William Shakespeare's sonnets are among the remarkable examples of lyric poetry of the Renaissance. In total, Shakespeare created 154 sonnets. Most of the works reveal the theme of love, but many of them are devoted to friendship, philosophical reflections, and sometimes they reflect questions artistic creativity. Sonnets occupy a special place in Shakespeare's rich heritage. They were not created by the author for publication, but were intended only for certain people from the poet’s inner circle. Shakespeare began writing sonnets in the 1590s, when this genre of poetry became fashionable.
A distinctive feature of Shakespeare's sonnets is the transmission of the subtlest human experiences in colorful, sometimes unexpected images. Shakespeare's poems differ from many other sonnet cycles of the Renaissance in that they prioritize friendship over love. Friendship was considered the ideal form of relationship because it is free from sensuality. This is clearly expressed in many of Shakespeare's sonnets. In some of them, Shakespeare protests against the tradition of idealized portrayals of women, as has been customary in lyric poetry since the days of courtly literature. For example, in the famous 130th sonnet, the author boldly contrasts the appearance of his beloved with a stereotyped poetic portrait of a beauty.
Shakespeare's sonnet 66 gives a grim assessment of the morals of a society dominated by lies and injustice. Shakespeare repeats these thoughts through the lips of Hamlet in his famous monologue “To be or not to be.”
In terms of mood, Shakespeare's sonnets are closer to the second stage of his work, when the imperfection of the world structure and people's lives was revealed to the poet. His sonnets are confessional in nature. Examples of poetic confession can be found in many great poets. You can recall Pushkin’s poem dedicated to Anna Kern, “I remember a wonderful moment...”. Poetry raises the artist above the level of everyday life. In poetry, the phenomena of life acquire ideal beauty.
Shakespeare's sonnets reveal complex personal relationships, admiration for human perfection and noble friendship. One of them describes love for a certain dark-skinned woman with an elusive soul. Shakespeare thinks on the scale of eternity and at the same time conveys the feelings of a small, fragile, easily wounded human being.
The art of composing sonnets dates back four centuries before Shakespeare. According to the rules of sonnet lyrics, one had to express thoughts and feelings in 14 lines with a predetermined rhyme scheme. Among Shakespeare's first dozen sonnets, there are many that resemble poems on a given topic. These are, for example, the first 17 sonnets, where the poet persuades his friend to marry and have children. One can only be amazed at the imagination of the poet, who finds so many options for expressing the same thought.
The theme of many of Shakespeare's sonnets is the transience of time, the doom of everything beautiful to wither and die. This theme was very common in Renaissance poetry, but Shakespeare found new artistic means to express it.
Gradually, Shakespeare began to violate the canons of sonnet lyrics. He introduced living passions into the conventional form of a sonnet and illuminated topics that were unpoetic according to the concepts of that time.
If Shakespeare looked at his sonnets as works of intimate lyricism, then for us they have a deeper meaning. Personal feelings reflect the time in which the poet lived. The sonnets show tragedy the best people Renaissance. The lyrical hero first lives in an ideal world, but later he experiences the same collapse of illusions as Hamlet, like Shakespeare himself - the tragedy of the collapse of humanism. The truth of life turns out to be harsh, its experiences are painful for those who believed in the imminent triumph of beauty and reason.
The language of Shakespeare's sonnets is close to living speech; it contains many figurative comparisons taken from everyday life. In his lyrics, Shakespeare used artistic techniques that were suitable for revealing the theme. He did not belong to any school or movement.
The best translations of Shakespeare's sonnets are those by S. Ya. Marshak, which he made in the 1940s and for which he received the State Prize. Marshak managed to achieve the integrity of the impression produced by each sonnet. The poet reproduced the elasticity and energy of Shakespeare's poems, showing their precision and aphorism. In essence, Marshak gave these works new life. The significance of Shakespeare's sonnets is still enormous in both world and Russian literature.
Mikhail Yuryevich Lermontov is considered one of the founders. Chekhov and Tolstoy studied from his books, and Bunin and Akhmatova were inspired by his poems. The mastery of words fascinates the reader even today, setting the highest bar for anyone who thinks of himself as a Russian writer.
Hero of his time
Lermontov - poet of the most powerful era literary development and the most severe political reaction. His rich heritage and the main literary works of his life fit into one decade of the nineteenth century. The thirties are a time of anxious forebodings, sad thoughts about the future, denial and regrets. At this time, there is still a reaction to the defeat of the Decembrist revolutionaries who acted in 1825.
Society is rushing about in search of an answer to the question of what to do, without fully accepting the harsh reality of the new military system. introduces a third secret police department, every word is censored, the names of aristocrats are branded. All these realities are completely denied by young people. Maximalism and denial become part of the new philosophy, the path of which young Mikhail embarks on.
The Duality of Literature
Realism is affirmed in literature, which feeds the originality of Lermontov’s work. Russian realism was surprisingly complemented by its antonym - romanticism. And it was the young master of words who managed to uniquely combine these two directions, creating masterpieces in poetry, drama, and prose.
The birth of a poetic character
Poetry in Lermontov's work is divided by researchers into two stages: youth and adulthood. the lyrical hero has clearly defined personality traits character of an inner romantic surrounded by the outside world.
While Mikhail was inspired by Byron's work, his heroes turned out to be more idealized. Later he finds his way, which includes a tragic love story and no friendship. Life is presented in the image of thinking alone. This motive distinguishes him from Pushkin.
At the very center of the conflict lies the black year of Russia, which runs counter to the romantic views of the hero. Thus, harsh reality begins to control the subtle inner lyrical world. It is in this confrontation that the tragic originality of M. Yu. Lermontov’s work is born. Moreover, over the years this conflict only increases. This should give the lyrics pessimism and skepticism, which is observed in the work of other classics, for example, Baratynsky. However, Lermontov’s “inner man” continues his movement and development, striving for high values. This is another one distinguishing feature poet.
