Lesson 2

Subject: The original character of ancient Russian literature. Richness and variety of genres.

Target: briefly introduce students to the circumstances of the emergence of ancient Russian literature; to form an idea of ​​the specifics of ancient Russian literature, the features of its traditions; provide an overview of the genres of ancient Russian literature

Tasks:

Subject: Know: the main features and genres of ancient Russian literature, stages of its development; genre features. Understand: patriotic pathos of the works of Ancient Russia Be able to: build detailed statements based on what you read; argue your point of view

Metasubject: develop motives and interests of cognitive activity

Personal: formation of motivation for learning and purposeful cognitive activity.

Interdisciplinary connections: history, Russian language.

Lesson type: a lesson in mastering new knowledge and forming new concepts.

Equipment: textbook

During the classes

I .Organizing time.

II . Learning new material.

Teacher's word.

You already know that the emergence of literature in Rus' is associated with the adoption of Christianity as the state religion. Today our goal is to get the most general idea about ancient Russian literature and get acquainted with one of its monuments.

The concept of “Old Russian literature” includes literary works written in the 11th-17th centuries. They come in different genres.A genre is a historically established type of literary work, an abstract pattern on the basis of which the texts of specific literary works are created. The system of genres of literature of Ancient Rus' differed significantly from the modern one. Old Russian literature developed largely under the influence Byzantine literature and borrowed from her a system of genres, reworking them on a national basis: the specificity of the genres of Old Russian literature lies in their connection with traditional Russian folk art. The genres of ancient Russian literature are usually divided into primary and unifying.

Among them are chronicles, walks, teachings, lives, epistles, works of the oratorical genre, etc. The very first ancient Russian monument It is impossible to indicate, since the first monuments, the first books have not survived to this day. The first monument of ancient Russian literature that has reached us is

"The Tale of Bygone Years."

It is known that in addition to church books in Rus', books devoted to the history of the country and its connections with world history have become widespread. Records were kept about everything important that happened in the country: about princes and their struggle for power, about attacks by enemies and the fight against them. Such books were called chronicles.

The word “chronicle” comes from two words: summer, and write. Thus,chronicle - this is an essay, the narrative is presented on a yearly basis. The basis of the narrative in the chronicle is the annual record ( short message about the event, without description), chronicle story ( a detailed story about the event) and obituary description (description of the prince and praise to him).

The chroniclers considered themselves not authors, but recorders of events. That's why they don't mention themselves. Most often, the ancient Russian chronicler was a learned monk.

Being authored, literary works are, as a rule, anonymous, since, on the one hand, ancient Russian authors rarely indicated their names in manuscripts, considering them only executors of the highest Divine will; on the other hand, ancient Russian texts were distributed in handwritten formIand the ancient scribes, when rewriting, could also rework texts and become “co-authors.” This explains the existence of different editions of the same literary monument.

Chronicle writing began in Rus' inXIcentury. The first chronicler was the monk of the Kiev-Pechersk Lavra Nikon, whom he called the Great. His life was full of stormy events, he was actively involved in political struggle against those Kyiv princes who put their own interests above all-Russian interests, he was twice forced to flee to Tmutarakan. At the end of his life, Nikon became abbot of the Kiev Pechersk Monastery. It was then, apparently, that he worked on the chronicle.

At firstXIIcentury, the monk of the same monastery, Nestor, compiled “The Tale of Bygone Years” - one of the remarkable works of Russian literature. This story has reached us, rewritten and partly revised by the monk of the neighboring Vydubetsky monastery, Sylvester. This “Tale...” is the fruit of the creativity of several generations of chroniclers. After all, there was no printing in those days; books were copied by hand, and this work was entrusted to a select few, learned scribes. When rewriting the chronicles, followers inevitably made some additions, amendments, and sometimes even made mistakes. In addition, new information was added, since the chronicles were kept strictly by year, and everything important that happened during the year was entered into the chronicle.

Reading the chronicle, we hear the living voice of distant ancestors. Works of the past destroy the barriers of time, and with the power of imagination we can imagine ourselves as participants in those events, see what happened and how.

The following genres of ancient Russian literature are also distinguished:LifeWordTeachingTaleThis also includes weather records, chronicle stories, chronicle legends and church legends.

Life The genre of hagiography was borrowed from Byzantium. This is the most widespread and beloved 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. It performed a huge educational function, because 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 depart 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.A saint was born a saint, not made one.The saint was distinguished by an ascetic lifestyle, spending time in solitude and prayer.A mandatory attribute of the life was 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.Teaching - a type of genre of ancient Russian eloquence. Teaching is a genre in which ancient Russian chroniclers tried to present a model of behavior for any ancient Russian man: both for the prince and for the commoner. The most striking example of this genre is the “Teaching of Vladimir Monomakh” included in the Tale of Bygone Years. In the Tale of Bygone Years, the Teachings of Vladimir Monomakh are dated 1096. At this time, the strife between the princes in the battle for the throne reached its climax. In his teaching, Vladimir Monomakh gives advice on how to organize your life. He says that there is no need to seek the salvation of the soul in seclusion. It is necessary to serve God by helping those in need. When going to war, you should pray - God will definitely help. Monomakh confirms these words with an example from his life: he took part in many battles - and God protected him. Monomakh says that one should look at how the natural world works and try to arrange public relations modeled on a harmonious world order. The teaching of Vladimir Monomakh is addressed to descendants.

