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Sentimentalism in European literature. What is sentimentalism? Representatives of sentimentalism in Russian literature

At the end of the 18th century, Russian nobles experienced two major historical events - the peasant uprising led by Pugachev and the French bourgeois revolution. Political oppression from above and physical destruction from below - these were the realities facing the Russian nobles. Under these conditions, the former values ​​of the enlightened nobility underwent profound changes.

A new philosophy is born in the depths of Russian enlightenment. Rationalists, who believed reason to be the main engine of progress, tried to change the world through the introduction of enlightened concepts, but at the same time they forgot about a specific person, his living feelings. The idea arose that it was necessary to enlighten the soul, to make it heartfelt, responsive to other people’s pain, other people’s suffering and other people’s concerns.

N.M. Karamzin and his supporters argued that the path to people’s happiness and the common good is in the education of feelings. Love and tenderness, as if flowing from person to person, turn into kindness and mercy. “Tears shed by readers,” wrote Karamzin, “always flow from love for good and nourish it.”

On this basis, the literature of sentimentalism arose.

Sentimentalism- a literary movement that aimed to awaken sensitivity in a person. Sentimentalism turned to the description of a person, his feelings, compassion for his neighbor, helping him, sharing his bitterness and sadness, he can experience a feeling of satisfaction.

So, sentimentalism is a literary movement where the cult of rationalism and reason is replaced by the cult of sensuality and feeling. Sentimentalism emerged in England in the 30s of the 18th century in poetry as a search for new forms and ideas in art. Sentimentalism reaches its greatest flowering in England (Richardson’s novels, in particular “Clarissa Harlow”, Laurence Sterne’s novel “A Sentimental Journey”, Thomas Gray’s elegies, for example “The Country Cemetery”), in France (J.J. Rousseau), in Germany ( J. W. Goethe, the Sturm and Drang movement) in the 60s of the 18th century.

Main features of sentimentalism as a literary movement:

1) Image of nature.

2) Attention to the inner world of a person (psychologism).

3) The most important theme of sentimentalism is the theme of death.

4) Ignoring the environment, circumstances are given secondary importance; reliance only on the soul of a simple person, on his inner world, feelings that are always initially beautiful.

5) The main genres of sentimentalism: elegy, psychological drama, psychological novel, diary, travel, psychological story.

Sentimentalism(French sentimentalisme, from English sentimental, French sentiment - feeling) - a state of mind in Western European and Russian culture and the corresponding literary direction. Works written in this genre are based on the reader's feelings. In Europe it existed from the 20s to the 80s of the 18th century, in Russia - from the end of the 18th to the beginning of the 19th century.

If classicism is reason, duty, then sentimentalism is something lighter, these are the feelings of a person, his experiences.

The main theme of sentimentalism- love.

Main features of sentimentalism:

  • Avoiding straightness
  • Multifaceted characters, subjective approach to the world
  • Cult of feeling
  • Cult of nature
  • Revival of one's own purity
  • Affirmation of the rich spiritual world of the low classes

The main genres of sentimentalism:

  • Sentimental story
  • Trips
  • Idyll or pastoral
  • Letters of a personal nature

Ideological basis- protest against the corruption of aristocratic society

The main property of sentimentalism- the desire to imagine the human personality in the movement of the soul, thoughts, feelings, the disclosure of the inner world of man through the state of nature

The aesthetics of sentimentalism is based- imitation of nature

Features of Russian sentimentalism:

  • Strong didactic setting
  • Educational character
  • Active improvement of the literary language through the introduction of literary forms into it

Representatives of sentimentalism:

  • Lawrence Stan Richardson - England
  • Jean Jacques Rousseau - France
  • M.N. Muravyov - Russia
  • N.M. Karamzin - Russia
  • V.V. Kapnist - Russia
  • ON THE. Lviv - Russia

Socio-historical foundations of Russian romanticism

But the main source of Russian romanticism was not literature, but life. Romanticism as a pan-European phenomenon was associated with enormous upheavals caused by the revolutionary transition from one social formation to another - from feudalism to capitalism. But in Russia, this general pattern manifests itself in a unique way, reflecting the national characteristics of the historical and literary process. If in Western Europe romanticism arose after the bourgeois-democratic revolution as a unique expression of dissatisfaction with its results on the part of various social strata, then in Russia the romantic movement arose in that historical period when the country was just moving towards the revolutionary clash of new, capitalist in its essence started with the feudal-serf system. This was the reason for the uniqueness in the relationship between progressive and regressive tendencies in Russian romanticism in comparison with Western European. In the West, romanticism, according to K. Marx, arose as “the first reaction to the French Revolution and the Enlightenment associated with it.” Marx considers it natural that under these conditions everything was seen “in a medieval, romantic light.” Hence the significant development in Western European literature of reactionary-romantic movements with their affirmation of an isolated personality, a “disappointed” hero, medieval antiquity, an illusory supersensible world, etc. Progressive romantics had to fight such movements.

Russian romanticism, generated by the impending socio-historical turning point in the development of Russia, became mainly an expression of new, anti-feudal, liberation tendencies in social life and worldview. This determined the progressive significance for Russian literature of the romantic movement as a whole at the early stage of its formation. However, Russian romanticism was not free from deep internal contradictions, which became more and more clear over time. Romanticism reflected the transitional, unstable state of the socio-political structure, the maturation of profound changes in all areas of life. In the ideological atmosphere of the era, new trends are felt, new ideas are born. But there is still no clarity, the old resists the new, the new is mixed with the old. All this gives early Russian romanticism its ideological and artistic originality. Trying to understand the main thing in romanticism, M. Gorky defines it as “a complex and always more or less unclear reflection of all the shades, feelings and moods that embrace society in transitional eras, but its main note is the expectation of something new, anxiety before the new, hasty , a nervous desire to learn this new thing.”

