From Palibino to Riviera: Narrative Rhythmanalysis of Sofia Kovalevskaya’s literary writings

In this paper I consider spatio/temporal rhythms in Sofia Kovalevskaya’s literary writings. Kovalevskaya was the first woman professor in mathematics in modern Europe with significant contributions in the mathematical sciences. But alongside her scientific work she also wrote novels, poetry and theatrical plays, following the idea that it is not possible to be a great mathematician without having ‘the soul of a poet’. Her literary writings were celebrated at her times and beyond, but research around her has mostly focused on her mathematical achievements. Kovalevskaya was an exemplary cosmopolitan subject of her times and geographies: she was born and grew up in Russia, studied in Germany, lived in Paris for extended periods of time and eventually settled down in Sweden, when she was offered an academic position in Stockholm University. The spatio/temporal rhythms of her lived experiences are thus beautifully entangled in the narrative modalities of her literary writings, and it is their flow, forces and energies that I follow in this paper through the beats of what I have configured as narrative rhythmanalysis. What I argue is that narrative rhythmanalysis brings to the fore the catalytic role of space/time/matter in literary creation, opening up new analytical paths and insights. As it engages with literary worlds and figures, narrative rhythmanalysis can never be conclusive however: it is rather a process, constantly unearthing new signs and meanings around subjects, their echo and their worlds.

This is an Accepted Manuscript of an article to be published by Taylor & Francis in Textual Practice and will be available at a designated DOI shortly.