born Jan. 24, 1893, St. Petersburg, Russia
died Dec. 8, 1984, Moscow
Russian critic and novelist.
From 1914 he was a major voice in the critical movement called Russian Formalism , to which he contributed the concept of ostranenie , or "making it strange." He argued that literature is a collection of devices that force readers to view the world afresh by presenting old ideas or mundane experiences in new, unusual ways. His earlier works include the acclaimed memoir A Sentimental Journey (1923) and The Technique of the Writer's Craft (1928). Official Soviet displeasure with Formalism later obliged him to write within the constraints of Socialist Realism , and he published historical novels, film criticism, and highly praised literary studies.