What are the genres of ancient Russian literature? Features of the genres of ancient Russian literature

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. Primary genres
These genres are called primary because they served building material for unifying genres. Primary genres:
Life
Word
Teaching
Tale

Primary genres also include weather recording, chronicle story, chronicle legend and church legend.
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.
Old Russian eloquence
This genre was borrowed by ancient Russian literature from Byzantium, where eloquence was a form oratory. In ancient Russian literature, eloquence appeared in three varieties:
Didactic (instructive)
Political
Solemn
Teaching
Teaching - a type of genre ancient Russian eloquence. Teaching is a genre in which ancient Russian chroniclers tried to present a model of behavior for any ancient Russian person: 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.
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”.

Uniting genres
Primary genres acted as part of unifying genres, such as the chronicle, chronograph, cheti-menaion, patericon.

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 Russians, about genealogy Kyiv princes and about the emergence of the ancient Russian state.

Chronograph - these are texts containing a description of the time of the 15-16 centuries.

Chetyi-Minei (literally “reading by month”) - a collection of works about holy people.

Patericon - a description of the life of the holy fathers.

Ticket. Specifics of Old Russian literature.

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, moral problems, about which heroes of all centuries think, speak, reflect. The works form a love for the Fatherland and one’s people, show the beauty of the Russian land, therefore 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 is 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. The formation of Russian national literature took place, its traditions and features were formed, determining its specific features, a certain dissimilarity with the literature of our days.

Features of Old Russian literature.

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 conjecture 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. Everyday stories with fictional characters and plots appeared in Rus'.

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.

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 mid-18th century V. The existence of literary monuments in manuscripts led to a special veneration of the book. What even separate treatises and instructions were written about. But on the other hand, handwritten existence led to instability ancient Russian works 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 of various works and may be written either by the author himself or by copyists. Another fundamental concept in textual criticism is the term “edition,” i.e., the purposeful reworking 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 related to 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 have remained anonymous; the authorship of others has been 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 equally both correspond and 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.

Literary etiquette.

Famous literary critic, researcher 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.

Main genres of ancient Russian literature

The literature of modern times is subject to the laws of the “poetics of the genre.” 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.

1. Hagiographic genre.

Life - 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 ancient Russian literature, that 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 topic- a story about life that embodies ideal service to the world and God - determines the image of the author and the style of the narrative. 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 three-fold: introduction, story about the life and deeds of the saint from birth to death, praise. In the introduction, the author asks for 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, or 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, which required great literary art and a good knowledge of rhetoric.

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

2. Eloquence.

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

Solemn eloquence required depth of intent and great literary excellence. 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. There was a special term for 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 information necessary for a person. “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, and constant prayer and vigil. The abbot sternly denounces idleness, money-grubbing, and intemperance in food.

3. Chronicle.

Chronicles were weather records (by “years” - 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.

More often ancient Russian chronicler There was a learned monk who sometimes spent many years compiling the chronicle. 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 presenting 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 scientific literature it received the code name "Initial vault". 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 of the era was born Kievan Rus- "The Tale of Bygone Years."

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 most important event in the history of Rus', the chronicler considers the adoption of Christianity. A story about the first Russian Christians, about the baptism of Rus', about the spread new faith, the construction of temples, the emergence of monasticism, and the success of Christian education occupy 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.

In this article we will look at the features of Old Russian literature. The literature of Ancient Rus' was primarily church. After all, book culture in Rus' appeared with the adoption of Christianity. Monasteries became centers of writing, and the first literary monuments were mainly works of a religious nature. Thus, one of the first original (that is, not translated, but written by a Russian author) works was the “Sermon on Law and Grace” by Metropolitan Hilarion. The author proves the superiority of Grace (the image of Jesus Christ is associated with it) over the Law, which, according to the preacher, is conservative and nationally limited.

Literature was created not for entertainment, but for teaching. Considering the features of ancient Russian literature, it should be noted that it is instructive. She teaches to love God and her Russian land; she creates images of ideal people: saints, princes, faithful wives.

