A large number of works have come down to us fiction, dating back to purely folk tales and true stories, although later processed by court and temple scribes.
The story of Sinuhet was especially popular. It was a nobleman who fled from Egypt during the unrest over the succession to the throne. He ended up in the Sinai desert, where he nearly died of hunger and thirst. The Bedouins saved him. He went on to Palestine, where he became friends with the leader of one of the tribes and married his daughter. Having defeated one native hero in a duel, Sinukhet took all his property for himself. Although he became rich, he began to be tormented by homesickness. He begged forgiveness from the pharaoh for his desertion and returned to Egypt. In the story, they are clearly contrasted cultural life at the ancient Egyptian court and the primitive life of Asians. However, there is no antipathy towards foreigners. They greet the fugitive Egyptian hospitably and show him generosity.
Statue of a scribe. It looked like the creators of the literature of ancient Egypt
Other literary narrative is purely fabulous in nature (the tale of the shipwrecked). One ancient Egyptian official, having gone on a sea voyage, almost perishes during a storm. Having lost the ship and all his companions, he gets on the wreckage of a sunken ship to the island where a good serpent lives, with whom the traveler stays until the pharaoh sends his sailors for him.
It should also be noted "The Tale of the Eloquent Peasant", "The Tale of the Doomed Prince", "The Tale of Truth and Falsehood", etc.
Many kinds of folk songs, sung by ancient Egyptian threshers, fishermen, porters, etc., as well as love poems in which a young man and a girl naively express their mutual affection.
A completely different character is the crackling and pompous court poetry, glorifying incredible feats kings.
Hieroglyphics of Ancient Egypt
An example of an ancient Egyptian philosophical work that raises the question of the meaning of life and its purpose is "The conversation of the disappointed with the soul." One of the participants in the dialogue (disappointed) complains about the cruelty and deceit of people and wants to go to afterworld seek justice there.
Another interlocutor (“the soul of the disappointed”) expresses skeptical views. No one has returned from the other world, no one knows if it is better there than on earth. It is better to seek happiness in earthly life. However, the disappointed Egyptian does not want to listen to consolations. In the end, he manages to convince his skeptical soul of the advantages of the other world over earthly life.
Initially, writing was used exclusively for economic or sacred purposes. From the era ancient kingdom practically no written monuments have come down to us, with the exception of hieroglyphic laudatory inscriptions and prayers on the walls of the tombs. The first economic documents are meager records that “so many carcasses of animals were brought in, so many sheaves of barley were collected from one field.”
The end of the Old Kingdom in the history of the written monuments of Ancient Egypt is marked by the spread of tombstones of a laudatory nature. The rise of the cult of Osiris and the connection of the myth of the dying and resurrecting Osiris in connection with the cult of the dead give rise to the first monuments of funeral literature, which can be classified as literary works. On the walls of the tomb of a rich man, the entire “autobiography” is written on his behalf: merits before the pharaoh, personal virtues are listed, the wealth of the deceased and the position that he occupied during his lifetime are described. These are the so-called "Pyramid Texts", the oldest of the texts that made up the canon of the "Book of the Dead" many centuries later.
Obviously, in the era of the Old Kingdom cultural tradition preserved exclusively in oral creativity. This tradition started even earlier.
Middle Kingdom. heyday ancient Egyptian literature- Middle Kingdom. During this period, written works appeared that formed the backbone of the classical literature of Ancient Egypt.
First of all, it should be noted the work that continues the tradition of tomb inscriptions - "The Tale of Sinuhet". This biography was extremely widely disseminated and has come down to our days in many lists, moreover, made at a much later time.
Sinukhet, as follows from this work, is a nobleman who lived at the court of two pharaohs. Most likely, this is not just a historical figure. Sinuhet may have been the author of his own life-description. In the first person, the story is told about the valor of Sinuhet in the royal retinue, about how, after the death of the pharaoh, he fled abroad to escape the riots. Settling in Syria, Sinukhet managed to achieve nobility and wealth there, thanks to his talents, but then returned to his homeland and served the new king.
The Tale of Sinuhet is a combination of autobiography, fiction and historical monument. The author not only inserted into the text excerpts from various state documents of his era, illustrating the narrative. With remarkable literary talent, he builds his work, bringing out a harmonious composition. The figurative and colorful language of the work earned him well-deserved fame for many centuries of the existence of the Egyptian kingdom.
Another literary genre that has become extremely widespread in Egypt during the Middle Kingdom is fairy tales. This genre, no doubt, originates in the tradition of oral art. The stories are extremely varied in subject matter.
One of the most interesting collections of fairy tales - Papyrus Westcar - is dedicated to stories from the reign of the last pharaohs of the Old Kingdom. Among the texts of this papyrus, fantastic stories predominate - tales of sorcerers performing miracles at the court of Pharaoh Cheops. In one story, for example, a court magician cuts off a bird's head, then puts it back on, and the bird comes to life. In these and similar tales, the author's fiction is closely intertwined with Egyptian mythology. The plots of a number of fairy tales have something in common with the most important myths, such as, for example, "The Tale of Truth and Krivda".
Many fairy tales are, in fact, literary processed testimonies of contemporaries about certain historical events- about the quarrel between the pharaoh and his commander, about the storming of a foreign city.
Egyptian fairy tales include all sorts of genres: a description of a journey, a moralizing story, even an adventurous story. In most of these works, especially those related to early period formation of Egyptian literature, a strong element of the fantastic, characteristic in general for the folk writing tradition.
The era of the Middle Kingdom also includes historical works proper, in particular the Leiden papyrus and the papyrus of the Hermitage, which record the testimonies of noble Egyptians who survived the horrors of anarchy in the country after the fall of the Old Kingdom. These works, known as "The Sayings of Ipuwer" and "The Prophecy of Neferti", describe the events that took place in the country after its breakup into independent nomes, after the fall of the power of the pharaohs.
Another genre that took shape in the literature of Ancient Egypt in the era of the Middle Kingdom is all kinds of moralistic writings. A significant part of them are, as one might assume, texts written by teachers in schools of scribes for educational purposes. The authors of the "Instructions" and "Speeches" inspire students with moral standards, call for obedience and reverence. Another favorite theme in didactic works is the praise of the advantages that education and the position of a scribe give. It is rather interesting to trace what arguments the authors of these instructions give against this or that occupation. main object critics of scribes-mentors - military service. The hardships and troubles that lie in wait for the recruit are described extremely vividly. One involuntarily gets the impression that the author just wants to intimidate the student, and not lead him to an independent conclusion about the preference for the service of an official.
