Artistic features of “History of the Russian State” N. M.

Nikolai Mikhailovich Karamzin

"History of Russian Goverment"

Preface

History, in a sense, is the sacred book of peoples: the main, necessary; a mirror of their existence and activity; the tablet of revelations and rules; the covenant of ancestors to posterity; addition, explanation of the present and example of the future.

Rulers and Legislators act according to the instructions of History and look at its pages like sailors at drawings of the seas. Human wisdom needs experience, and life is short-lived. One must know how from time immemorial rebellious passions agitated civil society and in what ways the beneficial power of the mind curbed their stormy desire to establish order, harmonize the benefits of people and give them the happiness possible on earth.

But an ordinary citizen should also read History. She reconciles him with the imperfection of the visible order of things, as with an ordinary phenomenon in all centuries; consoles in state disasters, testifying that similar ones have happened before, even worse ones have happened, and the State was not destroyed; it nourishes a moral feeling and with its righteous judgment disposes the soul towards justice, which affirms our good and the harmony of society.

Here is the benefit: how much pleasure for the heart and mind! Curiosity is akin to man, both the enlightened and the wild. At the glorious Olympic Games, the noise fell silent, and the crowds remained silent around Herodotus, reading the legends of the centuries. Even without knowing the use of letters, peoples already love History: the old man points the young man to a high grave and tells about the deeds of the Hero lying in it. The first experiments of our ancestors in the art of literacy were devoted to Faith and Scripture; Darkened by a thick shadow of ignorance, the people greedily listened to the tales of the Chroniclers. And I like fiction; but for complete pleasure one must deceive oneself and think that they are the truth. History, opening the tombs, raising the dead, putting life into their hearts and words into their mouths, re-creating Kingdoms from corruption and imagining a series of centuries with their distinct passions, morals, deeds, expands the boundaries of our own existence; by its creative power we live with people of all times, we see and hear them, we love and hate them; Without even thinking about the benefits, we already enjoy the contemplation of diverse cases and characters that occupy the mind or nourish sensitivity.

If all history, even unskillfully written, is pleasant, as Pliny says: how much more domestic. The true Cosmopolitan is a metaphysical being or such an extraordinary phenomenon that there is no need to talk about him, neither to praise nor to condemn him. We are all citizens, in Europe and in India, in Mexico and in Abyssinia; Everyone’s personality is closely connected with the fatherland: we love it because we love ourselves. Let the Greeks and Romans captivate the imagination: they belong to the family of the human race and are not strangers to us in their virtues and weaknesses, glory and disasters; but the name Russian has a special charm for us: my heart beats even stronger for Pozharsky than for Themistocles or Scipio. World History decorates the world for the mind with great memories, and Russian History decorates the fatherland where we live and feel. How attractive are the banks of the Volkhov, Dnieper, and Don, when we know what happened on them in ancient times! Not only Novgorod, Kyiv, Vladimir, but also the huts of Yelets, Kozelsk, Galich become curious monuments and silent objects - eloquent. The shadows of past centuries paint pictures before us everywhere.

In addition to the special dignity for us, the sons of Russia, its chronicles have something in common. Let us look at the space of this only Power: thought becomes numb; Rome could never equal her in its greatness, dominating from the Tiber to the Caucasus, the Elbe and the African sands. Isn’t it amazing how lands separated by eternal barriers of nature, immeasurable deserts and impenetrable forests, cold and hot climates, like Astrakhan and Lapland, Siberia and Bessarabia, could form one Power with Moscow? Is the mixture of its inhabitants less wonderful, diverse, diverse and so distant from each other in degrees of education? Like America, Russia has its Wild Ones; like other European countries it shows the fruits of long-term civic life. You don’t need to be Russian: you just need to think in order to read with curiosity the traditions of the people who, with courage and courage, gained dominance over a ninth part of the world, discovered countries hitherto unknown to anyone, bringing them into the general system of Geography and History, and enlightened them with the Divine Faith, without violence , without the atrocities used by other zealots of Christianity in Europe and America, but only an example of the best.

We agree that the acts described by Herodotus, Thucydides, Livy are more interesting for anyone who is not Russian, representing more spiritual strength and a lively play of passions: for Greece and Rome were people's Powers and more enlightened than Russia; however, we can safely say that some cases, pictures, characters of our History are no less curious than the ancients. These are the essence of the exploits of Svyatoslav, the thunderstorm of Batu, the uprising of the Russians at Donskoy, the fall of Novagorod, the capture of Kazan, the triumph of national virtues during the Interregnum. Giants of the twilight, Oleg and son Igor; the simple-hearted knight, the blind Vasilko; friend of the fatherland, benevolent Monomakh; Mstislavs Brave, terrible in battle and an example of kindness in the world; Mikhail Tversky, so famous for his magnanimous death, the ill-fated, truly courageous, Alexander Nevsky; The young hero, the conqueror of Mamaev, in the lightest outline, has a strong effect on the imagination and heart. The reign of John III alone is a rare treasure for history: at least I don’t know a monarch more worthy to live and shine in its sanctuary. The rays of his glory fall on the cradle of Peter - and between these two Autocrats the amazing John IV, Godunov, worthy of his happiness and misfortune, the strange False Dmitry, and behind the host of valiant Patriots, Boyars and citizens, the mentor of the throne, High Hierarch Philaret with the Sovereign Son, a light-bearer in the darkness our state disasters, and Tsar Alexy, the wise father of the Emperor, whom Europe called Great. Either all of New History should remain silent, or Russian History should have the right to attention.

I know that the battles of our specific civil strife, rattling incessantly in the space of five centuries, are of little importance to the mind; that this subject is neither rich in thoughts for the Pragmatist, nor in beauty for the painter; but History is not a novel, and the world is not a garden where everything should be pleasant: it depicts the real world. We see majestic mountains and waterfalls, flowering meadows and valleys on earth; but how many barren sands and dull steppes! However, travel is generally kind to a person with a lively feeling and imagination; In the very deserts there are beautiful species.

|Introduction |p. 3 |
|Chapter 1. “History of the Russian State” as a cultural phenomenon |p. 5 |
|Chapter 2. Karamzin’s “Letters of a Russian Traveler” in development | |
|Russian culture | |
|Chapter 3. “History is art” as a method of Karamzin N. M | |
|Conclusion |p. 26 |
|List of sources used |p. 27 |

Introduction

Books and magazines of that time bear traces of someone else's will.
Tsarist officials mercilessly mutilated the best works of Russian literature. it took the painstaking work of Soviet literary historians to clear the texts of classical works from distortions. Russian classical literature and social thought of the 19th century are a colossal wealth, an ideological, artistic, moral wealth inherited by our time. But it can be used in different ways. against the backdrop of the tragic judges of his contemporaries, Karamzin’s fate seems happy.

He entered literature early and quickly gained fame as the country's first pen. He successfully traveled and communicated with the first minds and talents of Western Europe.

Readers loved his almanacs and magazines. he is the author of the history of the Russian state, a zealous reader of poets and politicians, a witness to the great French Revolution, an eyewitness to the rise and fall of Napoleon, he called himself a “republican at heart.” Karamzin’s world is the world of a seeking spirit, in constant motion, which has absorbed everything that constituted the content pre-Pushkin era. The name Karamzin was the first to appear in German, French and English literature.

Karamzin's life was unusually rich not so much in external events, although there was no shortage of them, but in internal content, which more than once led the writer to the fact that he was surrounded by twilight.

