To what extent were the reforms of Tsar Alexander II genuine?

The word genuine is ambiguous and as such it is impossible to say whether the emancipation of the serfs was Tsar Alexander II’s only genuine reform. To ascertain a response to this question two meanings will be considered, genuine in the sense that it was an act of pure altruism and genuine in the sense that it was effective. With these definitions in mind, the emancipation of the serfs was not Alexander II’s only genuine reform, firstly because it was not itself genuine, and secondly because he had other reforms that better fit the definition of genuine, such as those of education and the legal system.

The motives for the emancipation lay in progress for the sake of Russia’s recovery and in strengthening the new Tsar, while its outcomes were mostly ineffectual and in some cases detrimental to Russian society and the serfs themselves. He had several other reforms that can be described as far more genuine, not least those of the education and legal systems of Russia and therefore even if one was to consider the emancipation of the serfs as genuine, it was not his only genuine reform.