ABSTRACT
This chapter introduces the “new mobilities paradigm” and argues for its application to the modern history of Russia, Central and East Europe. It charts the emergence of this approach in the context of the more established fields of travel literature studies, migration history, and the history of tourism, but notes that the “new mobilities paradigm” has not yet had much impact on the historiography of Russia, Central and East Europe. It is critical of the emphasis on Orientalist views of the region and claims that these have overestimated western hostility to the region and neglected the mobility of the region’s inhabitants. This chapter also suggests that an assumption of strong state control of movement in Russia has led to a neglect of many types of journeys within the region. It calls for historians to abandon the customary distinctions they have traditionally applied to journeys, based on purpose, duration or level of choice, and instead explore commonalities between them. Finally, it explains the specific contribution to the understanding of mobility of the twelve case studies included in the volume, which range from the eighteenth to the twenty-first centuries.