Word The word is a type of genre of ancient Russian eloquence. An example of the political variety of ancient Russian eloquence is “The Tale of Igor’s Campaign.” This work is the subject of much controversy regarding its authenticity. This is because the original text of “The Tale of Igor’s Campaign” has not been preserved. It was destroyed by fire in 1812. Only copies have survived. Since that time, it has become fashionable to refute its authenticity. The word tells about the military campaign of Prince Igor against the Polovtsians, which took place in history in 1185. Researchers suggest that the author of “The Tale of Igor’s Campaign” was one of the participants in the described campaign. Disputes about the authenticity of this work were conducted in particular because it stands out from the system of genres of ancient Russian literature due to the unusual nature of the elements used in it. artistic means and techniques. The traditional chronological principle of narration is violated here: the author is transported to the past, then returns to the present (this was not typical for ancient Russian literature), the author makes lyrical digressions, inserted episodes appear (Svyatoslav’s dream, Yaroslavna’s cry). The word contains many elements of traditional oral folk art, characters. One can clearly feel the influence of a fairy tale, an epic. The political background of the work is obvious: in the fight against a common enemy, Russian princes must be united, disunity leads to death and defeat.Another example of political eloquence is the “Word about the Destruction of the Russian Land,” which was created immediately after the Mongol-Tatars came to Rus'. The author glorifies the bright past and mourns the present.An example of the solemn variety of ancient Russian eloquence is the “Sermon on Law and Grace” by Metropolitan Hilarion, which was created in the first third of the 11th century. The word was written by Metropolitan Hilarion on the occasion of the completion of the construction of military fortifications in Kyiv. The word conveys the idea of ​​​​the political and military independence of Rus' from Byzantium. By “Law” Hilarion understands the Old Testament, which was given to the Jews, but it does not suit the Russian and other peoples. Therefore, God gave the New Testament, which is called “Grace.” In Byzantium, Emperor Constantine is revered, who contributed to the spread and establishment of Christianity there. Hilarion says that Prince Vladimir the Red Sun, who baptized Rus', is no worse than the Byzantine emperor and should also be revered by the Russian people. The work of Prince Vladimir is continued by Yaroslav the Wise. The main idea of ​​“The Word of Law and Grace” is that Rus' is as good as Byzantium.

Tale A story is a text of an epic nature, telling about princes, military exploits, and princely crimes. Examples of military stories are “The Tale of the Battle of the Kalka River”, “The Tale of the Devastation of Ryazan by Batu Khan”, “The Tale of the Life of Alexander Nevsky”.

Message - usually used for journalistic purposes.

Walking is a genre that describes all kinds of travel to other lands and adventures.

Chronicle is a narration of historical events. This is the most ancient genre of ancient Russian literature. In Ancient Rus', the chronicle played a very important role, because not only reported historical events of the past, but was also a political and legal document, testifying to how to act in certain situations. The oldest chronicle is the “Tale of Bygone Years,” which came to us in the lists of the Laurentian Chronicle of the 14th century and the Ipatiev Chronicle of the 15th century. The chronicle tells about the origin of the Russians, the genealogy of the Kyiv princes and the emergence of the ancient Russian state.

Literature of ancient Rus' general characteristics period

Old Russian literature passed a long period development, which is 7 centuries: from the 9th to the 15th centuries. Scientists associate the formation of ancient Russian literature with the adoption of Christianity in Rus' in 988. This year is the starting point for the periodization of literature. It is reliably known that writing existed in Rus' even before the adoption of Christianity. But very few monuments of pre-Christian writing have been discovered. Based on the available monuments, it cannot be said that before the adoption of Christianity, literature and book learning existed in Rus'.The spread of the Christian religion in Rus' involved the study of holy scripture and Christian rituals. To preach Christian canons, it was necessary to translate religious books from ancient Greek and Latin languages into a language that the Slavs understood. The Old Church Slavonic language became such a language. Scientists talk about the special status of the Old Church Slavonic language. Old Church Slavonic is literary language all Slavs. They did not speak it, but only wrote and read books. The Old Church Slavonic language was created by Christian preachers Cyril and Methodius on the basis of the Solunsky dialect of the ancient Bulgarian language specifically in order to make the canons of the Christian religion understandable to the Slavs and to preach these canons in the language of the Slavs. Books in the Old Church Slavonic language were copied in different territories inhabited by the Slavs, where they spoke differently: in different dialects. Gradually, the peculiarities of the speech of the Slavs began to be reflected in writing. Thus, on the basis of the Old Church Slavonic language, the Church Slavonic language arose, reflecting the peculiarities of the speech of the Eastern Slavs, and then of Old Russian people.Christian preachers arrived in Rus' and created schools. The schools taught reading, writing and the canons of Orthodox Christianity. Over time, a layer of people appeared in Rus' who knew how to read and write. They rewrote holy scripture and translated it into Old Church Slavonic. Over time, these people began to record historical events that took place in Rus', make generalizations, use images of oral folk art, and evaluate the events and facts described. This is how original ancient Russian literature gradually took shape.Old Russian literature was fundamentally different from what we are accustomed to understanding as literature at the present time. Literature in Ancient Rus' was closely connected with the spread of the Christian religion and served as a tool for preaching and consolidating Christianity in Rus'. This determined a special attitude towards the book as a sacred object, and towards reading as a sacred process of familiarization with God’s Word.

