Satira politica ed educazione alla democrazia in "Putevyja čudesnyja priključenija barona Mjunchauzena" ("Le mirabolanti avventure di viaggio del barone di Münchhausen", 1860)

POLITICAL SATIRE AND EDUCATING FOR DEMOCRACY IN PUTEVYJA ČUDESNYJA PRIKLJUČENIJA BARONA MJUNCHAUZENA (THE AMAZING TRAVEL ADVENTURES OF BARON MUNCHAUSEN, 1860) In 1860 Trübner & Co., London first publish Putevyja čudesnyja priključenija barona Mjunchauzena (The Amazing Travel Adventures of Baron Munchausen). It is a free adaptation of the famous Adventures, written originally in English. It is also the very first edition in Russian in which the name of the renowned Baron’s name appears. The project originated at the Free Russian Press, the publishers founded in London by Aleksandr Herzen in 1853, which was strongly supported by Nicholas Trübner. In 1859 his publishing house brought out a quality edition of The Travels and Surprising Adventures of Baron Munchausen, illustrated by A. Crowquill (A.H. Forrester’s pseudonym). It is this edition that is the source for the Russian version under examination, which, while shorter, faithfully reflects the essence of the original English edition. This is particularly the case in its critical approach to the current political, economic and social reality. In the Russian edition, the Baron’s Russian adventures are expanded considerably, providing an ideal opportunity for acute attacks on the autocratic tsarist system, the orthodox church and the general corruptness of Russia’s élite. Moreover, this edition is specifically intended for Russian children. Indeed, the text of Adventures carries a preface (reproduced in the Appendices alongside an Italian translation), signed with the initials K.M., which addresses the issue of educating a young audience. The author of the preface embraces the same educational ethos as Herzen himself, believing that in the near future they will finally see the realisation of the universal democratic ideals of justice, freedom and fraternity, ideals the text makes its own and promotes. The book, imported into Russia illegally, struggled to achieve success. This is clearly evident in the scarcity of copies found in Russian libraries today. A few copies are still to be found elsewhere in the West, one of which is to be found at the Gabinetto Scientifico Letterario G.P. Vieusseux in Firenze, though sadly, lacking a frontispiece and the preface this copy has been wrongly catalogued.