They give us chronicles. Already the first acquaintance with Byzantine historical chronicles gave Russian scribes the idea of creating something similar for their country. They began to collect ancient legends and keep annual records of current events. This primary material was combined and edited in general works - chronicles.
The compilation of a new chronicle was always associated with some important event in political or church life - the beginning of the reign of the Grand Duke, the arrival of a new metropolitan or bishop, the construction of a temple. It is believed that the impetus for the beginning of Russian chronicle writing - the compilation of the Most Ancient Code - was the consecration of the St. Sophia Cathedral in Kyiv. The residence of the head of the Russian Federation was located near the cathedral. Orthodox Church- Metropolitan of Kyiv.
Changes in the political situation, as well as the vicissitudes of the intra-church struggle, pushed for the creation of new large chronicle monuments - the Abbot's Code Nikon(70s of the 11th century) and the Initial Code (1093-1095). Finally, the monk of the Kiev Pechersk Monastery got down to business Nestor.
The Tale of Bygone Years
Around 1113, Nestor finished his famous work, “The Tale of Bygone Years.” The name of the Nestor Chronicle comes from the first words of the text: “This is the tale of bygone years, where the Russian land came from, who began to reign first in Kyiv, and where the Russian land came from.” The words “Behold the message of bygone years...” translated from the Old Russian language mean approximately the following: “Here is the story of the past years...”
Creatively reworking the works of predecessors and supplementing them with our own materials (annual records of events recent years, information from Byzantine chronicles, treaties between Rus' and the Greeks, folk legends about the first Kyiv rulers, etc.), Nestor created a holistic and fascinating literary work. He presented a wide panorama of world (biblical) history, against the background of which the historical existence of the Eastern Slavs begins and the Kiev state is formed. Late summer scribes treated Nestor's work with great respect. They usually placed it at the beginning of their chronicle vaults.
The Tale of Bygone Years contains a detailed story about Prince Vladimir’s choice of faith. The prince’s envoys say: “And we came to the Greeks, and led us to where they serve their God, and we did not know whether we were in heaven or on earth: for there is no such spectacle and such beauty on earth, and we do not know how to tell about this."
A Word on Law and Grace
Almost all literary monuments that have survived to this day Kievan Rus imbued with a living religious feeling and filled prayer appeal to God and the saints. Some are distinguished by originality of thoughts and vivid artistic form. Among such works is the famous “Sermon on Law and Grace” by Metropolitan Hilarion.
“The Tale of Law and Grace” is the first author’s work of ancient Russian literature known to us. Basically, this is an Easter sermon, delivered by Hilarion, apparently in 1049. Hence the festive elation of tone, and the special, enthusiastic mood that permeates the entire work. He persistently pursues the idea of the spiritual independence of Rus', “which is known and heard by all four ends of the earth.”
The desire to establish the spiritual independence of Rus', clearly noticeable in Hilarion’s “Sermon on Law and Grace,” was also manifested in the veneration of the first Russian saints - Prince Vladimir Svyatoslavich, his sons Boris and Gleb, the founders of the Kiev-Pechersk Monastery Antonia And Feodosia. According to the church rules of that era, three conditions were necessary for posthumous canonization: miracles at the tomb, incorruptibility of the relics and the presence of a hagiography - a story about the life and deeds of the saint, about the miracles he performed. Material from the site
Lesson for children
The complete opposite of the loud rhetoric of “The Word of Law and Grace” was deeply personal in nature, filled with religious and philosophical reflections, “Instructions for Children” by Vladimir Monomakh. It was preserved in a single copy as part of the Laurentian Chronicle, recorded in 1096.
Periodization of Old Russian literature, its specific features.
Likhachev identified the following periods in the development of ancient Russian literature:
1. Literature of Kievan RusPeriod"11th century – first floor. 13th century."
Christian culture comes to Rus'. Bookishness is developing in Kyiv, Novgorod, Polotsk. This is the literature of a single ancient Russian nationality. This is the literature of Kievan Rus, because The style of monumental historicism dominates. Here are created the most important genres literature: chronicle, historical story, life, word. “The Life of Boris and Gleb” - the first Russian life. The origin of the original Russian genre - chronicle writing - “The Tale of Bygone Years”. Feudal fragmentation began.
2. Literature of the period of fragmentation and the Mongol-Tatar invasion. Period"Tue. floor. 13th century – first floor. 14th century."
Stage of literary conservation. The period of the Mongol-Tatar invasion, stories appear about it. Literature is dominated by the theme of the fight against invaders, hence tragedy, patriotism and citizenship. “The Prayer of Daniel the Prisoner”, “The Tale of the Ruin of Ryazan by Batu”, “Zadonshchina”, “The Tale of Peter and Fevronia”.
3. Literature from the time of the unification of the northeastern principalities into a single Moscow principality. Period"Tue. floor. 14th century – first floor. 15th century."
Pre-Renaissance. Rus' is being revived economically and culturally, and the expressive-emotional style characteristic of hagiographies dominates. “The Life of Stephen of Perm”, Epiphanius the Wise.
4. Literature of the centralized Russian state. Period"Tue. floor. 15th century – first floor. 16th century."
The period of government. In Old Russian lit. translated works penetrate, for example, “The Tale of Dracula”. In 1453, Constantinople (the capital of Byzantium) fell, and literature was democratized. A single central state begins to form (Moscow and Novgorod), and a heretical disconnect occurs.
5. Literature of the stage of formation of the Russian nation. Period"Tue. floor. 16th century – beginning 17th century."
A period of lost balance. Riots, unrest, the Rurik dynasty is replaced by the Romanovs. Satire and Baroque are born. Main feature- this is the dominance of the journalistic style ( Correspondence between Tsar Ivan the Terrible and Prince Andrei Kurbsky).
6. Literature of the era of Peter I. Period"17th century."
Go to new literature. The development of the individual principle in the work of writers is increasing (authorship, theater, poetry appear). Bookishness is fading into ecclesiastical oblivion.
