Rus. X-XI centuries. Active construction of schools, high literacy of the common population, as a rule, the appearance of written literary and chronographic monuments. Speaking of monuments ancient Russian literature, you can "get lost" in these wilds - there are quite a lot of works - more than 1000. A thousand handwritten creations, as it was said then, in the wild and backward outskirts of the European continent. It's just unthinkable!
What were the monuments of ancient Russian literature? Here it is necessary to divide the writing of the Slavs into two periods: pre-Christian and Christian. In the pre-Christian period, the writing of the ancient Slavs was a pictography - a pictorial writing that did not represent the transmission of sounds and the recording of letters - it was conceptual, that is, a certain drawing could mean something, but not always the same thing. For example, the drawn Sun could mean either sunny, clear weather, or one day (in quantitative terms). In addition to pictography, in the second half of the 1st millennium AD, the Slavs appeared different kinds writing, since the Slavs lived in clans and tribes, and not always united common roots and culture, then their writing could develop separately. At that time great importance had the form of writing "devils and cuts", which was written down by more than one traveler, but was never deciphered. With this type of writing, according to medieval travelers, the Slavs made inscriptions on wooden idols of their gods and when carving inscriptions on sarcophagi and coffins of the dead. By virtue of its geographical location, Russia bordered on various cultures that had a developed sound writing system - these are the Khazars and Armenians, Greeks and Romans. In the border regions of Russia with other states, the Russians sometimes adopted their type of writing, but it did not become a national one. At the same time, it should be noted that since the ninth century in Russia, a gradual transition to the Cyrillic script - Cyrillic alphabet - begins.
After the adoption of Christianity in Russia at the end of the 10th century, the state began to massively carry out activities to switch to single system letters. This system was the Cyrillic alphabet, which, more than any other type of writing, was adapted to specific sound forms. Slavic languages. This was the reason for the choice in the direction of writing, created by the Bulgarian monks Cyril and Methodius.
After this historical event, the era of the rise of writing began in Russia. In this or that large and small city, written monuments of historical and cultural character. The main directions of writing are, of course, the annals of religious monuments, meaning Christian ones.
A chronicle is a written record of history in chronological order. It cannot be said that these works were exclusively objective, since they were written at the courts of the rulers and were aimed at glorifying him and humiliating his enemies. Speaking in Russian, even then there was censorship. With regards to the second direction of writing - religious monuments, we can say that these are the first truly literary monuments filled with deep meaning and beautiful style. Basically, these are descriptions of the life of large religious figures or martyrs of the Orthodox religion.
In those ancient times, such written samples appeared as "The Truth of Yaroslav", "Joachim's Chronicle", "The Legend of the Spread of Christianity in Russia", "Readings about the Life of Boris and Gleb" and "The Life of Theodosius of the Caves" and many others literary works that have come down to our days.
Among the most outstanding monuments of ancient Russian literature, we can include such masterpieces of writing as "The Tale of Igor's Campaign", "Teachings of Vladimir Monomakh", "The Tale of Bygone Years".
"The Tale of Bygone Years" is the first historical work Slavs chronicle, which covers issues not only of the political development of the country, but also of the internal situation, including domestic relations, traditions and customs ancient population Russian lands.
"Instruction of Vladimir Monomakh" is most likely the first moralizing work of the Russians. Contains whole list instructions directed to the young, rising generation. That is, to children, both to their relatives and to everyone else. It was prescribed not to pass by a person without greeting him, to give the one who asks, to take care of the sick and the weak, and other "teachings".
The most significant monument of ancient Russian literature is "The Tale of Igor's Campaign". This large-scale work tells about the military campaign of Prince Igor (Svyatoslavovich), directed against the eastern neighbor, the Polovtsian nomads. It so happened that the only manuscript of this remarkable literary monument burned down in a fire in Moscow, during Patriotic War 1812. Unfortunately, there was no book printing in Russia at that time, and literary monuments were almost always in a single copy, only sometimes they were copied, and the original work was distorted. Each scribe could add something or, conversely, it might seem to him that some sentence was superfluous and should be skipped.