Sometimes the mentor simply does not have enough convincing arguments - then he resorts to malicious ridicule. For example, not finding enough reasons why one should prefer the job of a scribe to the much more relaxed position of a temple priest, the instructor simply ridicules the priests who "wash only by vow, and not by necessity."
In general, the “Instructions” is a very diverse in language, style and subject matter, a superbly developed genre, in which, apparently, the rhetorical tradition of the Egyptians was embodied. The protagonist-mentor in such works is a respected person - either an official who has achieved a high position, or a great nobleman or court sage. Some of the instructions were compiled on behalf of the pharaoh and were collections of advice to the heir on public administration.
Among other literary works of the Middle Kingdom era, the Tale of the Eloquent Peasant deserves special mention. Its plot is simple. The peasant is driving along the road, which was blocked by some petty official, who collects bribes from travelers for passing through his land. The peasant has nothing to pay, and the official takes away his donkey. Then the unfairly robbed peasant comes to the pharaoh's palace and begins to complain about the fate and the offender. The pharaoh is attracted by the eloquence of the complainer, unusual for simple peasant. He orders the peasant to be brought closer and, after listening to complaints, decides to reward the peasant for such talent, showers him with gifts and leaves him at court.
“The Tale of the Eloquent Peasant”, perhaps the first work in the history of world literature, the hero of which is a representative of the lower strata of the population, speaking with accusatory speeches against a more high-born or wealthy offender.
The Middle Kingdom left a lot of works to descendants poetic creativity. Basically, this is philosophical poetry of secular or religious subjects, imbued with either moods of vanity human existence or, on the contrary, with praises to life and calls to care more about today than about the afterlife. Examples of these two directions of poetic creativity are "The Conversation of the Disappointed with His Soul" and "The Song of the Harper". The "Song", apparently performed during feasts and festive feasts, is full of cheerfulness and love of life. “Conversation” is a dialogue of a desperate person with his own soul. The soul tries to return joy to him, draws colorful pictures of fun and life, but in the end gives up before the owner’s argument and agrees that his desire to die is quite justified and that life on earth is really nothing.
Along with philosophical writings poets of the Middle Kingdom created many examples of magnificent stucco love lyrics, which were repeatedly translated into many modern languages.
Working with Egyptian poetic heritage- a little-known side of the work of Anna Akhmatova, who created the best translations of the love lyrics of Ancient Egypt in Russia.
New kingdom. The new kingdom is the time of "powerful" literature. At this time, during the period of the highest heyday of the Egyptian kingdom, the literary canon was formed. Numerous papyrus scrolls from the time of the New Kingdom contain expositions of myths in poetic and prose form, life-non-descriptions of the pharaohs and the history of victorious campaigns.
Mythology is important component the religious worldview of the ancient Egyptians, which previously existed almost exclusively in the form of oral art, the chants of priests and was only partially reproduced in tomb inscriptions and prayers (mainly the myth of Osiris). Now the canon of mythological tales is being formed, which includes both cosmological myths and the history of the creation of all living things. It is interesting to note the similarity of some plots of Egyptian mythology with contemporary Sumerian mythology. Especially a prime example intersections - the story of how Isis (aka Inanna of the Sumerians) deceives Ra-Amon, the god of the Sun, by deceit, his secret name, which gives power over Ra. In the Sumerian-Akkadian "Epic of Gilgamesh" an episode with a clarification secret name the supreme deity and the pursuit of Inanna occupies a very significant place.
Another canon taking shape during the New Kingdom is the Book of the Dead. Obviously, by the neo-dynastic time, the cult of veneration already dead developed in full, which made it possible to bring together all the texts, rituals, prayers and spells associated with the administration of this cult. Lists of the "Book of the Dead" were found in large numbers in Egyptian tombs of various periods, but since the time of the New Kingdom, the "Book" has not undergone significant changes.
Develops at this time and historical literature-tour. In addition to the genre of “autobiographies” and tomb inscriptions, which has firmly entered the literary tradition, chronicles of kingdoms are compiled at the courts of the pharaohs, lists of rulers of different dynasties and eras are created. The purpose of the compilers of these scrolls is to show the continuity and divine origin of the power of the pharaohs. These documents serve as a serious help to modern historians in recreating the history of Ancient Egypt, since their data, as a rule, are confirmed by various independent sources.
Part historical works of this type is a transformation of a long-standing hymn tradition, originating in the tomb inscriptions of the pharaohs and widespread even in the era of the Middle Kingdom.
oral tradition. The oral art of the ancient Egyptians - not mythological poetry, not hymns and moralizing stories, but the work of the common people - has come down to our time thanks to the tombs of the nobility. On the walls of many tombs, next to the images of people working in the field or on the construction site, artists, apparently in order to please the “ear” of the inhabitant of the tomb, often attributed rhythmic poetic lines - the texts of songs with which the workers set the rhythm for themselves and encouraged each other. Most likely those who recorded these samples folk poetry, slightly ennobled them, adjusting them to the long-established norms of the literary language.
Artistic techniques. That in the ancient Egyptian literary tradition there were clear, once for all developed rules, there is no doubt. The works of most genres are strictly sustained within the framework of a single style for this genre. Kit literary devices, used by Egyptian writers and poets, is not too great, but a skillful combination of these techniques allowed a talented scribe to create a genuine work of art.
A favorite technique of Egyptian poets is parallelism in the construction of phrases and parts of a line. There are no indications of how the ancient Egyptian language could sound, but it can be assumed that with the exquisite construction of phrases and lines of the work, which can be seen in most examples of literature, rhythm could be one of the main requirements to a good work.
The form of poetic compositions of the ancient Egyptian authors, apparently, was almost higher than the content. In one message, a scribe (probably a mentor who received a letter from a student) analyzes the message that came to him from the point of view of constructing sentences and ruthlessly criticizes the addressee for the fact that “one is mixed with another, disgusting is adjacent to good and the words are neither sweet nor bitter. Judging by the importance that most writers of this kind of letters attach to refinement of style, stylistics was one of the fundamental subjects in the schools of scribes.