Specific features medieval worldview was determined by the system of genres of ancient Russian literature, subordinated to practical utilitarian goals - both moral and political. Along with Christianity, Ancient Rus' also adopted the system of genres of church writing that was developed in Byzantium. There were no genres here yet in the modern literary understanding, but there were canons, enshrined in the decrees of ecumenical councils, legend - tradition and charter. Church literature was associated with ritual Christian cult, monastic life. Its significance and authority were built on a certain hierarchical principle.
Books occupied the top level "sacred scripture". She followed them hymnography And " words"related to interpretations of "scripture", explanations of the meaning of holidays. Such "words" were usually combined into collections - " celebrants", Triodi colored and Lenten. Then followed lives- stories about the exploits of saints. Lives were combined into collections: Prologues (Synaxari), Chetii-Minea, Patericon. Each type of hero: martyr, confessor, monk, stylite, holy fool - corresponded to its own type of life. The composition of the life depended on its use: liturgical practice dictated certain conditions to its compiler, addressing the life to readers and listeners. For example, " The Legend of Boris and Gleb», « Life of Theodosius of Pechersk" Based on Byzantine examples, ancient Russian writers created a number of outstanding works of hagiographic original literature that reflected essential aspects of the life and everyday life of ancient Rus'.
Unlike Byzantine hagiography, ancient Russian literature creates an original genre princely life, whose goal was to strengthen the political authority of the princely power and surround it with an aura of holiness. Distinctive feature the princely life is " historicism", a close connection with chronicles, military stories, i.e., genres of secular literature. Just like the princely life, they are on the verge of transition from church genres to secular ones" walking" - travel, descriptions of pilgrimages to "holy places", tales of icons. The chronicle could include all genres. The system of genres of worldly (secular) literature is more flexible. It was developed by ancient Russian writers through extensive interaction with the genres of oral folk art, business writing, as well as church literature. The dominant position among the genres of secular writing is occupied by historical story, dedicated to outstanding events related to the struggle against the external enemies of Rus', the evil of princely strife. The story is accompanied by a historical legend and legend. A special place among worldly genres is occupied by " Teaching"Vladimir Monomakh," A Word about Igor's Campaign", "A word about the destruction of the Russian land" And " Word"Daniil the Sharper. They testify to high level literary development, achieved by Ancient Russia in the 11th - first half of the 13th centuries. Development of Old Russian literature of the 11th-17th centuries. goes through the gradual destruction of a stable system of church genres and their transformation. They are becoming increasingly interested in inner world of a person, the psychological motivation of his actions, entertaining and everyday descriptions appear. To replace historical heroes fictitious ones come. In the 17th century this leads to radical changes in the internal structure and style of historical genres and contributes to the birth of new purely fictional works. Virsha poetry, court and school drama, democratic satire, everyday stories, and picaresque short stories appeared.
One of the principles of Christ. cult. – orientation to the addressee.
Genre of life was borrowed from Byzantium. This is the most widespread genre of ancient Russian literature. Life was an indispensable attribute when a person was canonized, i.e. were canonized. The life was created by people who directly communicated with a person or could reliably testify to his life. Life was always created after the death of a person. The life of the saint was perceived as an example of a righteous life that must be imitated. In addition, life deprived a person of the fear of death, preaching the idea of immortality human soul. Life was built according to certain canons, from which they did not deviate until the 15-16 centuries. Canons of Life: the pious origin of the hero of the life, whose parents must have been righteous; The saint's parents often begged God for him; a saint was born a saint, and did not become one; the saint was distinguished by an ascetic lifestyle, spending time in solitude and prayer; a description of the miracles that occurred during the life of the saint and after his death; the saint was not afraid of death; The life ended with the glorification of the saint. One of the first works of the hagiographic genre in ancient Russian literature was the life of the holy princes Boris and Gleb.
Chetyi-Minei(literally “reading by month”) - a collection of works about holy people.
Patericon- a description of the life of the holy fathers.
Literature of Kievan Rus. General characteristics.
The first works of original ancient Russian literature that have come down to us date back to the middle XI centuries. Their creation was due to the growth of the political, patriotic consciousness of early feudal society, striving to strengthen new forms of statehood and assert the sovereignty of the Russian land. Substantiating the ideas of political and religious independence of Rus', literature seeks to consolidate new forms of Christian ethics, the authority of secular and spiritual power, to show inviolability, “eternity” feudal relations, rules of law. The main genres of literature of this time historical: legend, legend, story - and religious-didactic: solemn words, teachings, lives, walks. Historical genres, relying in their development on the corresponding genres of folklore, they develop specific book forms of storytelling “according to the epics of this time.” The leading genre is historical story, based on a reliable depiction of events. Depending on the nature of the events reflected in the stories, they can be “ military", stories about princely crimes, etc. Each type historical stories acquires its own specific stylistic features.
The central hero historical stories and legends is prince- warrior, defender of the country's borders, builder of temples, zealot for education, righteous judge of his subjects. His antipode- prince- cram flax, leading bloody internecine wars, seeking to gain power by force. The narration of the good and evil deeds of the princes is based on eyewitness accounts and oral traditions that existed among the druzhina environment. Historical stories and legends do not allow fiction in the modern meaning of the word. The facts stated in them are documented and attached to exact dates, correlated with other events. Historical genres of ancient Russian literature, as a rule, do not exist separately, but as part of chronicles, where the principle of weather presentation made it possible to include a variety of material: weather records, legends, stories. These historical genres were dedicated to the most important events related to military campaigns, the fight against external enemies of Rus', the construction activities of the prince, strife, and unusual natural phenomena (celestial signs). At the same time, the chronicle also included church legends, elements of lives, and even entire lives, legal documents. One of the oldest and greatest historical and literary monuments of the second half of the 11th and early 12th centuries that has come down to us is “ The Tale of Bygone Years" Since the beginning of the 16th century, in connection with the formation of the centralized Russian state in the 15th century, regional trends have weakened. At this time, noble literature was firmly established as dominant.