As they wrote Old Russian books? Old Russian books were huge tomes, the pages of which were made of cowhide. The books were bound into boards, which were covered with leather and decorated. Cured cowhide was an expensive material that had to be saved. That is why ancient Russian books were written in a special way: in the books there were no intervals between words. Naturally, reading such books was very difficult. In addition, many frequently used words were not written in full. For example, BG - God, BGC - Mother of God, NB - heaven. Above such words they put a “title” sign - an abbreviation. Because of the high cost of the material, books cost entire villages. Only rich princes could afford to have books.

The book is a source of Divine grace One of the differences between ancient Russian literature and modern literature is that ancient Russian books do not and could not have had an author. In Ancient Rus', the concept of authorship did not exist at all; it appeared much later. It was believed that God guided the hand of the book writer. Man is only an intermediary through whom God conveys his Word to people. Putting your name in a book was considered a great sin. The belief in this was strong, so for a long time no one dared to put their name in the books. But some could not resist and put an inconspicuous, but so important for them, inscription like “I am a great sinner (name) had a hand in this.”There was a strong belief that the book had a miraculous effect on a person, giving him divine grace. Communicating with a book, ancient Russian people believed that they were communicating with God. That is why it was customary to fast and pray for at least a week before reading books.

Historicism of Old Russian Literature Old Russian authors were aware of their special historical mission - the mission of witnesses of time. They believed that they were obliged to record all the events that took place on their land in order to convey history to their descendants through the book. In addition, the texts included many traditions and legends that had oral existence. Thus, in ancient Russian texts, pagan deities are mentioned along with Christian saints. This meant that Christianity existed in Rus' with the original religion of the Slavs, which is usually called paganism, although the pagans themselves did not call themselves that. Folklore significantly enriched ancient Russian literature.There were no lyrics in ancient Russian literature. Old Russian literature, being exclusively religious in nature, placed the preaching of the laws of Christian morality at the forefront. That is why it did not pay any attention privacy person. Maximum objectivity is one of the main canons of ancient Russian literature. Among the genres in ancient Russian literature, the lives of saints, chronicles, chronographs, chety-menaion, patericon, and apocrypha predominated. Old Russian literature was distinguished by religiosity and historicism.Many ancient Russian books have not reached us: they were destroyed by fires, some were taken to Poland and Lithuania, and some were destroyed by the scribes themselves - the old inscriptions were washed off and new ones were written on top. This was done in order to save the expensive material from which the books were made.

III Job With statement

Useful when the soul asks for something unusual"

A. S. Demin

Monuments to Peter and Fevronia:

In Ulyanovsk. Opening date: July 5, 2009 .

Installation location: in front of the building of Ulyanovsk State University.

Sculptors: Oleg Klyuev and Nikolai Antsiferov.

The monument to Peter and Fevronia in Ulyanovsk is made of bronze and represents the young princes Peter and Fevronia with a dove, symbolizing love and fidelity.

The monument in Ulyanovsk was erected as part of the nationwide program “In the Family Circle”.

In Samara:

The monument was erected as part of the “In the Family Circle” program, which appeared in 2004 with the blessing of Patriarch Alexy II. As part of the same program, monuments to Saints Peter and Fevronia have opened today in Vladivostok and Omsk, and over the past three years sculptural compositions Murom saints have already been installed in Arkhangelsk, Ulyanovsk, Yaroslavl, Sochi and Blagoveshchensk.

Orthodox believers on July 8 celebrate the day of remembrance of Russian saints Peter and Fevronia of Murom, patrons of marital fidelity and love.

Saints Peter and Fevronia are princes who ruled in Murom in the 13th century. The couple were models of fidelity and love for each other; in old age they became monks and soon died in the same hour. Being buried in different graves, their bodies miraculously turned out to be nearby, the legend says. After this, the couple was buried in Murom near the Church of the Nativity Holy Mother of God. In 1547, the Church canonized them as saints.

IV . Reinforcing the material covered

1. Conversation .

IN XI-XII centuries cultural development took off Kievan Rus. Large cities were cultural centers, many of which acquired the significance of European centers: Novgorod, Kyiv, Galich.

Excavations carried out by archaeologists suggest a high culture of the townspeople, many of whom were literate. This is evidenced by preserved debt receipts, petitions, orders on economic affairs, notices of arrival, letters written on birch bark, as well as inscriptions on things and church walls preserved in different cities. Schools were organized in cities to teach literacy. The first schools for boys appeared in the 10th century, and in the 11th century a school for girls was opened in Kyiv.