Romanticism(fr. romanticism, from medieval fr. romantic, novel) is a direction in art that was formed within the framework of a general literary movement at the turn of the 18th–19th centuries. in Germany. It has become widespread in all countries of Europe and America. The highest peak of romanticism occurred in the first quarter of the 19th century.

French word romanticism goes back to Spanish romance (in the Middle Ages this was the name given to Spanish romances, and then to knightly romance), English romantic, which turned into the 18th century. V romantic and then meaning “strange”, “fantastic”, “picturesque”. At the beginning of the 19th century. Romanticism becomes the designation of a new direction, opposite to classicism.

A vivid and meaningful description of romanticism was given by Turgenev in a review of the translation of Goethe’s Faust, published in Otechestvennye zapiski for 1845. Turgenev proceeds from a comparison of the romantic era with the adolescence of a person, just as antiquity is correlated with childhood, and the Renaissance can be correlated with the adolescence of the human race. And this ratio, of course, is significant. “Every person,” writes Turgenev, “in his youth experienced an era of “genius,” enthusiastic self-confidence, friendly gatherings and circles... He becomes the center of the world around him; he (without realizing his good-natured egoism) does not indulge in anything; he forces himself to indulge in everything; he lives with his heart, but alone, his own, not someone else’s heart, even in love, about which he dreams so much; he is a romantic - romanticism is nothing more than the apotheosis of personality. He is ready to talk about society, about social issues, about science; but society, like science, exists for him - not he for them.”

Turgenev believes that the Romantic era began in Germany during the period of Sturm und Drang and that Faust was its most significant artistic expression. “Faust,” he writes, “from the beginning to the end of the tragedy cares about only himself. The last word of everything earthly for Goethe (as well as for Kant and Fichte) was the human self... For Faust, society does not exist, the human race does not exist; he completely immerses himself in himself; he expects salvation from himself alone. From this point of view, Goethe’s tragedy is for us the most decisive, sharpest expression of romanticism, although this name came into fashion much later.”

Entering into the antithesis of “classicism - romanticism,” the movement suggested contrasting the classicist demand for rules with romantic freedom from rules. This understanding of romanticism persists to this day, but, as literary critic Yu. Mann writes, romanticism “is not simply a denial of the “rules”, but the following of “rules” that are more complex and whimsical.”

Center for the artistic system of romanticism- personality, and its main conflict is between the individual and society. The decisive prerequisite for the development of romanticism were the events of the Great French Revolution. The emergence of romanticism is associated with the anti-enlightenment movement, the reasons for which lie in disappointment in civilization, in social, industrial, political and scientific progress, the result of which was new contrasts and contradictions, leveling and spiritual devastation of the individual.

The Enlightenment preached the new society as the most “natural” and “reasonable”. The best minds of Europe substantiated and foreshadowed this society of the future, but reality turned out to be beyond the control of “reason”, the future became unpredictable, irrational, and the modern social order began to threaten human nature and his personal freedom. Rejection of this society, protest against lack of spirituality and selfishness is already reflected in sentimentalism and pre-romanticism. Romanticism expresses this rejection most acutely. Romanticism also opposed the Age of Enlightenment in verbal terms: the language of romantic works, striving to be natural, “simple”, accessible to all readers, was something opposite to the classics with its noble, “sublime” themes, characteristic, for example, of classical tragedy.

Among the late Western European romantics, pessimism towards society acquires cosmic proportions and becomes the “disease of the century.” The heroes of many romantic works (F.R. Chateaubriand, A. de Musset, J. Byron, A. de Vigny, A. Lamartine, G. Heine, etc.) are characterized by moods of hopelessness and despair, which acquire a universal character. Perfection is lost forever, the world is ruled by evil, ancient chaos is resurrected. The theme of the “terrible world”, characteristic of all romantic literature, was most clearly embodied in the so-called “black genre” (in the pre-romantic “Gothic novel” - A. Radcliffe, C. Maturin, in the “drama of rock”, or “tragedy of fate” - Z. Werner, G. Kleist, F. Grillparzer), as well as in the works of J. Byron, C. Brentano, E.T.A. Hoffmann, E. Poe and N. Hawthorne.

At the same time, romanticism is based on ideas that challenge the “terrible world” - above all, the ideas of freedom. The disappointment of romanticism is a disappointment in reality, but progress and civilization are only one side of it. Rejection of this side, lack of faith in the possibilities of civilization provide another path, the path to the ideal, to the eternal, to the absolute. This path must resolve all contradictions and completely change life. This is the path to perfection, “towards a goal, the explanation of which must be sought on the other side of the visible” (A. De Vigny). For some romantics, the world is dominated by incomprehensible and mysterious forces that must be obeyed and not try to change fate (poets of the “lake school”, Chateaubriand, V.A. Zhukovsky). For others, “world evil” caused protest, demanded revenge and struggle. (J. Byron, P.B. Shelley, S. Petofi, A. Mickiewicz, early A.S. Pushkin). What they had in common was that they all saw in man a single essence, the task of which is not at all limited to solving everyday problems. On the contrary, without denying everyday life, the romantics sought to unravel the mystery of human existence, turning to nature, trusting their religious and poetic feelings.