But in the 17th century, culture, literature, both townsman and partly peasant, were already developing. The literature of Ancient Rus' was at first imbued with church ideology. The means of disseminating ancient Russian literature was exclusively the manuscript. Printing arose only in the middle of the 16th century.
The development of ancient Russian literature proceeded in parallel with the evolution literary language. The latter is based on the living Russian language, which appears most of all in works of a secular nature. Already in the most distant era, the foundations of the modern Russian language were laid.
4. " Prayer» Daniil Zatochnik. Idea, artistic originality, personality of Daniel.
From the anthology: “Prayer” was written at the end of the 12th or beginning of the 13th century. It was very popular in Ancient Rus', and has come down to us in two editions and many lists. In some lists the work is called a “message”, in others – a “prayer”, i.e. a petition, a request from a disgraced (falling out of favor) person. The popularity of “Prayer” is due to its progressive ideas of protecting the disadvantaged, people dependent on the prince, along with the praise of princely power, and high literary skill: the brightness of the language, filled with proverbs, aphorisms and craft terminology, the peculiar rhythm of stanzas and syntactic structures, internal riffs and assonances, many expressions in M. are borrowed from the collection “Bee,” popular in Ancient Rus'.
“Prayer” by Daniil Zatochnik addressed to the prince Yaroslav Vladimirovich Pereyaslavsky and listeners. “Prayer” can be classified as a work early noble journalism. “Prayer” belongs to the journalistic didactic works, which in short form, filled with philosophical moral content, reveal the life and customs of Rus' on the eve of the Mongol-Tatar invasion. The style of “Prayers of Daniel the Imprisoner” is characterized by a combination of quotations from the Bible, chronicles with live speech, satire directed against the boyars and the clergy. It is distinguished by the author's book knowledge, richness of images, and satirical attitude towards others. Deliberate humiliation is combined with emphasized mental superiority.
The theme of denunciation of monasticism is introduced in “Prayer.” Daniel indignantly rejects the prince's imaginary advice to become a monk. Daniel Sharpener depicts the morals of the monks. He denounces their vicious, base customs, which, like kind-hearted dogs, go around houses and villages "the glorious ones of this world."
Some researchers believe that Daniil the Sharpener is a purely literary character, on whose behalf an anonymous author created a purely literary work, others believe that Daniil the Sharpener is a historical figure, and his work is a real message to the prince. Supporters of the latter point of view define Daniel’s social status differently (nobleman, warrior, artisan, serf, chronicler, etc.) and consider different princes to be the addressee of the message. Finding himself in disgrace for his insolence, excessive straightforwardness and having experienced all the hardships of a beggarly life in exile, Daniel turns to the prince with a request to have mercy and return him to the princely squad, pointing out his merits (intelligence, wisdom, gift artistic word) and claiming the role of princely adviser, ambassador and rhetorician.
The original text of “Prayer” by Daniil Zatochnik was written according to all the rules epistolary genre. Daniel uses aphorisms, phraseology and imagery from the Bible and various ancient Russian monuments, creating from “other people’s words” a deeply personal, integral and organic work. “Prayer” by Daniil Zatochnik was written in bookish language, in a high style, which is characterized, in particular, by abstraction And " deconcretization».
5. " The story of Batu's destruction of Ryazan"as an example of a military story.
This work belongs to the best examples of military stories. It arose in the 13th century. and came to us in the lists of the 16th-17th centuries. The creation of the story was greatly influenced by oral poetic legends about the struggle of the Russian people with the Mongol-Tatar conquerors.
The story attracted the attention of poets of the 19th-20th centuries. A poem by L.A. was written based on its plot. Meya and poems by N.M. Yazykov and S.A. Yesenin about Evpatiy Kolovrat. In the 40s XX century part of the story was translated by the Soviet poet V. Vasiliev.
The story was written in 1237 the year when Batu came to Rus'.
“The Tale of Batu’s Coming to Ryazan” consists of four parts:
1. The appearance of Batu on the borders of the Ryazan land. Yuri Ingorevich asks for military assistance from the Grand Duke of Vladimir Georgy Vsevolodovich. Georgy Vsevolodovich refuses to help, wanting to fight Batu on his own. The Ryazan prince sends his son Fyodor Yuryevich to Batu with gifts and a request not to attack the Ryazan land. Batu wants the people of Ryazan to bring their wives and daughters to him. Having learned from one traitor, a Ryazan nobleman, that Fyodor Yuryevich himself has a beautiful wife, Batu turns to him with such a “proposal.” Prince Fyodor Yuryevich refuses Batu, for which he orders him to be killed. Having learned about this, Princess Eupraxia threw herself with her little son Ivan from the tower and fell to her death.
2. The heroic defense of Ryazan by Yuri Ingorevich, the death of the defenders and the ruin of Ryazan by Batu. The central episode is a hyperbolic description of the battle. A Russian warrior fights the enemy alone. Princess Agrippina, the mother of the Grand Duke, is killed in the church. The depiction of the devastation of the city is depicted in the story with great drama: everyone died, everything was bad.
3. The feat of Evpatiy Kolovrat. At this time, the brother of the Ryazan prince Yuri, Ingvar, is in Chernigov, and with him the Ryazan nobleman Evpatiy Kolovrat. They rush to the aid of Ryazan, but arrive after its destruction. Evpatiy gathers a squad and goes to fight the Tatars. He suddenly attacks Batu’s army and “cuts them without mercy” so that “the swords become dull.” The Tatars were amazed by the courage and daring of the Russians and, in particular, by the valor of Evpatiy Kolovrat. Evpatiy and Batu’s brother-in-law come together in a duel, in which the Russian hero cuts him in half “to the saddle.” The Tatars still manage to kill Evpatiy Kolovrat, but they are afraid of him even when he is dead. The author points out that the Tatars have respect for Russian brave men, and Tsar Batu says: “If such a person served with me, I would bring him closer to me.”