The literature of Ancient Egypt is striking in its imagery difference. The comparisons used by co-writers are vivid and precise. So, in one of his life-descriptions, the pharaoh says about himself that, having become angry at his enemies, he became like a snake in the desert.
A large number of images came to secular literature from a closely related religious literary tradition.
ancient egyptian language is one of the oldest in the world.
The ancient Egyptian language is one of the branches of the Afro-Asiatic language group and went through several stages in its evolution, coinciding with the division of the country's history into kingdoms: old Egyptian, classical, new Egyptian, demotic, and from the 3rd century. AD - Coptic, in which the Coptic church service is partially performed to this day.
Descendants of the ancient Egyptians, modern Copts speak Arabic.
The ancient Egyptian language was quite rich, today we know about 20,000 words. Some still live in modern languages: "papyrus", "oasis", "basalt", "natr". But! With rare exceptions, the pronunciation of ancient Egyptian words is unknown. Pronunciation, in particular, in Russian is purely conventional and lacks phonetic accuracy. The accepted rule of stress on the penultimate syllable is also purely conditional and is violated.
Deciphering hieroglyphs.
Attempts to understand Egyptian hieroglyphics have been made since ancient times.
The first to take the "correct" path was the Englishman William Urorburton. In 1738, he suggested that hieroglyphs are signs with sound correspondences.
Jean-Francois Champollion (1790-1832) from 1808, when he became acquainted with a copy of the text of the Rosetta Stone (ill. 26-a), took up deciphering. The personal and throne names of kings and queens served as landmarks. Hellenistic period, enclosed in oval frames - cartouches, and geographical names. Champollion proved that, along with symbolic signs, the Egyptians already in ancient times used alphabetic hieroglyphic signs, and for the first time without a Greek interlinear read two ancient Egyptian names of the pharaohs. The merit of Champollion is in the discovery of the system of the Egyptian language and the disclosure of its patterns, the compilation of its dictionary and grammar, the establishment of a relationship between hieroglyphic and hieratic writing and both of them with demotic.
essence of hieroglyphics.
All signs of hieroglyphic writing are divided into three groups: ideograms, phonograms and a very important element - determinatives.
Ideograms are signs depicting an object or denoting it. For example, the sign o depicts the sun and means the sun. On the other hand, the name of, say, the god Amun in one and the same text could be presented both as a seated figure of the god with a Shuti crown, and as a group of phonetic signs.
Phonograms are called hieroglyphs, the main function of which is the designation of sounds - a combination of two or three consonant phonemes (for example, htp, nfr, mn, dw), and signs denoting individual vowel phonemes (f, n, h).
determinants signs are called that are not phonetically readable; they are always placed at the very end of the spelling of words and indicate the semantic category to which the given word belongs. For example, the determinative depicting two legs was placed after a wide variety of verbs of motion.
There were hieroglyphs that indirectly hinted at the content of the word: a club was depicted - the country of Libya was meant.
A variety of pictograms were used to denote abstract concepts: for example, “breath” or “wind” was written out using the sign of an inflated sail, “old age” - in the form of a figure of a hunched man leaning on a stick.
The drawing expressed one or more consonants. As a rule, the Egyptians used a mixed verbal-sound system: signs-“letters” were attributed to the sign-drawing, which were contained in the word in front. At the end of the word they put a sign that was not readable, but explained its meaning. For example, the verb to open was conveyed by the drawing of a hare (vn), the sign of water (n), and the image of a door. As a determinant of abstract concepts, a drawing of a papyrus scroll was used.
Of paramount importance in the arrangement of hieroglyphic texts was the proportionality of the size of signs, certain rules for combining long vertical and horizontal signs with short ones, and their symmetry. The line of text was divided, according to modern scientific terminology, into so-called "squares", that is, into parts, each of which was densely filled with characters, more or less bound by meaning. The hieroglyphic text had no spaces.
Hieroglyphs usually denoted only consonants, but some semivowels ("y") could also be used.
The direction of writing and the arrangement of texts.
Based on the analysis of the surviving statues of scribes, scientists argue that most often the Egyptians, holding a scroll in their left hand, wrote from right to left, the lines of hieroglyphic writing could also be arranged horizontally or vertically. You can determine the direction of writing by turning the heads of the drawn figures of people and animals: they are turned to the right - the text is read from right to left and vice versa. It is believed that the direction of the lines depended on the desire of scribes or artists to arrange the text on the surface of a wall, column, obelisk or statue symmetrically - around images or architectural details, as required by the rules.
The arrangement of the texts on the walls of the burial chambers was deeply symbolic. So, for example, the arrangement of texts in the pyramid of Seti I (Old Kingdom) corresponds to the order in which the deceased pharaoh, rising from the sarcophagus, will read them, moving from the burial chamber to the vestibule and further along the corridor.
Literature.
"So far, there are no literary works that, in antiquity, variety of forms, and artistic perfection, could be compared with the literary monuments of Ancient Egypt." The concept of "Egyptian literature" includes all texts or fragments that have aesthetic merit, designed for artistic, emotional or moral impact, regardless of the purpose of the texts. Moreover, the authors resorted to special literary stylistic devices: repetitions, complex comparisons, wordplay, metaphors, metric construction of sentences. The structure of the "Pyramid Texts" was not metrically poetic in modern sense words, but was designed for lowering and raising the voice.
Most of the Egyptian texts found to date are either in one list, or only in parts transcribed at some time by future scribes on ostraca, with remnants of red ink with which the teacher corrected mistakes.
Headings are usually absent in Egyptian originals. The titles of the works were established after their translations in the 19th and 20th centuries.
It is only possible to attribute this or that Egyptian text to a strictly defined genre. There is a combination of different genres in one work. Nevertheless, it is believed that fairy tales, stories, songs, love lyrics. We have received inscriptions historical character, religious hymns, mythological narratives ("The Struggle of Horus with Set"), official chronicles, posthumous biographies, There is evidence of the existence of fables.
Papyrus scrolls found in tombs contain mostly mortuary texts. The found so-called "libraries" contain hymns, magical and medical texts, teachings, fairy tales. The texts of legends, fables were recorded only from the Hellenistic period.