It is known for certain that even before the adoption of Christianity, Ancient Rus' knew writing. The first handwritten books that have reached us are true works of art. The books were written on very expensive material - parchment, which was made from lamb, calf or goat skin. They were decorated with amazingly beautiful colored miniatures.

Most of the books that have come down to us from this period of time are of religious content. Thus, out of 130 surviving books, 80 contain the basics of Christian doctrine and morality. However, at this time there was also religious literature for reading. A well-preserved collection of stories about real and legendary animals, trees, stones - "Physiologist". This collection consists of several stories, at the end of each there is a small interpretation of what is described in the spirit of Christianity. So, for example, the woodpecker’s natural property of chiselling trees was correlated with the devil, who persistently looks for a person’s weak points.

Such outstanding monuments of church literature as the “Sermon on Law and Grace” by Metropolitan Hilarion and the sermons of Cyril of Turov date back to the same period of time. There were also religious books that interpreted well-known biblical stories in an unconventional way. Such books were called apocrypha. The name comes from the Greek word for hidden. The most popular was the apocryphal "Walk of the Virgin Mary through Torment."

Lives of saints were created in large numbers, which described in detail the life, activities, and exploits of people canonized by the church. The plot of the life could be exciting, such as, for example, “The Life of Alexei, the Man of God.”

Literary monuments of the Vladimir-Suzdal land are also known. Among them is "The Word" ("Prayer") by Daniil Zatochnik.

In the 11th century, the first works of a historical (documentary) nature appeared. The oldest chronicle that has survived to this day, the Tale of Bygone Years, dates back to this period of time. This document allows us to judge not only the political situation of that time, but also the life and customs of the ancient Russians.

IN major cities Detailed chronicles were kept in which the events that took place were recorded. The chronicles contained copies of original documents from the princely archives, detailed descriptions battles, reports on diplomatic negotiations. However, one cannot talk about the objectivity of these chronicles, since their compilers were primarily children of their time, who tried to justify the actions of their prince and denigrate his opponents.

An outstanding monument of ancient Russian literature is “The Instruction” of Vladimir Monomakh. It was intended for the prince’s children and contained instructions on how young princes, children of warriors, should behave. He ordered both his own and strangers not to offend the inhabitants of the villages, to always help those who ask, to feed guests, not to pass by a person without greeting, to take care of the sick and infirm.

And finally, the most significant monument of ancient Russian literature is “The Tale of Igor’s Campaign.” The work is based on the campaign undertaken by Prince Igor Svyatoslavich against the Polovtsians. Unfortunately, the only surviving manuscript of the Lay was burned during a fire in Moscow in 1812.

Introduction

Eloquence - 1) oratorical gift, talent, art of words, natural ability to speak and write convincingly and beautifully;

2) a set of texts, verbal works specific area communication (therefore, there is political, judicial, ceremonial, academic, church, military, diplomatic, social and everyday eloquence).

General characteristics of the period of Old Russian literature

Old Russian literature went through a long period of development, which amounted to 7 centuries: from the 9th to the 15th centuries. Scientists associate the formation of ancient Russian literature with the adoption of Christianity in Rus' in 988. This year is the starting point for the periodization of literature. It is reliably known that writing existed in Rus' even before the adoption of Christianity. But very few monuments of pre-Christian writing have been discovered. Based on the available monuments, it cannot be said that before the adoption of Christianity, literature and book learning existed in Rus'. The spread of the Christian religion in Rus' involved the study of holy scripture and Christian rituals. In order to preach Christian canons, it was necessary to translate religious books from ancient Greek and Latin into a language that the Slavs understood. The Old Church Slavonic language became such a language. Scientists talk about the special status of the Old Church Slavonic language. Old Church Slavonic is the literary language of all Slavs. They did not speak it, but only wrote and read books. The Old Church Slavonic language was created by Christian preachers Cyril and Methodius on the basis of the Solunsky dialect of the ancient Bulgarian language specifically in order to make the canons of the Christian religion understandable to the Slavs and to preach these canons in the language of the Slavs. Books in the Old Church Slavonic language were copied in different territories inhabited by the Slavs, where they spoke differently: in different dialects. Gradually, the peculiarities of the speech of the Slavs began to be reflected in writing. Thus, on the basis of the Old Church Slavonic language, the Church Slavonic language arose, reflecting the peculiarities of the speech of the Eastern Slavs, and then of Old Russian people. Christian preachers arrived in Rus' and created schools. The schools taught reading, writing and the canons of Orthodox Christianity. Over time, a layer of people appeared in Rus' who knew how to read and write. They rewrote holy scripture and translated it into Old Church Slavonic. Over time, these people began to record historical events that took place in Rus', make generalizations, use images of oral folk art, and evaluate the events and facts described. This is how original ancient Russian literature gradually took shape. Old Russian literature was fundamentally different from what we are accustomed to understanding as literature at the present time. Literature in Ancient Rus' was closely connected with the spread of the Christian religion and served as a tool for preaching and consolidating Christianity in Rus'. This determined a special attitude towards the book as a sacred object, and towards reading as a sacred process of familiarization with God’s Word.