4. Renewal of Ryazan by Ingvar Ingorevich.
The last, final part of the story begins with the emotional crying of Prince Ingvar Ingorevich, created according to all the rules of book rhetoric. He sadly mourns the dead. The story ends with a story about the revival and renewal by the Russian people of Ryazan, which was incinerated by the enemy. The entire work is an example of a military story, which has absorbed significant elements of folklore. The story is not always accurate in conveying historical facts, but it correctly conveys the mood of society of that time and is distinguished by its liveliness, brightness and dramatic narrative.
6. " Life of Alexander Nevsky" Genre originality, the image of Alexander.
"J.Al.N." written at the end of the 13th century. in Vladimir-Suzdal Rus' by an unknown author who personally knew the prince. Subsequently, when Alexander Yaroslavovich was canonized, the secular narrative was supplemented with hagiographical legendary sentiments. In its form, the life is a work in which a military story and a princely life are fused together. In modern times, the life served as a source for a number of works of art: historical paintings N.K. Roerich, A.K. Gorbunova, P.D. Corina; CM. Eisenstein created a historical film.
This work of the hagiographic genre is a princely biography, combining the features of a life and a military story. The composition of the “Life” dates back to the 80s. XIII century and are associated with the names of Dmitry Alexandrovich, son of Alexander Nevsky, and Metropolitan Kirill.
The author of the life, a scribe from the circle of Metropolitan Kirill, based on his memories and stories of Alexander Nevsky’s comrades, creates a biography of the prince, glorifying his military valor and political successes. Compiling a complete biography of Prince Alexander was not part of the author’s tasks. The content of life is summary the main, from the author's point of view, episodes of his life, which make it possible to recreate the heroic image of the prince, preserved in the memory of his contemporaries: the prince - a warrior, a valiant commander and an intelligent politician. Descriptions of the famous victories of Alexander Nevsky in the battle on the Neva and on the ice of Lake Peipus, his diplomatic relations with the Horde and the Pope are the central episodes of his life. The story about the actions of the prince is characterized by abstraction. There is not one in life annual date, the author almost does not name historical names, especially when it comes to opponents; he is not always accurate in his presentation of events. The narrative is full of biblical analogies, quotes, literary parallels. The eternal, timeless nature of Alexander’s activities is emphasized, his deeds are given majesty and monumentality. The author constantly reminds of the prince’s heavenly protection. The idea of the sacredness of princely power determines the features artistic structure biography of Alexander Nevsky.
« Life of Alexander Nevsky", written shortly after the death of the prince (in 1263), creates perfect image ruler, defender of his fatherland from military and ideological attacks by external enemies. It does not fit into the canons of hagiographic literature, and this was understood by the ancient Russian scribes, who included it primarily in the chronicles, and only in the 16th century. it was included in the “Great Cheti-Menaia” of Macarius. The life describes in detail the course of the battle of July 15, 1240, much attention is paid to the exploits of Alexander and his brave heroic warriors. Alexander himself shows extraordinary courage and fearlessness in battle. The Alexandrov warriors were distinguished by their courage and bravery. A characteristic feature of the life is the constant presence of the author-narrator. Thus, “The Life of Alexander Nevsky” reveals a close connection with both hagiographic literature and military stories.
Literature of the Russian pre-renaissance. General characteristics.
Possibility to consider the period from the end XIV to the end XV V. like Russian time Pre-Renaissance has been substantiated in research Likhacheva. Russian literature since the X-XI centuries. was in close ties with the cultures of Byzantium and the South Slavs. The Mongol-Tatar invasion slowed down and interrupted these connections (although not completely), but already in the second half of the 14th century. they are being revived with extraordinary intensity, and Rus' finds itself involved in the process of cultural upsurge that all European states are experiencing during this period and which led some of them to the Renaissance itself.
If the Renaissance discovered man, recognized value, complexity and individuality human personality, then in the Pre-Renaissance era this discovery was still being prepared. And as the first step on this path, a keen interest in the emotional life of a person arises, not only in the narrow sphere of prayerful ecstasy or tenderness, but also in the whole variety of feelings that arise in various life situations. The writers of this time had not yet discovered the individual human character, but they began to willingly depict human emotions and they themselves, together with their heroes, cry, admire, and are indignant. These new interests, in turn, required the development of a new, more flexible, more expressive language style. This style was acquired in the 13th-14th centuries. widespread in the literature of Byzantium, Bulgaria, Serbia and, finally, in Russian literature, in relation to which it is usually called the style of the second South Slavic influence.
In the Pre-Renaissance era, the process of secularization of culture intensified. More free-thinking is manifested in ideology, and various heretical views are becoming widespread. Literature more boldly departs from the canons in the system of genres, in the type of plots, in the nature of the image; The reader is increasingly attracted by the entertaining nature of the narrative and the novelty of plot collisions. All these processes are observed in Russian literature of the 15th century.
The Pre-Renaissance era was also characterized by an increased interest in the world, alien to the barriers of national and even religious limitations. It is enough to mention in this regard that in Rus' at the turn of the XV-XVI centuries. translations are made from Latin that Rus', although to a lesser extent than Western Europe, meets at this time ancient culture, and in particular with the ancient epic and ancient mythology. All these examples indicate the similarity of cultural trends in a number of European countries and, consequently, about the legitimacy of raising the question of the Russian Pre-Renaissance.
Related information.
Genre system literature XI-XII centuries, styles of depicting events and people, the most important monuments of the period. The originality of the artistic method of ancient Russian literature, the connection of worldview and method with the system of genres. Artistic and journalistic genres of ancient Russian literature and their connections with the systems of genres of folklore, liturgical and business writing. The Bible is the center of the system of literary genres of Ancient Rus' and other countries of the Christian world.
Literature of Kievan Rus (XI – first third of the 12th century), its greatness
National and religious issues of works. Themes of independence and unity of the Russian land, condemnation of princely feuds.
The ratio of translated and original monuments. Genres of original literature and their connection with the genres of Byzantine literature.