Thus, not all monuments of ancient Russian literature have survived to this day, but even that part of the works that have come down to us allows us to judge the creative thought and literature of the ancient Slavs as achievements that are at a high cultural level.
In this article we will consider the features of Old Russian literature. Literature Ancient Russia was primarily church. After all book culture appeared in Russia with the adoption of Christianity. Monasteries became centers of writing, and the first literary monuments were mainly works of a religious nature. So, one of the first original (that is, not translated, but written by a Russian author) works was Metropolitan Hilarion's Sermon on Law and Grace. 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 not created for entertainment, but for teaching. Considering the features of ancient Russian literature, it should be noted its instructiveness. She teaches to love God and her Russian land; she creates images of ideal people: saints, princes, faithful wives.
We 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 from time to time. This gave the book special value, gave rise to a respectful attitude towards her. In addition, for the Old Russian reader, all books originated from the main one - Holy Scripture.
Since the literature of Ancient Russia was basically religious, the book was seen as a storehouse of wisdom, a textbook of a righteous life. Old Russian literature is not fiction, in modern meaning this word. She in every possible way avoids fiction and strictly follows the facts. The author does not show his individuality, hiding behind the narrative form. He does not strive for originality, for the Old Russian writer it is more important to stay within the framework of tradition, not to break it. Therefore, all lives are similar to one another, all biographies of princes or military stories are compiled according to general plan, in compliance with the "rules". When The Tale of Bygone Years tells us about the death of Oleg from his horse, this beautiful poetic legend sounds like historical document, the author really believes that everything was so.
The hero of ancient Russian literature does not possess neither personality nor character in our current view. The fate of man is in the hands of God. And at the same time, his soul is the arena of 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 the ancient Russian writers were not able to do this. In the same way, icon painters created planar, and not volumetric images not because they could not write “better”, but because they faced other artistic tasks: the face of Christ cannot be similar to the usual human face. An icon is a sign of holiness, not an image of a saint.
The literature of Ancient Russia adheres to the same aesthetic principles: it creates faces, not faces, gives the reader pattern of correct behavior rather than portraying the character of a person. 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 being grounded: it 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: neither the manifestation of feelings, nor 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 assume such immodesty - to put their 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? Therefore, 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, it is spiritual beauty, the beauty of the Christian soul. In Russian medieval literature, in contrast to the Western European of the same era, the knightly ideal of beauty is much less represented - the beauty of weapons, armor, victorious battle. The Russian knight (prince) wages war for the sake of peace, and not for the sake of glory. War for the sake of glory, profit is condemned, and this is clearly seen in the Tale of Igor's Campaign. The world is valued as an unconditional good. Old Russian ideal beauty presupposes a wide expanse, an immense, “decorated” land, but temples decorate it, for 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-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 but penetrate into literature. After all written language in Russia from the very beginning there was Russian, and not Latin, as in Western Europe, and there was no impassable boundary between the book and the spoken word. folk performances about beauty and goodness also generally coincided with Christian ones, Christianity penetrated into folklore almost without hindrance. Therefore, the heroic epic (epics), which began to take shape back in the pagan era, presents its heroes both as patriotic warriors and as defenders Christian faith surrounded by "filthy" pagans. Just as easily, sometimes almost unconsciously, ancient Russian writers use folklore images and stories.
The religious literature of Russia quickly outgrew the narrow church framework and became a truly spiritual literature that created a whole system of genres. Thus, the "Sermon on Law and Grace" refers to the genre of a solemn sermon delivered in the church, but Hilarion not only proves the Grace of Christianity, but also glorifies the Russian land, combining religious pathos with patriotic.
Genre of life
The most important for ancient Russian literature was the genre of life, the biography of the 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 perfect person for the benefit of all people.
AT " 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 milk of malice! Do not cut the vine, which is not fully grown, but bears fruit!" Abandoned by his retinue, Boris in his tent “weeps with a contrite heart, but is joyful in his soul”: he is afraid of death and at the same time he realizes that he is repeating the fate of many saints who were martyred for their faith.