Let us note one seemingly insignificant feature of ancient Russian literature: it was handwritten. Books were created in a single copy and only then copied by hand when it was necessary to make a copy or the original text became unusable over time. This gave the book special value and generated respect for it. In addition, for the ancient Russian reader, all books traced their origins to the main one - the Holy Scriptures.

Since the literature of Ancient Rus' was fundamentally religious, the book was seen as a storehouse of wisdom, a textbook of righteous life. Old Russian literature is not fiction, in the modern sense of the word. She goes out of her way avoids fiction and strictly follows the facts. The author does not show his individuality; he hides behind the narrative form. He does not strive for originality; for an ancient Russian writer it is more important to stay within the framework of tradition and not to break it. Therefore, all lives are similar to one another, all biographies of princes or military stories are compiled according to a general plan, in compliance with the “rules”. When "The Tale of Bygone Years" tells us about Oleg's death from his horse, this beautiful poetic legend sounds like historical document, the author really believes that this is how it happened.

The hero of ancient Russian literature does not have no personality, no character in our view today. Man's destiny is in the hands of God. And at the same time, his soul acts as an arena for the struggle between good and evil. The first will win only when a person lives according to moral rules given once and for all.

Of course, in Russian medieval works we will not find either individual characters or psychologism - not because ancient Russian writers did not know how to do this. In the same way, icon painters created planar rather than three-dimensional images, not because they could not write “better,” but because they were faced with other artistic tasks: the face of Christ cannot be similar to an ordinary human face. An icon is a sign of holiness, not a depiction of a saint.

The literature of Ancient Rus' adheres to the same aesthetic principles: it creates faces, not faces, gives the reader example of correct behavior rather than depicting a person's character. Vladimir Monomakh behaves like a prince, Sergius of Radonezh behaves like a saint. Idealization is one of the key principles of ancient Russian art.

Old Russian literature in every possible way avoids mundaneness: she does not describe, but narrates. Moreover, the author does not narrate on his own behalf, he only conveys what is written in the sacred books, what he read, heard or saw. There can be nothing personal in this narrative: no manifestation of feelings, no individual manner. (“The Tale of Igor’s Campaign” in this sense is one of the few exceptions.) Therefore, many works of the Russian Middle Ages anonymous, the authors do not even assume such immodesty - to put your name. And the ancient reader cannot even imagine that the word is not from God. And if God speaks through the mouth of the author, then why does he need a name, a biography? That is why the information available to us about ancient authors is so scarce.

At the same time, in ancient Russian literature a special national ideal of beauty, captured by ancient scribes. First of all, this is spiritual beauty, the beauty of the Christian soul. In Russian medieval literature, in contrast to Western European literature of the same era, the knightly ideal of beauty - the beauty of weapons, armor, and victorious battle - is much less represented. The Russian knight (prince) wages war for the sake of peace, and not for the sake of glory. War for the sake of glory and profit is condemned, and this is clearly seen in “The Tale of Igor’s Campaign.” Peace is assessed as an unconditional good. The ancient Russian ideal of beauty presupposes a wide expanse, an immense, “decorated” earth, and it is decorated with temples, because they were created specifically for the exaltation of the spirit, and not for practical purposes.

The attitude of ancient Russian literature is also connected with the theme of beauty to oral and poetic creativity, folklore. On the one hand, folklore was of pagan origin, and therefore did not fit into the framework of the new, Christian worldview. On the other hand, he could not help but penetrate literature. After all, the written language in Rus' from the very beginning was Russian, and not Latin, as in Western Europe, and there was no impassable border between the book and the spoken word. Folk ideas about beauty and goodness also generally coincided with Christian ideas; Christianity penetrated folklore almost unhindered. Therefore, the heroic epic (epics), which began to take shape in the pagan era, presents its heroes both as patriotic warriors and as defenders of the Christian faith, surrounded by “filthy” pagans. Just as easily, sometimes almost unconsciously, ancient Russian writers use folklore images and plots.

The religious literature of Rus' quickly outgrew its narrow church framework and became truly spiritual literature, which created a whole system of genres. Thus, “The Sermon on Law and Grace” belongs to the genre of a solemn sermon delivered in church, but Hilarion not only proves the Grace of Christianity, but also glorifies the Russian land, combining religious pathos with patriotic ones.