Romantics turned to various historical eras, they were attracted by their originality, attracted by exotic and mysterious countries and circumstances. Interest in history became one of the enduring achievements of the artistic system of romanticism. He expressed himself in the creation of the genre of the historical novel (F. Cooper, A. de Vigny, V. Hugo), the founder of which is considered to be W. Scott, and the novel in general, which acquired a leading position in the era under consideration. Romantics reproduce in detail and accurately the historical details, background, and flavor of a particular era, but romantic characters are given outside of history; they, as a rule, are above circumstances and do not depend on them. At the same time, the romantics perceived the novel as a means of comprehending history, and from history they moved towards penetration into the secrets of psychology, and, accordingly, modernity. Interest in history was also reflected in the works of historians of the French romantic school (A. Thierry, F. Guizot, F. O. Meunier).

Exactly in the era of Romanticism, the discovery of the culture of the Middle Ages occurs, and the admiration for antiquity, characteristic of the past era, also does not weaken at the end of the 18th - beginning. XIX centuries The diversity of national, historical, and individual characteristics also had a philosophical meaning: the wealth of a single world whole consists of the combination of these individual features, and the study of the history of each people separately makes it possible to trace uninterrupted life through new generations succeeding one after another.

The era of Romanticism was marked by the flourishing of literature, one of the distinctive properties of which was a passion for social and political problems. Trying to comprehend the role of man in ongoing historical events, romantic writers gravitated toward accuracy, specificity, and authenticity. At the same time, the action of their works often takes place in an unusual setting for a European - for example, in the East and America, or, for Russians, in the Caucasus or Crimea. Thus, romantic poets are primarily lyricists and poets of nature, and therefore in their work (as well as in many prose writers), landscape occupies a significant place - first of all, the sea, mountains, sky, stormy elements with which the hero is associated complex relationships. Nature can be akin to the passionate nature of a romantic hero, but it can also resist him, turn out to be a hostile force with which he is forced to fight.

Unusual and vivid pictures of nature, life, way of life and customs of distant countries and peoples also inspired the romantics. They were looking for the traits that constitute the fundamental basis of the national spirit. National identity is manifested primarily in oral folk art. Hence the interest in folklore, the processing of folklore works, the creation of their own works based on folk art.

Paradoxes of Romanticism

Paradoxically, romanticism combined the cult of the personal uniqueness of the individual with a gravitation towards the impersonal, elemental, and collective; increased reflectivity of creativity - with the discovery of the world of the unconscious; play, understood as the highest meaning of creativity, with calls for the introduction of aesthetics into “serious” life; individual rebellion - with dissolution in the folk, tribal, national. This initial duality of romanticism is reflected by its theory of irony, which elevates into a principle the discrepancy between conditional aspirations and values ​​with the unconditional absolute as a goal. The main features of the romantic style include the element of play, which dissolved the aesthetic framework of classicism; heightened attention to everything original and non-standard (and the special was not simply given a place in the universal, as the baroque style or pre-romanticism did, but the very hierarchy of the general and the individual was inverted); interest in myth and even understanding of myth as the ideal of romantic creativity; symbolic interpretation of the world; the desire for the utmost expansion of the arsenal of genres; reliance on folklore, preference for image over concept, aspiration over possession, dynamics over statics; experiments in the synthetic unification of the arts; aesthetic interpretation of religion, idealization of the past and archaic cultures, often resulting in social protest; aestheticization of life, morality, politics.

Sentimentalism is a movement in art and literature that became widespread after classicism. If the cult of reason dominated in classicism, then in sentimentalism the cult of the soul comes first. The authors of works written in the spirit of sentimentalism appeal to the reader’s perception and try to awaken certain emotions and feelings with the help of the work.

Sentimentalism originated in Western Europe in the early 18th century. This direction reached Russia only towards the end of the century and took a dominant position at the beginning of the 19th century.

The new direction in literature demonstrates completely new features:

  • The authors of the works assign the main role to feelings. The most important personality quality is the ability to sympathize and empathize.
  • If in classicism the main characters were mainly nobles and rich people, then in sentimentalism they are ordinary people. The authors of works from the era of sentimentalism promote the idea that a person’s inner world does not depend on his social status.
  • Adherents of sentimentalism wrote about fundamental human values: love, friendship, kindness, compassion
  • The authors of this movement saw their calling as to console ordinary people oppressed by deprivation, adversity and lack of money, and to open their souls towards virtue.

Sentimentalism in Russia

Sentimentalism in our country had two currents:

  • Noble. This direction was quite loyal. Speaking about feelings and the human soul, the authors did not advocate the abolition of serfdom. Within the framework of this direction, Karamzin’s famous work “Poor Liza” was written. The story was based on class conflict. As a result, the author puts forward the human factor, and only then looks at social differences. However, the story does not protest against the existing order of things in society.
  • Revolutionary. In contrast to “noble sentimentalism,” the works of the revolutionary movement advocated the abolition of serfdom. They put the person in first place with his right to a free life and a happy existence.

Sentimentalism, unlike classicism, did not have clear canons for writing works. That is why authors working in this direction created new literary genres, and also skillfully mixed them within one work.

(Sentimentalism in Radishchev's work "Journey from St. Petersburg to Moscow")

Russian sentimentalism is a special trend, which, due to the cultural and historical characteristics of Russia, differed from a similar trend in Europe. The main distinguishing features of Russian sentimentalism include the following: the presence of conservative views on the social structure and a tendency toward enlightenment, instruction, and teaching.

The development of sentimentalism in Russia can be divided into 4 stages, 3 of which occurred in the 18th century.