AT " Lives of Sergius of Radonezh"It is said that the future saint in adolescence had difficulty comprehending reading and writing, lagged behind his peers in teaching, which caused him a lot of suffering; when Sergius retired to the desert, a bear began to visit him, with whom the hermit shared his meager food, it happened that the saint gave the beast the last piece of bread.
In the traditions of life in the XVI century was created " 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 “Great Menaion” along with other biographies. Peter and Fevronia are real historical figures who reigned in Murom in the 13th century, Russian saints. Author XVI century it turned out not to be a life, but an entertaining story built on fairy-tale motifs, glorifying the love and loyalty of the heroes, and not just their Christian exploits.
BUT " 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
Since religious literature was called upon to educate true christian, one of the genres was teaching. Although this is a church genre, close to preaching, it was also used in secular (secular) literature, since the then people's ideas about a correct, righteous life did not differ from 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.
Before us appears the ideal old Russian prince. He cares about the welfare of the state and each of his subjects, guided by Christian morality. Another concern of the prince is about the church. All earthly life should be considered as a work for the salvation of the soul. This is the work of mercy and kindness, and military work, and mental. diligence - main virtue in the life of Monomakh. He made eighty-three big campaigns, signed twenty peace treaties, studied five languages, did what his servants and vigilantes did.
Annals
A significant, if not the largest, part of ancient Russian literature is the works of historical genres that were included in the annals. The first Russian chronicle - "The Tale of Bygone Years"created in early XII century. Its significance is extremely great: it was proof of Russia's right to state independence and independence. But if the chroniclers could record the recent events "according to the epics of this time", reliably, then the events of pre-Christian history had to be restored according to oral sources: legends, sayings, geographical names. Therefore, the compilers of the chronicle turn to folklore. Such 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 key features Old Russian literature: patriotism and connection with folklore. Literary-Christian and folklore-linguistic traditions are closely intertwined in the Tale of Igor's Campaign.
Elements of fiction and satire
Of course, ancient Russian literature has not been unchanged throughout all seven centuries. We saw that over time it became more secular, elements of fiction intensified, more and more often satirical motifs penetrated into literature, especially in the 16th-17th centuries. These are, for example, " The Tale of Woe-Misfortune"showing to what troubles disobedience can bring a person, the desire to "live as he pleases", and not as the elders teach, and " The Tale of Ersh Ershovich", ridiculing the so-called "voivodship court" in the traditions of a folk tale.
But in general, one can talk about the literature of Ancient Russia as a single phenomenon, with its own cross-cutting ideas and motives that have passed through 700 years, with its common aesthetic principles, With sustainable system genres.
Old Russian literature patristics
heyday Kievan Rus, the time of the triumph of Christianity. about four hundred churches were built in Kyiv alone. A variety of genres is encouraged, and the influence of folklore on Old Russian literature does not dry out. The priority of the book tradition is affirmed.
The style of monumental historicism continues to develop, as in images and frescoes, the prince in the annals is always official, as if addressed to the viewer. Christian worldview when depicting people, it was put at the service of strengthening the feudal system. It appeared mainly where it came to legal crimes: murders, fraud.
With regard to negative characters the writer is less official than with respect to goodies of his narration.
One of the most negative characters Ipatiev Chronicle - Vladimir Galitsky. His main feature: greed; he does not act directly, not by war, but by bribery, by money. In this image of Vladimir, the hatred of the representatives of the poor principality of Kyiv for the richer one in the 12th century was reflected. Principality of Galicia. Literary portraits princes are also laconic, vigorously inscribed in space.
On the icon of the XII century Tretyakov Gallery from the Novgorod Yuriev Monastery, George the Victorious stands with a shield behind his back, with a spear and a sword in his hands. The authors strive to emphasize the courage of the princes not only in the description, but also in the commendable characterization of the heroes, but also in the description of the action. There are almost no characters here and there is no connection between the development of historical events and characteristic features participants. Each prince performs his life's work as a representative of a certain kind, princes.
