Pushkin's era in the literature of painting and architecture. "Pushkin era

Already in the previous reign, thanks to the spread of enlightenment, literature developed significantly, but in the reign of Nicholas the First, writers appeared among us who, in their significance and talent, became on a par with the best European writers. Russian literature becomes famous in Western Europe and takes pride of place. At the head of the writers of this era is the brilliant artist of the word, Pushkin, known throughout Russia. His father came from an old noble family; his ancestors were repeatedly complained for their service by the Moscow sovereigns; the poet's mother was the granddaughter of Peter the Great Hannibal, a black man.

Pushkin was born in Moscow on May 26, 1799; his childhood passed partly in the capital, partly in the estates of the Pushkins near Moscow. He was brought up, like many noble children of that time, under the guidance of foreign teachers.

A great influence on the development in him of love for everything Russian and an understanding of folk life was exerted by his nanny, a simple Russian peasant woman Arina Rodionovna, who doted on her pupil. She told him folk tales and passed on folk songs and legends.

So even in early childhood, the poet could get acquainted with folk art, which, by the way, helped him become the first truly folk Russian poet. In addition to the nanny, his grandmother had a great influence on Pushkin; in the evenings, he often heard stories about the past: about Peter the Great and Empress Catherine. The grandmother's stories awakened in the sensitive boy a love for the past, for his native history.

When Pushkin was 12 years old, his parents took him to Tsarskoye Selo to the newly opened lyceum. The poet spent seven years in this educational institution. Even then, his genius began to manifest itself: at the age of 15, he read his poems at the exam in front of the famous poet of Catherine's time, the elderly Derzhavin, and the old man listens to him with tears in his eyes and sees in him the future glory of Russia.

At the end of the course at the Lyceum, Pushkin lives for several years in St. Petersburg and leads a dispersed lifestyle here. The sharp mind of the poet easily noticed the shortcomings and weaknesses of his environment, and Pushkin often did not hesitate to stigmatize them with a mocking word, regardless of the high position of the persons whom it affected; such reviews, and sometimes in a distorted form, reached these persons. Pushkin was in big trouble. But the poet Zhukovsky and Karamzin stood up for him, and he was only transferred to serve in the south at the disposal of the Novorossiysk Governor-General, who received him extremely affectionately and, like a father, took care of the poet. With his permission, Pushkin visited the Caucasus and the Crimea. The majestic nature of the Caucasus and the wonderful pictures of the Crimea made an indelible impression on the poet and served as a pretext for the creation of several works of art by him.

Living later in Chisinau, Pushkin did not get along with his new bosses, and he was ordered to go to live in his estate Mikhailovskoye (Pskov province, Opochetsky district). A two-year stay in rural solitude had beneficial consequences for the poet: here he studied diligently, read a lot and wrote a number of wonderful compositions.

In the spring of 1826, during the coronation, the poet was called by Emperor Nicholas to Moscow, and here a wonderful conversation took place between them. When asked by the emperor whether he would have been on Senate Square on December 14 if he had been in St. Petersburg then, Pushkin answered in the affirmative, but added that now he fully understands the folly of such an act. The emperor was satisfied with the conversation with the poet, and in the evening of the same day he told those close to him that today he had the pleasure of talking with the most intelligent person in Russia.

Pushkin was allowed to live anywhere and given complete freedom to print his works.

Pushkin felt heartfelt gratitude to the sovereign, which he expressed in well-known poems:

No, I am not a flatterer, when I compose free praise to the Tsar, I speak with the language of my heart...

By this time Pushkin's genius had fully matured. He writes his best works, in which he reflected with amazing talent all the major currents of Russian life; in bright, lively images he gave an image of the Russian people. The special merit of Pushkin's poems lies in the fact that they are imbued with a deep understanding of native life, love for everything Russian. Pushkin found a firm path, a great outcome for us Russians, and pointed to it. This exodus is nationality, admiration for the truth of our people. Pushkin's assessment is truly correct that he constitutes a great and extraordinary phenomenon. In his great, incomparable works, the whole Russian heart poured out, the whole worldview of the people was revealed, which has been preserved to this day in his songs, epics, legends, everything that loves and honors the people was expressed, his ideals of heroes, kings, people's defenders and mourners, images of courage were expressed , humility, love and selflessness.

Being a spokesman for Russian principles in his works, our great poet responded vividly to various social and state issues: he was always an opponent of serfdom and even in his youth he wrote a poem where he said:

Will I see a people unoppressed And slavery fallen at the behest of the Tsar...

Pushkin was also a great patriotic poet. The honor and glory of the Motherland were dearest to him. When the Polish uprising began and the Western European ill-wishers of Russia began to talk about interference in its affairs, Pushkin threw a fiery rebuke to the "Slanderers of Russia." In this poem, the poet says that the struggle between Russians and Poles is a domestic dispute that has already been decided by fate in favor of Russia. If the Western Europeans wish to appear within the borders of Russia, then there is a place for them in the fields of Russia among coffins that are not alien to them.

To the greatest grief of the Motherland, Pushkin's creative activity was interrupted very early - in the 38th year of his life, when the genius of the great writer was in full bloom. Pushkin is dead. His enemies arranged it so that the poet, irritated by slanderous rumors concerning his wife, challenged a certain foreigner Dantes to a duel. At this fight, the great poet was mortally wounded and, having suffered for two days, died on January 29, 1837. The last hours of the dying man were invested with the sovereign's touching concern for him. The emperor asked Pushkin not to worry about the widow and children: "They are mine," he wrote to him.

The activity of the great poet gave impetus to the flourishing of Russian literature. Pushkin's younger contemporary was the poet Lermontov. He lived only 27 years, and, of course, his talent could not be fully manifested, but he left us a number of works that were remarkable in terms of strength and depth of feeling. Gogol, a friend of Pushkin, wrote a number of immortal works: the comedy The Inspector General, the poem Dead Souls and the story Taras Bulba. The fate of the Inspector General was remarkable. In it, Gogol portrayed the shortcomings of the then provincial bureaucracy. The theater authorities did not allow this comedy to be staged. It came down to the Emperor himself. The emperor, having carefully read this wonderful work, not only allowed it to be staged, but even himself was at the first performance of The Inspector General. Gogol was a Little Russian by origin (from the Poltava province). In his works, he gave many beautiful pictures of the nature of Little Russia and the life of Little Russia. But, loving his homeland of Little Russia, Gogol wanted to be and was an all-Russian writer. He wrote for all Russians, who are equally fond of Russian nature, Russian history, Russian life of all places and times.

In the reign of Emperor Nicholas, many other writers began their literary activity, who became famous already in the reign of his son. Such are Turgenev, Dostoevsky, Tolstoy, Goncharov and many others. Turgenev, himself a wealthy landowner, decided to fight serfdom through literature. In his Notes of a Hunter, he gave a number of stories where he portrayed people from the peasant environment with attractive features and tried to arouse sympathy in society for the peasant lot.

In addition to literature, in the age of Nicholas I, other arts also flourished: the emperor himself was a great connoisseur and connoisseur of painting, as well as a lover of majestic buildings. During his reign, the famous Russian artists Bryullov and Ivanov lived and worked. The emperor himself collected rare paintings and statues of both Russian and foreign artists, and next to the Winter Palace erected by him, he also erected a beautiful building of the imperial Hermitage. The most remarkable works of Russian and European art are placed in this building; it is open for viewing by all comers. Of the other buildings of the emperor, one must point to St. Isaac's Cathedral in St. Petersburg, known to everyone for its enormous size, beauty and wealth, built on the site of an old church built by Peter the Great.

In addition to famous paintings and magnificent buildings, the time of Nicholas I was also marked by the appearance of remarkable works in the field of singing and music. Composer Lvov wrote inspired music for the national anthem "God Save the Tsar". The words of this anthem were written by the poet Zhukovsky. Another famous composer, Glinka, who was to Russian music what Pushkin was to Russian poetry, wrote the operas Ruslan and Lyudmila and A Life for the Tsar. The last opera is especially loved by Russian people: in addition to wonderful music, it is also remarkable for its content. “Life for the Tsar” depicts the rescue by the peasant Susanin at the cost of his own life of Tsar Mikhail Fedorovich from the Poles.

Everything that has been said about the reign of Emperor Nikolai Pavlovich testifies that a just monarch with a strong character and an iron will, with a heart responsive to everything beautiful, without making any major transformations, did a lot to improve the lives of his subjects; fundamental changes in the conditions of Russian life were destined to be carried out by his son, Emperor Alexander II.

Balls and theaters of the Pushkin era. The end of the 10s and the beginning of the 20s of the 19th century was a time of unprecedented, passionate passion for the theater. To be a young man "with a noble soul" meant to be a theatergoer! Talking about plays, actors, behind-the-scenes intrigues, about the past and future of the theater took as much time as arguing about politics ... And then they talked a lot about politics. People again wanted to plunge into the whirlpool of peaceful life: with its masquerades, balls, carnivals, new theatrical performances. Petersburgers were very fond of the theatre.