XVIII century

  • Stage I

In 1760-1765, the magazines “Useful Amusement” and “Free Hours” began to be published in Russia, which rallied around a group of talented poets led by Kheraskov. It is believed that it was Kheraskov who laid the foundation for Russian sentimentalism.

In the works of poets of this period, nature and sensitivity begin to act as criteria for social values. The authors focus their attention on the individual and his soul.

  • Stage II (since 1776)

This period marks the heyday of Muravyov’s creativity. Muravyov pays great attention to the human soul and his feelings.

An important event of the second stage was the release of the comic opera “Rosana and Love” by Nikolev. It is in this genre that many works of Russian sentimentalists are subsequently written. The basis of these works was the conflict between the arbitrariness of the landowners and the powerless existence of the serfs. Moreover, the spiritual world of peasants is often revealed as richer and more intense than the inner world of rich landowners.

  • III stage (late 18th century)

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This period is considered the most fruitful for Russian sentimentalism. It was at this time that Karamzin created his famous works. Magazines began to appear that promoted the values ​​and ideals of the sentimentalists.

19th century

  • IV stage (early 19th century)

Crisis stage for Russian sentimentalism. The trend is gradually losing its popularity and relevance in society. Many modern historians and literary scholars believe that sentimentalism became a fleeting transitional stage from classicism to romanticism. Sentimentalism as a literary trend quickly exhausted itself, however, the trend opened the way to the further development of world literature.

Sentimentalism in foreign literature

England is considered the birthplace of sentimentalism as a literary movement. The starting point can be called the work “The Seasons” by Thomson. This collection of poems reveals to the reader the beauty and splendor of the surrounding nature. The author, with his descriptions, tries to evoke certain feelings in the reader, to instill in him a love for the amazing beauties of the world around him.

After Thomson, Thomas Gray began to write in a similar style. In his works, he also paid great attention to the description of natural landscapes, as well as reflections on the difficult life of ordinary peasants. Important figures in this movement in England were Laurence Sterne and Samuel Richardson.

The development of sentimentalism in French literature is associated with the names of Jean-Jacques Rousseau and Jacques de Saint-Pierre. The peculiarity of the French sentimentalists was that they described the feelings and experiences of their heroes against the backdrop of beautiful natural landscapes: parks, lakes, forests.

European sentimentalism as a literary trend also quickly exhausted itself, however, the trend opened the way to the further development of world literature.

Sentimentalism remained faithful to the ideal of a normative personality, but the condition for its implementation was not the “reasonable” reorganization of the world, but the release and improvement of “natural” feelings. The hero of educational literature in sentimentalism is more individualized, his inner world is enriched by the ability to empathize and sensitively respond to what is happening around him. By origin (or by conviction) the sentimentalist hero is a democrat; the rich spiritual world of the common people is one of the main discoveries and conquests of sentimentalism.

The most prominent representatives of sentimentalism are James Thomson, Edward Jung, Thomas Gray, Laurence Stern (England), Jean Jacques Rousseau (France), Nikolai Karamzin (Russia).

Sentimentalism in English literature

Thomas Gray

England was the birthplace of sentimentalism. At the end of the 20s of the 18th century. James Thomson, with his poems “Winter” (1726), “Summer” (1727) and Spring, Autumn, subsequently combined into one whole and published () under the title “The Seasons,” contributed to the development of a love of nature in the English reading public by drawing simple, unpretentious rural landscapes, following step by step the various moments of the life and work of the farmer and, apparently, striving to place the peaceful, idyllic country situation above the vain and spoiled city.

In the 40s of the same century, Thomas Gray, the author of the elegy “Rural Cemetery” (one of the most famous works of cemetery poetry), the ode “Towards Spring”, etc., like Thomson, tried to interest readers in rural life and nature, to awaken their sympathy to simple, inconspicuous people with their needs, sorrows and beliefs, while at the same time giving his creativity a thoughtful and melancholy character.

Richardson's famous novels - "Pamela" (), "Clarissa Garlo" (), "Sir Charles Grandison" () - are also of a bright and typical product of English sentimentalism. Richardson was completely insensitive to the beauties of nature and did not like to describe it, but he put psychological analysis in the first place and made the English, and then the entire European public, keenly interested in the fate of the heroes and especially the heroines of his novels.

Laurence Sterne, author of “Tristram Shandy” (-) and “A Sentimental Journey” (; after the name of this work the direction itself was called “sentimental”), combined Richardson’s sensitivity with a love of nature and a peculiar humor. Stern himself called the “sentimental journey” “a peaceful journey of the heart in search of nature and all spiritual attractions that can inspire us with more love for our neighbors and for the whole world than we usually feel.”

Sentimentalism in French literature

Jacques-Henri Bernardin de Saint-Pierre

Having moved to the continent, English sentimentalism found somewhat prepared soil in France. Quite independently of the English representatives of this trend, Abbé Prévost (“Manon Lescaut,” “Cleveland”) and Marivaux (“Life of Marianne”) taught the French public to admire everything touching, sensitive, and somewhat melancholic.

Under the same influence, Rousseau's "Julia" or "New Heloise" was created, who always spoke of Richardson with respect and sympathy. Julia reminds many of Clarissa Garlo, Clara reminds her of her friend, miss Howe. The moralizing nature of both works also brings them closer to each other; but in Rousseau’s novel nature plays a prominent role; the shores of Lake Geneva - Vevey, Clarens, Julia’s grove - are described with remarkable art. Rousseau's example did not remain without imitation; his follower, Bernardin de Saint-Pierre, in his famous work “Paul and Virginie” () transfers the scene of action to South Africa, accurately foreshadowing the best works of Chateaubreand, makes his heroes a charming couple of lovers living away from urban culture, in close communication with nature, sincere, sensitive and pure in soul.