Loneliness in Lermontov's work is a way to restore balance in your soul. The ideals of the lyrical hero seem unnatural to the author himself; he speaks of a “strange love” for his homeland, says that he was not created for people. The lyricist doesn’t just find people’s misunderstanding, it seems that he is specifically looking for it.
The path of a poet who lives outside of social pleasures was described by Pushkin. But the theme of poetry in Lermontov’s work introduces a dialogue with the “inner man” into Russian lyrics. This concept was introduced by Belinsky as a synonym for lyrical hero. His presence is an innovative feature of future symbolism, because the image of a poetic character is transformed into a symbol over time.
Inner imagism
It is with artistic metaphors that the nature of Lermontov’s poem begins. Suffice it to recall the “Sail” of 1832. The author uses the same technique in the poems “Cliff”, “Heavenly Clouds”, “In the Wild North” and so on.
Lermontov's life and work are permeated with motifs of conflicts between freedom and will, eternal memory and oblivion, deception and love, cynicism and peace, earth and sky. All topics are interconnected and intertwined with one another, creating a multifaceted art style author.
Belinsky described the poet's lyrics as pathetic because of the questions posed in them about individual rights, fate and morality. However, the critic notes that these themes are immortal and always in demand.
The uniqueness of the language
The uniqueness of Lermontov's language can best be understood by analyzing his works. In the poem “Sail” is an expression of sadness, sadness, anticipation of a storm in the meaning of struggle. At the same time, it is not clear what exactly this struggle is about; it remains unclear what it should lead to.
The words “Alas! He is not looking for happiness” occupy the strongest final position of the verb of motion. “And he is not running from happiness,” this is one of the semantic centers of the work. It turns out that struggle and anxiety of the spirit are companions of the desire for an unattainable ideal, a rejection of what has been achieved.
“Sail” is a kind of drawing of the author’s artistic world, on the example of which one can see the originality of Lermontov’s work. Romantic opposition to a personality that has forever lost its harmonious integrity.
For example, the double negative in the lines “No, it’s not you I love so passionately,” which speaks of intense feelings and the search for an opportunity to relieve love tension. The originality of Lermontov's creativity is a way to raise the individual above the contradictions of life, and not to plunge him into conflict, as it might seem at first glance. Even the irreconcilable struggle of life and death in his works elevates the human spirit above circumstances.
The rebellious soul of the "inner man"
The poetic language of the lyrics expresses the rebellious inner world of the hero. “The Death of a Poet”, “Three Palms”, “Cossack Lullaby”, “Hero of Our Time” - this is pathetic tension and restlessness. At the same time, in all lines there is amazing clarity and precision of expression. This, again, confirms the duality of the poet’s values.
A huge number of contradictory meanings are combined into a laconic three-part organization of three quatrains in the poem “Sail”. The quatrains form a triad, the second stanza contrasts with the first, but the third regains its consonance.
The slender three-part form allows contradictions to be resolved very harmoniously, at least externally. Internal antithesis is connected, and tension and isolation are combined with a single external border.
Mathematical precision of poetry
Pechorin’s monologue from “Princess Mary” reveals the conflict between the individual and society, as a result of which internal contradictions arise. Pechorin's speech demonstrates numerous antitheses and perfectly constructed rhyme. Lermontov emphasizes the clarity of quatrains with punctuation, where dashes and colons alternate.
This form draws attention to the character’s constraint by internal boundaries, revealing unstoppable spiritual energy and powerful movement.
Thinking about allows us to draw another conclusion about the peculiarities of his lyrical language. The ingenuity of the painter in words is the skill with which he can describe both the human inner world and natural life with various phenomena.
At the same time, the theme of loneliness lies at the heart of his entire poetic heritage. The word "one" is the most significant word in the author's language. Inside the hero there is always concentrated enormous energy, accumulated as a result of the denial of ordinary life with its petty passions and the disunity of the people. Loneliness in Lermontov's work is filled with an uncontrollable desire to achieve an ideal, the unity of life, world integrity and harmony.
Music of words
The master's style is very musical, and his prose has the intonation of sounds expressed in rhythmically organized speech. It was he who first developed a three-syllable meter, which his predecessors, even Pushkin, had not previously achieved on such a grand scale.
Poetry in Lermontov's work is full of various repetitions, rhythmic accents, internal rhythmic-syntactic interruptions and strict symmetries that clearly follow each other. Enormous tensions result in merciless reflections and confessions when a new conclusion is contrasted with the original direct meaning. For example, lines about life, which upon “cold examination” turns into an empty and stupid joke.
Today, loneliness in Lermontov’s work is being studied in especially detail. The author's work of any kind is subject to serious artistic consideration. Romantic line in the poet’s work it is expressed by complex combinations of various genres and styles of speech. About the characters in “A Hero of Our Time,” Belinsky writes that the author was able to poetically express, even in the simple, rough language of Maxim Maksimych, the picturesqueness of events. This gave a comical and touching look at the character’s life.
Folk dialect as the highest rank of poetry
Lermontov's life and work are closely connected with folklore. The collection of 1840 addresses the folk way of life. “The song about Tsar Ivan Vasilyevich, the young guardsman and the daring merchant Kalashnikov” recreated the style of Russian folk poetry. In Borodino Field, the soldier's romantic tirades later turned into folk speech in Borodino. Here, again, the unique originality of the author’s rebellious character is imposed on the lips of the characters. Lermontov here also denies the present tense, expressing his strange love for the Fatherland. The folk dialect in the intonations of the poet is elevated to the most high rank poetry.
The originality of Lermontov’s creativity made an undeniable contribution to the development artistic language. The critic explained this by saying that the poet selected original stylistic means from Russian and Western European lyrics. At the junction different cultures he gave birth to new forms of literary expression, which continues Pushkin’s traditions.