Is it possible today to imagine a life in which there are no books, newspapers, magazines, or notebooks? Modern man I am so accustomed to the fact that everything important and requiring ordering should be written down, that without this knowledge would be unsystematized and fragmentary. But this was preceded by a very difficult period that lasted for millennia. Literature consisted of chronicles, chronicles and lives of saints. Works of fiction began to be written much later.

When did ancient Russian literature emerge?

The prerequisite for the emergence of Old Russian literature was various shapes oral folklore, pagan legends. Slavic writing originated only in the 9th century AD. Until this time, knowledge and epics were passed on from mouth to mouth. But the baptism of Rus' and the creation of the alphabet by Byzantine missionaries Cyril and Methodius in 863 opened the way for books from Byzantium, Greece, and Bulgaria. Through the first books it was transmitted Christian teaching. Since there were few written sources in ancient times, the need arose to rewrite books.

ABC contributed cultural development Eastern Slavs. Since the Old Russian language is similar to the Old Bulgarian, the Slavic alphabet, which was used in Bulgaria and Serbia, could be used in Rus'. The Eastern Slavs gradually adopted a new writing system. IN ancient Bulgaria By the 10th century, culture had reached its peak of development. Works by writers John the Exarch of Bulgaria, Clement, and Tsar Simeon began to appear. Their works also influenced ancient Russian culture.

The Christianization of the ancient Russian state made writing a necessity, because without it state life, social and international relations would be impossible. Christian religion is not able to exist without teachings, solemn words, lives, and the life of the prince and his court, relations with neighbors and enemies were reflected in the chronicles. Translators and copyists appeared. They were all church people: priests, deacons, monks. Rewriting took a lot of time, and there were still few books.

Old Russian books were written mainly on parchment, which was obtained after special processing of pork, calf, and lamb skin. In the ancient Russian state, handwritten books were called “harateynye”, “harati” or “veal books”. The durable but expensive material also made books expensive, which is why it was so important to find a replacement for pet leather. Foreign paper, called “overseas”, appeared only in the 14th century. But until the 17th century, to write valuable state documents used parchment.

Ink was made by combining old iron (nails) and tannin (growths on oak leaves called “ink nuts”). To make the ink thick and shiny, cherry and molasses glue was poured into it. Ferrous ink having brown tint, were distinguished by increased durability. To add originality and decorativeness, colored ink, gold or silver sheets were used. For writing, they used goose feathers, the tip of which was cut off, and a cut was made in the middle of the point.

What century does ancient Russian literature belong to?

The first ancient Russian written sources date back to the 9th century. The ancient Russian state of Kievan Rus occupied an honorable place among other European states. Written sources contributed to the strengthening of the state and its development. Ends Old Russian period in the 17th century.

Periodization of Old Russian literature.

1. Written sources of Kievan Rus: the period covers the 11th century and the beginning of the 13th century. At this time, the main written source was the chronicle.
2. Literature of the second third of the 13th century and the end of the 14th century. The Old Russian state is going through a period of fragmentation. Dependence on the Golden Horde set back the development of culture many centuries ago.
3. The end of the 14th century, which is characterized by the unification of the principalities of the northeast into one Moscow principality, the emergence of appanage principalities, and the beginning of the 15th century.
4. XV - XVI centuries: this is the period of centralization of the Russian state and the emergence of journalistic literature.
5. The 16th - end of the 17th century is the New Age, which marks the emergence of poetry. Now works are released with an indication of the author.

The oldest of famous works Russian literature is the Ostromir Gospel. It received its name from the name of the Novgorod mayor Ostromir, who ordered the scribe Deacon Gregory to translate it. During 1056 - 1057 the translation has been completed. This was the mayor's contribution to the St. Sophia Cathedral, erected in Novgorod.

The second Gospel is the Arkhangelsk Gospel, which was written in 1092. From the literature of this period there is a lot of hidden and philosophical meaning hidden in the Izbornik of Grand Duke Svyatoslav in 1073. The Izbornik reveals the meaning and idea of ​​mercy, the principles of morality. The basis of the philosophical thought of Kievan Rus was the gospels and apostolic epistles. They described the earthly life of Jesus and also described his miraculous resurrection.

Books have always been the source of philosophical thought. Translations from Syriac, Greek, and Georgian penetrated into Rus'. There were also translations from European countries: England, France, Norway, Denmark, Sweden. Their works were revised and rewritten by ancient Russian scribes. Old Russian philosophical culture- This is a reflection of mythology and has Christian roots. Among the monuments of ancient Russian writing, the “Messages of Vladimir Monomakh” and “Prayers of Daniil the Zatochnik” stand out.

The first ancient Russian literature is characterized by high expressiveness and richness of language. To enrich the Old Church Slavonic language, they used the language of folklore and the performances of orators. There were two literary style, one of which is “High” for ceremonial purposes, the other is “Low”, which was used in everyday life.