Engelgard's house on Nevsky Prospekt was the recognized center of public amusements in autumn and winter in St. Petersburg. Here, in a magnificent hall that could accommodate up to three thousand people, public masquerades, balls, and musical evenings were held. Concerts were given every Saturday. “They played Mozart, Haydn, Beethoven - in a word, serious German music,” recalls one of Engelhard's guests. Pushkin always visited them. »

Even more than concerts, the Engelhard Hall was famous for BALLS and MASQUERADES. In the evenings, a myriad of crews of all kinds flocked to the brightly lit entrance, lining up along Nevsky Prospekt. The balls usually started at 8-9 pm. The balls were reviews of the most expensive, bizarre and luxurious outfits. Future dates were arranged at the balls, balls were the bride of future brides (For the first time they were taken to the ball at the age of 16, and it was a huge event, both for the youngest person and for her parents) The most important thing for the balls was the ability not to stand out from the crowd. Society did not forgive anyone for this, just as it did not forgive A. Pushkin in his time.

Etiquette. We know the secular manners and etiquette of the Pushkin era mainly from the works of the classics of Russian literature of the 19th century and from their artistic adaptations. The aristocratic society condemned the widespread fashion for luxurious gifts that "outside" men made to their beloved ladies (Even the most innocent gift given to a lady by an "outside" man (not related to her) could cast a shadow on her reputation.) Refinement, emphasized politeness , polished gracefulness of gestures - the nuances of secular etiquette.

The generosity of the Russian nobles, their desire and ability to make gifts amazed many foreign travelers. The Russian emperors were not distinguished by stinginess either, in whose palaces entire rooms were set aside for gifts both to foreign guests and to their subjects. If subordinates could give gifts to superiors only in exceptional cases, then every nobleman could present a gift to the king and members of the royal family.

The tailcoat was the basis of the men's suit. They were plain, but patterned fabrics were allowed. The tailcoat collar was trimmed with velvet of a different color. A white shirt with a high tight collar was worn under the tailcoat. The men cut their hair short. Curled them and let go of sideburns. Fashion

Women's dresses still have a high waist. If at the beginning of the century they wore mostly white dresses, then by the 20s colored, but plain dresses appeared.

Pushkin is a name-symbol in Russian culture; there is no name more famous and more mysterious. The seeming simplicity of his work comes to us already in childhood with his fairy tales. Pushkin accompanies every person from childhood to old age. Any person at any age can find lines in Pushkin that correspond precisely to his individual state of mind. From childish mischief to senile sophistication - only the scale of "Pushkin's world" allows us to compare it with the "titans of the Renaissance."

The psychological feeling of the special "lordship" of Pushkin and the entire "Pushkin" era is almost impossible to shake, although the world of his heroes is unfavorable, sometimes terrible. Why do we repeat according to V.F. Odoevsky " the sun of Russian poetry»; for A.A. Grigoriev - " our all"; for F.I. Tyutchev " Russia's first love»; for A.A. Block - " funny name»?

Pushkin's Mystery. Already at the end of his life, in his reflections “Selected passages from correspondence with friends” N.V. Gogol wrote that " Pushkin is an extraordinary phenomenon and, perhaps, the only manifestation of the Russian spirit: this is the Russian man in his development, in which he, perhaps, will appear in two hundred years*.

Disputes about Pushkin as a phenomenon of history and culture began immediately after his death. On January 31, 1837, the editor and journalist A. A. Kraevsky dared to publish a short obituary written by V.F. Odoevsky. The news of the death of the poet began with piercing words: The sun of our poetry has set! Pushkin died... ”The chairman of the censorship committee, Prince M.A. Dondukov-Korsakov, severely reprimanded this publication. In sincere indignation, he asked: What is this black frame around the news of the death of a non-bureaucratic person ... why such an honor? .. Was Pushkin a commander, military leader, minister, statesman?*

In 1846, the most influential critic of those years, V.G. Belinsky completed his cycle of eleven articles devoted to Pushkin. He first called him a "classic" of Russian literature, that is, its indisputable and unchanging foundation. The national culture of modern times for the first time realized Pushkin as a history that had already taken place, as a kind of "antiquity" of its own. V.G. Belinsky did the most to establish Pushkin as a national poet, but he was also the first to present Pushkin's work as entirely belonging to the past, having lost social topicality.

The pragmatic generation of the 60s and 70s. The 19th century, seized with a thirst for socially useful activity, completely pushed Pushkin's poetry into a bygone era. The most authoritative critic, the idol of the youth of that time, D.I. Pisarev, in the article "Realists" (1865) generally refused to analyze Pushkin's works, would mean attaching too much importance to the question of Pushkin, which he can no longer have...»

And in 1880, the first monument to Pushkin in Russia was opened in Moscow. In the course of public events, an acute awareness of the continuity of Russian culture, a sense of national pride came. At the opening of the monument to Pushkin F.M. Dostoevsky said: Pushkin is a prophecy and an indication... Pushkin... took some great secret with him into the coffin. And now we are solving this mystery without him*.

The mystery of the well-known Pushkin's work lies in its uniqueness and "loneliness" in Russian culture. Not a single Russian writer, either before or after Pushkin, was like him. The colorful and diverse cultural world of the 18th century. appeared as a whole only in the work of Pushkin. But this wholeness ended on him. The "solar" genius of Russian literature was replaced by the gloomy Lermontov, the caustic Gogol, the suffering Dostoevsky. In 1912, the philosopher V.V. Rozanov wrote about the uniqueness of the poet in Russian culture as a different type of Russian spirit: “ Pushkin - our lost paradise. He - Russian literature itself, what she could be...*

From the point of view of the history of national self-consciousness, the situation is strange: not a single Russian writer, not a single thinker can be called the heir of Pushkin's spirit and Pushkin's understanding of life. And at the same time, we clearly feel: it was with Pushkin that the great Russian culture of modern times began. This consciousness lies in the depths of the national spirit.

Before us is the riddle of Pushkin's harmony, amazing integrity: his simultaneous "inscription" in the Russian culture of his time and universal and all-time belonging. Not only historical time determined the type of his genius, but he himself determined an entire era of Russian culture. With Pushkin, independent Russian literature began as a form of artistic creativity. Moreover, all spheres of culture of the beginning of the 19th century: architecture, music, painting - surprisingly coincide with Pushkin's poetry in terms of spiritual, mental and creative characteristics, forming a single style of culture.

Golden Age" of Russian culture at the beginning of the 19th century. has a distinct "Pushkin" style. This allows us to conditionally designate the type of culture of this time as the "Pushkin era", meaning its similarity with the Renaissance examples of European culture.

The combination of the concepts of "Empire and Freedom" in the self-consciousness of the culture of Pushkin's time. Emphasizing the idea of ​​freedom of a creative person is a characteristic feature of the culture of the European Renaissance. Achievements of the 18th century allowed the idea of ​​a free creative person to be born in Russia. But the understanding of Freedom in the enlightened Russian consciousness had its own characteristics.

The European Age of Enlightenment ended with a romantic impulse to human feelings, raising the dignity of the individual above all else. The fate of the young "Werther" Goethe, the noble "Robbers" by Schiller and the adventure novels of W. Scott were read by all literate Europe, including the Russian "reading public". The philosophical basis of the literature of romanticism was the sublime perception of the world, the assertion of the wealth and freedom of the individual. New values ​​became the moral basis: a free “noble” person, love, nature.

In the European-educated nobility of Russia, the lofty concept of individual freedom was also romanticized. But this romantic worldview had a decisive difference from the European one. The romanticization of the world and man in Russia was the self-awareness of a nation conscious of its strength, aspiring to the future. The apogee of imperial self-consciousness came at the beginning of the 19th century. People of this generation said about themselves: “We children of the twelfth year *. And Napoleon's victors deservedly added the title of "Saviors of the Fatherland" to the ideal of serving Russia.

The victory over Napoleon, which established Russia as the leader of Europe, reinforced this jubilant sense of victorious imperialism. Two contradictory concepts "Empire" and "Freedom" were united in the mind of the Russian nobleman by the moral concept "Honor", that is, they were fixed on the unconsciously moral, on the everyday, and not on the legal level. The ideal of free service to the good of the Fatherland became the basis of the attitude in the culture of that time. Pushkin wrote: "Bre- me - unforgettable! How strongly the Russian heart beat at the word "Fatherland"!" In its humanistic orientation, this impulse is very close to the Renaissance feeling of a renewing, young world, an active, victorious personality.

But, having proved its power in the fight against Napoleon, the Russian autocracy turned out to be powerless to change the lives of its subjects for the better. For the educated nobility, this caused bitterness, disappointment and a desire to “push” the authorities, “prompt” the enlightened sovereign. A rare era in Russia could boast of so many projects for the reorganization of society. At school, they are introduced to the projects of P.I. Pestel, N.M. Muraviev. Were there other plans? of young friends” of Alexander I, reform projects by M.M. Speransky, N.S. Mordvinova, A.A. Arakcheeva, E.F. Kankrin, “constitution” N.N. Novosiltsev. A.S. himself Pushkin submitted notes to the government with projects for improving education and organizing the book business. Poet P.A. Vyazemsky participated in the drafting of the Polish Constitution of 1818. The active part of the educated nobility was ready to serve the good of the fatherland not only in the military, but also in the peaceful field. But the state power, the emperor's bureaucratic entourage were not going to give up their monopoly on transformative activities. The result of this mutual misunderstanding was the emergence of Decembristism. The unspoken “noble” agreement between the enlightened nobility and the authorities, which we noted as a feature of the Russian Enlightenment of the 18th century, was violated by the events of 1825. After the collapse of Decembrism, the disintegration of the culture of the “Pushkin” type gradually began.