Learn Lermontov language
Lermontov's language has a strong influence on subsequent Russian writers. Nekrasov, Blok, Tolstoy, Dostoevsky, Chekhov drew inspiration from him. Anton Pavlovich once said that Lermontov’s language needs to be studied as if in schools in order to learn to write. From his point of view, no best language. The works left by Mikhail Yuryevich are a real mastery of words.
Chosen or misunderstood?
The author's works, whether prose or poem, are filled with a spiritual search for truth, a thirst for activity, and an idealization of images of love and beauty. The inner man strives to be truly born, to become a person, to establish himself as a person. To do this, he is ready to embrace the whole world, to enclose the entire Universe with its stars in his chest. He strives to connect with nature and " ordinary people“, but for himself he sees a different destiny, classifying him as one of the chosen ones, thereby alienating himself from society even more.
Loneliness in Lermontov's works
Composing in the spirit of a “wanderer driven by the world,” younger lyrics for the poet describe loneliness as a reward. In later years, it is rather a burden, boredom, which ultimately gives a note of tragedy. His works convey the feelings of the only person in the whole world.
This is how a hero appears, questioning such havens for the human soul as love, friendship, humility. Lermontov's hero is acutely aware of his instability. He gets bored at balls surrounded by a motley crowd; he seems to see insensitive people around him “with the decency of pulled masks.”
In order to remove this oppression of soullessness, the character is increasingly transferred to childhood experiences. Lermontov has a desire, like a child, to challenge the world, tear off the masks from the laity, and expose the crowd.
Loneliness forms inner emptiness. Disappointment in society, in principle, the emotion of sadness and decadence are characteristic of the youth of the thirties. Political ban on the fulfillment of true desires for transformation social order carries over to private life. There is no hope of finding true happiness, love, friendship, or realizing oneself. The famous “Sail”, which is forever alone in the endless sea, - shining example feelings of the younger generation of that time.
Human connections are fragile, and love is unrequited - “The Cliff”, “In the Wild North...”, “Leaf” talk about this.
After the Decembrist uprising, a powerful political reaction began in the country. Reality seems perverted, conflicting, and hostile to the generation of the thirties. This division between ideals and reality cannot be resolved peacefully, it is impossible to come to terms with it. The solution to the confrontation is only possible as a result of the death of one of the parties.
Such a social climate has a detrimental effect on Lermontov the man, but revives the poet, promising him a tragic fate. The only thing that a person continues to be interested in is individual rights. Therefore, in a more mature period, the motives of Lermontov’s creativity are increasingly aimed at criticizing the structure of society, exposing specific and acute problems. He wants to “boldly throw an iron verse” and does this constantly.
Death of poet
Lermontov reproaches the generation for aimlessness, internal emptiness, mourns the fate of Russia, and at the same time fills his works with contempt and hatred for it. The work of M. Yu. Lermontov is a rebellion against the existing order of things.
In the poem, the poet conveys a complex cocktail of conflicting feelings in the soul. There is sorrow, admiration, and indignation here. In the work, Pushkin confronts the crowd, the third character is a poet mourning a genius, branding the public. Lermontov blames the world for the murder of Pushkin; it was society that directed the killer’s hand. And again Mikhail endows his hero, Pushkin, with loneliness and opposition to the whole world.
“The Death of a Poet” is a tribute to the poetic genius, and besides, it is a bridge, a junction in history, where the continuity of skill and spirituality is formed. Lermontov's work is a continuation of the history of an entire generation, adopted from Pushkin. This is the voice of young people reflecting on the future of the country, its difficult state, path and themselves. Pushkin was the sun of our nation, but they could not or did not want to save him.
This is the image of a genius among pygmies who are unable to forgive, appreciate and protest in defense of their values. Lermontov's works were born at the intersection of emotions and rationality. A clear, intense thought beats in a tangle of feelings and contradictions. There is a separation of the meanings of the concepts poet and man, but poet and poetry become one. Lermontov's work occupies a special place in Russian literature, presenting deep and rich material of reflection on the state, the world, time and personality in it.
The attitude of the maestro himself towards poetry is expressed in the discord between the artist and the world. Refined art turns out to be locked in the Iron Age of progress.
Poet's mission
For Lermontov, a poet is a prophet ridiculed by the crowd. He reflects on this in his works “Prophet” and “Poet”. This is a continuation of the theme of the importance of poetry in a society where lyrics are often used for entertainment, instead of using their real divine gift to fulfill their destiny. The poet comes into this world with God's command, which he brings to people.
A lyricist must tell a person the truth, expose, reveal beauty and love. According to Lermontov, people despise the prophet. He brings this feeling back to the crowd through his poetry. Thus, lyricism turns in the poet’s work from a hobby into a mission. Like any messiah, he is lonely, rejected and misunderstood.
The roots of the contradictions
The life and work of M. Lermontov are full of contradictions. He was born into a family where there are constant clashes between loved ones. Mother and father and grandmother are at war with each other. The death of a mother and a break with her father in early childhood is another variant of the struggle where a calm childhood was unable to withstand difficult reality. Misha’s grandfather, who shot himself at the New Year’s ball, was also full of internal conflicts, according to his grandmother.
And so, at the age of 15, the immortal “Demon” and “Spaniards” are born, and a year later the famous “Masquerade”. It seems that such feelings as painful doubts, gloomy forebodings, anticipation of a fatal end, and a thirst for oblivion were characteristic of the poet’s entire family.
Only rarely do joy and hope sound in the works of a soul singer. The writer described his life with two poems. These are “What is the use of living” and “What was I not born for.”
The feeling of his own elitism and chosenness forces the poet to select masterpieces from among masterpieces for the public. Bryusov perfectly described Mikhail Yuryevich, calling the poet an unsolved creator. Bryusov saw the artistic originality of Lermontov’s work in the creation of clear, as if “forged” poems.
The figure of Lermontov is still a mystery to this day. The life and death of the lyricist is a mystery, but his contribution to Russian literature is invaluable.
