The image of the Sakhalin penal servitude of the late XIX – early XX centuries in perception of the foreigners
The goal of this article is to examine the images of the Sakhalin penal servitude captured in the works of foreigners who visited the island in the late XIX – early XX centuries. The perception of foreigners draw interests due to the fact that not only the Sakhalin penal servitude, but the island itself were the embodiment of the image of “Other”, which found reflection in the narrative sources left by foreign travelers and scholars. The comparative analysis indicates that foreigners had two polar opinions about the Sakhalin penitentiary facilities, a well as the future of the island: optimistic and pessimistic. In many aspects, they neither contradicted nor complemented each other; the polemic that unfolded around the development of Sakhalin Island of that time divided the Russian society into two opposing sides. Some, relying to the positive forecasts of geologists and agronomists, as well as military necessity, offered bright prospects of the Island. Others pointed at mismatch of the official data and the reality, and doubted the positive outcome. The question of detaining criminals on Sakhalin, including state prisoners, aggravated the situation and intensified disputes. The article aims to explain the reason why one or another foreign author took the side of the “optimists” or “pessimists” in the polemics.