Old Russian chronicle writing, basic principles of Russian chronicle writing. "The Tale of Bygone Years" as literary monument, its composition, sources and main editions, hypotheses of the stages of formation of the work (A.A. Shakhmatova, D.S. Likhacheva, B.A. Rybakova). PVL as an example of medieval thinking: principles of depicting a person, a view of history, the “ensemble” nature of construction, etc. Historical stories and folk legends in the text of the chronicle.
Early Russian hagiography (“The Tale of Boris and Gleb”, “The Life of Theodosius of Pechersk”). The main purpose of the lives is to promote Christian doctrine.
Walking like literary genre. The history and purpose of writing “The Walk” of Abbot Daniel. The personality of the narrator in the work.
Oratorical prose. Literary heritage Vladimir Monomakh. Approval of civil and moral ideal in "Teaching"; hierarchy of values. Autobiographical beginning in the monument.
Literature of the period feudal fragmentation(second third of the 12th - first third of the 13th century).
"The Tale of Igor's Campaign." Historical basis of the monument. Disputes about the authenticity of the Lay. Historical context. The idea of "The Word". Art world“Words”: integrity and means of its creation, subjective-objective organization, features of plot composition. Typological connections of the “Word” with heroic epic other peoples (“Song of Roland”, “Song of the Nibelungs”, etc.)
The style of monumental historicism as an expression of the essential trends of the literary era.
“The Prayer of Daniel the Imprisoner” as an attempt to realize a new understanding of the world and man in it. The author's position in views on public life. Two editions of the monument and the problem of their relationship.
Literature of the period of the Mongol-Tatar invasion and the unification of northeastern Rus' (second third of the 13th - mid-15th century)
The Mongol-Tatar invasion and its reflection in chronicles, stories (Galician-Volyn Chronicle, “The Tale of the Battle of the Kalka River”). Artistic comprehension events in “The Tale of Batu’s Ruin of Ryazan” (symbolism, construction, connection with folklore). The theme of national unity.
Bringing Moscow literature to the forefront. Battle of Kulikovo through the eyes ancient Russian authors(“The Tale of Mamaev’s Massacre”, “Zadonshchina”): a search for new ways of artistic expression of the idea of unity of all Russian lands. The relationship between “Zadonshchina” and “The Tale of Igor’s Campaign.” Similarities and differences (to the question of the authenticity of the monument).
Increasing emotionality in traditional genres.
Changing the genre, composition, style structure of life. Approval of the style of “weaving words”.
The works of Epiphanius the Wise.
Literature of the era of historical reflection.
Literature of the time of national upsurge (XIV - late XV centuries).
A decisive rise in the social importance of literature.
The era of historical reflection.
Mixing historical narrative with fables and historical legend.
“The Tale of Dracula”, “The Life of Mikhail Klopsky”, etc.
The appearance of external entertainment in literature.
“Walking across Three Seas” by Afanasy Nikitin.
Secularization of life in the writings of Ermolai-Erasmus. Destruction of the hagiographic canon in “The Tale of Peter and Fevronia.” The history of the creation of the story, techniques for depicting heroes, new system values. Elements of the Pre-Renaissance in the work.
On the way to something new literary consciousness.
Literature of strengthening Moscow centralized state(end of the 15th – 16th centuries). Literature of the “state structure”. Mid-16th century. On the way to a new literary consciousness (second half of the 16th century)
The era of the greatest state celebration in Rus'. A single state under the rule of one strong monarch. Literature becomes an image of certain ideals that dominated life, a herald life values. The idea of Moscow as the “Third Rome”.
The style of ceremonial monumentalism.
“Kazan History” is a significant monument of the mid-16th century.
“Domostroy” is a literary monument of the 16th century. Ideals of Domostroy.
The growth of journalistic tendencies in the writings of the beginning of the century. The reasons for its heyday; genres and styles.
Journalism of Ivan Peresvetov.
Message from Ivan the Terrible. Style of Ivan the Terrible.
Literature of the “transitional” era. XVII century
Approaches to decisive changes in the structure of literature.
Transitional phenomena (from medieval to new thinking) in public life beginning of the century. The same thing in literature: emancipation of the author’s presence in the text, new genres, increased attention to everyday life and everyday life.
Troubles and its reflection in literature.
Continuation of the process of secularization and democratization of literature. Change in the hagiographic canon.
Satirical works.
Household stories of the 17th century: traditional features and innovation in the genre; artistic and ideological features of everyday stories.
(“The Tale of Misfortune-Grief”, “The Tale of Savva Grudtsyn”).
The work of Archpriest Avvakum. The author's innovation in the image
person.
The work of Simeon of Polotsk.
Practical lesson plans
Methodological development each practical lesson contains
Plan with a list of formulations of the main problems to be discussed
Tasks for independent work student (see the general list of tasks for independent work at the end of all practical lesson plans)
List of literature of a critical, scientific research nature.
Literary analysis the text involves the coverage of issues focused on an in-depth study of problems: artistic space and time, the writer’s style, genre originality works.
Preparation for a practical lesson requires students to practice theoretical, historical and literary concepts, and constantly update their vocabulary of literary terms.
The first works of original ancient Russian literature that have come down to us date back to the middle of the 11th century. The main genres of literature of this time are historical: legend, legend, story. Historical genres, relying in their development on the corresponding genres of folklore, develop specific book forms of storytelling “according to the epics of this time.” The leading genre is the historical story, based on a reliable depiction of events. Depending on the nature of the events reflected in the stories, they can be “military”, stories about princely crimes, etc. Each type of historical story acquires its own specific stylistic features. The central character of historical stories and legends is a warrior prince, a defender of the borders of the country, a builder of temples, a zealot for education, a righteous judge of his subjects. His antipode is a seditious prince, violating the feudal legal order of subordinating the trade wind to his overlord, the eldest in the clan, leading bloody internecine wars, striving to gain power for himself by force. The narration of the good and evil deeds of the princes is based on the testimony of eyewitnesses, participants in the events, and oral traditions that existed among the druzhina environment. Historical tales and legends do not allow artistic fiction in the modern meaning of the word. The facts presented are documented, attached to exact dates, and correlated with other events.
