Publičnye literaturnye čtenija kak projavlenie kul’tury epochi Velikich reform

This article examines the history of public literary readings in Russia as a characteristic phenomenon of the era of the Great Reforms, from their origins in the early 1860s to their evolution in the 1870s—1880s. Employing different sources, including archival materials, letters, and remembrances, the author reconstructs aspects related to their organization, execution, critical debate in the press, audience composition, and public’s reaction. The second part of the article focuses on repertoires and elocutionary techniques, following the example of two eminent readers, Ivan Turgenev and Fyodor Dostoevsky.