1. Subject and objectives of the course
Literature Ancient Rus' covers the period from the 11th to the 17th centuries. This is the first stage in the development of Russian literature. Old Russian literature was the literature of the emerging Great Russian nationality, gradually developing into a nation. Our understanding of ancient Russian literature is far from complete. From the 11th to the 17th centuries, many events took place in Rus' related to the invasion of foreign invaders. These were raids by steppe nomads, the Mongol-Tatar invasion, the Polish-Swedish intervention, etc. During these tragic events, cultural values, including works of literature, were destroyed in the fire of numerous fires. Here are just some facts: in 1737 the remains of the library of the Moscow tsars were destroyed, in 1777 - the Kiev library, in 1812 - the Musin-Pushkin library, etc.
The library of Ivan the Terrible has not yet been found. In Ancient Rus', books were copied and stored mainly in monasteries. And during military events, monasteries turned into fortresses, behind the walls of which not only the inhabitants of the monastery, but also the peasants of the surrounding villages took refuge. And therefore, during the siege, not only people died, but also libraries burned along with the manuscripts stored in them.
The literature of Ancient Rus' is medieval literature, which differs from the literature of modern times in its specific features. The objective of our course is to study ancient Russian literature as literature medieval type, differing from the literature of modern times both in content and in its forms. But before revealing the uniqueness of ancient Russian literature, it is necessary to dwell on how this literature was created, what are the main prerequisites for its emergence.
2. PREREQUISITES FOR THE ARISE OF OLD RUSSIAN LITERATURE
The emergence of Old Russian literature is closely connected with the process of formation of the early feudal state, which took shape in Ancient Rus' during the 9th-10th centuries.
The internal needs of the emerging early feudal state necessitated the emergence of writing. Therefore, the main factors in the emergence of Old Russian literature were the formation of the early feudal state and the creation of writing.
Russian scientists of the 20th century. (S. Obnorsky, D.S. Likhachev, P. Chernykh, V. Istrin, etc.) it was proven that the Eastern Slavs, including those in Rus', already had their own written language even before the adoption of Christianity.
Evidence of this was left by foreign travelers who visited Rus' in the 10th century. Thus, the Arab traveler Ibn Fadlan, traveling along the Volga in 920, saw the burial of a rich man (warrior). He claims that a stone was installed on the grave of this man with the name of the buried person and the Tsar of the Russians carved into it.
The Arab writer Ibn El-Nedim (10th century) saw a Russian inscription made on a piece of wood (tablet), but he could not determine whether it was a word or individual letters. Other Arab as well as German scientists also report the presence of writing among the Eastern Slavs. Russian chronicles brought to us the texts of treaties concluded between the Russian princes and Byzantium. In the Laurentian list of the “Tale of Bygone Years” under the year 912 it is said that “Ivanov created the world by writing in two characters,” i.e. The peace treaty was drawn up in two copies. One of them was signed by Russian ambassadors, the other by Greek ambassadors. It is likely that the translation of the contract with Greek language into Russian was made upon his conclusion.
The existence of writing in Rus' before the adoption of Christianity is also confirmed by archaeological finds. Of particular interest for resolving the issue of Old Russian writing is the discovery of archaeologists during excavations of burial mounds near Smolensk. An inscription was made in the Cyrillic alphabet on an amphora-type clay vessel from the first quarter of the 10th century. It is read and deciphered by scientists in different ways. Some believe that it is written “pea”, others read it as “pea”. In both cases, this word means mustard seeds, a bitter spice. Thus, we have before us a vessel for storing or transporting mustard seeds, a spice.
Among the birch bark letters, the study notebooks of the 7-8 year old Novgorod boy Onfim, who lived in the 2nd half of the 13th century, are striking. He learned to write by accompanying his words and letters with drawings. On one of the sheets is written the traditional formula: “Lord, help your servant Onfim,” a drawing of a beast and the inscription “I am a beast”:
One more important factor The formation of ancient Russian literature was the presence of folklore. Folklore not only contributed to the formation of the literature of Ancient Rus', but also determined its ideological orientation and artistic value. Oral folk art was the soil, the richest arsenal from which young, emerging literature drew plots, ideas, images, artistic techniques and visual and expressive means. Old Russian literature was created in a princely, druzhina environment, but in its best works it expressed all-Russian ideals. It was through folklore experience that the people's worldview, the people's assessment of certain events, and people's moral and aesthetic ideas penetrated into literature. In other words, literature penetrated through folklore democratic beginning, which expanded the horizons of literature, raised it to an all-Russian height, and gave it a broad sound.
The most valuable material on the history of Russian writing are birch bark letters that were found during Novgorod excavations in 1951 by archaeologist A.V. Artsikhovsky. Some of the letters date back to the 9th-12th centuries. In subsequent years, many letters were found, which are a kind of “archive” of private letters telling about Everyday life Novgorod people. The authors of the letters were ordinary townspeople who, unable to write on parchment, used birch bark. And the fact that archaeologists discovered not only in Novgorod, but also in other cities, birch bark letters, as well as numerous writing sticks (bone or metal) even in the layers of the 10th century, is another, albeit indirect, evidence of the early and widespread spread of literacy among artisans, small traders and peasants.
Many letters are devoted to economic issues: “Bow from Michael to his master Timothy. The soil is ready, we need seeds. “They’ve come, sir, a man, but we don’t dare take the rye without your word,” this was probably written by the clerk to his master. There are many certificates related to everyday affairs. Here is a letter in which Boris informs his wife Nastasya that he is delayed on business and asks to send him a shirt. And from another letter we learn about the grief of Nastasya, who buried Boris.
3. ANCIENT CHRISTIAN LIBRARY IN KIEVAN RUS
The adoption of Christianity also played a positive role in the development of ancient Russian literature. The fact that the new religion came from Byzantium, the center of Christian culture, had a great positive significance for the culture of Ancient Rus'.