Karamzin's role in the history of Russian culture is not measured only by his literary and scientific creativity. Karamzin created a stereotype of a Russian traveler in Europe. Karamzin created many works, including the wonderful “Letters of a Russian Traveler” and the great “History of the Russian State.” But Karamzin's greatest creation was himself, his life, and his spiritual personality. It was through this that he had a great moral influence on Russian literature. Karamzin introduced the highest ethical requirements into literature as ordinary. And when Zhukovsky,
Pushkin, and after them all the great writers of the 19th century, continued the construction of Russian literature; they began from the level set by Karamzin as a matter of course, the basis of literary work. Work on the “History of the Russian State” can be divided into three distinct periods: the time of publication of the “Moscow Journal”, creativity 1793 - 1800 and the period
"Bulletin of Europe".
Pushkin called Karamzin Columbus, who discovered Ancient history for his readers
Rus' is similar to how the famous traveler discovered the Europeans
America. In using this comparison, the poet himself did not imagine to what extent it was correct; Columbus was not the first European to reach the shores of
America, and that his journey itself was made possible only thanks to the experience accumulated by his predecessors. Calling Karamzin the first Russian historian, one cannot help but recall the names of V.N. Tatishchev, I.N. Boltin, M.M.
Shcherbatov, not to mention a number of publishers of documents who, despite all the imperfections of their publishing methods, attracted attention and aroused interest in the past of Russia.

Karamzin had predecessors, but only his “History of the State”
Russian" became not just another historical work, but the first history
Russia. Karamzin’s “History of the Russian State” not only informed readers of the fruits of the historian’s many years of research - it turned the consciousness of the Russian reading society upside down.

“The history of the Russian state” was not the only factor that made the consciousness of the people of the 19th century historical: the war of 1812, the work of Pushkin, and the general movement of philosophical thought played a decisive role here
Russia and Europe of those years. But Karamzin’s “History” stands among these events.
Therefore, its significance cannot be assessed from any one-sided point of view.

Is Karamzin’s “History” a scientific work that presents a holistic picture of Russia’s past from its first centuries to the eve of the reign of Peter I?
– There can be no doubt about it. For a number of generations of Russian readers, Karamzin’s work was the main source of acquaintance with the past of their homeland. The great Russian historian S. M. Solovyov recalled: “The story of Karamzin also fell into my hands: up to 13 years old, i.e. before I entered the gymnasium, I read it at least 12 times.”

Is Karamzin’s “History” the fruit of independent historical research and in-depth study of sources? – And it is impossible to doubt this: the notes in which Karamzin concentrated the documentary material served as the starting point for a significant number of subsequent historical studies, and to this day Russian historians constantly turn to them, never ceasing to be amazed at the enormity of the author’s work.

Is Karamzin’s “History” a remarkable literary work? – Its artistic merits are also obvious. Karamzin himself once called his work a “historical poem”; and in the history of Russian prose of the first quarter of the 19th century, Karamzin’s work occupies one of the most outstanding places. Decembrist A. Bestuzhev-Marlinsky, reviewing the last lifetime volumes of “History” (10-11) as phenomena of “elegant prose,” wrote: “We can safely say that in literary terms we have found a treasure in them. There we see the freshness and strength of the style, the seductiveness of the story and the variety in the composition and sonority of the turns of the language, so obedient under the hand of true talent.”

But the most significant thing is that it does not belong inseparably to any of them: “The History of the Russian State” is a phenomenon of Russian culture in its integrity and should be considered only as such. On November 31, 1803, by a special decree of Alexander I, Karamzin received the title of historiographer. From that moment on, in the words of P. A. Vyazemsky, he “took his hair as a historian” and did not give up the historian’s pen until his last breath. In 1802-
In 1803, Karamzin published a number of articles on Russian history in the journal Vestnik Evropy.

On June 11, 1798, Karamzin sketched out a plan for the “Laudatory speech to Peter I.”
Already from this entry it is clear that we were talking about the intention of an extensive historical study, and not a rhetorical exercise. The next day he added the following thought, clearly showing what he expected to devote himself to in the future: “If Providence will spare me; Or else what is worse than death for me will not happen...”

In the second half of 1810, Karamzin sketched “Thoughts for History
Patriotic War." Arguing that the geographical location of Russia and
France makes it almost incredible that they “could directly attack one another; Karamzin pointed out that only a complete change in the “entire political state of Europe” could make this war possible. And he directly called this change: “Revolution,” adding to this historical reason a human one: “The Character of Napoleon.”

It is generally accepted to divide Karamzin’s work into two eras: before 1803.
Karamzin - writer; later - historian. On the one hand, Karamzin, even after being awarded the title of historiographer, did not cease to be a writer (A. Bestuzhev, P.
Vyazemsky assessed Karamzin’s “History” as an outstanding phenomenon of Russian prose, and this, of course, is fair: Karamzin’s “History” belongs to art in the same way, as, for example, Herzen’s “The Past and Thoughts”), and on the other
- “got deep into Russian history” long before official recognition.

There are other, more compelling reasons for contrasting the two periods of creativity. The main work of the first half of creativity -
"Letters of a Russian Traveler"; second – “History of the State”
Russian." Pushkin wrote: “A fool alone does not change, because time does not bring him development, and experiences do not exist for him.” For example, to prove that Karamzin’s evolution can be defined as a transition from “Russian cosmopolitanism” to “pronounced national narrow-mindedness,” an excerpt from “Letters of a Russian Traveler” is usually cited: “...Peter moved us with his powerful hand...”.

In “Letters of a Russian Traveler,” Karamzin showed himself as a patriot who remained abroad as a “Russian traveler.” At the same time
Karamzin never abandoned the idea of ​​the beneficial influence of Western enlightenment on the cultural life of Russia. In the history of Russian culture, a contrast between Russia and the West has developed; S. F. Platonov pointed out: “In his works, Karamzin completely abolished the age-old opposition between Rus' and Europe, as different and irreconcilable worlds; he thought of Russia as one of the European countries, and the Russian people, as one of the nations of equal quality with other nations. “Based on the idea of ​​the unity of human culture, Karamzin did not exclude his people from cultural life. He recognized his right to moral equality in the fraternal family of enlightened peoples.”

“The History of the Russian State” confronts the reader with a number of paradoxes. First of all, it is necessary to say something about the title of this work. Its title is “History of the State.” Based on this, Karamzin began to be defined as a “statist.”

Karamzin's travels abroad coincided with the beginning of the Great French Revolution. This event had a huge impact on all his further thoughts. The young Russian traveler was at first carried away by liberal dreams under the influence of the first weeks of the revolution, but later became frightened by the Jacobin terror and moved to the camp of its opponents - very far from reality. It should be noted that Karamzin, who is often, but completely unfoundedly, identified with his literary counterpart - the narrator from “Letters of a Russian Traveler”, was not a superficial observer of events: he was a permanent member of the National Assembly, listened to the speeches of Mirabeau, Abbé Maury, Robespierre and others.

It is safe to say that none of the prominent figures of Russian culture had such detailed and directly personal impressions of
French Revolution, like Karamzin. He knew her by sight. Here he met history.