Sentimentalism in Russian literature

Sentimentalism penetrated into Russia in the 1780s and early 1790s thanks to translations of the novels “Werther” by J.V. Goethe, “Pamela,” “Clarissa” and “Grandison” by S. Richardson, “The New Heloise” by J.-J. Rousseau, "Paul and Virginie" by J.-A. Bernardin de Saint-Pierre. The era of Russian sentimentalism was opened by Nikolai Mikhailovich Karamzin with “Letters of a Russian Traveler” (1791–1792).

His story "Poor Liza" (1792) is a masterpiece of Russian sentimental prose; from Goethe's Werther he inherited a general atmosphere of sensitivity, melancholy and the theme of suicide.

The works of N.M. Karamzin gave rise to a huge number of imitations; at the beginning of the 19th century appeared "Poor Liza" by A.E. Izmailov (1801), "Journey to Midday Russia" (1802), "Henrietta, or the Triumph of Deception over Weakness or Delusion" by I. Svechinsky (1802), numerous stories by G.P. Kamenev ( “The Story of Poor Marya”; “Unhappy Margarita”; “Beautiful Tatiana”), etc.

Ivan Ivanovich Dmitriev belonged to Karamzin’s group, which advocated the creation of a new poetic language and fought against the archaic pompous style and outdated genres.

Sentimentalism marked the early work of Vasily Andreevich Zhukovsky. The publication in 1802 of a translation of Elegy, written in a rural cemetery by E. Gray, became a phenomenon in the artistic life of Russia, for he translated the poem “into the language of sentimentalism in general, translated the genre of elegy, and not an individual work of an English poet, which has its own special individual style” (E. G. Etkind). In 1809, Zhukovsky wrote a sentimental story “Maryina Roshcha” in the spirit of N.M. Karamzin.

Russian sentimentalism had exhausted itself by 1820.

It was one of the stages of pan-European literary development, which completed the Age of Enlightenment and opened the way to romanticism.

Main features of the literature of sentimentalism

So, taking into account all of the above, we can identify several main features of Russian literature of sentimentalism: a departure from the straightforwardness of classicism, an emphasized subjectivity of the approach to the world, a cult of feelings, a cult of nature, a cult of innate moral purity, innocence, the rich spiritual world of representatives of the lower classes is affirmed. Attention is paid to the spiritual world of a person, and feelings come first, not great ideas.

In painting

The direction of Western art of the second half of the 18th century, expressing disappointment in “civilization” based on the ideals of “reason” (Enlightenment ideology). S. proclaims the feeling, solitary reflection, and simplicity of the rural life of the “little man.” J.J.Russo is considered the ideologist of S.

One of the characteristic features of Russian portrait art of this period was citizenship. The heroes of the portrait no longer live in their own closed, isolated world. The consciousness of being necessary and useful to the fatherland, caused by the patriotic upsurge in the era of the Patriotic War of 1812, the flowering of humanistic thought, which was based on respect for the dignity of the individual, and the expectation of imminent social changes are restructuring the worldview of the advanced person. The portrait of N.A., presented in the hall, is adjacent to this direction. Zubova, granddaughters A.V. Suvorov, copied by an unknown master from a portrait of I.B. Lumpy the Elder, depicting a young woman in a park, away from the conventions of social life. She looks at the viewer thoughtfully with a half-smile; everything about her is simplicity and naturalness. Sentimentalism is opposed to straightforward and overly logical reasoning about the nature of human feeling, emotional perception that directly and more reliably leads to the comprehension of the truth. Sentimentalism expanded the idea of ​​human mental life, coming closer to understanding its contradictions, the very process of human experience. At the turn of two centuries, the work of N.I. developed. Argunov, a gifted serf of the Sheremetyev counts. One of the significant trends in Argunov’s work, which was not interrupted throughout the 19th centuries, is the desire for concreteness of expression, an unpretentious approach to a person. A portrait of N.P. is presented in the hall. Sheremetyev. It was donated by the Count himself to the Rostov Spaso-Yakovlevsky Monastery, where the cathedral was built at his expense. The portrait is characterized by realistic simplicity of expression, free from embellishment and idealization. The artist avoids painting the hands and focuses on the model’s face. The coloring of the portrait is based on the expressiveness of individual spots of pure color, colorful planes. In the portrait art of this time, a type of modest chamber portrait was emerging, completely freed from any features of the external environment, demonstrative behavior of models (portrait of P.A. Babin, P.I. Mordvinov). They do not pretend to be deeply psychologistic. We are dealing only with a fairly clear fixation of patterns and a calm state of mind. A separate group consists of children's portraits presented in the hall. What is captivating about them is the simplicity and clarity of the interpretation of the image. If in the 18th century children were most often depicted with the attributes of mythological heroes in the form of cupids, Apollos and Dianas, then in the 19th century artists strive to convey the direct image of a child, the warehouse of a child’s character. The portraits presented in the hall, with rare exceptions, come from noble estates. They were part of estate portrait galleries, the basis of which were family portraits. The collection was of an intimate, predominantly memorial nature and reflected the personal attachments of the models and their attitude towards their ancestors and contemporaries, the memory of whom they tried to preserve for posterity. The study of portrait galleries deepens the understanding of the era, allows you to more clearly sense the specific environment in which the works of the past lived, and understand a number of features of their artistic language. Portraits provide rich material for studying the history of Russian culture.

