In his paper, "Gustav Shpet's Literary and Theatre Theory," Galin Tihanov introduces Shpet's theoretical work on literature and theatre, until recently little studied. Neither has been sufficient attention paid to Shpet's overall presence on the Russian cultural scene in the 1910s-1930s. As a result, our knowledge and appreciation of the scope of his writings and the variety of Russian literary and theatre life in the first third of the twentieth century have remained less rich and well-informed than they could otherwise have been. Tihanov explains that Shpet's participation in contemporary literature and theatre assumed different forms: he wrote both from a theoretical perspective grounded in his overall aesthetics and through personal friendships and affiliations, as well as through his affiliation and activities he played an important part in a number of informal circles or more formally structured groupings such as the Moscow Linguistic Circle (these groups promoted literature, theatre, and scholarship), and last but not least, Shpet was active as the Russian translator of, and commentator on, several works belonging to the canon of English literature. Tihanov examines of Shpet's contribution in intersecting areas and assesses his contribution to literary and theatre theory in 1920s Russian culture.