It is no coincidence that Pushkin called Karamzin’s ideas paradoxes: the exact opposite happened to him. The beginning of the revolution was perceived by Karamzin as the fulfillment of the promises of a philosophical century. “We considered the end of our century to be the end of the main disasters of mankind and thought that it would be followed by an important, general combination of theory with practice, speculation with activity,” Karamzin wrote in the mid-1790s. Utopia for him is not the kingdom of certain political or social relationships, but the kingdom of virtue; a shining future depends on the high morality of people, not on politics. Virtue gives rise to freedom and equality, not freedom and equality - virtue. The politician Karamzin treated any form with distrust. Karamzin, who valued the sincerity and moral qualities of political figures, singled out from among the speakers of the Assembly the short-sighted and devoid of artistry, but who had already acquired the nickname “incorruptible” Robespierre, whose very shortcomings in oratory seemed to him advantages.
Karamzin chose Robespierre. The tears that Karamzin shed on the coffin
Robespierre, were the last tribute to the dream of Utopia, Plato's Republic, the State of Virtue. Now Karamzin is attracted to a realist politician.
The seal of rejection has been removed from politics. Karamzin begins publishing Vestnik
Europe" is the first political magazine in Russia.

On the pages of the “Bulletin of Europe”, skillfully using foreign sources, selecting translations in such a way as to express their thoughts in their language,
Karamzin develops a consistent political doctrine. People are selfish by nature: “Egoism is the true enemy of society,” “unfortunately, everywhere and everything is selfishness in a person.” Selfishness turns the high ideal of the republic into an unattainable dream: “Without high popular virtue, the Republic cannot stand.” Bonaparte seems to Karamzin to be that strong ruler - a realist who builds a system of government not on “dreamy” theories, but on the real level of people’s morality. He is outside the party. It is interesting to note that, following his political concept, Karamzin highly appreciated Boris Godunov during this period. “Boris Godunov was one of those people who create their own brilliant destiny and prove their miraculous power
Natures. His family had no celebrity.”

The idea of ​​“History” matured in the depths of “Bulletin of Europe”. This is evidenced by the ever-increasing amount of materials on Russian history on the pages of this magazine. Karamzin's views on Napoleon changed.
The excitement began to give way to disappointment. After the transformation of the first consul into the emperor of the French, Karamzin wrote bitterly to his brother: “Napoleon
Bonaparte exchanged the title of great man for the title of emperor: power showed him better than glory.” The idea of ​​"History" was to show how
Russia, having gone through centuries of fragmentation and disasters, rose to glory and power with unity and strength. It was during this period that the name arose
"History of the State". Subsequently, the plan underwent changes. But the title could no longer be changed. However, the development of statehood was never the goal of human society for Karamzin. It was just a means. Karamzin's ideas about the essence of progress changed, but the faith in progress, which gave the meaning of human history, remained unchanged. In its most general form, progress for Karamzin consisted in the development of humanity, civilization, education and tolerance. Literature has a major role to play in the humanization of society. In the 1790s, after a break with the Freemasons, Karamzin believed that it was belles-lettres, poetry and novels that would be these great civilizers. Civilization is getting rid of the coarseness of feelings and thoughts. It is inseparable from the subtle shades of experiences. Therefore, the Archimedean fulcrum in the moral improvement of society is language. It is not dry moral sermons, but flexibility, subtlety and richness of language that improve the moral physiognomy of society. It was these thoughts that Karamzin had in mind, the poet K. N. Batyushkov. But in
1803, at the very time when desperate debates began to boil over Karamzin’s language reform, he himself was already thinking more broadly. The language reform was intended to make the Russian reader “social,” civilized and humane.
Now Karamzin was faced with another task - to make him a citizen. And for this, Karamzin believed, he must have the history of his country. We need to make him a man of history. That is why Karamzin “took his hair as a historian.” The state has no history until a historian tells the state about its history. By giving readers the history of Russia, Karamzin gave Russia history. Karamzin had the opportunity to describe the turbulent events of the past in the midst of the turbulent events of the present; on the eve of 1812, Karamzin was working on volume VI
"History", completing the end of the 15th century.

The subsequent years in burned-out Moscow were difficult and sad, but work on “History” continues. By 1815, Karamzin completed 8 volumes, wrote the “Introduction” and decided to go to St. Petersburg to obtain permission and funds to print what he had written. At the beginning of 1818, 3000 copies of the first 8 volumes were published. The appearance of the “History of the Russian State” became a public event. “History” has long been a major subject of debate. In Decembrist circles she was met with criticism. Appearance
"History" influenced the flow of their thought. Now not a single thinking person in Russia could think outside the general perspectives of Russian history. A
Karamzin walked on. He worked on volumes IX, X and XI of “History” - the time of the oprichnina, Boris Godunov and the Time of Troubles. In these volumes, Karamzin reached unsurpassed heights as a prose writer: this is evidenced by the power of characterization and the energy of the narrative. During the reign of Ivan III and Vasily
Ivanovich not only strengthened statehood, but also achieved success in the original Russian culture. At the end of volume VII, in a review of the culture of the 15th-16th centuries, Karamzin noted with satisfaction the appearance of secular literature - for him an important sign of the success of education: “... we see that our ancestors were engaged not only in historical or theological works, but also in novels; loved works of wit and imagination.”

In “History” the ratio changes and a criminal conscience makes all the efforts of the state mind useless. What is immoral cannot be useful to the state. The pages dedicated to the reign of Boris Godunov and the Time of Troubles belong to the pinnacle of historical writing
Karamzin, and it is no coincidence that it was he who inspired Pushkin to create “Boris
Godunov."

Death, which interrupted work on the “historical poem,” resolved all the issues. If we talk about the significance of the “History of the Russian State” in the culture of the early 19th century and what attracts the modern reader in this monument, then it would be appropriate to consider the scientific and artistic aspects of the issue. Karamzin's merits in discovering new sources, creating a broad picture of Russian history, and combining scholarly commentary with the literary merits of the narrative are not in doubt. But “The History of the Russian State” should also be considered among works of fiction. As a literary phenomenon, it belongs to the first quarter of the 19th century. It was a time of triumph of poetry.
The victory of Karamzin’s school led to the identification of the concepts of “literature” and “poetry”.

Pushkin's drama had inspirations: Shakespeare, the chronicles of the “History of the Russian State”. But Karamzin is not Karamzit. Critics of History in vain reproached Karamzin for not seeing a deep idea in the movement of events. Karamzin was imbued with the idea that history has meaning.

N. M. Karamzin (Tales of the Ages) M., 1988

I. “Ancient Russia discovered by Karamzin.”

N. Karamzin entered the history of Russian literature as a major writer - a sentimentalist who worked actively in the last decade of the 18th century. In recent years, the situation has begun to change - 2 two-volume works have been published
Karamzin, “Letters of a Russian Traveler” were published twice. But Karamzin’s main book, on which he worked for more than two decades, which had a huge influence on Russian literature of the 19th century, is practically still unknown to the modern reader, “History of the Russian State.”
History has interested him since his youth. That is why many pages of “Letters of a Russian Traveler” are dedicated to her. History has been an art, not a science, for many centuries. For Pushkin and Belinsky, Karamzin’s “History” is a major achievement of Russian literature of the early 19th century, not only historical, but also an outstanding literary work. The originality of the “History of the Russian State”
Karamzin and was determined by the time of its writing, the time of development of new historical thinking, the understanding of the national identity of Russian history throughout its entire length, the nature of the events themselves and the trials that befell the Russian nation over many centuries. Work on
“History” lasted more than two decades - from 1804 to 1826. By 1820
“History of the Russian State” was published in French, German, Italian. In 1818, Russian readers received the first eight volumes of History, which told about the ancient period of Russia. And by that time V. Scott had managed to publish six novels - they told about the past
Scotland. Both writers in Russia were rightly called Columbus.
“Ancient Russia,” wrote Pushkin, “seemed to be found by Karamzin, like America
Columbus." In the spirit of the times, each of them acted simultaneously as an artist and as a historian. Karamzin, in the preface to the first volume of History, summarizing his already established principles for depicting Russian history, stated:
"History" is not a novel." He contrasted “fiction” with “truth.” This position was developed under the influence of the real Russian literary process and the creative evolution of the writer himself.