The folklore of that time includes: ritual songs, calendar songs, conspiracies and spells, fairy tales, stories of everyday and historical nature, legends, proverbs and sayings, riddles, epics. The latter have survived only in the north of Rus', although they talk about events that allegedly took place in Kyiv. In Ukraine, during the years of Tatar-Mongol slavery, this folklore tradition was lost.
Among the folk art inherent in the period of Kievan Rus, one should identify the squad epic, in which the victories of the leader-prince and his squad were glorified. The epics are supplemented with new stories about the fight against the Polovtsians. Vladimir the Red Sun already refers to Vladimir Monomakh. Many fairy tales are dedicated to the struggle of heroes against evil forces - Kotigoroshko, Vernigory, Virviduba, Kirill Kozhemyaki, etc.
Speaking about Russian literature of the Kyiv period, we must consider not only directly fiction, but also transitional types, such as didactic literature, and even religious works, if they represent artistic value. The Bible in Kievan Rus, as in medieval Europe, was the main source of both religious and aesthetic inspiration. The influence of the Bible in Rus' was even more significant than in the West, since Russians could read it in a language close to their native one. From the point of view of the development of literature, the influence of the Old Testament turned out to be stronger than the New. Russians of that time read the Old Testament mainly in an abridged version (Paley), the compiler of which did not separate the canonical texts from the apocrypha. This, however, made the book even more attractive to the reader. In addition to the Bible, readers had at their disposal translations of various works of religious literature and Byzantine literature in general. From the point of view of literary history, church hymns, lives of saints, and didactic legends of various kinds were the most important among the examples of Byzantine religious and semi-religious literature that became available to the Russians. In the genre of didactic church literature and hymnography, one of the most popular authors was Bishop Kirill of Turov. In both his hymns and his teachings he showed extraordinary literary skill, despite his disdain for traditional rhetoric. In the hagiographic genre, the story of an unknown author about the sufferings of St. Boris and Gleb is perhaps the best from the point of view of literary technique.
To others popular genre The translated literature included hagiographies - stories about the lives and exploits of saints. Secular books were also translated. The collection was especially popular in Rus' catchphrases, proverbs from the Bible. Collections called “The Bee” were known, which included excerpts from the works of Aristotle, Plato, Socrates, Epicurus, Plutarch, Sophocles, Herodotus and other ancient authors. The chronicles of the Byzantine historians George Amartol and John Malala were very popular, many stories from which were used by Russian chroniclers, telling in their works about the fundamental principles of humanity, ancient peoples and states. In the 11th century With foreign languages works on world history, instructive and entertaining literature were translated: Chronicle of George Amartol, Chronicle of Sincellus, “History of the Jewish War” by Josephus, “The Life of Basil the New”, “Christian Topography” by Kozma Indikoplov, “Alexandria”, “The Tale of Akira the Wise” and others. The Ostromir Gospel, an ancient church, Slavic monument of the East Slavic edition, was also translated. Translated for the Novgorod mayor Ostromir during the time of Yaroslav the Wise. Instructions - writings of the fathers of the Orthodox Church - John Chrysostom, John of Damascus, Ephraim the Syrian, stories from Byzantium, Arabic and Indian fairy tales, works of natural and geographical content (“Physiologist”, “Shestidniv”). It would be wrong to think that it was translated literature that became the basis of Old Russian literature, a model for Old Russian writers. The rich traditions of oral folk art had a huge influence on her. When writing appeared, Russian scribes began to write down everything major events of its time. This is how one of the first genres of Russian literature arose - the chronicle. Chronicles are Russian historical works in which the narrative was told by year. Old Russian chronicles differed significantly from Western European and Byzantine chronicles with their courtly-feudal and church bias. It is clear that Russian chronicles did not escape this, but they were broader in content and sought to combine the task of historical, journalistic, religiously instructive and artistic legend.
When and where did Russian chronicle writing begin? Modern scientists believe that in the first half of the 11th century in Kyiv and Novgorod. Chronicle writing was primarily done by monks. Chronicles were compiled on behalf of the prince, abbot or bishop. If the chronicle was kept on the direct instructions of the prince, then it usually had an official character, reflecting Political Views this ruler, his likes and dislikes. But the compilers of the chronicles, even fulfilling a certain “order,” often showed independence of thought and even criticized the actions and deeds of the princes if they seemed to them worthy of blame. Old Russian chroniclers always sought to write the truth, “without decorating the writer.”
If nothing had reached us from Kievan Rus except the chronicle “The Tale of Bygone Years,” then this one work would be enough to imagine its high culture. This chronicle is a real encyclopedia of the life of the Slavs of the 9th-11th centuries. It made it possible to learn not only about the history of Kievan Rus, but also about its language, the origin of writing, religion, beliefs, geographical knowledge, art, international relations, etc. "The Tale of Bygone Years" is also historical scientific work, and a collection of historical stories. Each of these stories purports to be a detailed account of the event being described, and many of them, of course, are just that. But at the same time, many stories also have high artistic value, and in some, fiction undoubtedly prevails over fact. Among the historical and pseudo-historical messages included in the “Tale” we find, for example: stories about Oleg’s campaign in Byzantium; about Olga’s revenge on the Drevlyans for the murder of her husband; the so-called “Korsun legend” about the baptism of Vladimir; the story of the blinding of Prince Vasilko; a story about the disastrous campaign of Prince Igor against the Polovtsians and many others. Some of these stories are apparently based on various epic poems that were created among the princely warriors; others are true statements of fact, such as the story of Vasilko - it was apparently written by a priest who consoled the unfortunate prince after inflicting a cruel injury on him. Some of the stories, apparently, were recorded by the chronicler from the words of eyewitnesses, other interpretations of the same event could have been distributed independently of the first. The first edition of “The Tale of Bygone Years” was created in 1113 by the monk of the Kiev-Pechersk Monastery Nestor, the second edition by the abbot of the Vydubitsky Monastery Sylvester in 1116 and the third by an unknown author - the confessor of Prince Mstislav Vladimirovich.