V.L. experienced a particularly strong influence of sentimentalism. Borovikovsky, who depicted many of his models against the background of an English park, with a soft, sensually vulnerable expression on his face. Borovikovsky was connected with the English tradition through the circle of N.A. Lvova - A.N. Venison. He knew well the typology of English portraiture, in particular from the works of the German artist A. Kaufmann, fashionable in the 1780s, who was educated in England.

English landscape painters also had some influence on Russian painters, for example, such masters of idealized classicist landscape as Ya.F. Hackert, R. Wilson, T. Jones, J. Forrester, S. Dalon. In the landscapes of F.M. Matveev, the influence of “Waterfalls” and “Views of Tivoli” by J. Mora can be traced.

In Russia, the graphics of J. Flaxman (illustrations to Gormer, Aeschylus, Dante), which influenced the drawings and engravings of F. Tolstoy, and the small plastic works of Wedgwood were also popular - in 1773, the Empress made a fantastic order for the British manufactory for “ Service with green frog"of 952 objects with views of Great Britain, now stored in the Hermitage.

Miniatures by G.I. were performed in English taste. Skorodumov and A.Kh. Rita; The genre “Pictorial Sketches of Russian Manners, Customs and Entertainments in One Hundred Colored Drawings” (1803-1804) performed by J. Atkinson were reproduced on porcelain.

There were fewer British artists working in Russia in the second half of the 18th century than French or Italian ones. Among them, the most famous was Richard Brompton, the court artist of George III, who worked in St. Petersburg in 1780 - 1783. He owns portraits of the Grand Dukes Alexander and Konstantin Pavlovich, and Prince George of Wales, which became examples of the image of heirs at a young age. Brompton's unfinished image of Catherine against the backdrop of the fleet was embodied in the portrait of the Empress in the Temple of Minerva by D.G. Levitsky.

French by birth P.E. Falcone was a student of Reynolds and therefore represented the English school of painting. The traditional English aristocratic landscape presented in his works, dating back to Van Dyck of the English period, did not receive wide recognition in Russia.

However, Van Dyck's paintings from the Hermitage collection were often copied, which contributed to the spread of the genre of costume portraiture. The fashion for images in the English spirit became more widespread after the return from Britain of the engraver Skorodmov, who was appointed “Engraver of Her Imperial Majesty’s Cabinet” and elected Academician. Thanks to the work of the engraver J. Walker, engraved copies of paintings by J. Romini, J. Reynolds, and W. Hoare were distributed in St. Petersburg. The notes left by J. Walker talk a lot about the advantages of the English portrait, and also describe the reaction to the acquired G.A. Potemkin and Catherine II of Reynolds's paintings: "the manner of thickly applying paint... seemed strange... for their (Russian) taste it was too much." However, as a theorist, Reynolds was accepted in Russia; in 1790 his “Speeches” were translated into Russian, in which, in particular, the right of the portrait to belong to a number of the “highest” types of painting was substantiated and the concept of “portrait in the historical style” was introduced.

Literature

  • E. Schmidt, “Richardson, Rousseau und Goethe” (Jena, 1875).
  • Gasmeyer, “Richardson’s Pamela, ihre Quellen und ihr Einfluss auf die englische Litteratur” (Lpc., 1891).
  • P. Stapfer, “Laurence Sterne, sa personne et ses ouvrages” (P., 18 82).
  • Joseph Texte, “Jean-Jacques Rousseau et les origines du cosmopolitisme littéraire” (P., 1895).
  • L. Petit de Juleville, “Histoire de la langue et de la littérature française” (Vol. VI, issue 48, 51, 54).
  • “History of Russian Literature” by A. N. Pypin, (vol. IV, St. Petersburg, 1899).
  • Alexey Veselovsky, “Western influence in new Russian literature” (M., 1896).
  • S. T. Aksakov, “Various Works” (M., 1858; article about the merits of Prince Shakhovsky in dramatic literature).

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Synonyms:
  • Luchko, Klara Stepanovna
  • Stern, Lawrence

See what “Sentimentalism” is in other dictionaries:

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    SENTIMENTALISM- (from the French sentiment feeling) a movement in European and American literature and art of the 2nd half. 18 start 19th centuries Starting from Enlightenment rationalism (see Enlightenment), he declared that the dominant of human nature is not reason, but feeling, and... ... Big Encyclopedic Dictionary

Sentimentalism in Russian literature

Sentimentalism is an artistic movement in literature that replaced classicism. Sentimentalism is a movement in literature and art of the second half of the eighteenth century, characterized by an increased interest in human feelings and emotional attitudes towards the world around us. The word "sentimentalism" comes from the Latin word for "feeling" or "to feel."

Note 1

Sentimentalism most clearly of all literary movements reflects the cult of sensitivity. In sentimental works, the feelings and experiences of the characters come first, and the great ideas or even the plot often come second.

Sentimentalism as a phenomenon arose in the twenties of the eighteenth century abroad. The most famous and prominent representatives of foreign sentimentalism: S. Richardson, L. Stern, F. Schiller, J. V. Goethe, J. J. Rousseau. Foreign symbolism had similar features to Russian symbolism - since in both cases the feelings and experiences of the main characters were put in first place. Sentimentalism plays an important role in world history, culture and in world art. For a long time, sentimentalism remained one of the most popular movements, since it could most accurately express and convey the general idea and picture of the work. That is why this direction was popular among foreign writers of the eighteenth century.