Although the scribe put his name at the end of the scroll with the rewritten text, the authorship of the work did not play much in Egypt. big role. All the literature of ancient Egypt is practically anonymous. Only in the teachings there were names (and it is not known whether they are real or imaginary). To give the teachings greater authority, they were attributed to the outstanding sages of antiquity (Imhotep) or put into the mouth of the pharaoh. The names of the scribes who made copies from the texts, the name of Januni, the court chronicler who accompanied Thutmose III on military campaigns, have been preserved.
The Old Kingdom texts are mostly private letters, grocery lists, business documents, and biographical inscriptions on steles. The earliest written document is the so-called "Narmer tablet", which conveys information about the pharaoh's military campaign.
The Egyptian tradition called the Doctrine of Life, an adviser to Pharaoh Djoser and an architect, Imhotep, the most ancient work.
Actually literary works appear only in the era of the Middle Kingdom. Many previously unknown genres of literature appear towards the end of the New Kingdom. Numerous scrolls from the time of the New Kingdom contain the presentation of myths in poetic and prose form and the lives of the pharaohs. At the courts of rulers, chronicles of kingdoms are compiled, and lists of pharaohs of different dynasties and eras are created in order to show the continuity of power.
The beginning of dramatic art.
The presence of dramatic / theatrical performances in ancient Egypt is not in doubt among scientists.
Despite the extreme scarcity of information, it is known that performances in which the actors were gods, and their roles were played by priests, took place already in the era of the Old Kingdom. Performances in honor of gods, god-men and heroes are called mysteries. The contents of the mysteries were episodes from mythologized and legendary biographies.
The most famous theatrical performances depicted in the form of a drama episodes from the life of Osiris, Isis and their son Horus. Performances could be in the form of national celebrations, and the actual mysteries that accompanied funeral rite. At festivals in honor of Isis, priests and processionists wore animal masks, depicting Egyptian deities. On the edge last month in the winter - the first spring, the priestesses in the images of Isis and Nephthys depicted the search, mourning and burial of Osiris, then Horus "fought" with Seth, in the final they erected a dzhed pillar, symbolizing the rebirth of Osiris.
Theatrical mysteries were played in the temple itself, in the fence of the temple, in front of the colonnades, on the sacred reservoir.
"Perfect Egyptian".
Summing up the written sources, we can conclude how, in general, the man of Ancient Egypt saw or wanted to see himself: lived to old age, healthy, full of prosperity and prosperity, hardworking, brave and valiant in military campaigns, modest, meek, restrained, humble, not talkative , a father of many children, disinterested and compassionate to those in need, patient, obedient, but not absolutely ...
Introductory article and compilation by M. Korostovtsev
Approximately five thousand years ago, on the territory of modern Egypt, one of the ancient states on our planet. This historical fact was preceded by a centuries-old and almost unknown history of the struggle for hegemony in the country of small independent political entities (in modern scientific terminology, "nomes"). This struggle ended approximately at the turn of the 4th and 3rd millennium BC. e. the unification of all the nomes, of which there were about forty, into two larger state associations: the kingdom of Upper Egypt and the kingdom of Lower Egypt. In the end, the first of them subjugated the second by force of arms, and all Egypt was united under the rule of one pharaoh. The history of united Egypt covers a huge period of time - approximately three millennia - and according to the tradition established in science, it is divided into large periods: the Old Kingdom, the First Intermediate Period, the Middle Kingdom, the Second Intermediate Period, the New Kingdom, Late time. In 332 BC. e. Egypt was conquered by Alexander the Great, and in 30 BC. e. became a province of the Roman Empire. The listed periods are divided, in turn, into dynasties, and, thus, the dynastic sign underlies the periodization not only of the history of Egypt, but also of the history of its culture.
Egyptian literature, which arose as part of Egyptian culture and disappeared with it, lived a longer life than the independent Egyptian state lived; starting from 332 BC the state becomes part of political world Hellenism. However, the original Egyptian culture continues to live and develop in the new political conditions, even in the first centuries of Roman domination.
The "dynastic" chronologization of Egyptian literature is forced, since it is mainly due to the state of the source and the impossibility of tracing the development of the literary process itself step by step. The following periodization of Egyptian literature is practically accepted:
I. Literature of the Old Kingdom, III millennium BC. A.
II. Literature of the Middle Kingdom, XXI-XVII centuries. BC 9.
III. Literature of the New Kingdom, XVI-IX centuries. BC e.
IV. Demotic literature, 8th century. BC e.-III century. n. e.
This periodization basically corresponds to large stages in the development of the language; Old Kingdom - Old Egyptian language: Middle Kingdom - Middle Egyptian, the so-called ((classical" language; New Kingdom - New Egyptian language and, finally, literature in the Demotic language (written in the so-called Demotic script). ( In Egypt all over it ancient history There were two types of writing: hieroglyphic and hieratic. The last is cursive; it is to hieroglyphs in much the same way that our handwritten texts are to printed texts. In the 8th century BC O. a complex and difficult demotic writing appeared, which, despite its specificity, is a further development of hieratic writing. All these types of Egyptian writing originated and developed independently in Egypt.)
From the era of the Old Kingdom, the so-called “Pyramid Texts” have been preserved, inscribed on the walls of internal corridors and chambers in the pyramids of some pharaohs of the 5th and 6th dynasties (c. 2700-2400 BC). The Pyramid Texts is perhaps the oldest collection of religious texts in world history. In this huge collection of magical formulas and sayings, the desire of a mortal to gain the immortality of the gods is captured with great force. The texts use such devices of eloquence as alliteration, parallelism, repetition (see in our volume the fragment translated by Anna Akhmatova [“To the Goddess”!).
In the era of the Old Kingdom, the Pyramid Texts were already archaic (under the pharaohs of the 5th and 6th dynasties, they were only written down). On the literature of the era of the Old Kingdom, we have very fragmentary data. However, there is no doubt that there was then a rich and varied literature, mostly completely lost to us. We know texts of a completely different type than the Pyramid Texts, although they also belong to a religious ritual. These are autobiographical inscriptions of nobles: it was necessary to perpetuate the name of the deceased on the tombstone. The mention of the name was accompanied by a list of titles and positions of the deceased, as well as a list of sacrificial gifts that were intended for him. To this purely ritual part of the text, little by little, in order to glorify the deceased, they began to add descriptions of various episodes from his life, testifying to his merits before the pharaoh, the latter's favor to the deceased, etc., in a word, everything that could exalt and embellish his personality. The ritual tombstone unfolded into an autobiography. The historical and artistic value of the works of this genre is beyond doubt.