During the 1800s, literature was awash with original and translated works—in poetry, prose, and drama—on historical themes.
It is history that can reveal the “truth” and “secret” of the life of society and man, as Karamzin came in his development. This new understanding of history manifested itself in the 1795 article “The Reasoning of the Philosopher, Historian and Citizen.” Because
Karamzin, starting “History,” abandons “fiction,” those specific and traditional means by which epics, tragedies or novels were created. To know the “truth” of history meant not only to abandon one’s own agnosticism, calling on the objectivity of the real world, but also to abandon the traditional way of depicting this world in the art of that time. IN
In Russia, this merger will be brilliantly accomplished by Pushkin in the tragedy “Boris
Godunov,” but from the standpoint of realism, Karamzin’s “History” both preceded Pushkin’s success and largely prepared it. Refusal
Karamzin’s rejection of “fiction” did not mean a denial in general of the possibilities of artistic research into history. “The History of the Russian State” captured the search and development of these new, so to speak, equivalent principles for its depiction of historical truth. The most important feature of this structure that developed during the writing process was the combination of analytical (scientific) and artistic principles. Consideration of the elements of such a structure clearly shows how both the searches and discoveries of the writer turned out to be nationally determined.

“The History of the Russian State” contains not only love stories, but generally fictitious plots. The author does not introduce plot into his work, but extracts it from history, from real historical events and situations - the heroes act in circumstances set by history. Only a genuine, and not a fictional, plot brings the writer closer to the “truth” hidden by the “veil of time.”

Given the story, the plot tells a person in his broad connections with the general life of the country, state, and nation. This is how the characters of famous historical figures are built. The life of Ivan the Terrible opened up an abyss of possibilities for constructing a love story - the tsar had seven wives and countless others who were victims of his “shameless lust.” But
Karamzin proceeded from social conditions that determined the character of the tsar, his actions, and the “era of torment” that shook all of Russia.
The historical situation that created the possibility of B. Godunov seizing power had a decisive influence on his policy, on his attitude towards the people, and determined his crime and moral suffering. Thus, not only did history become material for literature, but literature also turned out to be a means of artistic knowledge of history. His “History” is populated only by genuine historical figures.

Karamzin emphasizes the talent, originality and intelligence of ordinary people who acted independently, without the tsar and boyars, who knew how to think stately and rationally. The historical plot, the use of a given situation, justified a different method, born of Russian tradition, of depicting a person - not in a “home image”, not from the side of his private family life, but from the side of his connections with the larger world of national, national existence. That is why Karamzin demanded from writers the depiction of heroic Russian women, whose character and personality were manifested not in home life and “family happiness,” but in political and patriotic activities. In this regard, he wrote: “Nature sometimes loves extreme things, departs from its ordinary law and gives women characters that lead them out of home obscurity into the folk theater...” The method of depicting Russian characters in “History” is bringing them “out of home obscurity into folk theater,” it was ultimately developed from a generalization of the experience of the historical life of the Russian nation. Many folk songs captured heroic prowess, the poetry of a life full of activity, struggle, and high feat, which opened up beyond the boundaries of domestic family existence. Gogol in Ukrainian songs revealed precisely these character traits of the people: “Everywhere one can see the strength, joy, power with which the Cossack abandons the silence and carelessness of homely life in order to delve into all the poetry of battles, dangers and riotous feasting with his comrades...” This method contained the opportunity to most fully and clearly reveal the fundamental features of the Russian national character.

Karamzin, turning to history, was forced to develop a special genre for his narrative. A study of the genre nature of Karamzin’s work convinces that it is not the implementation of principles already found. It is rather a kind of self-adjusting model, the type and character of which was influenced by the experience of the writer, and by the involvement of more and more new materials, which required new illumination, and by the increasing trust in the artistic knowledge of the “truth” that grew from volume to volume.

Having abandoned “fiction,” Karamzin could not use one of the traditional literary genres for his narrative. It was necessary to develop a genre form that would organically correspond to the real historical plot, would be capable of accommodating the enormous and varied factual material that was included in “History” under the sign of analytical and emotional perception, and, most importantly, would give the writer wide freedom in expressing his position.

But to develop did not mean to invent, Karamzin decided to be consistent - and in developing the genre he relied on national tradition. And here the chronicle played a decisive role. Its main genre feature is syncretism. The chronicle freely included many works of ancient Russian literature - lives, stories, epistles, lamentations, folk poetic legends, etc. Syncretism became the organizing principle of Karamzin’s “History”. The writer did not imitate, he continued the chronicle tradition. The author’s position, split into two principles - analytical and artistic - united all the material introduced into the “History”, determined the inclusion in the form of quotes or retellings of the lives, stories, legends and “miracles” included in the chronicles and the chronicler’s story itself, which was either accompanied by comments , or found himself merged with the opinion of the creator of “History”.
Chronicle syncretism is the main feature of the “History of the Russian State” genre. This genre - Karamzin's original creation - helped him both express Russian national identity in its dynamics and development, and develop a special ethical style of narration about a heroic nation, whose sons emerged from home obscurity into the theater of people's life.
The writer's achievements were adopted by Russian literature. His innovative attitude to the genre, the search for a special, free genre structure that would correspond to new material, a new plot, new tasks for the artistic study of the “real world” of history, turned out to be close to new Russian literature. And it is not by chance, but naturally, that we will find this free attitude to the genre in Pushkin (the “free” novel in verse - “Eugene Onegin”), Gogol (the poem “Dead Souls”), Tolstoy (“War and Peace”). In 1802, Karamzin wrote: “France, in its greatness and character, should be a monarchy.” A few years later, this “prophecy” came true - Napoleon proclaimed France an empire and himself emperor. Using examples of the reign of Russian monarchs - positive and negative -
Karamzin wanted to teach how to reign.

The contradiction turned into a tragedy for Karamzin; the political concept led to a dead end. And, despite this, the writer did not change his method of clarifying the truth that was revealed in the process of artistic research of the past, he remained faithful to it, even if it contradicted his political ideal. This was a victory for Karamzin, the artist. That is why Pushkin called “History” the feat of an honest man.

Pushkin understood the inconsistency of Karamzin’s work very well. Pushkin not only understood and saw the artistic nature of “History,” but also determined the originality of its artistic method and genre. According to Pushkin, Karamzin acted as a historian and as an artist, his work is a synthesis of analytical and artistic knowledge of history. The originality of the artistic method and the genre of “History” itself is determined by the chronicle tradition. This idea is both fair and fruitful.

Karamzin, a historian, used the facts of the chronicle, subjecting them to criticism, verification, explanation and commentary. Karamzin, the artist, mastered the aesthetic principles of the chronicle, perceiving it as a national Russian type of story about the past, as a special artistic system that captured the Russian view of the historical events of historical figures, of fate
Russia.

Pushkin correctly understood the enormity of the content of Karamzin’s work, writing that he found Russia like Columbus found America. This clarification is very important: opening
Ancient Rus', Karamzin discovered the historical role of the Russian people in the formation of a great power. Describing one of the battles, Karamzin emphasizes that it was the love of freedom that inspired ordinary people when they heroically fought the enemy, showed wonderful frenzy and, thinking that the one killed by the enemy should serve him as a slave in hell, plunged swords into their hearts when they could no longer escape : because they wanted to preserve their freedom in the future life. The most important feature of the artistic element
“History” is the patriotism of its author, which determined the possibility of creating an emotional image of “past centuries.”