Sentimentalism as a phenomenon appeared in Russia a little later - in the seventies of the eighteenth century, and acquired its proper development and popularity in the first half of the nineteenth century. Russian sentimentalism most clearly reflects the life and traditions of both ordinary Russian people - peasants, and representatives of the upper class - nobles.

Sentimentalism in Russian literature has the following characteristic features:

  1. The main characters in such works are ordinary people, unknown, without money or power;
  2. In Russian sentimentalism, sensitivity is presented as one of the main personal qualities of the protagonist;
  3. The writer's attention is directed to the rich inner world of the hero, his experiences are the basis of the main idea of ​​the work;
  4. Such qualities as innate innocence, purity and purity are glorified, both in the thoughts and in the actions of the hero;
  5. Glorification of conservatism in views of the world and modern Russia;
  6. Typical Russian traditions, Russian way of life, customs and morality are clearly expressed;
  7. It not only has the sublimity of language characteristic of this direction, but also contains simple colloquial speech, characteristic of the average person.

Representatives of sentimentalism in Russia were: M.N. Karamzin, M. N. Muravyov, I. I. Dmitriev, V. A. Zhukovsky, A. Radishchev. It was they who became the founders of this trend in Russia. In Russia there were two directions of sentimentalism:

  • Dvoryansky - representatives of this trend did not advocate the abolition of serfdom;
  • Revolutionary - representatives of this trend considered it their duty to tell in their works about such a global and relevant problem in Russia at that time - serfdom.

The meaning of sentimentalism in Russian literature

In Russian literature, sentimentalism became widespread and also had a significant influence on it. He played an important role by his appeal to the inner world of man. Also happened thanks to sentimentalism:

  1. Creation of such literary genres as: sentimental and love novel, psychedelic confession, memoirs, diary entries, novel in letters, essay, travel, elegy, ode, everyday novel and many others.
  2. Sentimentalism contributed to the setting of priorities in Russian literature - for the first time, the feelings of the main characters came to the fore, and not the idea, history or politics.
  3. Sentimentalism helped to clearly formulate the main popular trends and sentiments of that period, which cannot but be important for Russian culture as a whole.
  4. Sentimentalism highlighted the characteristic features of the Russian people and glorified them. These are: love, high morality, loyalty, devotion, sensitivity, the ability to empathize, mercy, kindness and sincere participation in someone else's misfortune. All this, of course, contributed to increased morality and improved moral qualities of a person.
  5. Sentimentalism had a significant influence on Russian folk art and subsequent literature. He helped to form and explain the main thing in himself - feelings. It was the feelings that came to the fore and helped express the idea and content as clearly and piercingly as never before.
  6. Sentimentalism helped to form a more accurate picture of the plot, a more detailed description of the characters of the main characters, which more clearly conveyed the main thought and idea of ​​the work.

Thus, from all this we can conclude about the importance of sentimentalism in Russian literature. Firstly, sentimentalism helped define the cult of feelings, bring the experiences of the heroes to the fore and show their importance. Secondly, sentimentalism helped to understand more clearly and better what was the main popular movement at that time. After all, their actions directly depend on people’s feelings. Thirdly, sentimentalism helped shape the view of life and traditions of Russia, determined the conservatism and stability of the characters’ everyday life. Fourthly, sentimentalism contributed to the rise of human moral qualities, morality, honesty, and fidelity.

Thanks to sentimentalism, people realized that kindness, love, care for one's neighbor and loyalty are the main features of a pure, innocent and noble human soul. Sentimentalism elevated Russian literature to a new level. He separated it from world literature by the special nature of the execution of sentimental works, the features of Russian sentimentalism listed above. Sentimentalism helped Russian literature become a property of world culture and be remembered by readers for its sensitivity and poignancy.

In the mid-18th century, the process of decomposition of classicism began in Europe (in connection with the destruction of the absolute monarchy in France and other countries), as a result of which a new literary movement appeared - sentimentalism. England is considered to be its homeland, since its typical representatives were English writers. The term “sentimentalism” itself appeared in literature after the publication of “A Sentimental Journey through France and Italy” by Laurence Stern.

Catherine the Great vault

In the 60-70s, the rapid development of capitalist relations began in Russia, resulting in the growing phenomenon of the bourgeoisie. The growth of cities increased, which led to the emergence of the third estate, whose interests are reflected in Russian sentimentalism in literature. At this time, that layer of society, which is now called the intelligentsia, begins to form. The growth of industry turns Russia into a strong power, and numerous military victories contribute to the rise of national self-awareness. In 1762, during the reign of Catherine II, nobles and peasants received many privileges. The Empress thereby tried to create a myth about her reign, showing herself to be an enlightened monarch in Europe.

The policies of Catherine the Second largely impeded progressive phenomena in society. So, in 1767, a special commission was convened to examine the state of the new code. In her work, the empress argued that an absolute monarchy is necessary not to take away freedom from people, but to achieve a good goal. However, sentimentalism in literature meant depicting the life of the common people, so not a single writer mentioned Catherine the Great in his works.

The most important event of this period was the peasant war led by Emelyan Pugachev, after which many nobles sided with the peasants. Already in the 70s, mass societies began to appear in Russia, whose ideas of freedom and equality influenced the formation of a new movement. Under such conditions, Russian sentimentalism in literature began to take shape.