Genre of life

The most important genre for ancient Russian literature was the hagiography, the biography of a saint. At the same time, the task was pursued, by telling about the earthly life of a saint canonized by the church, to create an image ideal person for the edification of all people.

IN " Lives of the Holy Martyrs Boris and Gleb"Prince Gleb appeals to his killers with a request to spare him: “Do not cut the ear, which is not yet ripe, filled with the milk of goodness! Do not cut the vine, which is not yet fully grown, but bears fruit!” Abandoned by his squad, Boris in his tent “cries with a broken heart, but is joyful in soul”: he is afraid of death and at the same time he realizes that he is repeating the fate of many saints who accepted martyrdom for faith.

IN " Lives of Sergius of Radonezh“It is said that the future saint in his adolescence had difficulty comprehending literacy, lagged behind his peers in learning, which caused him a lot of suffering; when Sergius retired into the desert, a bear began to visit him, with whom the hermit shared his meager food, it happened that the saint gave the last piece of bread to the beast.

In the traditions of life in the 16th century, “ The Tale of Peter and Fevronia of Murom”, but it already sharply diverged from the canons (norms, requirements) of the genre and therefore was not included in the collection of lives of the “Great Chet-Minea” along with other biographies. Peter and Fevronia are real historical figures, who reigned in Murom in the 13th century, Russian saints. The author of the 16th century produced not a life, but an entertaining story based on fairy tale motifs, glorifying the love and loyalty of the heroes, and not just their Christian deeds.

A " Life of Archpriest Avvakum", written by himself in the 17th century, turned into a bright autobiographical work filled with authentic events and real people, living details, feelings and experiences of the hero-narrator, behind which stands the bright character of one of the spiritual leaders of the Old Believers.

Genre of teaching

Because the religious literature was called upon to educate true Christian, one of the genres was teaching. Although this is a church genre, close to a sermon, it was also used in secular (secular) literature, since the ideas of the people of that time about the correct, righteous life did not differ from the church ones. You know" Teachings of Vladimir Monomakh", written by him around 1117 "sitting on a sleigh" (shortly before his death) and addressed to children.

The ideal ancient Russian prince appears before us. He cares about the welfare of the state and each of his subjects, guided by Christian morality. The prince's other concern is about the church. All earthly life should be considered as work to save the soul. This is the work of mercy and kindness, and military work, and mental work. Hard work is the main virtue in Monomakh’s life. He made eighty-three major campaigns, signed twenty peace treaties, learned five languages, and did what his servants and warriors did.

Chronicles

A significant, if not the largest, part of ancient Russian literature are works historical genres included in the chronicles. The first Russian chronicle - "The Tale of Bygone Years""was created at the beginning of the 12th century. Its significance is extremely great: it was proof of Rus'’s right to state independence, independence. But if chroniclers could record recent events “according to the epics of this time,” reliably, then the events of pre-Christian history had to be restored from oral sources: legends , legends, sayings, geographical names. Therefore, the chroniclers turn to folklore. These are the legends about the death of Oleg, about Olga’s revenge on the Drevlyans, about Belgorod jelly, etc.

Already in The Tale of Bygone Years two the most important features Old Russian literature: patriotism and connection with folklore. Book-Christian and folklore-pagan traditions are closely intertwined in “The Tale of Igor’s Campaign.”

Elements of fiction and satire

Of course, ancient Russian literature was not unchanged throughout all seven centuries. We saw that over time it became more secular, elements of fiction intensified, and satirical motifs increasingly penetrated into literature, especially in the 16th-17th centuries. These are, for example, " The Tale of Misfortune", showing what troubles disobedience and the desire to “live as he pleases,” and not as his elders teach, can bring a person, and “ The Tale of Ersha Ershovich", ridiculing the so-called "voivode's court" in the tradition of a folk tale.

But in general, we can talk about the literature of Ancient Rus' as a single phenomenon, with its own end-to-end ideas and motives that have passed through 700 years, with its general aesthetic principles, with a stable system of genres.

Let's start with the fact that they appeared along with the adoption of Christianity in Rus'. The intensity of its spread is indisputable evidence that the emergence of writing was caused by the needs of the state.