“History” captures the unity of analytical study and emotional image of “past centuries.” At the same time, neither the analytical nor the emotional method of study and depiction contradicted the truth - each helped to establish it in their own way. Truth serves as the basis for historical poetry; but poetry is not history: the first most of all wants to arouse curiosity and for this purpose interferes with fables, the second rejects the most witty inventions and wants only the truth.

For Karamzin, in this case, the chronicle story, the chronicle point of view is a type of consciousness of the era, and therefore he does not consider it possible to introduce
“corrections” by the historian to the chronicler’s view. Revealing Godunov's inner world by psychological means, drawing his character, he proceeds not only from the facts gleaned from the chronicle, but also from the general historical situation recreated by the chronicler. The story about Godunov thereby opened up to modern literature a completely new type of artistic knowledge and reproduction of history, firmly based on national tradition.
It was this position of Karamzin that was understood and supported by Pushkin in his defense
“History” from Polevoy’s attacks, it gave him the opportunity to call the writer our last chronicler.

The artistic beginning of “History” made it possible to reveal the process of developing the mental makeup of the Russian nation. Analyzing numerous facts from the initial period of Russian history, the writer comes to understand the enormous role of the people in the political life of the country. The study of history made it possible to write about two faces of the people - they are “kind”, they are “rebellious”.

According to Karamzin, the virtue of the people did not at all contradict the people’s “love of rebellion.” Artistic research into history revealed this truth to the writer. He understood that it was not love for the “institutions” of autocrats, but “love for revolts” directed against autocrats who did not fulfill their duty to take care of the welfare of their subjects, that distinguishes the Russian people.

Pushkin, when working on “Boris Godunov,” used the writer’s discoveries. Not yet knowing the works of French historians, Pushkin, relying on national tradition, develops historicism as a method of knowledge and explanation of the past and present, following Karamzin in revealing Russian national identity - he creates the image of Pimen.

Karamzin in “History” discovered the enormous artistic world of chronicles.
The writer “cut a window” into the past; he really, like Columbus, found ancient Russia, connecting the past with the present.

“The History of the Russian State” rightfully invaded the living process of literary development, helped the formation of historicism, promoting the movement of literature along the path of national identity. She enriched literature with important artistic discoveries, incorporating the experience of chronicles.
“History” armed new literature with important knowledge of the past and helped it rely on national traditions. At the first stage, Pushkin and Gogol, in their appeal to history, showed how enormous and important Karamzin’s contribution was.

History enjoyed unparalleled success throughout many decades of the 19th century, influencing Russian writers.

The term "History" has many definitions. History of the story and incident. History is a process of development. This past. History must enter the consciousness of society; it is not only written and read. Nowadays, not only books perform this function, but also radio and television. Initially, historical description exists as an art form. Each field of knowledge has an object of study. History studies the past. The task of history is to reproduce the past in the unity of the necessary and the accidental. The central component of art is the artistic image. A historical image is a real event. In a historical image, fiction is excluded, and fantasy plays a supporting role. An image is created unambiguously if the historian holds something back. Man is the best object for studying history. The main merit of the Renaissance culture is that it opened the spiritual world of man.

Karamzin's feat.

According to Pushkin, “Karamzin is a great writer in every sense of the word.”

Karamzin’s language, which has undergone evolution from “Letters of a Russian Traveler” and “Poor Liza” to “History of the Russian State”. His work is the history of Russian autocracy. “History of the Russian State” fell out of the history of literature. History is a science that goes beyond; Literature is an art that transcends its boundaries. The story of Karamzin is for him a sphere of aesthetic pleasure. Karamzin formulates the methodological principles of his work. “The History of the Russian State” is considered as a monument to Russian literature.

The Karamzin tradition in the art of historiography has not died, and it cannot be said that it is thriving.

Pushkin believed that Karamzin devoted his last years to history, and he devoted his whole life to it.

The attention of the author of “History of the Russian State” is drawn to how the state arose. Karamzin puts Ivan III above Peter I. Volume 6 is dedicated to him (Ivan III). Karamzin concludes his consideration of the era of Ivan III with the history of the wanderings of an ordinary Russian at his own peril and risk, without government initiative and support.

The chapters of Karamzin’s work are divided according to the years of the reign of one or another monarch and are named after them.

The “History of the Russian State” contains descriptions of battles, campaigns, as well as everyday life, economic and cultural life. In the 1st chapter of volume 7 it is written that Pskov is annexed to Moscow by Vasily III. Karamzin opened Russian history for Russian literature. “The History of the Russian State” is an image from which poets, prose writers, playwrights, etc. drew inspiration. IN
“History of the Russian State” we see the plot of Pushkin’s “Song of the Prophetic
Oleg”, as well as “Boris Godunov” and “History of the Russian State”. 2 tragedies about Boris Godunov, written by 2 poets and based on materials
"History of the Russian State."

Belinsky called “The History of the Russian State” a great monument in the history of Russian literature.

Historical drama blossomed earlier, but its possibilities were limited.

Interest in history is an interest in a person, in his environment and life.
The novel opened up broader perspectives than the drama. In Russia Pushkin and
Tolstoy raised the historical novel to great prose. The great masterpiece in this genre is “War and Peace”. Historical events serve as the background against which actions unfold. Historical figures appear suddenly in a historical novel. The main characters are fictitious persons. The novel as a drama turns to historical material and pursues the goal of artistic reproduction of historical reality. A complete fusion of history and art is a rare occurrence. The line between them is blurred, but not completely. You could say they are allies. They have one goal - the formation of historical consciousness. Art gives history artistic culture. History provides the foundation for art. Art gains depth by drawing on historical tradition. Culture is a system of prohibitions.

About “Boris Godunov” Pushkin wrote: “The study of Shakespeare, Karamzin and our old chronicles gave me the idea to put into dramatic forms one of the most dramatic eras of modern history.” The play does not have a fictional plot or characters; they are borrowed from the “History of the Russian State.”
Karamzin writes about the famine at the beginning of the reign of B. Godunov: “Disaster began, and the cry of the hungry alarmed the king... Boris ordered the royal granaries to be opened.”

Pushkin in his tragedy also solves the problem of ends and means in history.

A historical era passed between “The History of the Russian State” and “Boris Godunov,” and this affected the interpretation of events. Karamzin wrote under the impression of the Patriotic War, and Pushkin - on the eve of the December uprising.

“The history of the Russian state helped Pushkin establish himself in two guises - a historian and a historical novelist - to process the same material in different ways.

When Karamzin was working on “History,” he studied Russian folklore, collected historical songs, and arranged them in chronological order. But this did not materialize. He singled out “The Tale of Igor’s Campaign” most of all in historical literature.

The culture of Russia in the 19th century is like an example of the rise of peak achievements. Since the beginning of the 19th century, a high patriotic upsurge has been observed in Russian society. It intensified even more in 1812, deeply promoting national unity and the development of citizenship. Art interacted with public consciousness, shaping it into a national one. The development of realistic trends in the national cultural traits has intensified. A cultural event was the appearance of “History of the Russian State” by N. M. Karamzin. Karamzin was the first who, at the turn of the 18th-19th centuries, intuitively felt that the main thing in Russian culture of the coming 19th century was the increasing problems of national self-identity. Pushkin followed Karamzin, solving the problem of the relationship between national culture and ancient cultures, after which P. Ya. Chaadaev’s “Philosophical Letter” appeared - the philosophy of Russian history, which stimulated the discussion between Slavophiles and Westerners.
Classical literature of the 19th century was more than just literature, it was a synthetic cultural phenomenon that turned out to be a universal form of social consciousness. Karamzin noted that the Russian people, despite humiliation and slavery, felt their cultural superiority in relation to the nomadic people. The first half of the 19th century was the time of the formation of national historical science. Karamzin believed that the history of mankind
is the story of the struggle of reason against error, enlightenment against ignorance.