Genres of literature

1. lives of saints, include biographies of bishops, patriarchs, founders of monasteries, saints (created in compliance with special rules and required a special style of presentation) - patericon (life of the first saints Boris and Gleb, Abbess Feodosia),
2. lives of saints, which are presented from a different point of view - apocrypha,
3. historical works or chronicles (chronographs) - brief records of the history of ancient Rus', Russian chronograph of the second half of the 15th century,
4. works about fictional travels and adventures - walking.

Genres of Old Russian literature table

The central place among the genres of ancient Russian literature is occupied by chronicle writing, which developed over the centuries. These are weather records of the history and events of Ancient Rus'. The chronicle is a preserved written chronicle (from the word - summer, records begin “in summer”) monument from one or several lists. The names of the chronicles are random. This may be the name of the scribe or the name of the area where the chronicle was written. For example, Lavrentyevskaya - on behalf of the scribe Lavrenty, Ipatyevskaya - after the name of the monastery where the chronicle was found. Often chronicles are collections that combine several chronicles at once. The source for such vaults were protographs.

The chronicle that served as the basis for the vast majority of ancient Russian written sources is the Tale of Bygone Years of 1068. A common feature chronicles of the XII - XV centuries is that the chroniclers no longer consider political events in their chronicles, but focus on the needs and interests of “their principality” (Chronicle of Veliky Novgorod, Pskov chronicle, chronicle of the Vladimir-Suzdal land, Moscow chronicle), and not events of the Russian land as a whole, as it was before

What work do we call a monument of ancient Russian literature?

“The Tale of Igor’s Campaign” of 1185-1188 is considered the main monument of ancient Russian literature, describing not so much an episode from the Russian-Polovtsian wars, but rather reflecting events on an all-Russian scale. The author connects Igor’s failed campaign in 1185 with strife and calls for unification for the sake of saving his people.

Sources of personal origin are heterogeneous verbal sources that are united common origin: private correspondence, autobiographies, travel descriptions. They reflect the author's direct perception historical events. Such sources first appeared in the princely period. These are the memoirs of Nestor the chronicler, for example.

In the 15th century, the heyday of chronicle writing began, when voluminous chronicles and short chroniclers coexisted, telling about the activities of one princely family. Two parallel directions emerge: the official and oppositional point of view (the church and princely descriptions).

Here we should talk about the problem of falsification historical sources or the creation of documents that have never existed before, amendments to original documents. For this purpose, entire systems of methods were developed. In the 18th century, interest in historical science was universal. This resulted in the appearance of a large number of counterfeits, presented in an epic form and passed off as the original. A whole industry is emerging in Russia for falsifying ancient sources. We study burned or lost chronicles, for example the Lay, from surviving copies. This is how copies were made by Musin-Pushkin, A. Bardin, A. Surakadzev. Among the most mysterious sources is the “Book of Veles,” found on the Zadonsky estate in the form of wooden tablets with text scratched on them.

Old Russian literature of the 11th – 14th centuries is not only teachings, but also rewriting from Bulgarian originals or translation from Greek of a huge amount of literature. Done large-scale work allowed ancient Russian scribes to become acquainted with the main genres and literary monuments of Byzantium over two centuries.

The literature of Ancient Rus' arose in the 11th century. and developed over seven centuries until the Petrine era. Old Russian literature is a single whole with all the diversity of genres, themes, and images. This literature is the focus of Russian spirituality and patriotism. On the pages of these works there are conversations about the most important philosophical and moral problems that heroes of all centuries think, talk about, and reflect on. The works form a love for the Fatherland and one’s people, show the beauty of the Russian land, so these works touch the innermost strings of our hearts.

The significance of Old Russian literature as the basis for the development of new Russian literature is very great. Thus, images, ideas, even the style of writings were inherited by A. S. Pushkin, F. M. Dostoevsky, L. N. Tolstoy.

Old Russian literature did not arise out of nowhere. Its appearance was prepared by the development of language, oral folk art, cultural ties with Byzantium and Bulgaria and due to the adoption of Christianity as a single religion. The first literary works to appear in Rus' were translated. Those books that were necessary for worship were translated.

The very first original works, i.e. written by ourselves Eastern Slavs, date back to the end of the 11th and beginning of the 12th centuries. V. There was a formation of Russian national literature, its traditions and features developed that determined its specific features, a certain dissimilarity with the literature of our days.

The purpose of this work is to show the features of Old Russian literature and its main genres.

II. Features of Old Russian literature.

2. 1. Historicism of content.

Events and characters in literature, as a rule, are the fruit of the author's imagination. Authors works of art, even if they describe true events real persons, they speculate a lot. But in Ancient Rus' everything was completely different. The ancient Russian scribe only talked about what, in his opinion, really happened. Only in the 17th century. Household stories appeared in Rus' with fictional characters and plots.

Both the ancient Russian scribe and his readers firmly believed that the events described actually happened. Thus, chronicles were a kind of legal document for the people of Ancient Rus'. After the death of Moscow Prince Vasily Dmitrievich in 1425, his younger brother Yuri Dmitrievich and son Vasily Vasilyevich began to argue about their rights to the throne. Both princes turned to the Tatar Khan to arbitrate their dispute. At the same time, Yuri Dmitrievich, defending his rights to reign in Moscow, referred to ancient chronicles, which reported that power had previously passed from the prince-father not to his son, but to his brother.