All European states of the Middle Ages, in one way or another, “learned” from countries that inherited the centuries-old experience of ancient culture. In the history of Rus', the most important role fell to the lot of Bulgaria and Byzantium. The perception of foreign culture through intermediary countries - for Rus', Bulgaria was such a country - was of an active nature in Ancient Rus', met the needs of the emerging early feudal state, and stimulated the emergence of original literature.
Along with the Christian religion, translated ancient Christian books also came to Rus'. But according to D.S. Likhachev, one cannot talk about influence, because Before the adoption of Christianity, there was no literature in Rus', so Byzantine literature had nothing to influence. “There was folklore, there was a high culture of oral speech,” writes D.S. Likhachev, - but before the advent of translated works we had no written works at all. The influence begins later, when the transfer has already taken place and when literature already existed and developed.” Therefore, at first after the adoption of Christianity, Byzantine literature - directly or through Bulgarian media - was simply transferred to Rus', i.e. transplanted (Latin - to transplant). However, such transfer cannot be considered mechanical. Translated or rewritten works adapted to local, national conditions, acquired new features, i.e. continued to live and develop.
It should be noted that not all translated works were changed to the same extent. The works related to church life and regulations did not change at all or were subject to minor changes. Works of a secular nature changed to a much greater extent. Thanks to translated literature transplanted onto Russian soil, Ancient Rus' in short term received literature diverse in its genres, and after a few decades, original works began to be created in Rus' based on the model of translated works.
4. SPECIFICITY OF ANCIENT RUSSIAN LITERATURE AS A MEDIEVAL TYPE LITERATURE
Old Russian literature is medieval literature, therefore it differs in specific features from the literature of modern times. First of all, distinctive feature is the handwritten nature of its existence and distribution. Moreover, the works did not exist in the form of separate manuscripts, but were part of handwritten collections, which were evaluated from the point of view of their practical application, i.e. usefulness (to teach, give instructions, comfort, etc.).
Old Russian literature was anonymous in nature. In Ancient Rus' there was no concept of copyright ownership. Therefore, the copyist of a work often acted as its editor; he could freely make changes to the text, adapting it to the needs and tastes of his time and his environment. The author, as a rule, did not consider it necessary to indicate his name, and sometimes even signed the names of popular Byzantine authors in order to give more authority to what was written. The names of many writers of Ancient Rus' are unknown. Even in cases where the name of the author is known, nothing or almost nothing is known about him, except his name. This requires a different approach to the study of ancient Russian literature than to the literature of modern times.
Old Russian literature is studied, as a rule, not from autographs, but from their lists, most often later copies. There are also editions of the work. Editorials are lists in which there is a conscious desire to provide a special text for ideological, stylistic and other reasons. A view or variant is a list in which there is no conscious effort to change the text. Errors in the text are formed as a result of rewriting the text or more or less successful corrections. Izvod - a list that reflects the local features of the language (Moscow, Novgorod, Bulgarian, etc.) The fact that Old Russian literature is presented mainly in lists - editions, variants, excerpts - requires researchers to painstakingly and carefully compare all available lists one or another work. And here such branches of philological science as textual criticism and paleography come to their aid. Textual criticism is a science that, by comparing various editions, variants, lists, as well as determining which edition of the list most closely matches the original, helps in the research and publication of ancient Russian texts. Paleography is a historical and philological discipline that studies monuments of ancient writing in order to establish the place and time of their creation. Paleography determines the materials and tools of writing, traces the features of letters and handwriting, studies systems of abbreviations and secret writing, the nature of writing material, decorations and design of manuscripts and books. This allows us to relatively accurately establish not only the time of creation of the list, but also the number of scribes who wrote it. In the 11th - first half of the 14th centuries, the main writing material was parchment, made from the skin of calves or lambs. In Rus' it was often called “veal” or “haratya”. In order to save writing material, frequently used words were abbreviated and indicated with a superscript and title: BGЪ, BCA.
The nature of handwriting also changed. In the XI-XIII centuries. They used the charter - almost square writing of letters.
With the advent of paper in the 14th century. The charter is replaced by a semi-statut - an inclined, rounded handwriting. Gradually, semi-ustav is replaced by cursive writing, which is finally established in manuscripts of the 18th century. Books, especially those written on parchment, were decorated with ornaments, headpieces, and initials. Here are samples of the headband and initial. An initial is the first capital letter in a text.
The books were also decorated with miniatures.
Book miniatures of the 17th century are noted for their great perfection. It was then that the art of making handwritten books reached its peak. The finished books were “dressed” in wooden boards covered with leather. Various patterns were made on the skin, and various metal decorations were applied. Often the bindings were covered with expensive fabrics and could be inlaid with precious stones.
Old Russian literature, especially in the first stages of development, was of a utilitarian nature. She hasn't stood out yet independent region social consciousness and was closely connected with religion, philosophy, and science. The path of development of ancient Russian literature is the path of its gradual liberation from the tutelage of the church; the path of gradual separation from the general flow of writing, democratization and “secularization.” Throughout its development, Old Russian literature was associated with business and church writing, as well as with folklore. The nature of the connections on each historical stage was different. The connections with oral folk art were especially intense and fruitful.
Old Russian literature was factual in nature, i.e. it was closely connected with specific historical events and its heroes were historical figures. But the historicism of ancient Russian literature was of a providentialist nature. Historical events, the actions and actions of specific individuals were explained by the intervention supernatural powers(“The Tale of the Ruin of Ryazan by Batu”, etc.) The main theme of ancient Russian literature is the theme of the Russian land, its unity and independence. She glorifies the beauty and greatness of the Russian land, and sharply condemns those princes whose policies run counter to the interests of the country. Literature glorifies the moral beauty of the Russian person, capable of sacrificing his life for the common good. It expresses faith in the power of good, in man's ability to elevate his spirit and defeat evil.
Old Russian literature is journalistic. Writers believed in the power of words and persuasion. They appealed not only to their contemporaries, but also to distant descendants with an appeal that the worthy deeds of their ancestors would be preserved in the memory of generations and that descendants would not repeat the sad mistakes of their grandfathers and great-grandfathers. Hence the instructive power of ancient Russian literature.