Pushkin united in himself the imperial and human principles. The main poles of his work: Empire - Freedom. The empire attracted him both aesthetically as overcoming chaos (“The Bronze Horseman”), and morally as a counterbalance? rebellion, senseless and merciless" ("The Captain's Daughter"). As soon as Pushkin's eyes were closed, the gap between Empire and Freedom in the Russian mind was irrevocable. For a whole hundred years after Pushkin, the supporters of the Empire persecuted and persecuted Freedom, and the supporters of Freedom destroyed the Empire by all means.

The role of literature in understanding Pushkin. In the center of the culture of the Renaissance type, there is always a person; therefore, the ideological basis of such a culture is humanism, that is, the idea of ​​the self-worth of the individual. The spiritual world of the young generation of nobles at the beginning of the 19th century. formed under the significant influence of literature.

The development of humanistic ideals goes through the life and work of Pushkin, who determined the whole era of the formation of national identity.

Pushkin wrote his "Boris Godunov" at the age of twenty-five. Having become acquainted with Russian history with the help of Karamzin, he chose this one out of all the variety of its plots: the murder of a prince boy; the usurpation of power that has stepped over blood; the silence of the people - and what happens after that. What did he understand when, in the autumn of 1825, having finished his “Boris*”, he shouted to himself: “ Ayda Pushkin, ah yes son of a bitch * And why, almost two hundred years later, are we still inside this plot? Indeed, in fact, the collisions of "Boris Godunov" are an eternal theme of Russian history and fate.

The uniqueness of Pushkin's creativity for Russian culture lies in the fact that his life, death, creativity are a single organic "cultural text", they are inseparable. He was neither a teacher nor a judge of life. There is no "topic of the day" in his work. He sometimes laughed deadly, but caustically, satirically - never. The consciousness of the "educational" and educative role of literature in Pushkin is completely absent. Creativity, literature was perceived by him as life, as breath, and not as a civic duty and hard work. Philosopher V.V. Rozanov cites N.V. Gogol, his characteristic dialogue with the poet's servant:

Arrived around noon to Pushkin's house:

• - What, master at home?
• - Still sleeping.
• - Seems like he's been writing all night?
• - No, he played cards...
• Gogol would write*- comments V.V. Rozanov. He concludes: " Pushkin - it is peace, clarity and balance. Pushkin - this is some strange eternity...*, it does not become obsolete, just as love, hate, spring and autumn do not become obsolete.

Pushkin's steps as a poet and thinker are swift, he overtakes the self-consciousness of the noble society and the nation as a whole. In 1823-1824, being in the prime of his creative powers, Pushkin began to write his "novel in verse" - "Eugene Onegin *. A year later, the infinitely wise "Boris Godunov" appeared. A very young man manifested the experienced wisdom of the ages: * Do not change the course of affairs. Habit - soul of the powers*. By the end of his life, A. Pushkin “went out of fashion” (keeping a “solid fourth place” among the reading public) precisely because by that time he had overtaken everyone, all Russian literature, having reached other philosophical foundations of culture, a new aesthetics. Literature in the person of Pushkin acquired a new purpose in public life.

With all the great influence of A.S. Pushkin to contemporary culture, he never resorted to direct moralism and edification. In his work, actual social problems, typical images, so characteristic of the "black and white" Russian literature of the subsequent time, are invisible. He is not "special" in anything. Who is the positive character in The Captain's Daughter? Grinev? Pugachev? Neither one nor the other. At the same time, both of them can become actors in a whole "bouquet" of life stories. The whole difficult character of the “barchuk” P. Grinev is expressed in one plot twist: he did not betray Pugachev, but he refused to kiss the hand of the “peasant king”. And there is only one villain in the story: Shvabrin. And his main villainy is betrayal. Betrayal, meanness of the soul - with this sign of the collapse of the personality, he differs from the other main characters of the story: Grinev and Pugachev. This small and seemingly ordinary story contains all the wisdom of life. It is no coincidence that A.T. Tvardovsky, editor of the popular in the 60-70s. 20th century magazine Novy Mir, once, in the heat of a discussion, said that there are no smart and stupid people, but there are simply those who read The Captain's Daughter and those who are unfamiliar with her.

Pushkin's work has always been called "freedom-loving". Let's try to figure out what kind of freedom the poet "glorified". How does his lyrical hero feel his place in the world? How does the poet himself understand his role? Pushkin's textbook love of freedom is not revolutionary rebelliousness, but the position of a person who recognizes himself as a self-sufficient world. His love of freedom is not of political origin, but of cultural origin: from the love of life, from the consciousness of one's individuality, from the Renaissance creative force. The active personality of the Renaissance itself determines its own boundaries and rules.

You are the king: live alone,

Walk the free path,

Where does the free mind take you?

The origin of Pushkin's love of freedom is a joyful attitude to being, a love of life, an organic consciousness of human dignity, the dignity of thought, talent and mind. Known for his hatred of all kinds of restrictions on the "conditions of the world", dislike for the humiliating him of the chamber junker uniform. Pushkin's love of freedom is akin to the Decembrist one in terms of human dignity and creative freedom. This common attitude made them close in spirit. Pushkin's love for freedom has nothing to do with the political idea of ​​rights "under the law" and in general with any ideology. The “ideology” he created is the formula for the life of a free person. With extraordinary clarity, it was embodied in his poems. In the last summer of his life, in 1836, Alexander Sergeevich Pushkin wrote a brilliant poem "From Pindemonti". Realizing that no censorship would let this poem go to print, he presented it as a "translation from Italian." In fact, here his own understanding of freedom is in full swing. As it turned out, these verses became the spiritual testament of the poet.

Other, better, rights are dear to me,

Another, better, I need freedom.

Depend on the king, depend on the people -

Don't we all care? God is with them. Do not give a Report to anyone, only serve and please yourself; for power, for livery Do not bend either conscience, or thoughts, or neck;

...Here is happiness! That's right...

And here is the testament of a free man, we add. The theme of personal independence was especially dear to Pushkin. How to live among people, how to live in society, how to defend your rightness, your personality?

The fact of the appearance in Russia of Pushkin, a personality commensurate with Leonardo da Vinci, Shakespeare, Dante, is a sign of the Renaissance. In the European Renaissance, personalities of a universal, encyclopedic type always appeared.

National and universal in "Pushkin's" culture. One of the tragic results of the Russian Enlightenment was that one nation had two different cultures. One is traditional, mostly peasant. The other is bookish, educational, European. The difference between them was enormous; the two cultures even spoke different languages, as the nobility preferred to speak French.

Pushkin managed for a moment to overcome the duality of Russian culture, to find the secret of combining its opposite principles. The synthesis of deeply national and truly European content in his work occurs extremely naturally. His fairy tales were read both in noble living rooms and in peasant huts. With the works of Pushkin, Russian self-consciousness entered the vast world of the new European culture. Pushkin is deeply national and that is why he is universal.

As you know, Pushkin never left Russia. Only by the power of his genius could he accurately guess the impudent love of life of the gypsy tribe in the songs of Zemfira, the naive Spanish pride in the Stone Guest *. Mary's song in A Feast in the Time of Plague* is written in the immaculate style of medieval England. And his scenes from Faust * carry something diabolical - the mysticism of the era of the German Reformation - even in the non-Slavic rhythm of the verse: "I everyone yawns and lives - and the coffin, yawning, is waiting for all of us. Yawn and you...* By the way, Pushkin sent his “Scenes from Faust” to Goethe and received in return a gift from the great old man - his pen.

But for all the Europeanness of Pushkin, in Russia there was no poet more Russian. In his work, two principles: universality and Russianness - merged in the most natural way. A striking example of such a natural linguistic and cultural fusion is found in the mature Pushkin in Eugene Onegin*. Tatyana, Prussian soul*, However she spoke with difficulty in her native language*. In accordance with the norm of those times, she wrote her famous letter to Onegin in French. In Russian, the secular style of love writing was simply absent. But the author himself seems to “translate* this French letter of his heroine into Russian. For a poet, this is one language environment. And a paradoxical result: it was Pushkin, and no one else, who created the real Russian language: in fact, Russian literature of the new time began with him.

At the same time, the whole element of the Russian folk language was subject to him. When translating Eugene Onegin in exile, Vladimir Nabokov, a Russian writer abroad, was forced to create a whole theory of translation specifically for Pushkin with countless versions and notes to almost every line.

His famous "Tales" are a fact of deeply folk poetry, and not an imitation of folk dialect. Only a high and real talent can correctly guess the soul of the people, their intonation, humor, mentality. Listen to the music of artless lines, the charm of which is in genuine, not stylized folk:

Three maidens by the window

Were spinning late at night...

The deep inner connection of world and national origins is also a generic feature of the culture of the Renaissance type. The bright, life-affirming genius of Pushkin remained the “golden* age in the history of the Russian spirit. The Renaissance character of Pushkin's poetry is the key to the inevitable appeal to Pushkin's work, when national self-consciousness and the nation makes another cultural effort to harmonize life. The modern poet D. Samoilov expressed this in the words:

While Pushkin lasts in Russia

Blizzards do not blow out the candle.

Literature and society in the era of Pushkin. The world outlook "Empire and Freedom", formed by the beginning of the 19th century. among the young educated nobility, is most fully expressed in the romantic literature of this time. The emerging Russian literature was the first to discover the combination of the ideas of the Empire and the free individual - even in one person. N.M. Karamzin was the author of both "Letters of a Russian Traveler" and "History of the Russian State", "Poor Liza" and the Manifesto of Nicholas I. Also, V.A. Zhukovsky was the author of "Ondine" and romantic ballads.