History of appearance

Writing was used in various fields public and state life, in the legal field, international and domestic relations.

After the emergence of writing, the activities of scribes and translators were stimulated, and various genres ancient Russian literature.

It served the needs and needs of the church, and consisted of solemn words, lives, and teachings. Secular literature appeared in Ancient Rus' and chronicles began to be kept.

In the minds of people of this period, literature was considered together with Christianization.

Old Russian writers: chroniclers, hagiographers, authors of solemn phrases, they all mentioned the benefits of enlightenment. At the end of the X - beginning of the XI century. In Rus', a huge amount of work was carried out aimed at translating literary sources from ancient Greek. Thanks to such activities, ancient Russian scribes managed to become familiar with many monuments of Byzantine times over two centuries, and on their basis created various genres of ancient Russian literature. D. S. Likhachev, analyzing the history of Rus'’s introduction to the books of Bulgaria and Byzantium, identified two character traits similar process.

He confirmed the existence of literary monuments that became common to Serbia, Bulgaria, Byzantium, and Rus'.

Such intermediary literature included liturgical books, sacred scriptures, chronicles, works of church writers, and natural science materials. In addition, this list included some monuments historical narrative, for example, "The Romance of Alexander the Great".

Most of the ancient Bulgarian literature, the Slavic mediator, were translations from Greek, as well as works of early Christian literature, written in the III-VII centuries.

It is impossible to mechanically divide ancient Slavic literature into translated and original; they are organically connected parts of a single organism.

Reading other people's books in Ancient Rus' is evidence of secondary national culture in area artistic word. At first, among the written monuments there was a sufficient number of non-literary texts: works on theology, history, and ethics.

The main type of verbal art became folklore works. To understand the uniqueness and originality of Russian literature, it is enough to familiarize yourself with works that are “outside genre systems”: “Teaching” by Vladimir Monomakh, “The Tale of Igor’s Host”, “Prayer” by Daniil Zatochnik.

Primary genres

The genres of ancient Russian literature include those works that became building material for other directions. These include:

• teachings;
• stories;
• word;
• hagiography

Such genres of works of ancient Russian literature include chronicle story, weather record, church legend, chronicle legend.

Life

Was borrowed from Byzantium. Life as a genre of ancient Russian literature has become one of the most beloved and widespread. Life was considered an obligatory attribute when a person was ranked among the saints, that is, canonized. It was created by people who directly communicate with a person, who are able to reliably tell about the brightest moments of his life. The text was compiled after the death of the one about whom it was spoken. It performed a significant educational function, since the life of the saint was perceived as a standard (model) of righteous existence and was imitated.

The Life helped people overcome the fear of death; the idea of ​​the immortality of the human soul was preached.

Canons of Life

Analyzing the features of the genres of ancient Russian literature, we note that the canons according to which the hagiography was created remained unchanged until the 16th century. First they talked about the origin of the hero, then they gave space detailed story about his righteous life, about the absence of fear of death. The description ended with glorification.

Discussing which genres ancient Russian literature considered the most interesting, we note that it was the life that made it possible to describe the existence of the holy princes Gleb and Boris.

Old Russian eloquence

Answering the question about what genres existed in ancient Russian literature, we note that eloquence came in three versions:

• political;
• didactic;
• solemn.

Teaching

The system of genres of Old Russian literature distinguished it as a type of Old Russian eloquence. In their teaching, the chroniclers tried to highlight the standard of behavior for all ancient Russian people: commoners, princes. The most striking example of this genre considered to be the “Teaching of Vladimir Monomakh” from the “Tale of Bygone Years”, dating back to 1096. At that time, disputes for the throne between the princes reached their maximum intensity. In his teaching, Vladimir Monomakh gives recommendations regarding the organization of his life. He suggests seeking the salvation of the soul in seclusion, calls for helping people in need, and serving God.

Monomakh confirms the need for prayer before a military campaign with an example from own life. He proposes to build social relations in harmony with nature.

Sermon

Analyzing the main genres of ancient Russian literature, we emphasize that this oratorical church genre, which has a unique theory, was involved in historical and literary study only in the form that at some stages it was indicative of the era.