He assigned a decisive role in history to great people.

Professional historians were not satisfied with Karamzin’s work “History of the Russian State.” There were many new sources on Russian history. IN
In 1851, the first volume of “History of Russia since Ancient Times” was published, written by
S. M. Solovyov.

Comparing the historical development of Russia and other European countries, Solovyov found much in common in their destinies. The style of presentation of Solovyov’s “History” is rather dry; it is inferior to Karamzin’s “History”.

In the fiction of the early 19th century there was, according to Belinsky,
"Karamzin" period.

The War of 1812 sparked interest in Russian history. "History of the state
Russian" Karamzin, based on chronicle material. Pushkin saw in this work a reflection of the spirit of the chronicle. Pushkin attached great importance to chronicle materials. And this was reflected in “Boris Godunov”. In working on the tragedy, Pushkin followed the path of studying Karamzin, Shakespeare and the “chronicles”.

The 30-40s did not bring anything new to Russian historiography. These are the years of development of philosophical thinking. Historical science froze on Karamzin. By the end of the 40s, everything changed, a new historiography of S. Solovyov emerged.
M. In 1851, volume 1 of “History of Russia from Ancient Times” was published. Towards the middle
In the 50s, Russia entered a new period of storms and upheavals. The Crimean War revealed the disintegration of classes and material backwardness. "War and Peace" contains a huge amount of historical books and materials, it turned out to be a decisive and violent rebellion against historical science. “War and Peace” is a book that grew out of “pedagogical” experience. Tolstoy when he read
“The History of Russia from Ancient Times” by S. M. Solovyov, then he argued with him.
According to Solovyov, the government was ugly: “But how did a series of outrages produce a great, united state? This alone proves that it was not the government that produced history.” The conclusion from this is that what is needed is not history.
- science, and history - art: "History - art, like art, goes deep and its subject is a description of the life of all of Europe."

"War and Peace" is characterized by the features of thinking and style, composition, which are found in "The Tale of Bygone Years." The Tale of Bygone Years combines two traditions: folk-epic and hagiographic. This is also in War and Peace.

“War and Peace” is one of the “modifications” created by the era of “great changes”. The chronicle style served as the basis for satire on both historical science and the political system.

A historical era is a force field of contradictions and a space of human choice; its very essence as a historical era consists in a moving openness to the future; the body is a substance equal to itself.
Worldly wisdom, or common sense, knowledge of people, without which the art of understanding what is said and written, which is philology, is impossible.

The content of humanitarian thought is truly revealed only in the light of life experience - human experience. The objective existence of the semantic aspects of a literary word takes place only within the dialogue and cannot be extracted from the situation of the dialogue. The truth lies on a different plane.
An ancient author and an ancient text, communication with them is an understanding “above the barriers” of misunderstanding, presupposing these barriers. The past era is the era of humanity’s life, our life, and not someone else’s. Being an adult means experiencing childhood and adolescence.

Karamzin is the most prominent figure of his era, a language reformer, one of the fathers of Russian sentimentalism, historian, publicist, author of poetry and prose on which a generation was brought up. All this is enough to study, respect, acknowledge; but not enough to fall in love in literature, in ourselves, and not in the world of our great-grandfathers. It seems that two features of Karamzin’s biography and creativity make him one of our interlocutors.

Historian-artist. They laughed at this already in the 1820s, they tried to move away from it in the scientific direction, but this is exactly what seems to be missing a century and a half later. In fact, Karamzin, the historian, simultaneously proposed two ways to understand the past; one – scientific, objective, new facts, concepts, patterns; the other is artistic, subjective. So, the image of the historian-artist does not only belong to the past; the coincidence of Karamzin’s position and some of the newest concepts about the essence of historical knowledge - does this speak for itself? This, we believe, is the first feature of the “topical nature” of Karamzin’s works.

And, secondly, let us once again note the remarkable contribution to Russian culture that Karamzin’s personality is called. Karamzin is a highly moral, attractive person who influenced many through direct example and friendship; but a much larger number - by the presence of this personality in poems, stories, articles, and especially in History. Karamzin was, after all, one of the most internally free people of his era, and among his friends and acquaintances there were many wonderful, best people. He wrote what he thought, drew historical characters based on vast, new material; managed to discover ancient Russia, “Karamzin is our first historian and last chronicler.”

List of used literature

1. Averentsev S.S. Our interlocutor is an ancient author.

2. Aikhenvald Yu. I. Silhouettes of Russian writers. – M.: Republic, 1994.

– 591 p.: ill. - (Past and present).

3. Gulyga A.V. The Art of History - M.: Sovremennik, 1980. - 288 p.

4. Karamzin N. M. History of the Russian State in 12 volumes. T. II-

III/ Ed. A. N. Sakharov. – M.: Nauka, 1991. – 832 p.

5. Karamzin N. M. On the history of the Russian state / comp. A.I.

Schmidt. – M.: Education, 1990. – 384 p.

6. Karamzin N. M. Traditions of the Ages / Comp., intro. Art. G. P. Makogonenko;

G. P. Makogonenko and M. V. Ivanova; - Lee. V. V. Lukashova. – M.:

Pravda, 1988. – 768 p.

7. Culturology: a textbook for students of higher educational institutions - Rostov N/D: Phoenix Publishing House, 1999. - 608 p.

8. Lotman Yu. M. Karamzin: The Creation of Karamzin. Art. and research, 1957-

1990. Notes rec. – St. Petersburg: Art – St. Petersburg, 1997 – 830 pp.: ill.: portrait.

9. Eikhenbaum B. M. About prose: collection. Art. – L.: Fiction,

1969. – 503 p.
-----------------------
Lotman Yu. M. Karamzin. – St. Petersburg, Art. – St. Petersburg, 1997. – p. 56.
Soloviev S. M. Selected works. Notes. – M., 1983. – p. 231.
Karamzin N. M. Works. – St. Petersburg, 1848. t. 1. p. 487.Send a request indicating the topic right now to find out about the possibility of receiving a consultation.

Famous writer, historian, poet, publicist. Creator of "History of the Russian State".

Family. Childhood

Nikolai Mikhailovich Karamzin was born in the Simbirsk province into a family of poor, educated nobles. Received a good home education. At the age of 14 he began studying at the Moscow private boarding school of Professor Schaden. Upon completion of it in 1783, he went to St. Petersburg to serve in. In the capital, Karamzin met the poet and future employee of his “Moscow Journal” Dmitriev. At the same time, he published the first translation of S. Gesner’s idyll “The Wooden Leg.” After serving in the army for less than a year, Karamzin, with the low rank of lieutenant, resigned in 1784 and returned to Simbirsk. Here he led an outwardly secular life, but at the same time was engaged in self-education: he studied history, literature and philosophy. Family friend Ivan Petrovich Turgenev, a freemason and writer, who was in great friendship with, played a certain role in the life of the future writer. On his advice, Nikolai Mikhailovich moved to Moscow and met Novikov’s circle. Thus began a new period in his life, covering the time from 1785 to 1789.

