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For a long time, the Russian literary prizes that were created in the 1990s had a bad reputation. Apart from the fact that they were repeatedly connected with scandalous decisions & influenced by literary struggles over direction, they gave rise to doubts as to whether the highly decorated works really possessed first-class aesthetic qualities & the kind of social relevance expected from outstanding artistic achievements. The longstanding practice of ignoring works that were socially & politically explosive seems to have been broken. The great literary prizes for 2006 confirm that the increasing tendency of the Russian novel towards politicization is finding resonance in jurors' decisions. The novel 2017 by Ol'ga Slavnikova & San'kia by Zakhar Prilepin are perfect examples of this. After the demise of the Soviet Union, it appeared as if literary life in Russia could be promoted mainly by new literary prizes no longer managed by the state. The media praises the institutionalization of the Buker (which, like its role model, the British Booker Prize, is supposed to be awarded to the best novel of the year), the creation of the Triumf (which is to recognize high achievements in all areas of the arts), & the establishment of countless other prizes. Adapted from the source document.