2. 2. Handwritten nature of existence.

Another feature of Old Russian literature is the handwritten nature of its existence. Even the appearance of the printing press in Rus' changed the situation little until the middle of the 18th century. Existence literary monuments in manuscripts led to special veneration of the book. What even separate treatises and instructions were written about. But on the other hand, handwritten existence led to the instability of ancient Russian works of literature. Those works that have come down to us are the result of the work of many, many people: the author, editor, copyist, and the work itself could last for several centuries. Therefore, in scientific terminology, there are such concepts as “manuscript” (handwritten text) and “list” (rewritten work). The manuscript may contain lists various works and can be written either by the author himself or by scribes. Another fundamental concept in textual criticism is the term “edition,” i.e., the purposeful processing of a monument caused by socio-political events, changes in the function of the text, or differences in the language of the author and editor.

Closely connected with the existence of a work in manuscripts is such a specific feature of Old Russian literature as the problem of authorship.

The author's principle in Old Russian literature is muted, implicit. Old Russian scribes were not thrifty with other people's texts. When rewriting, the texts were processed: some phrases or episodes were excluded from them or inserted into them, and stylistic “decorations” were added. Sometimes the author's ideas and assessments were even replaced by the opposite ones. The lists of one work differed significantly from each other.

Old Russian scribes did not at all strive to reveal their involvement in literary composition. Many monuments remained anonymous; the authorship of others was established by researchers based on indirect evidence. So it is impossible to attribute to someone else the writings of Epiphanius the Wise, with his sophisticated “weaving of words.” The style of Ivan the Terrible’s messages is inimitable, boldly mixing eloquence and rude abuse, learned examples and the style of simple conversation.

It happens that in a manuscript one or another text was signed with the name of an authoritative scribe, which may or may not correspond to reality. Thus, among the works attributed to the famous preacher Saint Cyril of Turov, many, apparently, do not belong to him: the name of Cyril of Turov gave these works additional authority.

The anonymity of literary monuments is also due to the fact that the ancient Russian “writer” did not consciously try to be original, but tried to show himself as traditional as possible, that is, to comply with all the rules and regulations of the established canon.

2. 4. Literary etiquette.

The famous literary critic, researcher of ancient Russian literature, Academician D. S. Likhachev, proposed a special term to designate the canon in the monuments of medieval Russian literature - “literary etiquette”.

Literary etiquette consists of:

From the idea of ​​how this or that course of events should have taken place;

From ideas about how one should behave actor according to your position;

From ideas about what words the writer should have described what was happening.

We have before us the etiquette of the world order, the etiquette of behavior and the etiquette of words. The hero is supposed to behave this way, and the author is supposed to describe the hero only in appropriate terms.

III. The main genres of ancient Russian literature.

The literature of modern times is subject to the laws of “genre poetics.” It was this category that began to dictate the ways of creating a new text. But in ancient Russian literature the genre did not play such an important role.

A sufficient amount of research has been devoted to the genre uniqueness of Old Russian literature, but there is still no clear classification of genres. However, some genres immediately stood out in ancient Russian literature.

3. 1. Hagiographic genre.

Life is a description of the life of a saint.

Russian hagiographic literature includes hundreds of works, the first of which were written already in the 11th century. The Life, which came to Rus' from Byzantium along with the adoption of Christianity, became the main genre of Old Russian literature, the literary form in which the spiritual ideals of Ancient Rus' were clothed.

The compositional and verbal forms of life have been refined over the centuries. High theme - story about a life that embodies ideal service to the world and God - determines the image of the author and the style of narration. The author of the life tells the story excitedly; he does not hide his admiration for the holy ascetic and his admiration for his righteous life. The author's emotionality and excitement color the entire narrative in lyrical tones and contribute to the creation of a solemn mood. This atmosphere is also created by the style of narration - high solemn, full of quotations from the Holy Scriptures.

When writing a life, the hagiographer (the author of the life) was obliged to follow a number of rules and canons. The composition of a correct life should be threefold: introduction, story about the life and deeds of the saint from birth to death, praise. In the introduction, the author asks forgiveness from readers for their inability to write, for the rudeness of the narrative, etc. The introduction was followed by the life itself. It cannot be called a “biography” of a saint in the full sense of the word. The author of the life selects from his life only those facts that do not contradict the ideals of holiness. The story about the life of a saint is freed from everything everyday, concrete, and accidental. In a life compiled according to all the rules, there are few dates, exact geographical names, names of historical figures. The action of the life takes place, as it were, outside of historical time and specific space; it unfolds against the backdrop of eternity. Abstraction is one of the features of the hagiographic style.

At the end of the life there should be praise to the saint. This is one of the most important parts of life, requiring great literary art, good knowledge of rhetoric.

The oldest Russian hagiographic monuments are two lives of princes Boris and Gleb and the Life of Theodosius of Pechora.

3. 2. Eloquence.

Eloquence is an area of ​​creativity characteristic of ancient period development of our literature. Monuments of church and secular eloquence are divided into two types: teaching and solemn.