Moscow period (1785-1789). Travel to Europe (1789-1790)

In Moscow, Karamzin translated fiction; since 1787, he regularly published his translations of Thomson’s “The Seasons,” Janlis’s “Village Evenings,” the tragedy “Julius Caesar,” and Lessing’s tragedy “Emilia Galotti.” He also begins to write for the magazine “Children's Reading for the Heart and Mind,” whose publisher was Novikov. In 1789, Karamzin’s first original story, “Eugene and Yulia,” appeared in it.

Soon Nikolai Mikhailovich decides to go on a trip to Europe, for which he mortgages his ancestral estate. This was a bold step: it meant giving up living on the income from the hereditary estate and supporting oneself through the labor of serfs. Now Nikolai Mikhailovich had to earn a living by his own work as a professional writer. He will spend about a year and a half abroad. During this time, he visits Germany, Switzerland, France, where he observes the activities of the revolutionary government. In June 1789, Karamzin moved from France to England. Throughout the journey, the writer meets interesting and outstanding people. Nikolai Mikhailovich is interested in people's homes, historical monuments, factories, universities, street celebrations, taverns, village weddings. He evaluates and compares the characters and morals of a particular nationality, studies the characteristics of speech, recording various conversations and his own thoughts.

At the origins of sentimentalism

In the fall of 1790, Karamzin returned to Moscow, where he began publishing the monthly “Moscow Journal”, in which his stories (such as “Liodor”, “Natalia, the Boyar’s Daughter”, “Flor Silin”), critical articles and poems were published. The famous “Letters of a Russian Traveler” and the story “Poor Liza” were also published here. Karamzin attracted Dmitriev and Petrov, Kheraskov and others to collaborate in the magazine.

In his works of this period, Karamzin affirms a new literary direction - sentimentalism. This direction declared feeling, not reason, to be the dominant of “human nature,” which distinguished it from classicism. Sentimentalism believed that the ideal of human activity was not the “reasonable” reorganization of the world, but the release and improvement of “natural” feelings. His hero is more individualized, his inner world is enriched by the ability to empathize and sensitively respond to what is happening around him.

In the 1790s, the writer published almanacs. Among them are “Aglaya” (parts 1-2, 1794-1795), “Aonids,” written in verse (parts 1-3, 1796-1799), as well as the collection “My Trinkets,” which includes various stories and poems. Fame comes to Karamzin. He is known and loved throughout Russia.

One of Karamzin’s first works written in prose is the historical story “Marfa the Posadnitsa,” published in 1803. It was written long before the craze for Walter Scott’s novels began in Russia. This story revealed Karamzin’s attraction to antiquity and classics as an unattainable ideal of morality. In an epic, ancient form, Karamzin presented the struggle of the Novgorodians with Moscow. “Posadnitsa” touched upon important ideological issues: about the monarchy and the republic, about the people and leaders, about “divine” historical predestination and the disobedience of an individual to it. The author's sympathies were clearly on the side of the Novgorodians and Marfa, and not of monarchical Moscow. This story also revealed the writer’s ideological contradictions. Historical truth was undoubtedly on the side of the Novgorodians. However, Novgorod is doomed, bad omens are harbingers of the city's imminent death, and later they are justified.

But the greatest success was the story “Poor Liza,” published in 1792 and becoming a landmark work of sentimentalism. The plot of how a nobleman seduced a peasant or bourgeois woman, often found in Western literature of the eighteenth century, was first developed in Russian literature in this story by Karamzin. The biography of a morally pure, beautiful girl, as well as the idea that similar tragic fates can occur in the reality around us, contributed to the enormous success of this work. It was also important that N.M. Karamzin taught his readers to notice the beauty of their native nature and love it. The humanistic orientation of the work was invaluable for the literature of that time.

In the same year, 1792, the story “Natalya, the Boyar’s Daughter” was born. It is not as famous as “Poor Liza,” but it touches on very important moral issues that worried N.M.’s contemporaries. Karamzin. One of the most important issues in the work is the problem of honor. Alexei, Natalia's lover, was an honest man who served the Russian Tsar. Therefore, he confessed to his “crime”, that he had kidnapped the daughter of Matvey Andreev, the beloved boyar of the sovereign. But the king blesses their marriage, seeing that Alexei is a worthy person. The girl’s father does the same. Concluding the story, the author writes that the newlyweds lived happily ever after and were buried together. They were distinguished by sincere love and devotion to the sovereign. In the story, the question of honor is inseparable from serving the king. Happy is the one whom the sovereign loves.

The year 1793 became a landmark year for Karamzin and his work. At this time, the Jacobin dictatorship was established in France, which shocked the writer with its cruelty. She aroused in him doubts about the possibility for humanity to achieve prosperity. He condemned the revolution. The philosophy of despair and fatalism permeates his new works: the stories “Bornholm Island” (1793), “Sierra Morena” (1795), the poems “Melancholy”, “Message to A. A. Pleshcheev”, etc.

By the mid-1790s, Nikolai Karamzin became the recognized head of Russian sentimentalism, which opened a new page in Russian literature. He was an indisputable authority for the young Batyushkov.

"Bulletin of Europe". "Note on old and new Russia"

In 1802 - 1803, Karamzin published the journal “Bulletin of Europe”, in which literature and politics predominated. In his critical articles of this time, a new aesthetic program emerged, which contributed to the formation of Russian literature as nationally distinctive. Karamzin saw the key to the uniqueness of Russian culture in history. The most striking illustration of his views was the story “Martha the Posadnitsa” mentioned above. In his political articles, Karamzin made recommendations to the government, pointing out the role of education.

Trying to influence Tsar Alexander I in this direction, Karamzin gave him his “Note on Ancient and New Russia in its Political and Civil Relations” (1811), which reflected the views of conservative sections of society who did not approve of the sovereign’s liberal reforms. The note irritated the latter. In 1819, the writer submitted a new note - “Opinion of a Russian Citizen,” which caused even greater displeasure to the tsar. However, Karamzin did not abandon his belief in the salvation of an enlightened autocracy and later condemned the Decembrist uprising. Despite this, Karamzin the artist was still highly valued by young writers, even those who did not share his political beliefs.

"History of Russian Goverment"

In 1803, through his friend and former teacher of the young emperor, Nikolai Mikhailovich received the official title of court historiographer. This was of great importance for him, since now, thanks to the pension assigned by the sovereign and access to archives, the writer could carry out the work he had planned on the history of the fatherland. In 1804, he left the literary field and plunged headlong into work: in the archives and book collections of the Synod, the Hermitage, the Academy of Sciences, the Public Library, Moscow University, the Alexander Nevsky and Trinity-Sergius Lavra, he read manuscripts and books on history, and sorted out ancient tomes (, Trinity Chronicle, Code of Laws of Ivan the Terrible, “Prayer” and many others) he wrote out and compared. It is difficult to imagine what great work the historian Karamzin did. After all, the creation of twelve volumes of his “History of the Russian State” took more than twenty years of hard work, from 1804 to 1826. The presentation of historical events here was distinguished, as far as possible, by impartiality and reliability, as well as by an excellent artistic style. The narrative was brought to . In 1818, the first eight volumes of “History” were published, in 1821 the 9th volume, dedicated to the reign, was published, in 1824 - the 10th and 11th, about Fyodor Ioannovich and. Death interrupted work on the 12th volume and did not allow the large-scale plan to be carried out to completion.