The sermon called Basil the Great, Augustine the Blessed, John Chrysostom, and Gregory Dvoeslov “fathers of the church.” Luther's sermons are recognized as an integral part of the study of the formation of modern German prose, and the statements of Bourdalou, Bossuet, and other speakers of the 17th century are the most important examples of the prose style of French classicism. The role of sermons in medieval Russian literature is high; they confirm the uniqueness of the genres of ancient Russian literature.

Samples of Russian ancient pre-Mongol sermons that give a complete idea of ​​the creation of composition and elements artistic style, historians consider the “Words” of Metropolitan Hilarion and Cyril of Turvo. They skillfully used Byzantine sources, and based on them they created quite good works of their own. They use a sufficient amount of antitheses, comparisons, personifications of abstract concepts, allegories, rhetorical fragments, dramatic presentation, dialogues, and partial landscapes.

Professionals consider the following examples of sermons presented in an unusual stylistic design to be the “Words” of Serapion of Vladimir and the “Words” of Maxim the Greek. The heyday of the practice and theory of preaching art occurred in the 18th century, they discussed the struggle between Ukraine and Poland.

Word

Analyzing the main genres of ancient Russian literature, we will pay special attention to the word. It is a type of genre of ancient Russian eloquence. As an example of its political variability, let us name “The Tale of Igor’s Campaign.” This work causes serious controversy among many historians.

The historical genre of ancient Russian literature, to which “The Tale of Igor’s Campaign” can be attributed, amazes with the unusualness of its techniques and artistic means.

In this work, the chronological traditional version of the narrative is violated. The author first moves into the past, then mentions the present, uses lyrical digressions, which make it possible to write in various episodes: Yaroslavna’s cry, Svyatoslav’s dream.

The “Word” contains various elements of oral traditional folk art and symbols. It contains epics, fairy tales, and there is also a political background: Russian princes united in the fight against a common enemy.

“The Tale of Igor’s Campaign” is one of the books that reflect the early feudal epic. It is on a par with other works:

• "Song of the Nibelungs";
• "The Knight in Tiger Skin";
• "David of Sasun".

These works are considered single-stage and belong to one stage of folklore and literary formation.

“The Lay” combines two folklore genres: lamentation and glory. There is mourning throughout the entire work. dramatic events, glorification of princes.

Similar techniques are characteristic of other works of Ancient Rus'. For example, “The Tale of the Destruction of the Russian Land” is a combination of the lament of the dying Russian land with the glory of the powerful past.

As a solemn variation of ancient Russian eloquence, the “Sermon on Law and Grace”, authored by Metropolitan Hilarion, appears. This work appeared at the beginning of the 11th century. The reason for writing was the completion of the construction of military fortifications in Kyiv. The work contains the idea of ​​complete independence of Rus' from the Byzantine Empire.

Under the “Law,” Hilarion notes the Old Testament, given to the Jews, which was not suitable for the Russian people. God gives New Testament, called "Grace". Hilarion writes that just as Emperor Constantine is revered in Byzantium, the Russian people also respect Prince Vladimir the Red Sun, who baptized Rus'.

Tale

Having examined the main genres of ancient Russian literature, we will pay attention to stories. These are epic texts telling about military exploits, princes, and their deeds. Examples of such works are:

• “The Tale of the Life of Alexander Nevsky”;
• “The Tale of the Ruin of Ryazan by Batu Khan”;
• "The Tale of the Battle of the Kalka River."

The most widespread genre in ancient Russian literature was the military story. Were published various lists works related to it. Many historians paid attention to the analysis of stories: D. S. Likhachev, A. S. Orlova, N. A. Meshchersky. Despite the fact that traditionally the genre of the military story was considered the secular literature of Ancient Rus', it integrally belongs to the circle of church literature.

The versatility of the themes of such works is explained by the combination of the heritage of the pagan past with the new Christian worldview. These elements give rise to a new perception of military feat, combining heroic and everyday traditions. Among the sources that influenced the formation of this genre at the beginning of the 11th century, experts highlight translated works: “Alexandria”, “Devgenie’s Act”.