Thus, in a poorly preserved inscription of Uashpta, the wazir and chief builder of one of the pharaohs of the 5th dynasty, contains a dramatic story about how the king, accompanied by his children and retinue, inspected the construction work led by Uashpta. The king expressed satisfaction and suddenly noticed that Uashpta did not answer him. It turned out that the vizier had fainted. The king ordered to transfer him to the palace and immediately call the court doctors. The latter came with their papyri sayings, but all their art was in vain; The king's faithful servant died.
The inscription of the priest Sheshi is quite remarkable. We read: “I created the truth for its master, I satisfied him with what he desires: I spoke the truth, I did the right thing, I spoke the good and repeated the good. I reasoned with a sister and two brothers in order to reconcile them. I saved the unfortunate from the stronger... I gave bread to the hungry, clothes to the naked. I transported on my boat who did not have it. I buried my son who did not have ... I made a boat for him who did not have his own boat. I respected my father, I was tender to my mother. I raised their children." Such statements are not so rare in the texts of that distant era. More often they are found in subsequent times. This testifies to the presence of a strong humanistic current that permeates all Egyptian literature in general and, in particular, the social thought of the times of the Old Kingdom.
Didactic literature was also developed. In the famous ["Instruction of Ptahotep"], which has come down to us in the edition of the Middle Kingdom, but compiled back in the era of the Old Kingdom, Ptahoten says to his son: evil. Justice is great, everything excellent is stable. An experienced old wazir with these words warns his son against cruelty and violation of laws ...
Already in the era of the Old Kingdom, the Egyptians valued eloquence, oratory. The same Ptahotep teaches: “If you are an confidant of the king, sitting in the council of your lord, be careful and be silent - this is more useful than ... [?]. Speak [only] after you have realized [that] you understand [the point]. This is a craftsman - a speaker in the council. [Smart] speech is more difficult than any work ... "
From the time of the Old Kingdom, no works of narrative genres have been preserved, except for the mentioned inscriptions of the nobles of the times of the Old Kingdom. However, the famous tales of the Westcar papyrus, telling about the pharaohs of the Old Kingdom (true, which have come down to us in the late edition of the Second Intermediate Period), undoubtedly indicate that such literature already existed in the time of the Old Kingdom: at the same time, it must be borne in mind that the ancient core of these fairy tales could and probably underwent significant processing in later times.
From the First Intermediate Period, that is, from the time between the end of the Old Kingdom and the beginning of the Middle Kingdom, that is, from the end of the 3rd millennium BC. BC, a remarkable didactic work has been preserved, known in science as the "Instruction" of the pharaoh, whose name we do not know, to his heir - Merikar. There we read, for example: “Imitate your fathers and your ancestors... behold, their speeches are enshrined in the scriptures. Unfold them, read them, imitate them in knowledge. Becomes a craftsman [only] trained. Do not be evil, self-control is beautiful, set up a monument [to yourself] by your disposition towards yourself [others]." This is followed by the wonderful words: "Be skillful in speech, so that you are strong ... speech is stronger than any weapon." The teaching addressed to Merikar is another evidence that by the end of the Old Kingdom in Egypt, a great literature was created, forever lost to us.
The time of the Middle Kingdom, not without reason, is considered in science to be the heyday of literary creativity, some of whose monuments have come down to us. Such, for example, are [“The Story of Sinuhe”], [“The Tale of the Shipwrecked”], skillful, subtle adaptations of folklore - the tales of the aforementioned papyrus Westkar, the teaching of the founder of the XII dynasty (c. 2000-1800 BC) Pharaoh Amenemhat I, ["Instruction of Neferti"] or, more precisely, ["Prophecy of Neferti"].
Of the hymns of the era of the Middle Kingdom, addressed to the deities, the hymn to Hapi, the god of the Nile, has the greatest literary merit.
Several versions of the hymn that have come down to us date back to the New Kingdom, but there is no doubt that they are only later records, indicating the popularity of the work. The interest presented by the anthem is twofold; firstly, it colorfully reflects the attitude of the Egyptians to the mighty river, which not only created their country, but also fed its population for thousands of years (in other words, the hymn expresses the attitude of man to the nature he deifies); secondly, these feelings are expressed in it in a bright art form. A hymn is not a prayer, not a collection of requests, but an expression of admiration and gratitude great nature that gave life to the country and its people.
In the hymn to the god Osiris, inscribed on the tombstone of the time of the Middle Kingdom (stored in the Paris National Library), the deity, whose cult was widespread in the era of the Middle Kingdom, is sung: Osiris became something like a “ruler of thoughts” in Egyptian society. His name was associated with the idea of immortality beyond the grave accessible and desired by every mortal, and the cult of Osiris democratized and simplified the funeral ritual. The most modest tombstone in the form of a slab with sacred formulas inscribed on it and the mention of Osiris was enough to provide eternal life in the underworld.
As an antithesis of the widespread dogma about immortality, most closely associated with the cult of Osiris, in the era of the Middle Kingdom, the so-called (“Song of the Harpist”) appeared - a collection of about fifteen texts that came down partly from the period of the Middle, and partly from the beginning of the New Kingdom (the latter, however , are copies or versions of older Middle Egyptian originals). These texts are linked general direction thoughts, one attitude and attitude; everything on earth is mortal, absolutely everything is doomed to disappear; from time immemorial, generations of people descend one after another into the graves, memorials for the dead are destroyed and disappear, and not even a memory remains of these people. (See in our volume translated by Anna Akhmatova [“Song from the House of the Deceased Tsar Antef ...”].) Therefore, one must use all the blessings of life, have fun and enjoy, because nothing will avert inevitable death. Thus, [“Song ...”] highly appreciates earthly life and at the same time full of undisguised skepticism in relation to afterlife beliefs. ["Song of the Harpist"], undoubtedly, reveals the presence in Egypt of the era of the Middle Kingdom of different currents of religious and social thought, sometimes directly opposed to each other.
A very interesting and, perhaps, not yet fully understood work of ancient Egyptian literature is the well-known "Dispute of the Disappointed with His Soul", contained in one of the Berlin papyri.