In this rapid movement from Derzhavin to Zhukovsky, from Karamzin to Griboedov and then to Pushkin, literature was formed in Russia as a special sphere of culture. She took on the role of a collector and exponent of the national spirit, moreover, she formulated it. "Literature*, According to Pushkin, was the fruit of a newly formed society”, and on the other hand, she herself created a certain type of social life. Talking about the life and customs of the educated nobility of the early 19th century, researchers and authors of memoirs often define it with the words “light”, “higher society”, “the best houses”. Pushkin also came to a more specific definition - "enlightened nobility". What was this connection of enlightenment with the customs and structure of life of "secular society"?

At the time of Peter's "assemblies" certain rules of social behavior of the nobles were supported by the power of state coercion. A century later, "the unspoken" rules of the world "came into effect: the culture of balls, duels, fashion, visits, receptions. By an incorrect gesture, unsuccessful clothes, a cheeky word, the noble society unmistakably recognized the “strangers”. After a lively conversation with the senators, N.M. Karamzin in a letter to A.S. Pushkin notes that they are, of course, smart people, but it is clear from their manners that none of them belongs to "good society." Once, Pushkin himself did not get to the ball, because he did not put on the prescribed chamber junker uniform.

A thrown glove, a dropped handkerchief, a sharply closed fan - everything acquired its own "language". Remember “putting on a wide bolivar, Onegin goes to the boulevard"? The character of the hero immediately became clear to Pushkin's contemporary. After all, a "normal" secular rake, dressed "like a London dandy", could not decorate his head with a "bolívar". This wide-brimmed South American hat, named after one of the leaders of the national liberation movement, unequivocally declared the demonstrative freethinking of its owner in St. Petersburg.

"Pushkin's" generation of an educated society " Starts liberalized until 1812". Spiritual independence, pride of thought and feeling were in extraordinary fashion. The youth rebelled in every way: from the extravagance of fashionable costumes, the forbidden content of books read to violent friendly feasts and duels.

The nobles increasingly refused public service, preferring "social life". By the 1840s more than a third of the nobility of the capital had not served anywhere. At the same time, the value of good taste, manners, general education, knowledge of modern languages ​​(* Latin is out of fashion now"). The main sciences were "the ability to live in the light"and, in the words of Pushkin," the science of tender passion". "Taste", "style", "fashion", "honor" - these concepts in the life of the nobility of the early XIX century. replaced state regulation of private life.

Literature has also become a new social regulator. The tone of literary works has changed in the most striking way. Previously, it was instructive, instructive, conducted as if on behalf of the teacher-state. Now literary texts shone with the familiar ease of friendly conversation. Remember "Eugene Onegin": here you seem to have entered a friendly living room, where you are met by familiar and unfamiliar friends. And you yourself have long been known and loved here. Look, this is addressed directly to you:

Friends of Lyudmila and Ruslan!

With the hero of my novel,

Without preamble, at this very hour

Let me introduce you.

Onegin, my good friend...

The "novel in letters" is becoming very popular. Intimacy, personal, sincere content of literary works was emphasized in every possible way. Solemn odes and lofty ballads after Pushkin faded into the shadows. Secular society raised to the genres of literature its inherent forms of communication: letters, conversations, epigrams, aphorisms, anecdotes, poems in a girl's album. On the same basis of "friendly affection" the first literary associations are formed: "Friendly Literary Society", "Arzamas", "Green Lamp", "Lyubomudry".

The secular salon acquired a new content - literary communication. Beginning and experienced writers, "patrons of the muses", the first critics, lovers of art and poetry met here. Pushkin met Belinsky in a secular drawing room. Holding a salon was extremely prestigious, it was a sign of belonging to the "high society". In St. Petersburg, the meetings at the Olenins, Smirnova-Rosset, Khitrovo, Rostopchina, Odoevsky and Sollogub were famous. In Moscow - in the houses of Volkonskaya, Elagina, Aksakov, and this list is not complete. The rules of conduct in the salons were uniform and well known to everyone. Slavophil A.I. Koshelev, as a curious fact, noted that the house of E.A. Karamzina "was the only one in Petersburg, where they did not play cards and where they spoke Russian*.

In salons and friendly circles in the first two decades of the 19th century. vibrant cultural life. When we turn to the biography of A.S. Pushkin, it is impossible to ignore the "friendly circle" that was around him. Here A.S. Pushkin is almost a happy exception in comparison with the majority of Russian writers of the 19th century. He has always, all his life, been surrounded by friends. There was not a shadow of literary rivalry or jealousy in him. Around him was a whole constellation of poets who made up the appearance of "Pushkin" literature, the character of "Pushkin's" time: Zhukovsky, Batyushkov, Vyazemsky, Baratynsky, Gnedich and others.

It was the time of "Arzamas", "Conversations", love poetic "friendship". Pushkin sincerely rejoices at the successes of his friends, openly expresses admiration for the poetry of Vyazemsky, closely follows the successes of the younger generation. It became a textbook fact that Pushkin presented the young Gogol with the plot of The Inspector General and Dead Souls, listened favorably to the reading of the first works of the young writer.

Pushkin's poetic sympathies and dislikes are least of all connected with some kind of literary struggle, the assertion of his primacy. The poem "Ruslan and Lyudmila" opened a new era of Russian literature, and Pushkin immediately became the leader of the writers' community. The transfer of the “poetic crown” did not take place through bitter rivalry and intrigue, but in a chivalrous way. After "Ruslan and Lyudmila" Zhukovsky gives Pushkin his portrait with an unforgettable inscription: " To the winning student from the defeated teacher».

The listed features of the cultural life of Pushkin's time determined the extraordinary variety of forms, styles, plots and genres that distinguished the literature of the first decades of the 19th century. But the gradually growing gap between enlightened ideals and the reality of social change contributed to the transformation of literature from a personal hobby into a professional occupation.

Commercially profitable book publishing projects also existed in Pushkin's time. The gradual transition of “literature” into the category of professions is associated with the name of the bookseller and publisher A.F. Smirdin. The man, who had only three years of study with a Moscow deacon, became known in the literary circles of the 1830s. their business enthusiasm. He first began to publish "Library for Reading" - a thick journal-book, which became the most popular publication of that time. The publication successfully combined the genre of "calendars" with all the variety of information and entertainment and the genre of a serious literary and social magazine with the latest in literature. It was impossible to think of a better reading for the family of a provincial landowner who aspired to be "in

Literary associations and popular periodicals in the 1800s-1830s.

Literary associations	Magazines and newspapers
"Free Society	Vestnik Evropy (ed. N.M. Karamzin, V.A. Zhukovsky).
lovers of literature
sciences and arts.	"Russian Bulletin" (ed. S.N. Glinka). 1808-1820
	"Son of the Fatherland" (ed. N.I. Grech). 1812-1829 "Domestic Notes" (ed. P.P. Svinin).
"Society of lovers
Russian literature".	"Well-intentioned" (ed. A.E. Izmailov). 1818-1820
1811-1920s	"Competitor of education and charity" (ed. A. D. Borovkov). 1818-1825
"A Conversation of Lovers	"Nevsky Spectator" (ed. M.A. Yakovlev and others). 1820-1821
Russian word.	Almanac "Polar Star"
	(ed. A.A. Bestuzhev and K.F. Ryleev). 1823-1825 "Mnemosyne" (ed. V.F. Odoevsky, V.K. Kuchelbecker).
"Arzamas".
	Gas. "Northern bee" (ed. F.V. Bulgarin, N.I. Grech). 1824-1864
"Green lamp".	"Moscow Telegraph" (ed. N.A. Polevoy). 1824-1834
	"Northern Flowers" (ed. A.A. Delvig). 1825-1831 "Moscow Bulletin" (ed. M. P. Pogodin). 1826-1830
"Society loves	"Telescope" (ed. N.I. Nadezhdin). 1831-1836
wise." 1823-1825	"Moscow Observer" (ed. M.P. Pogodin). 1835-1839 "Contemporary" (ed. The first four issues of A.S. Pushkin). 1836-1866

keep abreast of cultural and political developments in his estate. Journal A.F. Smirdin involved in the * reading public * provincial reader.

A.F. Smirdin was the first to publish a series of cheap editions for the democratic reader. He was the first to start paying his authors. Remember the lines of A.S. Pushkin from? Conversation of the poet with the bookseller *: *Inspiration is not for sale, but you can sell the manuscript*. A new word has appeared in literary conversations - "circulations *", that is, the number of issued copies of a book or magazine. V.G. Belinsky even called the 1830s. * Smirdin * period in Russian literature. Although in the 1840s publisher A.F. Smirdin went bankrupt, the beginning of the transformation of literary studies into professional work was laid.

In general, the literature of Pushkin's time shaped the humanistic Renaissance ideals. The human personality in all its spiritual wealth has become the dominant feature of the new consciousness of culture. After the defeat of the Decembrist movement, the entire social atmosphere of Pushkin's time quickly began to wane. The society has changed, and the style of culture has changed. Pay attention to the list of literary societies and periodicals. The vast majority of them operated until 1825, and then their number dropped sharply.