"The Tale of Bygone Years" was not the only historical work of its time. Even earlier, the “Ancient Kiev Chronicle” appeared in the 11th century, so called by academician A.A. Shakhmatov. Chronicle records began to appear in Volyn, and then, in the 12th century. - in Pereyaslav South, in Chernigov, Vladimir, Smolensk and many other cities and principalities.
“The Sermon on Law and Grace” written by Metropolitan Hilarion between 1037 and 1050. This was a speech delivered in St. Sophia Cathedral before Prince Yaroslav. It talks about the baptism of Kievan Rus and the prominent role of local Christians in this. The “Word” is permeated with a patriotic style, pride in one’s land, one’s state, one’s people. The question was also raised about the place of the Old Russian Kievan state among other states. In “The Sermon on Law and Grace,” Metropolitan Hilarion showed himself to be one of the truly great masters of the art of rhetoric. It is magnificent in composition, and every detail in it is gem high dignity. Hilarion uses a wide variety of means artistic expression: symbolic parallelism, metaphors, antitheses, rhetorical questions, etc., all with an excellent sense of proportion.
The heroic and tragic campaign of the Novgorod-Seversk prince Igor Svyatoslavovich in 1185 against the Polovtsians and his defeat was glorified in the oldest literary monument of Kievan Rus - the talented poetic work"The Tale of Igor's Campaign." The poem, created by an unknown participant and eyewitness to the events, became a great patriotic call for the unity of the Russian princes against the threat of external enemies.
The Teachings of Vladimir Monomakh is a literary monument of the 12th century, written by the Grand Duke of Kyiv Vladimir Monomakh. This work is called the first secular sermon. Addressed primarily to princes and rulers, the text had the meaning of a political testament; Vladimir Monomakh supported his maxims with an appeal to experience own life. He sought to protect the state from princely civil strife and, relying on the authority of Christian doctrine, tried to influence his descendants with the power of moral conviction. The prince taught his children to honestly and honorably fulfill ch. a man's job is to protect native land and not to offend his subjects, pointed out the need for versatile book teaching.
With the beginning of fragmentation, Russian chronicles were compiled in every large feudal center. The last of the Russian chronicle codes that have reached us are the Kiev (1200) and Galicia-Volyn (late 13th century). The Galician-Volyn Chronicle is the main source for studying the history of the southwestern principalities. The most interesting part of the chronicle is that which tells about the reign of Danil Romanovich. The author was an ardent supporter of Daniel, probably his warrior, and possessed literary talent and broad erudition. Therefore, the chronicle is valuable both for history and literature.
A kind of encyclopedia of various knowledge of that era were “Izborniki” - collections of works on different topics that explain some difficult to understand biblical stories, and also teach and give instructions. In the “Izbornik” of 1076, significant space is devoted to the rules that a person should follow in life. For the first time, the existence of a conflict between the poor and the rich is noted, which is called upon to be resolved on the principles of Christian morality, preaching universal love and forgiveness. The “Izbornik” of 1073 also has great artistic significance.
A landmark of the literary and book culture of those times is the “Kievo-Pechersk Patericon” - a collection of stories about the lives of the holy high priests and great martyrs of the Russian Land. It was finally compiled and presented in the 13th century. Subsequently, the Patericon was constantly supplemented and expanded.
Speaking about the rise of ancient Russian literature after the adoption of Christianity, we must not forget that it is rich primarily in its national patriotism. Old Russian scribes called for love of the Motherland, fostered patriotism and the desire to correct the shortcomings of society. The literary heritage of Kievan Rus was rich. According to the calculations of individual scientists, in the XI-XIII centuries. About 140 thousand books of several hundred titles were in circulation throughout Rus'. The terrible destruction caused by the Tatar-Mongols in the middle of the 13th century and the wars in subsequent times led to huge losses.
Introduction
Turning to the literature of distant eras - be it ancient literature, medieval literature of European or Asian countries or the literature of Ancient Rus', we must digress somewhat from the usual assessments and ideas with which we approach literary phenomena modern times, and try to imagine, as fully as possible, the specific conditions in which literature developed in a particular country in the era we are studying.
Writing and literature came to Rus' with the adoption of Christianity. At first, the scribes - both Byzantine and Bulgarian missionaries and their Russian students and associates - considered their main task to be the propaganda of the new religion and the provision of the churches being built in Rus' with the books necessary for worship. In addition, the Christianization of Rus' entailed a radical restructuring of the worldview. Previous pagan ideas about the origin and structure of the universe or about the history of mankind were rejected, and Rus' was in dire need of literature that would present the Christian concept of world history, explain cosmogonic problems, give a different, Christian explanation of natural phenomena, etc.
So, the need for books in the young Christian state was extremely great, but at the same time the possibilities for satisfying this need were very limited: in Rus' there were still few skilled scribes, corporations of scribes (scriptoria) were just beginning to be created, the writing process itself was very long Finally, the material on which books were written - parchment - was expensive. There was a strict choice that fettered individual initiative: a scribe could undertake the copying of a manuscript only if he worked in a monastery or knew that his work would be paid for by the customer. And the customers could be either rich and famous people, or the church.
The Tale of Bygone Years has preserved important evidence for us: Kyiv prince Yaroslav the Wise (died in 1054), who, according to the chronicler, loved “church statutes” and “diligently read books and read them?” [them] often in the night and in the day,” gathered scribes who “translated” Greek books. “And having copied many books, through them people who learn to be faithful enjoy the teachings of the Divine.” The predominance of “divine” books among the copied and translated books - that is, books of sacred scripture or liturgical books - is beyond doubt. Another thing is surprising: despite the primary need for texts of sacred scripture or liturgical texts, Kyiv scribes still found the opportunity to bring from Bulgaria, translate or rewrite works of other genres: chronicles, historical stories, collections of sayings, natural science works. The fact that among more than 130 handwritten books XI-XII centuries, about 80 liturgical books have survived to our time, finds its explanation not only in the trends of early book literature discussed above, but also in the fact that these books, stored in stone churches, were more likely to survive and not perish in fires that devastated mostly wooden, ancient Russian cities. Therefore, the repertoire of books from the 11th–12th centuries. to a large extent can only be reconstructed from indirect data, since the manuscripts that have reached us are an insignificant part of the book wealth.