Solemn eloquence required depth of concept and great literary skill. The speaker needed the ability to construct a speech effectively in order to capture the listener, set him in a high mood corresponding to the topic, and shock him with pathos. Existed special term to denote a solemn speech - “word”. (There was no terminological unity in ancient Russian literature. A military story could also be called “the Word.”) Speeches were not only pronounced, but written and distributed in numerous copies.

Solemn eloquence did not pursue narrow practical goals; it required the formulation of problems of broad social, philosophical and theological scope. The main reasons for creating “words” are theological issues, issues of war and peace, defense of the borders of the Russian land, internal and foreign policy, the struggle for cultural and political independence.

The most ancient monument of solemn eloquence is the “Sermon on Law and Grace” by Metropolitan Hilarion, written between 1037 and 1050.

Teaching eloquence is teachings and conversations. They are usually small in volume, often devoid of rhetorical embellishments, and written in the Old Russian language, which was generally accessible to people of that time. Church leaders and princes could deliver teachings.

Teachings and conversations have purely practical purposes and contain necessary for a person information. “Instruction to the Brethren” by Luke Zhidyata, Bishop of Novgorod from 1036 to 1059, contains a list of rules of behavior that a Christian should adhere to: do not take revenge, do not utter “shameful” words. Go to church and behave quietly in it, honor your elders, judge truthfully, honor your prince, do not curse, keep all the commandments of the Gospel.

Theodosius of Pechora is the founder of the Kiev-Pechersk Monastery. He owns eight teachings to the brethren, in which Theodosius reminds the monks of the rules of monastic behavior: not to be late for church, make three prostrations, maintain decorum and order when singing prayers and psalms, and bow to each other when meeting. In his teachings, Theodosius of Pechora demands complete renunciation from the world, abstinence, constant prayer and vigil. The abbot sternly denounces idleness, money-grubbing, and intemperance in food.

3. 3. Chronicle.

Chronicles were weather records (by “summers” - by “years”). The annual entry began with the words: “Into the summer.” After this there was a story about events and incidents that, from the point of view of the chronicler, were worthy of the attention of posterity. These could be military campaigns, raids by steppe nomads, natural disasters: droughts, crop failures, etc., as well as simply unusual incidents.

It is thanks to the work of chroniclers that modern historians have an amazing opportunity to look into the distant past.

Most often, the ancient Russian chronicler was a learned monk, who sometimes spent time compiling the chronicle long years. In those days, it was customary to start telling stories about history from ancient times and only then move on to the events of recent years. The chronicler had to first of all find, put in order, and often rewrite the work of his predecessors. If the compiler of the chronicle had at his disposal not one, but several chronicle texts at once, then he had to “reduce” them, that is, combine them, choosing from each what he considered necessary to include in his own work. When materials relating to the past were collected, the chronicler moved on to recounting the events of his time. The result of this great work was the chronicle collection. After some time, other chroniclers continued this collection.

Apparently, the first major monument of ancient Russian chronicle writing was the chronicle code compiled in the 70s of the 11th century. The compiler of this code is believed to have been the abbot of the Kiev-Pechersk Monastery Nikon the Great (? - 1088).

Nikon's work formed the basis of another chronicle, which was compiled in the same monastery two decades later. In the scientific literature it received the code name “Initial arch”. Its nameless compiler replenished Nikon's collection not only with news of last years, but also chronicle information from other Russian cities.

“The Tale of Bygone Years”

Based on the chronicles of the 11th century tradition. The greatest chronicle monument of the era of Kievan Rus - “The Tale of Bygone Years” was born.

It was compiled in Kyiv in the 10s. 12th century According to some historians, its probable compiler was the monk of the Kiev-Pechersk Monastery Nestor, also known for his other works. When creating “The Tale of Bygone Years,” its compiler used numerous materials with which he supplemented the Primary Code. These materials included Byzantine chronicles, texts of treaties between Rus' and Byzantium, monuments of translated and ancient Russian literature, and oral traditions.

The compiler of “The Tale of Bygone Years” set as his goal not just to tell about the past of Rus', but also to determine the place of the Eastern Slavs among the European and Asian peoples.

The chronicler talks in detail about the settlement Slavic peoples in ancient times, about the settlement of territories by the Eastern Slavs that would later become part of Old Russian state, about the morals and customs of different tribes. The Tale of Bygone Years emphasizes not only the antiquity of the Slavic peoples, but also the unity of their culture, language and writing, created in the 9th century. brothers Cyril and Methodius.

The chronicler considers the adoption of Christianity to be the most important event in the history of Rus'. The story about the first Russian Christians, about the baptism of Rus', about the spread of the new faith, the construction of churches, the emergence of monasticism, the success of Christian enlightenment occupies a central place in the “Tale”.

The wealth of historical and political ideas reflected in “The Tale of Bygone Years” suggests that its compiler was not just an editor, but also a talented historian, a deep thinker, and a brilliant publicist. Many chroniclers of subsequent centuries turned to the experience of the creator of the Tale, sought to imitate him and almost necessarily placed the text of the monument at the beginning of each new chronicle.