Arise, prophet, and see, and listen,
Fulfill my will
And, bypassing the seas and lands,
Burn people's hearts with the verb.
A. S. Pushkin

Two feelings are wonderfully close to us -
In them the heart finds food -
Love for native land
Love for father's coffins.
A. S. Pushkin

“Peter (. - L.R.) challenged Russia, to which she responded with a colossal phenomenon", - these words of A.I. Herzen are not an exaggeration. Only by the beginning of the 19th century. in Russian artistic culture, there have been striking changes caused by the dialogue that has begun between two powerful Russian cultural traditions. The first of them, ancient, folk, was born at the end of the 10th century. in the bowels of spirituality and illuminated by the names of Anthony Pechersky, Dmitry Rostov, Seraphim of Sarov. The second is official, noble, young, but already having a rich experience of “Russian Europeanness” of the 18th century. Their dialogue (but in the words of D.S. Likhachev, “a combination of various heritages”) was not direct and immediate.

Suffice it to recall that many nobles of the Pushkin era, and Alexander Sergeevich himself, were not even familiar with their great contemporary, the prayer book for the Russian land, the elder Seraphim of Sarov (1760-1833). We are talking about something else: from the beginning of the XIX century. Russian secular culture, and above all artistic culture, has acquired the features of maturity. Russian masters have learned to embody in artistic images all those ideas and ideals that have been nurtured by the Russian people throughout their Orthodox history. Therefore, the Christian foundations of art in the first half of the 19th century. can be traced in everything: in the desire to know the high truths and laws of Being, and in the desire to understand and reflect in artistic images the suffering and misfortune of a simple, destitute person, and in a passionate protest against the lies, hatred, injustice of this world.

And also - in inescapable love for Russia, for its endless expanses, for its long-suffering history. And finally, in the piercing theme of the responsibility of the artist-creator, the artist-prophet before the people for each of his works. In other words, the centuries-old Orthodox spirituality formed an unwritten moral code among Russian artists, composers, and writers, which became the main guideline in the creative search for “their own path” in the art of the Pushkin era and in the decades that followed. In conclusion of this short preamble to the main content of the section, I would like to compare the statements of the two great sons of Russia. “Acquire the spirit of peace,” called the elder Seraphim of Sarov. “And revive the spirit of humility, patience, love and chastity in my heart,” A.S. Pushkin wrote shortly before his death. In the history of Russian artistic culture, the 19th century is often called the "golden age", marked by the brilliant development of literature and theatre, music and painting. The masters of the "golden age" made a rapid breakthrough to the heights of creativity in the most complex European forms and genres, such as the novel, opera and symphony. The "Russian Europeanness" of the 18th century is a thing of the past, along with outdated colloquial vocabulary and powdered wigs of Catherine's times. To replace the creators of the classic art of the Enlightenment, the "defeated teachers" - Derzhavin and Levitsky, Bazhenov and Bortnyansky - a new generation of Russian artists - "winning students" hurried to replace them. A. S. Pushkin (1799-1837) is rightfully considered the first among them.

Pushkin era, i.e. the first three decades of the "golden age" - this is the "beginning of the beginnings" of the achievements, discoveries and revelations of the great Russian classics, the impulse that predetermined the further cultural development of Russia. The result of this movement is the elevation of art to the level of high philosophy, spiritual and moral teachings. The problems of the Divine and the earthly, life and death, sin and repentance, love and compassion - all this has taken on an artistic form, capturing the complex, extraordinary world of a Russian person who is not indifferent to the fate of the Fatherland and is trying to solve the most acute problems of Being. The creators of the Pushkin era laid down the main thing in the Russian classics - its teaching, moral and educational character, its ability to embody everyday reality, without contradicting the eternal laws of beauty and harmony. Two significant events for Russia took place during the Pushkin era - the Patriotic War of 1812 and the Decembrist uprising of 1825. These upheavals did not go unnoticed. They contributed to the maturation in the Russian public consciousness of protest moods, a sense of national dignity, civic patriotism, love of freedom, often in conflict with the centuries-old foundations of the autocratic state. Brilliant in its artistic merits, A. S. Griboedov’s realistic comedy “Woe from Wit”, depicting the confrontation between “one sane person” from among the educated “unwhipped generation” (A.I. Herzen) of Russian nobles and the conservative nobility is convincing proof of this.

In the midst of the seething polyphony of ideologies, views, attitudes, a phenomenon was born and took place, which today we call the "genius of Pushkin." Pushkin's work is a symbol of Russian art for all time. His poetry and prose deeply and multifaceted captured the national spiritual experience and traditional moral values ​​of the Russian people. At the same time, Pushkin's unique ability to feel world culture as a whole in space and time and to respond to the echoes of previous centuries with all his "worldwide responsiveness" (F. M. Dostoevsky) is obvious. Here it should be recalled once again that it was Pushkin, according to many researchers, who managed to “overcome the duality of Russian culture, to find the secret of combining its opposite principles. The synthesis of deeply national and truly European content in his work occurs extremely naturally. His fairy tales were read both in noble living rooms and in peasant huts. With the works of Pushkin, Russian self-consciousness entered the vast world of the new European culture.<…>The "golden age" of Russian culture bears a distinct imprint of Pushkin's style. This allows us to conditionally designate the type of this cultural epoch as the “Pushkinian” model of Russian culture” 1 . Probably more has been written about Pushkin the writer than about any other Russian genius 2 . Therefore, we turn to the consideration of the phenomena of artistic culture that arose in the bowels of the Pushkin era. V.F. Odoevsky called A.S. Pushkin "the sun of Russian poetry".

To paraphrase these words, the founder of the Russian musical classical school M. I. Glinka (1804-1857) can be called the "sun of Russian music." By the power of his genius, Glinka was the first to bring the musical art of Russia into the ranks of the most significant phenomena of world culture. He established the principles of nationality and national character in Russian music, organically linking the achievements of European art with Russian folk song. The composer's artistic credo can be considered his words: "... the people create music, and we, composers, only arrange it." The people are the protagonist of his writings, the bearer of the best moral qualities, dignity, and patriotism. The melodious Glinka melody, sincere, direct, which grew out of the deep layers of Russian musical folklore, became the expression of the nationality. Each voice in the musical fabric of his works sings in its own way, obeying the logic of general development. Glinkin's chant makes his music related to the folk song, making it nationally colored and easily recognizable. At the same time, the composer was inexhaustibly inventive in the variant development of musical themes. This composing method, also "overheard" in Russian folk songs, becomes "significant" for Russian classical music of the 19th century. Everyone who listens to Glinka's music will not bypass the Glinka-Pushkin parallel. This comparison is inevitable: Pushkin's poetry can be heard both in Glinka's romances and in his opera Ruslan and Lyudmila. Both masters were the founders and discoverers of the "golden age". Like Pushkin's poetry, Glinka's music embodies a healthy life principle, the joy of being, an optimistic perception of the world. Complementing this kinship is the "universal responsiveness" that is equally inherent in both the poet and the composer. Glinka was close to the temperamental tunes of the East, the graceful grace of Polish dances, the most complex melodic lines of Italian opera arias, and passionate Spanish rhythms. Listening to the world of foreign-language musical cultures, the composer, like a diligent collector, collected priceless musical treasures of different peoples and refracted them in his work. These are the magnificent Polish scenes in the opera A Life for the Tsar, and the images of “Russian Spain” in the Spanish Overtures for a symphony orchestra, and the “Russian East” in the opera Ruslan and Lyudmila. Opera is central to Glinka's legacy. The composer laid the foundations for the two leading opera genres in Russian classical music - the opera-drama and the epic opera-fairy tale. Glinka called his opera A Life for the Tsar (1836) "Russian heroic-tragic".

The essay, created on the basis of real events in Russian history at the beginning of the 17th century, is devoted to a deeply patriotic theme: the village headman Ivan Susanin dies, at the cost of his life, saving the royal family from the reprisals of the Polish invaders. For the first time in Russian music, the protagonist of an opera composition is the common people - the bearer of high spiritual qualities, goodness and justice. In the mass folk scenes framing the opera, the introduction stands out (from the Latin introductio - introduction) and the epilogue, where Glinka composed the grandiose hymns of Russia. The famous choir “Glory” sounds victoriously and solemnly in the finale of the opera, which the composer called the “hymn-march”. Glinka endowed the main tragic character of the opera, the peasant Ivan Susanin, with the real features of a Russian farmer - father, family man, owner. At the same time, the image of the hero has not lost its greatness. According to the composer, Susanin draws spiritual strength for selfless deeds from the source of the Orthodox faith, from the moral foundations of Russian life. Therefore, themes taken from folk scenes sound in his part. Let's pay attention: Glinka almost never uses genuine folk songs in the opera: he creates his own melodies, close in intonations to folk musical speech.

However, for the first appearance on the stage of Ivan Susanin, the composer nevertheless took a real folk tune - a melody recorded from a Luga cab driver (in the opera, Susanin's remark: "What to guess about the wedding"). It is no coincidence that the composer's enemies, after the successful premiere of the opera, dubbed it "the coachman". But on the other hand, A.S. Pushkin responded to Glinka's creation with a magnificent impromptu: Listening to this novelty, Envy, clouded with anger, Let it gnash, but Glinka cannot be trampled into the mud. Another peak in the work of M. I. Glinka is the opera Ruslan and Lyudmila (1842) based on the youthful poem by A. S. Pushkin. The composer hoped that Pushkin would write the libretto himself, but the untimely death of the poet ruined this beautiful plan. Without changing the outline of Pushkin's text, Glinka made some adjustments to it: he removed a touch of irony, playfulness and endowed the main characters - Ruslan and Lyudmila - with deep, strong characters.