It is quite clear that "disillusioned" means some new social order and mores that are diametrically opposed to those that are dear and close to him ("no one remembers the past"). In a word, he feels lonely in the society around him, in which everything is alien and hostile to him.
Social upheavals in Egypt at the end of the III millennium BC. e., reflected in the content of “The Dispute of the Disappointed with His Soul”, left their mark on other works of Egyptian literature of the era of the Middle Kingdom - works, so to speak, of a journalistic plan. Moreover, a whole group of works of that time was inspired by the palace in order to strengthen and promote the authority of the pharaohs of the XII dynasty, which put an end to the previous century of political turmoil. This includes ["The Story of Sinuhe"] and ["The Prophecy of Neferti"].
The literature of the time of the New Kingdom is mainly the development of those literary traditions and genres that had already developed in the era of the Middle Kingdom. The main, although mostly only external, difference between the literature of the New Kingdom and the literature of the Middle Kingdom lies in the language - the literature of the Middle Kingdom is written in the Middle Egyptian, the so-called classical language, the literature of the New Kingdom is in the New Egyptian language.
The literature of the New Kingdom is represented by many fairy tales - such, for example, [“Two Brothers”], [“Truth and Falsehood”], [“The Doomed Prince”], as well as many didactic works - “teachings”. Of particular note is the story of the journey of a certain Ui-Amun to Byblos. This work does not contain any fairy-tale moments and, like the Middle Egyptian ["The Story of Sinuhe"], can be attributed to works that truly reflect historical time the events it describes.
By the time of the New Kingdom, there are also a number of works praising the military prowess of the pharaohs, as well as highly poetic hymns to various deities, for example, a hymn to the god Aten. The subtle love lyrics of these times are distinguished by special poetic merits.
Turning to the works of demotic literature, it should also be said that it developed, continuing the established literary traditions. Here and fantasy tales(for example, the tales of the cycle about the priest Khasmuas), epic tales about the pharaoh Petubast, teachings, for example, ["Teaching of Ankhsheshonk"], fables - a new, previously unseen genre in which only animals are the characters.
Of particular note is the content of Papyrus Thailand IX, which tells the story of one priestly family over three generations. This work is saturated with reliable everyday and historical realities and does not contain any fantastic details. This is perhaps the oldest work in world literature, the characters of which are three generations (grandfathers, fathers, grandchildren) of one family.
The well-known Belgian Egyptologist J. Kapar, based on the plot of the papyrus Rayland IX, wrote a fascinating novel from the life of ancient Egypt.
Egyptian society in ancient times lived a tense, rich and many-sided spiritual life. Egyptian culture as a whole is one of the origins of world culture. Egyptian literature, which is one of the most striking and artistically valuable manifestations of this culture, is original and deeply humane. It is inextricably linked with the life of society and its ideology. And since in the era of its development religion played a predominant role in ideology, it is not surprising that Egyptian literature experienced a significant influence of religion, and often in its works we find a religious worldview in its various manifestations. However, it does not at all follow from this that Egyptian literature is mainly religious or theological literature. On the contrary, it is represented by a wide variety of genres. Along with the folklore processed and recorded in the form of fairy tales - the tales of the papyrus Westcar, [“Two Brothers”], [“The Doomed Prince”] - there are stories about real events: ["Story (lshukhe"] and ["Story of Un-Amun"], inscriptions of kings and nobles of historical content; along with religious texts11 (hymns to Amon, Aton, Khapi, etc.) - works of skeptical content, for example, "The dispute of the disappointed with his soul "; along with mythological tales (the tale of Horus and Seth) - fables and love lyrics. (Whether the poems were known to the Egyptians in our understanding of this term - nothing definite can be copied, since the vocalization of Egyptian texts up to the present day is problematic .) The Egyptians were not alien and theatrical performances, and not only mysteries, but also to some extent a secular drama.
It has already been said above that a number of works of Egyptian literature were created under the impulse of contemporary political trends and, for example, some works of the era of the XII dynasty were inspired by the pharaoh and his inner circle. This was first noticed and convincingly proved by one of the most authoritative Egyptologists of our time, French professor G. Posner.
There is hardly any reason to doubt that this fact is by no means an exception in the history of Egyptian literature, that the pharaohs of later times did not miss the opportunity to use literature to strengthen their authority and popularize themselves. Under the great conquering pharaoh Thutmose III, the scribe Chenen was constantly present, who vividly and figuratively described the campaigns of the pharaoh, the brilliant victories of the Egyptian troops and the role of the king himself. There is no doubt that Chenen described everything as it was desirable for the king. Under another famous pharaoh, Ramses II, there was another similar scribe, whose name we do not know, whose work was copied by the scribe Pentaur. This work, well known to us, describes the famous Battle of Kadesh between the Egyptians and the Hittites, describes in detail and in a clearly exaggerated form the military prowess of Ramses II. The texts and images were produced by highly skilled scribes and artists, but Ramesses II himself influenced the content and direction of their work.
When talking about literature, it is impossible not to talk about its creators, about the authors. Here, however, we encounter very serious difficulties, which, of course, also apply to a number of other ancient literatures. All the Egyptian texts that have come down to us, of course, were once composed and written by someone, even when they were a written fixation. oral tradition. However, in most of these texts there is not the slightest hint of the author. Who were they, these authors, and why are their names not in the texts? It is very difficult to answer this very important question unequivocally and quite definitely. Undoubtedly, this question is related to another, more general question: was the concept of authorship known or unknown to the ancient Egyptians? The negative answer to this question (and such a negative answer is widespread in scientific literature) is not true. The concept of authorship existed, but almost exclusively in the sphere of didactic literature.
As in other countries of antiquity, the concept of authorship in ancient Egypt was not yet a solid property of public thought. It only began to stabilize and be realized and strengthened precisely in didactic literature. Apparently, the Egyptians themselves considered this genre the most important and essential. In one of the papyri of the era of the New Kingdom is contained in the highest degree a wonderful place where the authors of ancient teachings are praised:
They did not build themselves pyramids of copper
And bronze headstones.
Left no heirs behind
Children who have kept their names.
But they left their legacy in the scriptures,
In the teachings given by them.
Doors and houses were built, but they collapsed,
The priests of the funeral services have disappeared,
Their monuments covered with mud,
Their tombs are forgotten.
