Introduction

Abstract The introduction to The Secret Order of Shandeans provides the historical, cultural, and intellectual context for Laurence Sterne’s reception in Soviet Russia, particularly during the 1920s and 1930s. It examines the conditions under which Sterne’s works were published, translated, and interpreted. While emphasizing Viktor Shklovsky’s influential role in shaping Sterne’s reception through the Formalist concept of sternianstvo, it argues that Soviet engagement with Sterne extended well beyond the concerns of Russian Formalism. The chapter introduces several names, including Edvarda Kucherova, a Leningrad-based student of English and translation in the 1920s and a keen admirer of Sterne, and offers a brief overview of Sterne’s reception in pre-revolutionary Russia.