Some changes are connected with the specifics of the opera genre. So, for example, if Pushkin's princely feast in Kiev takes only seventeen poetic lines, then Glinka turned this holiday into a grandiose musical stage, magnificent and magnificent. Ruslan and Lyudmila is an epic opera, which means that the conflict in it is revealed not through a direct clash of opposing forces, but on the basis of the unhurried unfolding of events captured in finished paintings that have strict logic. The introduction and finale, framing the opera, appear as majestic frescoes of ancient Slavic life. Between them, the composer placed contrasting magical acts depicting the adventures of the heroes in the realm of Naina and Chernomor. In "Ruslan and Lyudmila" the features of the epic, fairy tale and lyrical poem were combined, so heroic, lyrical and fantastic lines can be distinguished in the music of the opera. The heroic line opens with the songs of Bayan in the introduction of a musical work and continues in the development of the image of the noble warrior Ruslan. The lyrical line is images of love and fidelity. She is represented in the arias of Lyudmila, Ruslan, in the ballad of Finn. The bright characters of the opera are opposed to "evil fantasy" - the forces of magic, sorcery, oriental exoticism.

In fantastic scenes, the composer used colorful, unusual-sounding means of orchestral expression and genuine folk themes that exist in different regions of the Caucasus and the Middle East. The anti-heroes of the opera do not have developed vocal characteristics, and the evil Chernomor is a silent character at all. The composer did not deprive the magical evil of Pushkin's humor. The famous "March of Chernomor" conveys the features of a formidable, but funny Karla, whose fairy-tale world is illusory and short-lived. Glinka's symphonic legacy is small in scope. Glinka's orchestral masterpieces include Waltz Fantasy, Kamarinskaya, Jota of Aragon, and Reminiscences of a Summer Night in Madrid, whose music contains the main principles of Russian classical symphonism. A special area of ​​​​the composer's work is "Pushkin's romances": "I'm here, Inezilla", "Night marshmallow", "The fire of desire burns in the blood", "I remember a wonderful moment" and many other Pushkin's lines found a surprisingly sensitive and expressive embodiment in magical sounds Glinka. The process of organic connection of two cultural traditions - deep national and pan-European - was vividly reflected in the fine arts. The Russian village, the life of peasants and ordinary townspeople - these are the images of the paintings of the outstanding masters of the Pushkin era A.G. Venetsianov and V.A. Tropinin. The works of A.G. Venetsianov (1780-1847) bear traces of classicist ideas about high ideals of harmonious beauty. When, by decision of Emperor Alexander I, an exposition of Russian artists was opened in the Winter Palace, Venetsianov's canvases took pride of place in it. This is no coincidence. A remarkable master, Venetsianov is rightfully considered the founder of a new promising everyday genre in Russian painting. The son of a Moscow merchant, A.G. Venetsianov, in his youth worked as a draftsman and surveyor, until he realized that his true vocation was painting.

Having moved from Moscow to St. Petersburg, he began to take lessons from the famous portrait painter V.L. Borovikovsky and quickly established himself as the author of classicist ceremonial portraits. The turn in his creative destiny happened unexpectedly. In 1812, the artist acquired a small estate in the Tver province, where he settled. Peasant life struck and inspired the master to completely new themes and plots. Villagers cleaning beets, scenes of plowing and reaping, haymaking, a shepherd sleeping by a tree - all this appears on the artist's canvases as a special poetic world, devoid of any contradictions and conflicts. In the "quiet" paintings by A. G. Venetsianov there is no plot development. His works are fanned by the state of eternal prosperity and harmony of man and nature. The beauty of the touching, skillfully created by the painter always emphasizes the spiritual generosity, dignity, nobility of a simple farmer, forever connected with his native land, with its ancient traditions and foundations ("The Sleeping Shepherd", 1823 - 1824; "On the arable land. Spring", 1820s .; "In Harvest. Summer", 1820s; "Reapers", 1820s).

Equally calm and harmonious is the inner world of the characters in the canvases of V. A. Trolinin (1776-1857), a remarkable Moscow master of portrait painting. Tropinin achieved fame, success, the title of academician thanks to his enormous talent and ability to follow his life's calling, despite the obstacles prepared by fate. A serf, Tropinin served as a lackey for his masters almost to old age, and received his freedom only at the age of forty-five under pressure from the public, being already a well-known artist. The main thing that the master managed to achieve was to establish his artistic principles, where the main thing is the truth of the environment and the truth of character. The heroes of Tropinin's paintings feel light and at ease. Often absorbed in their usual work, they do not seem to notice close attention to them. Numerous "Lacemakers", "Golden Seamstresses", "Guitarists" say that Tropinin, like Venetsianov, somewhat idealized his models, highlighting sparks of reasonable beauty and goodness in everyday everyday life. Among the artist's works, a special place is occupied by images of people of art, devoid of any grand pomposity, attracting with their rich inner content. Such are the portraits of A.S. Pushkin (1827), K.P. Bryullov (1836), a self-portrait against the background of a window overlooking the Kremlin (1844), “Guitarist” (portrait of musician V.I. Morkov, 1823). Even during the life of A.S. Pushkin, the words “Great Karl”, uttered by one of his contemporaries, could mean only one thing - the name of the brilliant artist K.P. Bryullov (1799-1852).

None of the masters of Russia had such fame at that time. It seemed that everything was too easy for Bryullov. However, behind a light brush, superhuman labor and a constant search for unbeaten paths in art were hidden. Look at the famous "Self-Portrait" (1848). Before us is an extraordinary person, confident in himself and his professionalism, but at the same time immensely tired of the burden of fame. The works of K. P. Bryullov captivated the audience with the brilliance of temperament, a sense of form, and the dynamics of saturated color. A graduate of the Academy of Arts, Bryullov already in the first pictures declared himself as an independent master, alien to closed academicism. He knew the canons of classicism well, but, as necessary, freely overcame them, filling the artistic images with a sense of living reality.

In 1821, Bryullov was awarded the Small Gold Medal of the Academy of Arts for the painting Three Angels Appearing to Abraham at the Oak of Mamre. However, the leadership of the Academy unexpectedly denied the master a pension for a trip abroad (apparently, the reason for the refusal was a conflict between a quarrelsome young man and someone from the senior teaching staff). Only the Society for the Encouragement of Artists allocated money for a business trip abroad. But Bryullov pretty soon learned to earn his living. The purpose of his voyage was traditional - Italy. The path to it lay through Germany and Austria, where Bryullov in a short time acquired a European name as a portrait master. Orders literally poured in from all sides.

At the same time, the artist was extremely demanding of himself and never worked just for the sake of money. He did not finish all the canvases, sometimes throwing the canvas, which he ceased to like. The juicy colors of Italian nature aroused Bryullov's desire to create "sunny" canvases. Such magnificent works as Italian Morning (1823), Girl Picking Grapes in the Outskirts of Naples (1827), Italian Noon (1827) are imbued with a mood of delight before the beauties of the world. The artist worked with inspiration and quickly, although sometimes he nurtured his ideas for a long time. So, in 1827, he first visited the ruins of Pompeii - a city near Naples, which died from the eruption of Vesuvius in 79. The picture of the tragedy struck the artist's imagination. But only a few years later, in 1830, he took up the canvas "The Last Day of Pompeii", completing it three years later. Two figurative spheres converged in the picture. The first is a formidable element, beyond the control of man, a fatal retribution for his sins (recall that, according to legend, Pompeii and Herculaneum were punished by God as cities of debauchery, as a place of sexual entertainment for wealthy Romans)1. The second is an image of humanity, sacrifice, suffering and love. Among the heroes of the canvas are those who save the most precious thing in these terrible moments - children, father, bride. In the background, Bryullov depicted himself with a box for paints.

This character is full of close attention to the unfolding tragedy, as if preparing to capture it on canvas. The presence of the artist tells the audience: this is not a figment of the imagination, but a historical eyewitness account. In Russia, the canvas "The Last Day of Pompeii" was officially recognized as the best work of painting of the 19th century. A laurel wreath was laid on the artist to enthusiastic applause, and the poet E. A. Baratynsky responded to the triumph of the master with verses: And the “Last Day of Pompeii” became the first day for the Russian brush. Beautiful human bodies and faces have always attracted K. P. Bryullov, and many of his characters are unusually beautiful. In the last years of his stay in Italy, he wrote the famous Horsewoman (1832). On the canvas - a magnificent lady, with the dexterity of an Amazon, saddled a hot horse. A certain conventionality of the appearance of the prancing beauty is overcome by the liveliness of the girl who ran out to her (Pacchini's sisters, the daughters of the Italian composer, who were brought up in the house of the childless Countess Yu.P. Samoilova, posed for the master).

No less beautiful is the portrait of Yu.P. Samoilova herself with her pupil Amazilia Pacchini (c. 1839). It has a feeling of admiration for the beauty of a model dressed in a luxurious fancy dress. So, literature, music, painting of the Pushkin era, with all the diversity of their images, speak of one thing - the stormy self-identification of Russian culture, the desire to establish Russian national spiritual and moral ideals on the "European field". In those years, the philosophical justification of the “Russian idea” had not yet been found, but artistic traditions had already appeared that developed the idea of ​​the values ​​of Russian statehood, the significance of Russian military victories, overshadowed by the banners of the Orthodox faith.