The social life of the Middle Ages was strictly regulated by a system of rules, order, and traditions. A person, from the very moment of his birth until his death, had to adhere to established order in accordance with his “rank”. Strict adherence to order forms the vital basis of etiquette and ceremoniality in feudal society. This feudal etiquette corresponds to literary etiquette. As in folklore, tradition played a large role in ancient Russian literature. The subject of the image determined the choice of appropriate stable stylistic formulas. Thus, the image of a saint required the use of some stencil formulas, military events were presented using others - military formulas, etc. However, literary etiquette involved not only the use of verbal formulas, but also stencils of situations, construction of works, depictions of characters, etc. For example, a hagiography was built according to one stencil, and a military story - according to another. Thus, the life included a description of the saint’s birth from pious parents, his retirement into the desert, a depiction of his exploits, the founding of a monastery, a story about a pious death and posthumous miracles.
At the same time, according to D.S. Likhachev, “...we must see in literary etiquette a system of creativity, and not its simple standardization. In no case should one equate the canon and the template. What we see is the originality of literature, not its poverty.” The literature of Ancient Rus' was also specific in its genre system. Just as in society and in literature, a hierarchical principle reigned: its significance and authority were based on this principle. In church books, the top level was occupied by the books of Holy Scripture. Then came hymnography and “words” related to the interpretation of scripture, religious holidays. Lives followed. The walking genre had a transitional character.
The system of genres of secular literature is more flexible. It was developed through connection with folklore, business and church writing. The historical story occupied a dominant position. This is a chronicle and a military story. The story is accompanied by historical legends, tales that are usually included in chronicles and chronographs. A special place is occupied by the “Teaching” of Vladimir Monomakh,” “The Tale of Igor’s Host,” “The Tale of the Destruction of the Russian Land” and “The Tale” of Daniil Zatochnik.
The literary genres of Ancient Rus' differ sharply from the genres of modern times: their existence is largely determined by their use in practical life. Old Russian genres are closely related to the way of life, everyday life, and differ in what they are intended for. For example, words are pronounced in church, and depending on what days they were pronounced, their individual subgenres can be distinguished. Secular literature was also subordinated to everyday life, everyday life, and business interests. But the genres of secular literature in Ancient Rus' differed from the Byzantine composition of genres, because The secular life of Ancient Rus' was more unique than the church life.
5. GENRE SYSTEM OF LITERATURE OF ANCIENT Rus'
The ancient Christian literature that came to Rus' was diverse and multi-genre. First of all, church works were translated, because The main role of church canonical and liturgical books was to propagate a new doctrine, to introduce Russian people, yesterday's pagans, to Christianity. Church Christian literature includes primarily the books of sacred scripture - the biblical books of the Old and New Testaments. The Old Testament books told about the ancient destinies of the Jewish people, and the New Testament books told about initial period Christianity.
The books of the Old and New Testaments were useful to the Christian reader not only for their religious content, but were also of interest in a purely literary sense. Psalters, collections of religious songs and hymns, were very popular in Rus'. They were distinguished by poetic expressiveness and lyricism, and were noted for high artistic merit.
Adjoining the biblical books of the Old and New Testaments were the apocrypha, lives, writings of the “church fathers”, etc. Apocrypha (Greek - hidden) - legends about characters biblical history, but plot different from those contained in biblical books. Apocryphal literature was intended for a narrow circle of readers, i.e. it was literature for the elite, and was therefore supported and encouraged by the church. However, over time, due to the development of heresies, the apocrypha was used by heretics. This led to the fact that they began to be persecuted by the church and included in indexes - lists of “false” or “renounced” books.
For many centuries, the apocrypha “The Virgin Mary’s Walk through the Torments” enjoyed great popularity in Rus'. The oldest Russian list of it dates back to the 12th century. This apocrypha was also included in the index. This is probably explained by the fact that in the apocrypha the idea of divine justice, which was supported by the official church, is questioned. God appears in the apocrypha as a stern and unforgiving judge, indifferent to human suffering. The apocrypha “How God created Adam” was also popular. In it, equal in power to God is the devil, who takes an active part (along with God) in the creation of man.
The lives of saints or hagiographic works (hagios - saint). Hagiographic literature asserted a conventional, idealized image of a Christian hero, whose life and activities were designed to propagate church ideology. Having renounced everything earthly, the saint devoted himself entirely to God and, by the example of his life, affirmed the truth of the basic tenets of the Christian doctrine. An example is the life of Alexy, a man of God.
Patericons and collections also became widespread short stories mostly about monks, famous for their piety and asceticism. They were characterized by elements of entertainment, which were intertwined with everyday episodes of a purely secular nature. All this determined their popularity in Rus'.
Along with church literature, secular books were also translated. For example, already in the 11th century. in Rus' there were several chronicles in translation that set out historical facts in the light of church-Christian ideology. Of these, the most significant are the chronicles of John Malala (VI century) and George Amartol (IX century). They introduced Russian readers to world history; in addition, their factual data was used by ancient Russian scribes. In particular, the chronicle of George Amartol played a significant role in the development of Russian chronicles and Russian chronography. From secular literature, Josephus Flavius’s “History of the Jewish War” became widespread in Rus'.
Natural science works also had considerable historical and literary significance. “Six Days” is a work that comments on the biblical story about God’s creation of the world and man in six days. "Six Days" is characterized by an abundance of fantastic elements. “Physiologist” is a book containing information about real animals (lion, eagle, ant, whale, elephant, etc.) and imaginary, fantastic (phoenix, sirens, centaur, etc.), as well as plants and precious stones(diamond, magnet, flint, etc.).
Works of translated literature broadened the horizons of ancient Russian readers and introduced them to world history and culture. On the other hand, they contributed to the formation of original literature and the development of its genres
6. STAGES OF DEVELOPMENT OF OLD RUSSIAN LITERATURE
The heat system of ancient Russian literature underwent changes, this is especially noticeable in the literature of the 16th-17th centuries. At the same time, the genres of church books were more stable and were less subject to transformation, while the genres of secular literature, under the influence of folklore and business writing, changed significantly in form.