Conditions for the emergence of a new direction

In the second half of the 18th century there was a struggle against feudal orders in Europe. Enlightenmentists defended the interests of the so-called third estate, which often found itself oppressed. Classicists glorified the merits of monarchs in their works, and sentimentalism (in Russian literature) became the opposite direction in this regard several decades later. Representatives advocated the equality of people and put forward the concept of a natural society and natural man. They were guided by the criterion of reasonableness: the feudal system, in their opinion, was unreasonable. This idea was reflected in Daniel Defoe's novel Robinson Crusoe, and later in the works of Mikhail Karamzin. In France, Jean-Jacques Rousseau’s work “Julia, or the new Heloise” becomes a striking example and manifesto; in Germany - “The Sorrows of Young Werther” by Johann Goethe. In these books, the tradesman is portrayed as an ideal person, but in Russia everything is different.

Sentimentalism in literature: features of the movement

Style is born in a fierce ideological struggle with classicism. These currents oppose each other in all positions. If the state was depicted by classicism, then a person with all his feelings was depicted by sentimentalism.

Representatives in literature introduce new genre forms: love story, psychological story, as well as confessional prose (diary, travel notes, travel). Sentimentalism, unlike classicism, was far from poetic forms.

The literary movement affirms the transcendental value of the human personality. In Europe, the tradesman was portrayed as an ideal person, while in Russia the peasants were always oppressed.

Sentimentalists introduce alliteration and descriptions of nature into their works. The second technique is used to display the psychological state of a person.

Two directions of sentimentalism

In Europe, writers smoothed out social conflicts, while in the works of Russian authors, on the contrary, they intensified. As a result, two directions of sentimentalism were formed: noble and revolutionary. The representative of the first is Nikolai Karamzin, known as the author of the story “Poor Liza.” Despite the fact that the conflict occurs due to the clash of interests of a high and low class, the author puts the conflict in the first place as a moral one, not a social one. Noble sentimentalism did not advocate the abolition of serfdom. The author believed that “even peasant women know how to love.”

Revolutionary sentimentalism in literature advocated the abolition of serfdom. Alexander Radishchev chose just a few words as the epigraph for his book “Journey from St. Petersburg to Moscow”: “The monster barks, mischievously, laughs and barks.” This is how he imagined a collective image of serfdom.

Genres in sentimentalism

In this literary direction, the leading role was given to works written in prose. There were no strict boundaries, so genres were often mixed.

N. Karamzin, I. Dmitriev, A. Petrov used private correspondence in their work. It is worth noting that not only writers turned to him, but also personalities who became famous in other areas, such as M. Kutuzov. A. Radishchev left the travel novel in his literary heritage, and the educational novel - M. Karamzin. Sentimentalists also found application in the field of drama: M. Kheraskov wrote “tearful dramas”, and N. Nikolev - “comic operas”.

Sentimentalism in the literature of the 18th century was represented by geniuses who worked in several other genres: satirical fairy tales and fables, idylls, elegy, romance, song.

"Fashionable wife" by I. I. Dmitrieva

Often sentimentalist writers turned to classicism in their work. Ivan Ivanovich Dmitriev preferred to work with satirical genres and odes, so his fairy tale called “The Fashionable Wife” was written in poetic form. General Prolaz, in his old age, decides to marry a young girl who is looking for an opportunity to send him for new things. In the absence of her husband, Premila receives her lover Milovzor right in her room. He is young, handsome, a ladies' man, but a naughty man and a talker. The replicas of the heroes of "The Fashionable Wife" are empty and cynical - with this Dmitriev is trying to portray the depraved atmosphere prevailing in the noble class.

"Poor Liza" by N. M. Karamzin

In the story, the author talks about the love story of a peasant woman and a master. Lisa is a poor girl who became a victim of betrayal by the rich young man Erast. The poor thing lived and breathed only for her lover, but did not forget the simple truth - a wedding between representatives of different social classes cannot take place. A rich peasant wooes Lisa, but she refuses him, expecting exploits on the part of her lover. However, Erast deceives the girl, saying that he is going to serve, and at that moment he is looking for a rich widowed bride. Emotional experiences, impulses of passion, loyalty and betrayal are feelings that sentimentalism often depicted in literature. During the last meeting, the young man offers Lisa one hundred rubles as a token of gratitude for the love she gave him during their dating days. Unable to bear the breakup, the girl commits suicide.

A. N. Radishchev and his “Journey from St. Petersburg to Moscow”

The writer was born into a wealthy noble family, but despite this, he was interested in the problem of inequality of social classes. His famous work “Journey from St. Petersburg to Moscow” in the genre direction can be attributed to travel popular at that time, but the division into chapters was not a mere formality: each of them examined a separate side of reality.

Initially, the book was perceived as travel notes and successfully passed through the censors, but Catherine the Second, having familiarized herself with its contents personally, called Radishchev “a rebel worse than Pugachev.” The chapter "Novgorod" describes the depraved morals of society, in "Lyuban" - the problem of the peasantry, in "Chudovo" we are talking about the indifference and cruelty of officials.

Sentimentalism in the works of V. A. Zhukovsky

The writer lived at the turn of two centuries. At the end of the 18th century, the leading genre in Russian literature was sentimentalism, and in the 19th it was replaced by realism and romanticism. The early works of Vasily Zhukovsky were written in accordance with the traditions of Karamzin. “Maryina Roshcha” is a beautiful story about love and suffering, and the poem “To Poetry” sounds like a heroic call to accomplish feats. In his best elegy, “Rural Cemetery,” Zhukovsky reflects on the meaning of human life. A major role in the emotional coloring of the work is played by the animated landscape, in which the willow slumbers, the oak groves tremble, and the day turns pale. Thus, sentimentalism in the literature of the 19th century is represented by the work of a few writers, among whom was Zhukovsky, but in 1820 the direction ceased to exist.



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