The Outward Turn: Geocoding the Expansion of Fictional Space in Russian 19th Century Literature

We examine the large-scale geospatial dynamics of Russian prose literature in the 19th century. Specifically, we analyze how the distribution of location mentions shifts from the early 19th-century romantic era to the late 19th-century realist period. We demonstrate how realist literature, with its emphasis on portraying ’typical characters in typical settings’, moves away from the historical (and often heavily mythologized) landscapes of Russia, Poland, Ukraine, and the Baltics. Instead, it increasingly focuses on the then-new capital, Saint Petersburg, as well as Western Europe and the expanding eastern and southern peripheries of Russia, reflecting the country’s ongoing military and economic expansion.