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Abstract:

The article considers the integrating context of scandalous and trendy literary collections Zemlya (20 books, 1908–1917) using gender optics. The theme of sex and gender, the philosophical reflection on femininity by the male authors of the collections are represented via the image of the “new” woman, which is central and forms the internal context. The analysis of the literary works is complemented by the examination of the reviews written by the critics of the Silver Age. The reevaluation of moral and religious values in the works of the authors of Zemlya (L. Andreyev, A. Kuprin, M. Artsybashev, V. Vinnichenko, N. Krasheninnikov, E. Chirikov) influenced by the ideas of V. Solovyov, F. Nietzsche, and K. Marx is reflected in the hyperbolization or subversion of the normative concepts of femininity: a woman is either idolized as the incarnation of the Eternal Feminine, the Virgin savior of the world, or is reduced to the position of a female predator, which is guided only by sexual instinct. Of particular interest are images of rebel women: “intelligent” prostitutes and revolutionary superwomen.