N.A. Meshchersky, engaged in in-depth research of this literary monument, believed that “History” had the greatest influence on the formation of the military history of Ancient Rus'. He confirms his opinion with a significant number of quotations used in various ancient Russian literary works: “The Life of Alexander Nevsky”, the Kyiv and Galician-Volyn Chronicles.

Historians admit that Icelandic sagas and military epics were used in the formation of this genre.

The warrior was endowed with courageous valor and holiness. The idea of ​​it is similar to the description epic hero. The essence of military feat has changed; the desire to die for the great faith comes first.

A separate role was assigned to princely service. The desire for self-realization turns into humble self-sacrifice. The implementation of this category is carried out in connection with verbal and ritual forms of culture.

Chronicle

It is a kind of narrative about historical events. The chronicle is considered one of the first genres of ancient Russian literature. In Ancient Rus' she played special role, because it didn’t just report on some historical event, but it was also a legal and political document, it was a confirmation of how to behave in certain situations. Most ancient chronicle It is generally accepted to consider the “Tale of Bygone Years”, which came down to us in the Ipatiev Chronicle of the 16th century. It tells about the origin of the Kyiv princes and the emergence of the ancient Russian state.

Chronicles are considered “unifying genres” that subordinate the following components: military, historical story, life of a saint, words of praise, teachings.

Chronograph

These are texts that contain detailed description time XV-XVI centuries. Historians consider “Chronograph according to the Great Exposition” to be one of the first such works. This work has not reached our time in full, so information about it is quite contradictory.

In addition to those genres of ancient Russian literature that are listed in the article, there were many other directions, each of which had its own distinctive characteristics. The variety of genres is a direct confirmation of the versatility and uniqueness literary works created in Ancient Rus'.

In ancient Russian literature, a system of genres was defined, within which the development of original Russian literature began. Genres in Old Russian literature stood out according to slightly different characteristics than in the literature of modern times. The main thing in their definition was the “use” of the genre, the “practical purpose” for which this or that work was intended.

Chronographs told the history of the world; about the history of the fatherland - chronicles, monuments of historical writing and literature of Ancient Rus', the narration in which was carried out by year. They narrated the events of Russian and world history. There was an extensive literature of moralizing biographies—the lives of saints, or hagiography. Collections of short stories about the lives of monks were widespread. Such collections were called patericons.

The genres of solemn and teaching eloquence are represented by various teachings and words. Christian holidays were glorified in solemn words pronounced in church during services. The teachings exposed vices and glorified virtues.

The walks told about travels to the holy land of Palestine.

In this list of main genres ancient literature the leading genres of literature of modern times are not found: neither the everyday novel nor the story reflecting privacy common man, nor poetry. Some of these genres will appear later.

Despite the numerous genres, they were in a kind of subordination to each other: there were main and secondary genres. Literature in its genre structure seemed to repeat the structure feudal society. The main role in this case belonged, according to D.S. Likhachev, “genre ensembles”. Disparate works were grouped into a coherent whole: chronicles, chronographs, patericons, etc.

The ensemble nature of the chronicles was emphasized by the historian V.O. Klyuchevsky: “Life is a whole architectural structure, reminiscent in some details of an architectural building” 1.

The concept of “work” was more complex in medieval literature than in modern literature. A work is both a chronicle and the individual stories, lives, and messages included in it. Individual parts of the work could belong to different genres.

A special place among examples of worldly genres is occupied by “The Teaching” of Vladimir Monomakh, “The Lay of Igor’s Campaign”, “The Lay of the Destruction of the Russian Land” and “The Lay of Daniil the Zatochnik”. They testify to the high level of literary development achieved Ancient Russia in the XI-first half of the XIII centuries.

The development of ancient Russian literature of the 11th-17th centuries proceeds through the gradual destruction of a stable system of church genres and their transformation. Genres of worldly literature are subject to fictionalization 2 . They are becoming increasingly interested in inner world of a person, the psychological motivation of his actions, entertaining and everyday descriptions appear. For changing historical heroes fictitious ones come. In the 17th century, this led to radical changes in the internal structure and style of historical genres and contributed to the birth of new, purely fictional works. Virse poetry, court and school drama, democratic satire, everyday stories, and picaresque short stories appeared.

Read also other articles in the section “National identity of ancient literature, its origin and development.”