Moscow Linguistic Circle

Moscow Linguistic Circle - an association of Russian philologists , operating in 1915 - 1924 .

The circle arose as an association of students of the historical and philological faculty of Moscow University at the Moscow Dialectological Commission ; The circle’s patron was supposed to be Academician Korsh , who died, however, before his work began. Soon, such outstanding scientists as S. I. Bernshtein , S. P. Bobrov , S. M. Bondi , O. M. Brik , N. I. Zhinkin , V. M. Zhirmunsky , S. O. joined the circle. Kartsevsky , M. M. Kenigsberg , A. M. Peshkovsky , E. D. Polivanov , B. V. Tomashevsky , Yu. N. Tynyanov , V. B. Shklovsky , G. G. Shpet , B. I. Yarkho N.S. Trubetskoy . The circle was attended by folklorists ( Yu. M. Sokolov , P. G. Bogatyrev ), and poets ( V. V. Mayakovsky , who first read “ 150 000 000 ” here, B. L. Pasternak , O. E. Mandelstam , N. N. Aseev ). The circle was chaired by Roman Jacobson (1915-1919), Mikhail Peterson (January - September 1920), Alexei Buslaev (1920-1922), Grigory Vinokur (1922-1923) and Nikolai Yakovlev (1923-1924).

Since 1919, the interests of MLK passed into the sphere of poetics and theory of poetic speech. In 1920, the circle numbered 34 full members and 3 honorary members (professors N. N. Durnovo , V. K. Porzhezinsky, and D. N. Ushakov ). In subsequent years, the number of full members grew to 51 (they included D. D. Blagoy , F. M. Vermel , B. V. Gornung , S. Ya. Mase , A. I. Romm , B. V. Shergin , Vl.B. Shklovsky , R.O. Shor ), as well as 12 competing members (employees), including N.V. Vakhmistrova-Reformed , D. E. Mikhalchi , A. A. Reformatsky , A. I Smirnitsky , A. M. Sukhotin , E. B. Tager .

The work of the circle was defined as laboratory. In 1915-1918, classes in dialectology , folklore , and ethnography predominated; In 1919-1922, interests moved to the field of poetics , poetry and the theory of poetic speech. This was facilitated by the rapprochement of the circle with the OPOYAZ . However, despite the adoption of the OPOIAZ terminology and methodology (as well as the publishing brand) by the circle, there were differences between both groups of both a theoretical and a problematic nature: the circle considered the art form to a greater extent not as something valuable, but as a linguistically conditioned, functionally organized phenomenon (“Poetic linguistics”, “poetic dialectology”, “language in its poetic function.” Since 1922 there has been a reorientation of the circle, on the one hand to a purely linguistic study without words languages ​​of the North Caucasus ( N.F. Yakovlev , L.I. Zhirkov ), on the other - on the LEF ( G. O. Vinokur ), on the third - on the State Academy of Arts ( G. G. Shpet , B.V. Gornung), as a result of which, circa 1925, the activities of the circle ceased.

The Moscow Linguistic Circle in a certain sense (through Jacobson and Trubetskoy) is the forerunner of the Prague Linguistic Circle ; his ideas contributed to the creation of such associations in a number of countries.

The expeditions of its members (F. N. Afremov, P. G. Bogatyrev, G. G. Dinges, B. V. Shergin, N. F. Yakovlev) to collect dialect materials and take notes of folklore texts played an important role in the circle’s activities. Due to the difficulties in publishing, much of what was created in the circle remained only in the archives, and the main way of disseminating the ideas of the circle was oral narration.