But their names are pronounced while reading these books,
Written while they lived
And the memory of who wrote them,
Eternal.
A book is better than a painted tombstone
And a solid wall.
What is written in books builds houses and pyramids in the hearts of those
Who repeats the names of scribes,
To have the truth on your lips.
(Translated by A. Akhmatova)
Before us is the motif of the “immortal monument”, which sounded on the banks of the Nile at the end of the 2nd millennium BC. e. These lines serve as a vivid evidence of honor, respect and gratitude to the authors - wise men who enriched Egyptian culture with their works.
Such thoughts could be born only where literature was loved and appreciated, where creative work was deservedly considered the highest achievement of man. We confine ourselves to pointing out that the word "scribe" in the Egyptian language meant not only a professional clerk or copyist, but in general had the meaning of a "literate" or "educated" person. These monuments testify that scribes (something like the most ancient "intelligentsia") were recruited from all classes of the population (mainly from the ruling strata) and occupied the most diverse levels in the social hierarchy, from persons very close to the throne, up to the most modest officials and clerks. The scribes as a whole were a huge bureaucratic apparatus, very privileged, but mainly engaged in administrative and economic activities. II in this numerous bureaucratic mass there were always gifted and inquisitive people who could not be satisfied with the gray routine of bureaucratic duties, who aspired to knowledge and creative work. So they became writers and scientists, the direct creators of Egyptian culture and literature.
The humanistic idea, which expressed the interest of society in man, and the philanthropic attitude towards him, inextricably linked with this interest, permeate the literature of ancient Egypt. Some scholars consider Egypt as the only homeland of many genres and literary plots that subsequently penetrated into other ancient literatures. This is an exaggeration, but one cannot deny the serious influence of Egyptian literature on other literatures of antiquity. Note first of all that Egyptian literature influenced the Bible. Although the determination of the scope of this influence causes conflicting opinions, however, the facts of such an impact are undoubted. The Bible story about the exodus of the Jews from Egypt contains the following episode: Moses "divided" the waters of the Red Sea, and on dry land, that is, the bottom of the sea, led the entire Jewish people from one coast to another. In the Westcar papyrus, the Egyptian priest also "parts" the waters of the pond. bible book The Proverbs of Solomon is similar in structure and style to the Egyptian teachings. In [The Teaching of Amenemope] we read: "Give ear to your ears, listen to [the words] I have spoken, turn your heart to understand them." In Proverbs of Solomon: "Incline your ear, give heed to my words, and turn your heart to understand them." Such a coincidence, of course, is not an accident, the Egyptian text is in this case the primary source. The closeness of the biblical psalms 104, 110 and some others to Egyptian texts, etc., is striking. biblical stories, for example, [“Stay of Joseph in Egypt”] (“The Book of Genesis”) and others showed that they were inspired by Egyptian life and literature. Egyptian motifs through the Bible, and then through Coptic literature penetrated into Europe. Praise of the Roman general Stilicho by a Latin poet of the 4th c. AD Claudpanom contains very clear traces of the religious and mythological ideas of the ancient Egyptians. It should be noted that the researchers revealed the connection between Egyptian and ancient love lyrics. The so-called paraclausitron, that is, a love song at the closed doors of the beloved (Plavt, Catullus, Proportions), was traditionally regarded as primordially antique genre. It turned out, however, that long before the ancient authors, the Egyptians knew this literary device. The facts presented are convincing enough, although far from being a systematic or exhaustive survey of the literary connections between Egypt and the ancient world.
On the whole, ancient Egyptian literature was more of a giver than a taker, an influence rather than an influence. Of course, it would be wrong to exclude any influence on Egyptian literature. In the demotic literature there is a cycle of legends about the pharaoh Petubast. In these legends there are non-Egyptian literary moments, and one can admit the influence of the Iliad here. as always happens with the mutual influence of two large literatures, Egyptian culture and literature, which perceived foreign elements, adapted to themselves, but at the same time losing their original appearance.
M. Korostovtsev
The content of the article
ANCIENT EGYPTIAN LITERATURE, the literary monuments of Ancient Egypt that have come down to our time, dating from the period from the 3rd millennium BC. before the start of the Christian era. Except for a few plots retold by Greek authors, we know this literature from Egyptian sources, the discovery of which began in the 19th century. and continues to this day.
TYPES OF LITERARY WORKS AND THEIR STYLISTICS
The surviving body of literary works includes short prose narratives, fairy tales and myths, fables, letters, didactic literature (proverbs and sermons), love songs and other types of non-religious poetry, as well as hymns. As far as is known, the Egyptians did not have an entertainment drama, but theatrical performances of myths, the characters of which sang and exchanged speeches, were an integral part of the cult of some deities. Several similar ritual dramas have been found. In addition, there is a large amount of non-literary written material, such as mathematical, medical, magical, legal texts, and business documents. historical documents(official decrees, autobiographical inscriptions, royal annals) we have the right to attribute to literary works only in cases where they have a certain literary form.
Since ancient Egyptian writing does not provide for the transmission of vowels, very little is known about poetic metrics. Based on Coptic sources (Coptic is the latest version of the ancient Egyptian language and script, in which signs for vowels already appeared), researchers suggest that ancient Egyptian poetry was based on rhythm, but not on a regular size. Poetry differed from prose mainly in terms of vocabulary and the regular use of other stylistic devices. A favorite poetic device was parallelism such construction of the text, in which the thought expressed in one line is repeated in the next line or lines, or is opposed to the thought expressed in another, adjacent line, or is more fully revealed in subsequent lines. Other techniques include repetitions, repetitions with minor changes, refrains and alliteration. Sometimes lines of poetry are combined into stanzas. Many of them are also used in Egyptian prose. Both in prose and poetry, wordplay is widely used. In religious texts, it may have had a magical meaning. There are also many comparisons and metaphors especially in texts that claim to be elevated in style. In fairy tales, on the contrary, such devices are rare.
For the ancient Egyptians, it was not indifferent how a poem (or other text) “looks” on papyrus or on a wall. In some texts, lines that begin with the same word are arranged in such a way that their parallelism is available and visual perception. Egyptian was written either from right to left (the normal, most common direction), or from left to right, or from top to bottom. This facilitated the creation of elegant graphic compositions. For example, one vertical line could “limit” text consisting of several horizontal lines, or one horizontal line text consisting of several vertical ones. On the other hand, there are literary texts that are not organized graphically.
