The significance of the animal "other" to human self-definition and identity is oft-noted and of increasing interest to scholars in the humanities and social sciences. While recent research on the role of animals in shaping human culture, society, and historical experience has resulted in a number of interdisciplinary studies, the majority of these works focus on Western Europe and North America and are silent about the place of the animal in Europe's “other” history and culture, namely that of Russia. On the periphery of the European experience, and straddling the land masses of Europe and Asia,

Russian culture is marked by preoccupations with issues of identity, marginalization, and uniqueness that extend the basic human concern with an “animal other” to more generalized patterns of self-definition.

Sponsored by Bates College and the College of Liberal Arts and Human Sciences at Virginia Tech, "The Other Animals" brings together an international team of scholars from a range of disciplinary fields, including anthropology, communication studies, literature, history, folklore and religious studies to present research and engage in discussions about the significance of animals in Russian history and culture. The goal of the conference is to identify themes and questions specific to the Russian experience, as well as the advantages and limitations of comparative perspectives.