One should not, however, reproach Old Russian literature for its narrow “utilitarianism”; her genre system reflected a worldview typical of all Christian states in the early Middle Ages. “Old Russian literature,” wrote D.S. Likhachev, “can be considered as literature of one theme and one plot. This plot is world history, and this theme is the meaning human life" Indeed, the ancient Russian reader was primarily concerned with questions of great philosophical significance: what is this world in which we live, what is the place in it of each individual person, who should be imitated in order to be worthy of the benefits that the church promised the righteous, and to avoid terrible torment who, according to her teaching, were waiting for sinners.
But our idea of spiritual world It would be completely wrong for an ancient Russian person to believe that theological problems, questions of Christian morality or hagiographical legends determined the entire range of his interests and requests. The fact is that everything said above applies only to literature - the written word. It was to the book that the ancient Russian reader made such high demands; it was from literature that he expected an explanation of the world or instructions on the ways of “saving the soul.” Literature for a long time, right up to the 17th century, would appear to him as something significant, not condescending to the bustle of life, everyday interests, and simple human feelings. However, the people of Kievan Rus not only prayed and read soul-saving instructions; they were concerned not only with the history of the universe or the essence of theological disputes. The vast majority of people of that time, from a simple peasant-smerda to a boyar and a prince, just like us, sang and listened to songs, told stories and listened to entertaining stories about strong, brave and generous heroes; they probably knew love poetry, a funny joke, a funny fairy tale, in a word, they were familiar with most of those genres without which modern literature is unthinkable. But all these genres were genres of folklore, they were not sought in literature and were not expected from it - literature had other functions and tasks; in other words, the book was too expensive to record in it what was already stored in the people's memory, which did not require such literalism in the transmission of the text as unfamiliar facts of world history or theological reasoning.
It is customary to begin a review of ancient Russian literature with a review of translated literature. This is not accidental: translations in the 10th–11th centuries. in some cases preceded the creation of original works of the same genre. Rus' began to read other people's things before writing their own. But one should see this not as evidence of the “inferiority” of the culture of the Eastern Slavs, but as one of the manifestations of the complex relationships between the peoples who stood on different levels social and cultural development.
Literature of the 11th–13th centuries. called “the literature of Kievan Rus.” This definition needs some clarification. Very early, already in the 11th century, Rus' splits into several appanage principalities, among which Kiev itself was by no means the strongest: in the second half of the 12th century. it was inferior in power and authority (although the Kiev prince still bore the title of “Grand Duke”) to the Vladimir-Suzdal principality in the northeast of Rus' and Novgorod in the northwest. And yet, this is still “the literature of Kievan Rus,” which has its own characteristic features that distinguish it from the literature of the subsequent period.
Perhaps its most characteristic feature is its attraction to Kyiv as a cultural center. The foundations of this literature were laid by the scribes of Vladimir Svyatoslavich and Yaroslav the Wise, one of the literary (and book-writing) centers was the Kiev-Pechersk Monastery, it was in Kyiv and its environs that the creators of the first examples in a number of genres of ancient Russian literature worked - chronicle, hagiographic, the first chronicles appeared here, the first lives, the first patericon, the first monuments of solemn and teaching eloquence. Novgorod, although in the 11th–12th centuries was undoubtedly the second cultural center of Rus' after Kyiv, still could not equal the “mother city of Russia” - Kiev.
So, we can talk about the literature of Kievan Rus in a broad and narrow sense. IN in a broad sense- this is the literature of the 11th - early 13th centuries, the literature of the time of creation and the first centuries of existence ancient Russian state up to the Mongol-Tatar invasion, literature not only of Kyiv itself, but also of others cultural centers, in the north-west and north-east of Rus' as well. In a narrow sense, this is literature that developed in Kyiv or gravitated specifically towards this cultural center.
The temporal dimension of the literature of Kievan Rus in this sense of the term was determined primarily by political circumstances - the fall of the state (and subsequently church) authority of Kyiv, the defeat of it by Batu’s hordes, the activation cultural life in North-Eastern Rus'. In this regard, the fate of such a seemingly revered and necessary genre in the Middle Ages as chronicle writing is very characteristic: it is interrupted in Kyiv, Chernigov, Pereyaslavl-Yuzhny (preserving during the 13th century only in Galicia-Volyn Rus), but it continues to exist and develop in Novgorod, Vladimir, Rostov the Great.
If we consider the literature of Kievan Rus in the temporal (broad) sense of the term, it turns out that this is the literature of “acquaintance” and “beginnings”: it was during this period that the majority of the genres of Byzantine literature became known, and it was during this period that the genre system began to take shape Old Russian literature. The literature of Kievan Rus was created simultaneously with the formation of the Old Russian literary language, and, what is extremely important, already at this time, at the dawn of literature, the first literary styles were formed, the narrative became orderly, subordinated to a special literary ritual, the so-called literary etiquette. It was during this initial period that foreign samples - genres and monuments of Byzantine writing (which came to Rus' both directly and, for the most part, through Bulgarian media) were mastered and transformed; translations and the penetration of new works and genres continue in the future, but then this process takes place under different conditions: translated monuments only replenish the repertoire of original literary works, introduce Russian scribes to new subjects, ideas, examples of a different style of storytelling, etc., but in all these cases, the new, introduced from the outside, meets its own established traditions in Rus'. Therefore, starting from the XIV–XV centuries. we can only talk about the influence of Byzantine or South Slavic literature, while the literary process of the 11th–12th centuries. we will define it as the process of “transplantation” of Byzantine and pan-Slavic literature onto Russian soil and call this time the period of formation of Russian literature proper.