So, back in 1815, on the crest of popular rejoicing over the victory over Napoleon, the poet V.A. Zhukovsky wrote “The Prayer of the Russians”, beginning with the words “God Save the Tsar”, which was originally sung to the theme of the English anthem. In 1833, the composer A.F. Lvov (on behalf of A.Kh. Benkendorf) created a new melody, which made it possible to approve the “Prayer of the Russians” as the military and official anthem of Russia. But, perhaps, architecture embodied the ideals of the heroic time and the increased Russian self-consciousness most clearly. Images of architecture of the first decades of the XIX century. amaze with their royal splendor, scope and civic pathos. Never before has the construction of St. Petersburg and Moscow, as well as many provincial towns, taken on such a grandiose scale. The achievements of architecture, unlike other arts, are associated with a new stage in the development of classicism, which is called the "high" or "Russian" Empire style. Classicism of the 19th century was not a "repetition of the past", he discovered many original, innovative architectural ideas that met the needs of his contemporaries. And although the Empire came to Russia from Europe, it can be argued that only on Russian soil did it develop most vividly.

In terms of the number of masterpieces of this style, St. Petersburg may well be considered a kind of museum collection of architectural classicism of the 19th century. The main feature of the Russian Empire style is the organic synthesis of architecture, sculpture and arts and crafts. The aesthetic understanding of building tasks has also changed: now each city building was not closed in itself, but was inscribed in neighboring buildings compositionally and logically, with the exact calculation of creating “stone beauty”. The structure determined the appearance of the square, and the square determined the nearby city buildings: such a chain was born in the projects of the early 19th century. This is how the ensembles of the main squares of St. Petersburg are formed - the Palace, Admiralteyskaya, Senatskaya. Moscow, which was badly damaged by the fire of 1812, does not lag behind in updating its appearance: the territory around the Kremlin is being equipped, Red Square is being rebuilt, Teatralnaya is being broken up, new squares are appearing at the intersection of ring and radial roads, old houses are being restored, new mansions, government offices, and shopping malls are being built. ranks.

The founder of high Russian classicism was A. N. Voronikhin (1759-1814). The main work of his life was the construction of the Kazan Cathedral in St. Petersburg (1801-1811). A competition for the design of this building was announced during the reign of Paul I. It is known that the emperor wanted to build a temple in Russia like the Roman Cathedral of St. Peter, but Voronikhin proposed a different solution. And won the contest! The architect conceived the cathedral as a palace with a large colonnade covering the "body" of the temple itself. The colonnade formed a semi-circular square on Nevsky Prospekt, the main street of St. Petersburg. It consists of 94 columns of the Corinthian order, about 13 meters high, directly "flowing" into the city (by the way, this is the only similarity with St. Peter's Cathedral, agreed with Paul I). Despite the huge volumes, the Kazan shrine seems weightless. The impression of lightness, free, as if open space is preserved when you enter inside. Unfortunately, the painting and luxurious sculptural decoration, created under Voronikhin, have come down to us far from complete. Kazan Cathedral immediately took a special place in the public life of Russia. It was here, on the Cathedral Square, that the farewell of the people to M.I. Kutuzov, who was leaving for the army to fight Napoleon, took place. It is here, in the cathedral, that the field marshal will be buried, and A.S. Pushkin, having visited the grave, will dedicate the famous lines to the commander: Before the tomb of the saint I stand with my head bowed ...

Everything is sleeping around; only lamps In the darkness of the temple gild Granite bulks of pillars And their hanging row of banners.<…>In your coffin delight lives! He gives us a Russian voice; He repeats to us about that year, When the voice of the people's will Called to your holy gray hair: "Go, save!" You got up - and saved ... And today, on the wall near the holy tomb, the keys to the enemy cities conquered by the Russian army in the war of 1812 hang. Later, monuments to M.I. Kutuzov and M.B. Barclay de Tolly were erected on both sides of Kazan Square - so Russia immortalized the memory of its heroes. A. N. Voronikhin could no longer see all this - he died in February 1814, when our troops were still approaching Paris. “Stand with a firm foot by the sea…” – this is exactly how A. S. Pushkin formulated the dream of Peter the Great, the founding father of the northern capital. This plan began to be implemented during the life of the emperor. But in its entirety it was realized only by the 19th century. A hundred years have passed, and the young city of Midnight countries, beauty and wonder, From the darkness of the forests, from the swamp of blat Ascended magnificently, proudly.<…>Along the busy banks of the Gromada, slender crowds of Palaces and towers; ships In crowds from all ends of the earth They strive for rich marinas; The Neva is dressed in granite; Bridges hung over the waters; Her islands were covered with dark green gardens... Pushkin, as always, was very accurate in describing the new city, European in appearance, but essentially Russian.

The basis of the layout of St. Petersburg was determined by the river - capricious, bringing a lot of trouble during floods, but full-flowing, accessible for ships of any size. During the period of navigation since the time of Peter the Great, the port was located at the eastern tip of Vasilyevsky Island in front of the famous building of the Twelve Collegia. There was also the Stock Exchange, unfinished in the 18th century. The gifted Swiss architect Thomas de Thomon (1760-1813) was commissioned to erect the building of the new Stock Exchange (1805-1810). The exchange was located on the spit of Vasilyevsky Island, washed from the sides by two channels of the Neva. The architect completely changed the look of this place, turning it into an important point of the ensemble of the center of St. Petersburg. In front of the main façade of the Exchange, a semi-circular square was formed, allowing one to admire the clear, compact composition of the building with unusually simple and powerful geometric shapes. The houses to the right and left of the Stock Exchange were built after the death of the architect by his followers. The construction of the Admiralty (1806-1823) according to the project of the Russian architect A.D. Zakharov (1761-1811) was equally important for the formation of the finished image of the center of St. Petersburg. Recall that the main idea of ​​​​this building belonged to Peter 1.

In 1727-1738. the building was rebuilt by I.K. Korobov. The work of A. D. Zakharov became the highest point in the development of late classicism. The Admiralty appears as a monument to the glory of the Russian capital, as its symbol and at the same time as the most important part of the city. Construction began with the renovation of the old building, but then Zakharov went far beyond the original task and designed a new composition, while retaining the famous Korobovsky spire. The main façade of the Admiralty stretched out along the resulting square, and the side façades of the general U-shaped configuration turned out to be directed towards the Neva. Zakharov believed: The Admiralty needs a sculptural decoration corresponding to the image. Therefore, he himself drew a detailed plan for the location of the sculptures, which was later implemented by remarkable Russian masters - F.F. Shchedrin, I.I. Terebenev, V.I. Demut-Malinovsky, S.S. Pimenov and others. The selection of subjects for the sculptures was determined by the function of the building - the main maritime department of the then Russia. Here are the deities that control the water elements, and the symbolism of rivers and oceans, and historical scenes on the themes of the construction of the fleet and the exploits of Russian sailors. Among the most expressive sculptural decorations is the stucco frieze1 “Establishment of the Fleet in Russia”, created by master I.I. Terebenev.

Thus, the Admiralty became a tribute to the memory of the deeds of Peter the Great, who made Russia a powerful maritime power. In the first decades of the XIX century. preference in architecture is given to buildings of a public, or utilitarian, nature. Theaters and ministries, departments and regimental barracks, shops and horse yards - all this is being built relatively quickly, efficiently and in the best traditions of Russian high classicism. At the same time, it should be borne in mind that many buildings, it would seem, of a practical purpose, acquired the symbolism of monuments glorifying Russia (such as the Admiralty).

The victory in the Patriotic War of 1812 aroused in society a sense of patriotism, national pride and a desire to perpetuate the feat of arms of Russian soldiers. The Champ de Mars, now famous all over the world, was once a swamp. Then, in the times of Peter the Great, it was drained and a palace was built for Empress Catherine I. Tsaritsyn Meadow, as these once perished lands began to be called, turned into a favorite pastime place for Petersburgers: people had fun here and set off fireworks, so over time the meadow was called the Amusing Field.

After the war with Napoleon, the square was renamed the Field of Mars (Mars is the god of war). Now military parades and parades were held here, and the field became associated with military glory. In 1816, the barracks of the Pavlovsky regiment began to be built on the Field of Mars. The elite Life Guards Pavlovsky Regiment was a living legend, the embodiment of courage and valor. Therefore, for the Pavlovsk grenadiers it was necessary to create something worthy, solid and extraordinary. The work was carried out according to the project of a native Muscovite, architect V.P. Stasov (1769-1848), to whom the northern capital owes many beautiful architectural creations. The Pavlovsky barracks are a strict, solemn and somewhat austere building, which surprisingly accurately corresponds to their purpose. “Restrained majesty” - this is how Stasov himself assessed the image of the barracks.

