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Abstract: The subject of the research is the works by Maximilian Voloshin as a literary critic. Russian poet and critic interpreted the image of French literature of the early XXth century. “We are on the turn” was a formula that Voloshin repeated many times in his works. However he did not use the term “ruрture” (a gap), which many literary scholars used. Voloshin made an accent on the traditions and dynamics in modern literary process. French literary scholars highly estimate the erudition of the Russian poet and they believed that Voloshin had analyzed all avant-garde schools, all ‘isms’ of the European culture. The article shows, that M. Voloshin was not interested in the so-called ‘isms’ or trends at all: the Russian poet had always looked for the individual voice. The research perspective is the comparison of transformations in literature of the beginning of the twentieth century with the controversial issues of the literary process of different decades and periods. The article describes the scope of interest of the Russian critic: A. France, J. Huysmans, P. Verlaine, E. Verhaeren, G. Apollinaire, P. Claudel, A. Gide, R. de Gourmont, V. de l'Isle Adam, H. de Régnier, and others. Such an aspect provides an opportunity to approach new generalization, as far as different literary phenomena are concerned. As many of his French colleagues, the poet emphasized that the world of the inner contradictions cannot be achieved without the references to the Russian classical literature — L. Tolstoy and F. Dostoevsky. Voloshin’s participation in the literary life of Paris, his friendship with many French writers allowed him to understand the very reasons of the process of the artistic evolution. The materials of the article can be used in University lecture courses in Russian and foreign literature.