Dependent chroniclers tried to portray their prince from the point of view of ideal behavior. It was said mainly about the activities of certain strata of society. XII is characterized by the awakening of thought, Klyuchevsky believes. The initial Russian chronicle, along with other monuments of Russian literature, is a significant indicator of the growth and self-consciousness of the people in Ancient Russia. The language of the annals, preserving in church narratives and in quotations from bible books vocabulary, a form of the Church Slavonic language in other cases, it is especially informative in the patericon that is part of the folk poetic living Russian language. New genres are partly formed at the intersection of folklore and literature.
The most outstanding monument of this era is "The Tale of Igor's Campaign". “The word was created in the 12th century. It was first uttered at the congress in Lubechi. The author saw the essence of this event in conveying the idea of unity. Recovery theme genre system. The work has a unity of composition. "The Word..." is dedicated to Igor's campaign. In the "Word ..." naturally, often unexpected transitions, from one part to another. the text of the Word is artistically homogeneous, in mood, thanks to a single picture of the Russian land. The theme of love and care dominates. The connection between "The Tale of Igor's Campaign" and oral folk poetry most clearly felt within two genres, most often mentioned in the word Lament and song glorification - "Glory": Yaroslavna's lamentation is mentioned at least 5 times, the lamentations of the same Russian soldiers, in Igor's campaign, the lamentation of Yaroslavna's mother Lamentation is meant by the author words when he speaks of the groans of Kyiv and Chernigov and the whole Russian land, after the campaign of Igor. Twice the author cites the laments themselves: the lament of Yaroslavna, the lament of Russian wives. Repeatedly distracted from the narrative, resorting to exclamations. The proximity of the Word to weeping is strong in Yaroslavna's lamentation. The author of the Lay on Igor's Campaign constantly resorts to images of the animal world, never introduces foreign animals into his work, resorting only to images of Russian nature.
Pagan elements in the word about Igor's regiment are exposed, as you know, strongly. The harmony of the composition is maintained by dividing the word into a number of songs, the picture ends with a refrain. The poem is divided into stanzas. The composition is determined by the intention and lyrical nature, the author gives an assessment in the network of the catholic unity of the past and the present. Russian women embody care, love for the dead son. I.P. Eremin rightly notes in the "Tale of Igor's Campaign" many tricks oratory. In front of us in the Word, as in many ancient Russian monuments, the author more often feels like a speaker than a writer, his readers - listeners, not readers, his topic - a lesson, not a story.
The victory of weapons was forged in a righteous age. Focus on people who don't call different forces. The word about Igor's Campaign is a lyrical revelation to nature. In this era, genre formation takes place. The work outside the traditional genres is characteristic, to which the aforementioned "Word" and "Daniel the Sharpener's Prayer" belong.
"Prayer" was opened and partially published by N.M. Karamzin. The prayer did not come down to us in lists XVI-XVIII not earlier, with traces of later insertions and interpolations. All famous lists Prayers are clearly divided into 2 editions. The prayer of Daniel the prisoner is a letter of petition, a petition, from which it follows that a certain Daniel, judging by the text of the Prayer, is in prison. Prayer names different princes. The first is composed as follows: "The word of Daniil the Sharpener was written to his prince Yaroslav Vladimirovich." The second edition belongs to the XII century. in some sources, others - XIII century.
The system of folklore genres was sufficiently adapted, mainly, to reflect the needs of the pagan tribal community. A cult of the brothers Boris and Gleb is being created, who meekly submitted to the hand of the murderer, the followers of Svyatopolk. Princes Boris and Gleb were the first saints canonized by the Russian Church. Boris and Gleb were the first chosen ones of the Russian Church to be crowned, the first recognized miracle workers, its recognized heavenly prayer books for the new Christian people. Boris and Gleb were not martyrs for Christ, but they fell victim to a political crime in the princely civil strife, like many before and after them.