The 12 volumes of “History of the Russian State” that were published one after another evoked numerous responses from readers. Perhaps for the first time in history, a printed book provoked such a surge in the national self-awareness of Russian residents. Karamzin revealed his history to the people and explained his past. They said that, having closed the eighth volume, he exclaimed: “It turns out that I have a Fatherland!” Everyone read “History” - students, officials, nobles, even society ladies. They read it in Moscow and St. Petersburg, they read it in the provinces: for example, 400 copies were purchased in Irkutsk.

But the content of the work was perceived ambiguously. Thus, freedom-loving youth were inclined to challenge the support for the monarchical system that Karamzin showed on the pages of “History of the Russian State.” And young Pushkin even wrote daring epigrams about the then venerable historian. In his opinion, this work proved “the need for autocracy and the charms of the whip.” Karamzin, whose books left no one indifferent, was always restrained in response to criticism, calmly accepting both ridicule and praise.

Last years

Having moved to St. Petersburg, Karamzin, starting in 1816, spends every summer with his family. The Karamzins were hospitable hosts, receiving such famous poets as Zhukovsky and Batyushkov (they were members of the Arzamas society created in 1815 and defending the Karamzin direction in literature), as well as educated youth. Young A.S. often visited here. Pushkin, listening to his elders read poetry, caring for his wife N.M. Karamzina Ekaterina Andreevna (she was the writer’s second wife, the couple had 9 children), no longer young, but a charming and intelligent woman, to whom he even decided to send a declaration of love. The wise and experienced Karamzin forgave the young man’s antics, as well as his daring epigrams on “History.” Ten years later, Pushkin, already a mature man, would look differently at the great work of Nikolai Mikhailovich. In 1826, while in exile in Mikhailovskoye, he wrote in the “Note on Public Education” that the history of Russia should be taught according to Karamzin, and called this work not just the work of a great historian, but also the feat of an honest man.

In general, the last years of the historian and writer’s life can be called happy. He was connected by friendship with Tsar Alexander. The two of them often walked, talking, in Tsarskoye Selo Park. The event that darkened these years was. On December 14, 1825, Karamzin was present on Senate Square. The historian, of course, was against the uprising, although he saw the familiar faces of the Muravyovs among the rebels. A few days after the speech, Nikolai Mikhailovich said: “The delusions and crimes of these young people are the delusions and crimes of our century.”

Karamzin himself became a victim of the events of December 14: standing on Senate Square, he caught a terrible cold and died on May 22, 1826.

Memory

In 1848, the Karamzin Public Library was opened in Simbirsk. In Novgorod, on the monument “1000th Anniversary of Russia” (1862), among the 129 figures of the most outstanding personalities in Russian history, there is the figure of N.M. Karamzin. In Moscow in honor of N.M. Karamzin is named a passage, in Kaliningrad - a street. A monument to the historian was erected in Ulyanovsk, and a memorial sign was erected in the Ostafyevo estate.

Essays

Selected works in 2 vols. M.-L., 1964.

History of Russian Goverment. St. Petersburg, 1818-1826.

Complete works in 18 volumes. M., 1998-2008.

Complete collection of poems / Intro. Art., prepared. text and notes Yu. M. Lotman. L., 1967.

Genre: ,

Moreover, written by a man who lived at the beginning of the 19th century, it seems outdated and not worth our time and attention.

Editor eksmo. Common crawl en Raisa Khanukaeva does not agree with this approach and decided to answer frequently asked questions about Karamzin’s books.

Was “The History of the Russian State” the first of its kind?

Of course not. In the middle of the 18th century, “Russian History” by Vasily Tatishchev was created (a caustic epigram - “Russian History from the most ancient times, collected and described by tireless labor thirty years later by the late Privy Councilor and Astrakhan Governor Vasily Nikitich Tatishchev”). Attempts to write something similar were also made by Prince Vasily Shcherbatov (“Russian History from Ancient Times”), Mikhail Lomonosov and many others.

Then why is Karamzin’s work considered the main one?

Karamzin was called the “Columbus of Russian historiography”; he was the first to talk about this complex topic in an accessible language and, in fact, opened it for all readers. The key to success was a serious scientific approach and artistic text, and the consequence was the growth of national self-awareness in the country.

« The first eight volumes of Karamzin’s “Russian History” have been published.<...>The appearance of this book (as it should have been) caused a lot of noise and made a strong impression, 3000 copies were sold in one month (which Karamzin himself did not expect) - the only example in our land", wrote Alexander Pushkin. Not everyone accepted Karamzin’s work favorably. Future Decembrists, for example, accused the historian of excessive reverence for royal power. The same Pushkin issued a caustic epigram (“ In his “History” elegance and simplicity / Prove to us without any bias / The need for autocracy / And the charms of the whip"), and journalist Nikolai Polevoy took up the creation of "The History of the Russian People", which, however, did not have a small share of the success that Karamzin had.

Is “History...” really propaganda of autocracy?

Yes and no. Karamzin, as a witness to the Great French Revolution, was truly confident that only autocracy could become the guarantee of peace and prosperity for the country. Despite this, he writes lovingly about the republican free Novgorod and does not skimp on criticism of some of the great princes and especially the “conqueror” of Novgorod, Ivan the Terrible.

During his lifetime, Karamzin was called the main ideologist of the conservatives, but it was he who, in his “Note on Ancient and New Russia,” pointed out the mistakes of the reign of Catherine II and Paul I and criticized the economic, educational and political systems. Yes, he sharply opposed the ministries, but he argued this by the increased bureaucracy and incompetence of officials.

What was unusual in “The History of the Russian State”?

Before Karamzin, no one dared to speak negatively about the monarch. But the tsar’s historiographer (a completely official position for the writer) considered the flight of Kurbsky and other boyars to be natural and directly called the tsar a traitor: “ An amazing spectacle, forever memorable for the most distant posterity, for all peoples and rulers of the earth; a striking proof of how tyranny humiliates the soul, blinds the mind with the ghosts of fear, deadens the strength of both the sovereign and the state! The Russians have not changed, but the Tsar has betrayed them!»

The fact is that the Romanovs considered themselves direct descendants of the Rurikovichs and put a lot of effort into “legalizing” this relationship. Therefore, an attack on the first Russian dynasty could also be regarded as an attack on Karamzin’s contemporary autocracy.

Is Karamzin a professional historian?

Fortunately, no. The concept of “scientific science” did not exist then, so scientists with their complex treatises remained out of reach even for encyclopedist readers. Many also call Karamzin the first writer, the “domestic Stern.” “Letters of a Russian Traveler” brought him fame, and his story “Poor Liza” strengthened it.

Karamzin's sentimentalism had a great influence on the work of Zhukovsky and Pushkin. The writer laid the foundation for the reform of the Russian language, but at the peak of his fame, after the publication of the story “Martha the Posadnitsa, or the Conquest of Novagorod,” he left the literary salons and locked himself in his office, starting work on “The History of the Russian State.”

Is 12 volumes a complete work?

No. The author worked on his main work from 1804 until his death in 1826, but even this time was not enough for him to complete such a colossal work. Each volume of “History...” had many editions, Karamzin took on revisions after new documents appeared, and sometimes it happened to rewrite already completed volumes. As a result, he brought his story only to the interregnum of 1611-1612, although he dreamed of ending with the beginning of the reign of the Romanov dynasty.

And the main question: is it worth reading “History...” today?

Costs. If only because this is truly one of the simplest and most understandable “textbooks” of history, even for the modern reader. Do not be alarmed by the myths about the “History of the Russian State”; most of them dissipate even after a superficial acquaintance. Moreover, during his work, Nikolai Karamzin studied many now lost sources, so modern historians have to take his word for it.