的对称式比较来否定这一观点。从7月10日抵达圣彼得堡，8月3日到达莫斯科，到10月1日回到柏林，他在俄国待了不到三个月，不会说俄语，而且旅行中一直受到政府官员的保护和监视。不过之后他却写出了一份长篇旅行记录，用三十六封信来呈现他的俄国之行。

本书是屈斯蒂纳最为著名的作品，甚至被认为是托克维尔《论美国的民主》的俄国对应。19世纪俄国思想家赫尔岑称该书为迄今最了解俄国的著作，20世纪美国外交家乔治·凯南称其为对俄国的最佳描述。可以说，本书不仅具有历史的重要性，而且具有持续的当代意义，不断被广泛阅读和研究。

除了以优美的文笔生动地描述宫廷、街头和乡村的生活，作者还收集了关于法院、贵族和上层资产阶级，以及行政、科学和民俗的资料，整体呈现19世纪中叶沙皇俄国的风貌，让我们获得另一个渠道，了解被伟大的俄国文学描写过的那个国家。

作者简介

作者|阿斯托尔夫·德·屈斯蒂纳（1790—1857）

生于法国大革命开始的时候，卒于第二帝国时期。他的父亲被处死在断头台上，他和母亲侥幸在恐怖年代活了下来。作为小有名气的诗人和小说家，屈斯蒂纳因为发表了两本游记《斐迪南七世统治下的西班牙》和《俄国来信》而赢得了认可，后一本游记对沙皇俄国专制制度的根源和特点作了意义深远的分析。

译者|李晓江

北京大学哲学博士。爱书。教书、读书之余，亦以译书为乐。译有《失败的帝国：从斯大林到戈尔巴乔夫》《朱可夫：斯大林的将军》《斯大林的战争》《春之祭》等。主要译介与俄国历史相关的著作。

Content introduction

In 1839, the French writer Kustina began a trip to Russia. The trip was encouraged by Balzac, and even more stimulated by Tocqueville, who in 1835 published on Democracy in America to great acclaim. While Tocqueville reluctantly acknowledged the inevitable victory of the American model, Kustina, a fellow aristocrat and conservative, was skeptical and sought to negate this view by drawing a symmetrical comparison between Russia and the United States. From his arrival in St. Petersburg on July 10, Moscow on August 3, to his return to Berlin on October 1, he spent less than three months in Russia, did not speak Russian, and was constantly protected and monitored by government officials during his travels. Later, however, he wrote a long account of his travels, describing his Russian travels in thirty-six letters.

This is Kustina's most famous work and is even considered a Russian counterpart to Tocqueville's Democracy in America. The 19th century Russian thinker Herzen called it the best understanding of Russia ever written, and the 20th century American diplomat George Kennan called it the best description of Russia. It can be said that this book is not only of historical importance, but also of continuing contemporary significance, and continues to be widely read and studied.

In addition to beautifully written descriptions of court, street, and village life, the author has also collected information on the courts, the nobility, and the upper bourgeoisie, as well as administrative, scientific, and folkloric sources, which give a general picture of Tsarist Russia in the mid-nineteenth century, giving us yet another channel to understand the country described by the great Russian literature.

About the author

By | Astorf de Kustina (1790-1857)

Born at the beginning of the French Revolution, died during the Second Empire. His father was executed on the guillotine, and he and his mother survived the terror. A poet and novelist of minor renoir, Kustina won recognition for his two travelographies-Spain under Ferdinand VII and Letters from Russia-which provided a profound analysis of the roots and characteristics of the authoritarian system in Tsarist Russia.

Translator | Li Xiaojiang

Ph.D., Peking University. Loves books. Besides teaching and reading, he also takes pleasure in translating books. He has been translated into Failed Empires: From Stalin to Gorbachev, Zhukov: Stalin's General, Stalin's War, The Rite of Spring and other books. He mainly translates works related to Russian history.