With the advent of writing and the spread of literacy, ancient Russian literature developed.
Chronicles are monuments of historical writing and literature of Ancient Russia. The narration in them was carried out by years: the chroniclers consistently recorded the events that occurred in a particular year. The appearance of the first historical writings refers to the time of Yaroslav the Wise. Chronicles were created in Kyiv and Novgorod, on their basis, the monk Nestor in the 11th century compiled the annalistic code that has come down to us. "The Tale of Bygone Years"(Initial Chronicle), which contains an exposition ancient history Slavs, as well as the history of Russia until 1100.
The NIRO library invites you to familiarize yourself with the book " Old Russian chronicles”, in which you will find the text of the Primary Chronicle, as well as the Kyiv and Galicia-Volyn.
"The Tale of Bygone Years" became part of Laurentian Chronicle, which got its name from the monk Lawrence, who copied it in 1377. The chronicle, together with The Tale of Bygone Years, contains a description of the events that took place in the southern Russian principalities, and then in Vladimir-Suzdal Russia. Full text"Tales" according to the Laurentian list can be found in the book
Thanks to Lawrence, we have not only the most ancient list The Tale of Bygone Years, but also the only text of Vladimir Monomakh's Teachings to Children. "Instruction to Children" by Vladimir Vsevolodovich Monomakh is addressed not only to children - heirs state power but also to everyone who reads it. You can get acquainted with the text of the "Instruction" and its translation by clicking on the link.
"The Tale of Igor's Campaign"- a literary monument of the XII century, which is based on a historical event - the unsuccessful campaign of Novgorod-Northern Prince Igor Svyatoslavovich against the Polovtsians in 1185.
Edition spread
"The Tale of Igor's Campaign"
The only copy of the Lay has come down to us as part of a collection that was kept in the library of the Spaso-Yaroslavl Monastery. The name of the author and the exact date of writing the "Lay" is unknown. Most researchers believe that it was created in late XII century.
 |
Domostroy is one of the most famous ancient Russian monuments literature. It reflects the ideals of the spiritual, social and family life, brightly shown pictures medieval life, rituals associated with centuries-old Russian traditions are described.
The word "Monument" comes from the word "memory". Most often, monuments are called structures or busts, arranged in honor and glory of a person. For example, many monuments to Alexander Sergeevich Pushkin have been created. To perpetuate the memory of the great poet, his grateful admirers erected monuments to him. Monuments are especially dear to us in those places where the poet lived and wrote his works. They keep the memory of the poet's stay in these places. Ancient temples and ancient buildings in general are called architectural monuments, because they also keep the memory of past centuries of native history.
For an essay to be recognized literary monument, time needs to pass. The ancient Russian writer, who compiled chronicles, stories or biographies of saints, probably did not think that he was creating monuments. But after some time, descendants evaluate the work as a monument if they see in it something outstanding or characteristic of the era when it was created.
What is the value of literary, architectural and cultural monuments in general? The monument is a witness of its time.
To the number outstanding monuments ancient Russian literature include "The Tale of Bygone Years" by Nestor the Chronicler, "The Tale of Boris and Gleb", "The Tale of Igor's Campaign", "The Life of Sergius of Radonezh", " chronicle story about the Battle of Kulikovo” and other heroic works of Ancient Russia. One of the most remarkable monuments of ancient Russian literature is "Vladimir Monomakh's Teaching to His Children", taken from the Laurentian Chronicle. All these monuments of ancient Russian literature cannot but be referred to by those who study native history and Russian literature. We will also turn to them, because all of them bear us a living testimony of the past of our Fatherland.
Literature is a part of reality, it occupies a certain place in the history of the people and performs enormous social duties. During the period of the IX-beginning of the XIII centuries. serves the purpose of unification, expresses the people's self-consciousness of unity. She is the keeper of history and legends, and these latter were a kind of means of space exploration, noted the holiness or significance of a particular place: tracts, mounds, villages, etc. Historically, legends also informed the country of historical depth, they were that “fourth dimension”, in within which the entire vast Russian land was perceived and became visible. The same role was played by chronicles and lives of saints, historical novels and stories about the founding of monasteries. All Russian literature was distinguished by deep historicism. Literature was one of the ways of mastering the surrounding world.
