Moscow Linguistic Circle
Quick Summary
The Moscow Linguistic Circle was a Russian school of literary criticism founded in 1915, alongside OPOYAZ (Society for the Study of Poetic Language) in 1916. Both groups were key to the development of Formalism, an innovative 20th-century literary movement.1
Formalists emphasized the form and technique of literature, believing that art could "defamiliarize" everyday language and perception. They focused on the unique qualities of literature as an autonomous art form, analyzing how "literariness" distinguished poetry and narrative from other discourse. While influential in the Soviet Union until 1929, Formalism later gained prominence in the West, particularly through the work of linguist Roman Jakobson.1
Ask Britannica AI about this topic
Britannica doesn't have a full article on this topic, so we've curated a list of our relevant coverage.
- Formalism
…by Viktor Shklovsky; and the Moscow Linguistic Circle, founded in 1915. Other members of the groups included Osip Brik, Boris Eikhenbaum, Yury Tynianov, and Boris Tomashevsky.
Read More…by Viktor Shklovsky; and the Moscow Linguistic Circle, founded in 1915. Other members of the groups included Osip Brik, Boris Eikhenbaum, Yury Tynianov, and Boris Tomashevsky.
Read More 
RussiaThe 20th centuryMembers of the Moscow Linguistic Circle and of OPOYAZ (Obshchestvo Izucheniya Poeticheskogo Yazyka; Society for the Study of Poetic Language) in Petrograd (now St. Petersburg) combined to create Formalist literary criticism (see Formalism), a movement that concentrated on analyzing the internal structure of literary texts. At the
Read MoreMembers of the Moscow Linguistic Circle and of OPOYAZ (Obshchestvo Izucheniya Poeticheskogo Yazyka; Society for the Study of Poetic Language) in Petrograd (now St. Petersburg) combined to create Formalist literary criticism (see Formalism), a movement that concentrated on analyzing the internal structure of literary texts. At the
Read More