STAGES OF LITERARY DEVELOPMENT
From the Old Kingdom (3rd millennium BC), few texts have been preserved that can be confidently attributed to literary ones. The most important ones Pyramid Texts. Although many of the spells included in Pyramid Texts, are not actually literary works some of them are highly poetic. One of the spells describes the deceased king, who, wanting to achieve power in the other world, devours the gods. This so-called cannibal anthem, even if you get to know him only by translation, breathes with genuine poetry. The ritual drama about the god Ptah from the time of the Old Kingdom was partially preserved in a later copy. In it, Ptah appears as the supreme deity, to whom all things are subordinate. teaching Ptahhotep, a collection of reasonable, albeit purely worldly advice, was also written during this period, but is known only from later lists.
characteristic of ancient Egypt literary style formed in the troubled period that followed the fall of the Old Kingdom. Perhaps it was then that some of the works known from later copies were created. So, a certain king wrote an instruction about public policy for his son Merikar. In another edifying essay, Teachings of Akhtoy, the position of a scribe, which opens up wide opportunities for a career, is contrasted with the miserable fate of representatives of all other professions. Sayings Ipuera describe the chaos that reigned in the country, testifying that no one was then protected from oppression and robbery. One more work Eloquent peasant, represents the lamentations of a peasant who has suffered from arbitrariness, appealing for justice. In the end he wins the case after delivering several long and flowery speeches, composed in a very refined manner.
Middle Kingdom (2211 centuries BC) classical era in the development of Egyptian literature. One of the works of this time, which remained popular for many hundreds of years, tells the story of the emigrant nobleman Sinuhet. It describes the escape of Sinuhet from Egypt to Syria, political reasons, his life in exile and return to his homeland. charming Tale of the victim shipwreck; her hero ends up on a desert island and meets an old snake there, showing fatherly care towards him. Even simpler in plot and language Tales of Papyrus Westcar(King Cheops and magicians) several fairy tales united by a frame narrative. conversation frustrated with his soul can safely be called an outstanding poetic work. His hero, having decided on suicide, convinces his soul not to leave him when he accomplishes his plan. Many religious hymns and, to a lesser extent, "worldly" songs also came from this period.
The language and style of literature of the Middle Kingdom were considered exemplary for five hundred years. In the era of the New Kingdom, Akhenaten carried out a religious and literary revolution. The narrative style changed, and they began to write in a colloquial language. More natural graphics replaced the delights of the Middle Kingdom. And although the religious revolution was defeated, the literary revolution was a success. Nevertheless, Middle Egyptian continued to be considered a classical language, and attempts to write in it were renewed as long as hieroglyphic writing was preserved.
The rise and fall of the New Kingdom is reflected in several quasi-historical narratives. So, the story of King Apophis and Sekenenre tells about the beginning of the war, which led to the expulsion from Egypt of foreign conquerors, the Hyksos. Another story tells of the capture of the city of Jaffa, an event that took place during the reign of the great conqueror Thutmose III, when Egypt was at the zenith of its power. A boastful account of the Battle of Kadesh extols in epic style the personal fighting prowess of Ramesses II. The decline of the empire was clearly reflected in Travels of Un-Amun, a story about an official sent to Lebanon for cedar wood. By that time, Egypt had lost its international prestige, and the petty Phoenician princelings met his envoy without any respect.
Tale of two brothers must have been written down from the words of a wandering storyteller. Parallels to its individual parts ( folklore motifs) are found in Asian and European tales and, in particular, in the Middle East. Fairy tales include doomed prince. The prince is predicted to be killed by one of the three beasts. He happily escapes two deaths, but the end of the text has not been preserved, and his further fate remains unknown.
Quite a lot of the so-called. school texts, i.e. texts copied for educational purposes by students of scribes. They are, as you might expect, full of bugs. "Exemplary" letters, which make up a significant part of these materials, give a realistic picture of their era. One letter, for example, tells of the hardships of soldiering in Palestine. The letters praise the fate of the scribe as happier than that of other professions.
Several collections of love songs are known. They remind song songs Solomon both by the set of comparisons and metaphors, and by the general tone. A number of drinking songs were also found, performed at feasts by blind harpists. They exalt the joys of life, and they were written on the walls of the tombs so that the dead also enjoyed similar joys. There are also poems praising the kings or telling about their exploits, for example, the already mentioned poem about Battle of Kadesh.
It differs from traditional hymns filled with monotonous epithets and titles of gods. Hymn to the Sun Akhenaten, imbued with love for nature; it almost completely lacks the concept of God as a moral authority.
The legend of Osiris is most fully expounded by the Greek writer Plutarch, but on the other hand, one papyrus from the time of the New Kingdom contains a very remarkable description Litigation of Horus and Seth. In this version of the myth, the gods are depicted without any reverence, either because faith in the gods gradually weakened, or because in Litigation reflected the ideas of an older era. The plot of the story is the final triumph of Horus over Set in a lawsuit over the rights to the throne of the deceased Osiris. another myth, Extermination of mankind, is a parallel to the story of Noah. God Ra (Re) decides to destroy people, but when the goddess Hathor, at his command, begins to kill them, he repents and saves those who are still alive. During the period of the New Kingdom, people increasingly turned their thoughts to the dangers of the other world and created many spells and ritual texts for the needs of the dead. Among them, the so-called Book of the Dead, Book breaths, The Book of Gates, The Book of the Underworld(Book of Amduat) And mouth opening ritual.
Literature late period(7th century BC 5th century AD, starting from the Sais period) differs significantly from everything that was created earlier. It was written in Demotic, as the then simplified Egyptian language is called. From that era have come down to us folk tales, which are grouped into cycles. The Haemowas cycle includes a strange tale Setne Haemowas and magic book. The book contained powerful spells and was carefully guarded - it lay in a chest placed in another chest, and was guarded by snakes and scorpions. The whole atmosphere of these stories is completely different from that of the earlier Egyptian stories.
Demotic literature also includes ritual drama (for example, Lamentation of Isis and Nephthys), animal tales, fables, and what, with some stretch, could be called historical fiction. see also BOOK OF THE DEAD.