Old Russian literature is closely connected with history. Therefore, literary changes coincide with historical ones. And as a consequence, the following stages can be distinguished in the development of Old Russian literature:
1. Literature of the 11th - early 12th centuries. This is the period of formation of literature Kievan Rus and its relative unity.
2. Literature of the XII - early XIII centuries. It reflects the beginning of the process of feudal fragmentation and is marked by the strengthening of the secular humanistic principle.
3. Literature of the XIII - mid-XIV centuries, the period of the Mongol-Tatar invasion. Characterized by the development of the traditions of pre-Mongol literature.
4. Literature of the XIV - early XV centuries. This period is called “Pre-Renaissance” literature.
5. Literature of the mid-15th - first half of the 16th century. Her characteristic feature- the emergence of elements of the Renaissance.
6. Literature of the second half of the 16th century, the period of centralization.
7. Literature of the 17th century as literature of the “transitional century”.
7. STUDYING THE LITERATURE OF ANCIENT Rus'
The collection of monuments of ancient Russian literature begins in the 18th century. V. Tatishchev, G. Miller, A. Shletser, N.M. contributed to the study. Karamzin. In the 19th century, interest in the past increased, which is largely due to the publication in 1800 of “The Tale of Igor’s Campaign.” The science of ancient Russian literature in the 19th century was created thanks to the efforts of such scientists as F. Buslaev, A. Veselovsky, A. Pypin, A. Shakhmatov, etc. In the 20th century, it was enriched by the works of V. Andrianova-Peretz, N.K. Gudziya, I.P. Eremina and others. Especially great is the merit of D.S. Likhachev, whose works on ancient Russian literature are of fundamental importance not only for the study of medieval literature, but also new literature. The works of A.N. make their contribution to the development of the character and artistic specificity of ancient Russian literature. Robinson, L.A. Dmitrieva, Ya.S. Lurie, O.A. Derzhavina, N.I. Prokofieva, O.V. Tvorogova and others.
Questions
2. How is the theme of revolution resolved and civil war in the works of I. E. Babel?
Tasks
1. Read the short stories “Salt” and “My First Goose” and determine in what narrative form they are written, what is the author’s goal in choosing this form.
2. What is the main idea and theme of these short stories?
16. Life and work of Evgeniy Ivanovich Zamyatin
(1884-1937)
Born in 1884 in Lebedyan, Tambov province. (now Lipetsk region) in the family of a poor nobleman. In addition to the impressions from the nature of those places with which many Russian writers were in one way or another connected - Tolstoy, Turgenev, Bunin, Leskov, Sergeev-Tsensky - home education had a great influence on Zamyatin. “I grew up under the piano: my mother is a good musician,” he wrote in his Autobiography. - I already read Gogol at four. Childhood is almost without comrades: comrades are books.” The impressions of Lebedyan's life were later embodied in the stories Uezdnoe (1912) and Alatyr (1914).
In 1886 Zamyatin entered the Voronezh gymnasium. After graduating with a gold medal, in 1902 he entered the St. Petersburg Polytechnic Institute at the shipbuilding department. Summer practise gave the future writer the opportunity to travel. Zamyatin visited Sevastopol, Nizhny Novgorod, Odessa, the Kama factories, and sailed on a ship to Constantinople, Smyrna, Beirut, Port Said, Jaffa, Alexandria, and Jerusalem. In 1905, while in Odessa, he witnessed an uprising on the battleship Potemkin, which he later wrote about in the story “Three Days” (1913). Returning to St. Petersburg, he took part in revolutionary activities Bolsheviks, for which he was arrested and spent several months in solitary confinement. Zamyatin used this time to study English and write poetry. Then he was exiled to Lebedyan, but returned illegally to St. Petersburg, from where he was expelled again in 1911, after graduating from the institute.
Zamyatin’s literary debut dates back to 1908. His real success came from the publication of the story “Uyezdnoe” in the St. Petersburg magazine “Testaments.” Zamyatin attributed his prose to literary direction which he called neorealism. For the anti-war story “In the middle of nowhere” (1913), the heroes of which are not only Far Eastern officers and soldiers, but also the entire “driven into the middle of nowhere Rus'”, Zamyatin was brought to trial, and the issue of the magazine “Testaments” in which it was published the story was confiscated. The critic A. Voronsky believed that the story “In the Middle East” is a political artistic satire that “makes clear much of what happened later, after 1914.”
Being a highly qualified marine engineer, Zamyatin continued his business trips around Russia. Impressions from a trip to Kem and Solovki in 1915 were reflected in a series of works about the Russian North - in particular, in the story “North”.
In 1916, Zamyatin was sent to England to participate in the construction of Russian icebreakers at the shipyards of Newcastle, Glasgow and Sunderland; visited London. He was one of the main designers of the icebreaker "St. Alexander Nevsky", named "Lenin" after the October Revolution. English impressions formed the basis of both numerous essays and the stories “The Islanders” (1917) and “The Catcher of Men” (1921). Respect for the people who provided high level the development of civilization did not prevent the writer from seeing the shortcomings of the Western social system.
In 1917 Zamyatin returned to Petrograd. He soon became one of the most prominent figures in Russian literary life. Zamyatin organizes various literary circles, together with N. Gumilyov teaches literary technique aspiring writers. He taught at the Polytechnic Institute, taught a course in modern Russian literature at the Pedagogical Institute. Herzen and a course in the technique of artistic prose in the studio of the House of Arts, worked on the editorial board of World Literature, on the board of the All-Russian Union of Writers, and edited several literary magazines. At the same time, he was skeptical about “all sorts of worldwide undertakings” that arose against the background of the destruction of civilized life.