What did ancient Russian literature teach? The secular element of ancient Russian literature was deeply patriotic. She taught active love for the motherland, brought up citizenship, and strove to correct the shortcomings of society.
In essence, all the monuments of ancient Russian literature, thanks to their historical topics are much more closely connected than at present. They can be arranged in chronological order, but in general they tell one story: Russian and world. ancient literature according to the nature of its existence and creation, it is closer to folklore than to the personal creativity of modern times. The work, once created by the author, was then changed by scribes in numerous rewritings, altered, acquired various ideological colors in different environments, supplemented, overgrown with new episodes, etc.: therefore, almost every work that has come down to us in several lists is known to us in various editions, types and versions.
The first Russian works are full of admiration for the wisdom of the universe, but the wisdom is not closed in itself, but serving man. Along the way of such an anthropocentric perception of the universe, the relationship between the artist and the object of art also changed. And this new attitude took a person away from the canonically recognized by the church.
The appeal of art to its creators and to all people has become the style-forming dominant of everything. monumental art and all the literature of the pre-Mongolian period. It is from here that the imposingness, solemnity, ceremoniality of all forms of art and literature of this time comes.
The literary style of the entire pre-Mongolian period can be defined as the style of monumental historicism. People of this time sought to see in everything significant in content, powerful in its forms. The style of monumental historicism is characterized by the desire to consider what is depicted as if from great distances - spatial, temporal (historical), hierarchical distances. This is a style within which everything that is most beautiful appears large, monumental, majestic. A kind of "panoramic vision" develops. The chronicler sees the Russian land as if from high altitude. He strives for a narrative about the entire Russian land, immediately and easily passes from an event in one principality to an event in another - at the opposite end of the Russian land. This happens not only because the chronicler combined sources of different geographical origin in his narrative, but also because it was precisely such a “broad” story that corresponded to the aesthetic ideas of his time Adrianov-Peretz V.P. Ancient Russian Literature and Folklore: (On the Statement of the Problem). -- P. 5--16.
The desire to combine various geographical points in his narrative is also characteristic of the writings of Vladimir Monomakh - especially for his biography.
It is characteristic that the writers of the IX - XIII centuries. they perceive victory over the enemy as gaining “space”, and defeat as loss of space, misfortune as “crowding”, life path if he is full of need and grief, this is, first of all, a "straight path."
The Old Russian writer, as it were, seeks to mark as many different places as have taken place in them. historical events. The earth is sacred to him, it is consecrated by these historical events. He also marks the place on the Volga, where Boris's horse stumbled in the field and broke his leg, and Smyadyn, where Gleb found the news of his father's death. and Vyshgorod, where the brothers were then buried, etc. The author seems to be in a hurry to connect with the memory of Boris and Gleb more different places, tracts, rivers and cities. This is especially significant in connection with the fact that the cult of Boris and Gleb directly served the idea of the unity of the Russian land, directly emphasized the unity of the princely family, the need for brotherly love, and the strict subordination of the younger princes to the elders.
The writer makes sure that all the characters behave appropriately, so that they utter all the necessary words. "The Tale of Boris and Gleb" from beginning to end furnished with speeches actors, as if ceremonially commenting on what is happening.
And one more feature of the aesthetic formation is its ensemble character.
Medieval art is systemic art, systemic and unified. It unites visible world and invisible, created by man with the whole cosmos. The works of literature of this period are not self-contained and isolated little worlds. Each of them, as it were, gravitates towards the neighboring ones that already existed before it. Each new work is, first of all, an addition to the existing ones, but an addition not in form, but in theme, in plot. Each new work is, first of all, an addition to the existing ones, but an addition not in form, but in theme, according to the plot of Adrianov-Peretz V.P. The main objectives of the study of ancient Russian literature in research pp. 5--14.