Trips to the Tambov, Vologda, and Pskov provinces also did not contribute to historical optimism. In the stories “Mamai” (1920) and “Cave” (1921), Zamyatin compared the era of military communism with the prehistoric, cave period of human development. Observations of a totalitarian society were artistically embodied in the fantastic dystopian novel “We” (1920, published in Russian in 1952 in the USA). In 1924 the text was translated into English and published in New York. Despite the lack of publications in the USSR, the novel was ideologically destroyed by Soviet critics who read it in manuscript. In 1929, Zamyatin's plays were removed from the Moscow Art Theater repertoire.
In 1931, realizing the futility of his further existence in the USSR, Zamyatin turned to Stalin with a letter in which he asked for permission to go abroad, motivating his request by the fact that for him “as a writer, deprivation of the opportunity to write is a death sentence.” The decision to emigrate was not easy for Zamyatin. Love for the motherland, patriotism, which permeate, for example, the story “Rus” (1923), is one of the best evidence Thanks to the petition of M. Gorky in 1932, Zamyatin was able to go to France for treatment, where he later died in poverty. He was ill for a long time, dreamed of returning home, but never wrote anything against Bolshevik Russia, because he did not believe that darkness was gathering over Russia. Zamyatin, on the contrary, believed that a great bright future awaited his country. Zamyatin died in Paris in 1937.
ARTISTIC
ORIGINALITY OF THE POEM
ON THE.
NEKRASOVA “WHO LIVES WELL IN Rus'”
Poem “To whom
It’s good to live in Rus'” occupies the central
place in the work of N. A. Nekrasov. She became
a kind of artistic result more
than thirty years of literary work
author. All the motives of his early lyrics seem to
collected together and developed in the poem, anew
all the problems that worried him were rethought,
the highest artistic standards were used
achievements.
ON THE.
Nekrasov not only created a special genre
social and philosophical poem. He subdued
his main task: to show Russia in its
past, present and future. Starting to write
“hot on the heels”, that is, immediately after
reforms of 1861, an epic poem about
liberating, reborn people, N.
A. Nekrasov endlessly expanded his
original intention. Search for the “lucky ones”
in Rus' they took him away from modernity to
ancient origins: the poet strives to realize not
only the results of the abolition of serfdom,
but also the very philosophical nature of such concepts,
as “happiness”, “freedom”, “sin”, for outside
this philosophical understanding is impossible
understand the essence of the present moment and see
the future of the people.
Fundamental
the novelty of the genre explains the fragmentation
a poem constructed from individual
unfinished chapters. United in a way -
symbol of the road, the poem breaks down into someone's
history, as well as the fate of dozens of people.
Each episode in itself could be
the plot of a song or story, legend or
novel. All together, in their unity, they
constitute the fate of the Russian people,
highlighting its historical
way from
slavery to freedom. That is why only in
the last chapter appears the image of the “folk
intercessor” Grisha Dobrosklonov - the one
who will help people find their will. Each of
the characters in the poem have their own voice. N. A. Nekrasov
combines fantasy, everyday and poetic
speech and introduces an evaluative element into it,
forcing readers to perceive speech
character the way the author wants. At U.S. not
there is an impression of stylistic
discordance of the poem, because everything
the techniques used here are subordinated
common task: to create a poem that would be
close and understandable to the peasant.
Author's
the task determined not only the genre
innovation, but also all the originality of poetics
works. N. A. Nekrasov many times
turned to folklore motifs in his lyrics and
images Poem about folk life all of him
builds on a folklore basis. IN
work in that
to a different extent, all the main
genres of folklore: fairy tale, song, epic,
legend, ditty.
What is it like
place and meaning of folklore in the poem? Firstly,
folklore elements allow N.A.
Nekrasov to recreate the painting
peasant idea of the world,
express the people's views on many important
questions. Secondly, the poet skillfully uses
special folklore techniques, style, figurative
system, laws and artistic means.
From
The images of Kudeyar and Savely are taken from folklore.
Folk art prompted N.A.
Nekrasov and many comparisons; some of
They are generally based on riddles. Poet
uses typical folk speech
repetitions, negative parallelism,
catching the end of a line at the beginning of the next one,
use of song interjections. But the most basic difference between folklore and
fiction that we find
for N.A. Nekrasov, this is a lack of authorship.
Folklore is different in that the people together
composes the work, its people
he talks, and the people listen. IN
folklore replaces the author's position
national morality. Individual
the author's point of view is alien to nature itself
oral folk art.
Author's
literature turns to folklore when
need to go deeper into the essence
national morality; when itself
the work is addressed not only to
intelligentsia (most of the readers
century), but also
to the people. Both of these tasks were set before
by himself N. A. Nekrasov in the poem “To whom in Rus'
to live well".
And one more
the most important aspect distinguishes the author's
literature from folklore. Oral
creativity does not know the concept of “canonical”
text”: each listener becomes
co-author of the work, in his own way
retelling it. To such an active
co-creation of the author and the reader and strived
N. A. Nekrasov. That is why his poem
written “in free language, as much as possible
close to common speech.” Poem
researchers call the poem “brilliant”
find” by N. A. Nekrasova. Free and
flexible poetic meter, independence
from
opened the opportunity to generously donate
originality vernacular, saving all
his accuracy, aphorism and special
proverbial phrases; organically weave
into the fabric of the poem are village songs, sayings,
lamentations, elements folk tale(magical
self-assembled tablecloth treats wanderers);
skillfully reproduce perky speeches
tipsy men at the fair, and
expressive monologues of peasants
orators, and absurdly self-righteous
the reasoning of a tyrant landowner.
Colorful
folk scenes, full of life and movements,
round dances of characteristic expressive persons and
figures - all this creates a unique
polyphony in Nekrasov's poem.
Problems and tests on the topic “ARTISTIC ORIGINALITY OF N. A. NEKRASOV’S POEM “WHO LIVES WELL IN Rus'””
- Spelling - Important topics for repeating the Unified State Exam in Russian