This style is preserved by the master in his other works. Another significant building, rebuilt by Stasov, adjoins the Field of Mars - the Imperial stables (1817-1823). The architect turned an inexpressive building of a hundred years ago into a true work of art, making it the center of the organized around the square. This place is of particular importance for us: on February 1, 1837, A.S. Pushkin was buried in the gate church on Konyushennaya Square. A special area of ​​​​V. P. Stasov's work is regimental churches and cathedrals. The architect built two wonderful cathedrals in St. Petersburg for the Preobrazhensky and Izmailovsky regiments. The regimental church in the name of the Holy Trinity (1827-1835) was erected on the site of the wooden church of the same name, which had fallen into disrepair. When offering Stasov the development of the project, the customers specifically stipulated the conditions: the new church should accommodate at least 3,000 people and have exactly the same arrangement of domes as in the old church. The condition was fulfilled, and the majestic snow-white handsome temple rose above the capital with its light blue domes, on which golden stars shone. By the way, this is how churches were decorated in Ancient Russia, and Stasov knew his native well. The Cathedral of the Transfiguration of the Savior (1827-1829) was also not created from scratch: during its construction, the architect had to use the building

middle of the 18th century, which was badly damaged by fire. The completion of construction work coincided with the victory in the Russian-Turkish war (1828-1829). In memory of this event, V.P. Stasov built an unusual fence around the temple, made up of captured Turkish cannons. On the fifteenth anniversary of the Battle of Borodino, the ceremony of laying the Triumphal Gates at the Moscow Gate took place - the beginning of the journey from St. Petersburg to the old capital. The design of the triumphal building belonged to Stasov and was conceived as a monument to Russian military glory. The gate consists of twelve Doric columns fifteen meters high. A heavy entablature rests on the columns. Above the pairs of extreme columns there are eight compositions made of copper: interlaced armor, spears, helmets, swords, banners, symbolizing the exploits and triumph of Russian weapons. The cast-iron composition was crowned with the inscription: “To the victorious Russian troops”, then the feats committed in 1826-1831 were listed. The first among equals in Russian architecture of the 1810s-1820s. C. I. Rossi (1775-1849) is rightfully considered. In an era when Russia was inspired by the triumph of its victories, Rossi develops the principles of grandiose ensemble urban planning, which have become a model for other masters. And it was at this time that Rossi realized all his ingenious creative plans.

The master thought outside the box and on a large scale. When he received an order for a palace or theater project, he immediately expanded the scope of construction, creating new squares, squares, and streets around the building being erected. And every time he found special methods of harmonic correlation of buildings with the general appearance of the area. For example, during the construction of the Mikhailovsky Palace (now the State Russian Museum), a new square was laid out, and a street was laid from it, connecting the palace with Nevsky Prospekt. It was Rossi who gave Palace Square a finished look by building IT in 1819-1829. the building of the General Staff and ministries and throwing a wide arch between the two buildings. As a result, the incorrect, from the point of view of high classicism, form of Palace Square, inherited from the 18th century, acquired a regular, slender and symmetrical character. In the center of the whole composition is a triumphal arch crowned with six horses with warriors and a chariot of glory.

One of the most beautiful creations of K.I. Rossi is the Alexandrinsky Theater (1816-1834). In connection with its construction, the appearance of the nearest buildings has changed beyond recognition. Rossi organized the square and cut through new streets, including the famous street with symmetrical buildings that now bears his name. The architect had a strong character and an outstanding ability to defend his ideas, which he thought through to the smallest detail. It is known that he supervised all the work on decorating buildings, he himself made projects for furniture, wallpaper, closely followed the work of sculptors and painters. That is why his ensembles are unique not only in terms of architectural composition, but also as an outstanding phenomenon of the synthesis of the arts of high classicism. The last creations of the architect are the Synod and the Senate (1829-1834), similar to the palaces, which completed the ensemble of the Senate Square, where the famous "The Bronze Horseman" by E. M. Falcone is placed.

In the legacy of Russia there is another creation that is not directly related to architecture, but has great historical, spiritual and moral significance. This is the Military Gallery dedicated to the memory of the heroes of the Patriotic War, which adorned one of the interiors of the Winter Palace. The gallery contains 332 portraits of prominent Russian military leaders. A.S. Pushkin wrote: The Russian tsar has a chamber in his halls: It is not rich in gold, not in velvet;<…>In a tight crowd, the artist placed Here the chiefs of our people's forces, Covered with the glory of a wonderful campaign And the eternal memory of the twelfth year. Moscow, in a hurry to renew its appearance after the fire of 1812, adopted the new ideas of high classicism, but at the same time retained many traditional forms.

The combination of new and old gives Moscow architecture a special uniqueness. Among the architects who carried out the reconstruction of the ancient capital, the name of O.I. Bove (1784-1834) stands out. It was he who first tried to connect the medieval buildings of Red Square with a new building - the Trading Rows (1815, later they were dismantled). The low dome of the Torgovy Ryady turned out to be directly opposite the dome of the Kazakov Senate, visible from behind the Kremlin wall. On this formed axis, a monument to Minin and Pozharsky, the heroes of 1612, was erected, with his back to the rows, by the sculptor I.P. Martos (1754-1835). The most famous creation of Beauvais is the Triumphal Gate, placed at the entrance to Moscow from St. Petersburg (1827-1834; now moved to Kutuzovsky Prospekt). The monumental arch topped with six horses echoes the images of St. Petersburg architecture and complements the panorama of the grandiose monuments of Russian architecture that glorified Russia and its victorious army.

Fashion and A.S. Pushkin... The poet was a man of the world, often visited high society, went to balls and dinners, took walks, and clothing played an important role in his life. In the second volume of Pushkin's Dictionary of Language, published in 1956, one can read that the word "fashion" is used 84 times in Pushkin's works! And the authors of the dictionary cite most of the examples from the novel "Eugene Onegin". The fashion of the beginning of the 19th century was influenced by the ideas of the Great French Revolution and France dictated the fashion to the whole of Europe... The Russian costume of the nobles was formed in line with the all-European fashion. With the death of Emperor Paul I, the bans on the French costume collapsed. The nobles tried on a tailcoat, a frock coat, a vest.

Pushkin in the novel "Eugene Onegin" speaks with irony about the outfit of the protagonist:

“... I could before the learned world
Here describe his attire;
Of course it would be bold
Describe my case:
But pantaloons, tailcoat, vest,
All these words are not in Russian…”

So what outfits were worn by ladies and gentlemen of that time? And the French fashion magazine "Little Ladies' Messenger" (Le Petit Courrier des Dames) for the years 1820-1833 can help with this. Illustrations of clothing models from there just give an idea of ​​what the people around him wore during Pushkin's time.

The craftsmanship of creating men's and women's dresses boggles our imagination. How can such magnificence be made with your own hands, given that at that time there were not so many technical devices as now? How could these beautiful creations by skilled tailors be worn, given that they weighed so much more than today's clothes?

The war of 1812 died down, but nevertheless, the most popular in culture in general, and in fashion in particular, by the 20s of the 19th century, was the Empire style. Its name comes from the French word for "empire" and was inspired by Napoleon's victories. This style is based on imitation of antique patterns. The costume was designed in the same style as the columns, the high waist of women's dresses, a straight skirt, a corset that helped to better preserve the silhouette, created the image of a tall, slender beauty of ancient Rome.

“... The roar of music, the sparkle of candles,
Flashing, whirlwind of fast couples,
Beauties light dresses.
People full of choirs,
Brides a vast semicircle,
All the feelings strike suddenly…”

Women's costume was complemented by a wide variety of jewelry, as if compensating for its simplicity and modesty: pearl threads, bracelets, necklaces, tiaras, feronnieres, earrings. Bracelets were worn not only on the hands, but also on the feet, almost every finger was decorated with rings and rings. Ladies' shoes, sewn from fabric, most often from satin, had the shape of a boat and were tied with ribbons around the ankle like antique sandals.

It is no coincidence that A.S. Pushkin devoted so many poetic lines to women's legs in "Eugene Onegin":

"... The legs of lovely ladies are flying;
In their captivating footsteps
Fiery eyes are flying ... "

The ladies' toilet included long gloves that were removed only at the table (and mitts - gloves without fingers - were not removed at all), a fan, a reticule (a small bag) and a small umbrella that served as protection from rain and sun.

Men's fashion was permeated with the ideas of romanticism. In the male figure, the curved chest, thin waist, and graceful posture were emphasized. But fashion gave way to the trends of the time, the requirements of business qualities, and entrepreneurial spirit. To express the new properties of beauty, completely different forms were required. Silk and velvet, lace, expensive jewelry disappeared from clothes. They were replaced by wool, cloth of dark smooth colors.
Wigs and long hair are disappearing, men's fashion is becoming more sustainable, and the English costume is becoming more and more popular. Men's fashion throughout the 19th century was dictated mainly by England. It is still believed that London is to men's fashion what Paris is to women's.
Any secular man of that time wore a tailcoat. In the 20s of the 19th century, short trousers and stockings with shoes were replaced by long and wide pantaloons - the forerunners of men's trousers. This part of the men's costume owes its name to the character of the Italian comedy Pantalone, who invariably appeared on stage in long wide trousers. The pantaloons were held on by suspenders that came into fashion, and at the bottom they ended with hairpins, which made it possible to avoid wrinkles. Usually pantaloons and tailcoat were of different colors.

Pushkin writes about Onegin:

"...Here is my Onegin at large;
Cut in the latest fashion;
How dandy London is dressed -
And finally saw the light.
He's completely French
Could speak and write;
Easily danced the mazurka
And bowed at ease;
What do you want more? The world decided
That he is smart and very nice."

Literature and art also influenced fashion and style. Among the nobles, the works of V. Scott became famous, the entire public involved in literary novelties began to try on checkered outfits and berets. Wanting to show the literary tastes of Tatiana Larina, Pushkin dresses her in a newfangled beret.

This is what the scene at the ball looks like after Eugene Onegin returns to Moscow and where he meets Tatyana again:

"... The ladies moved closer to her;
The old women smiled at her;
The men bowed down
They caught the gaze of her eyes;
The girls passed quietly
In front of her in the hall: and all above
And raised his nose and shoulders
The general who entered with her.
No one could have her beautiful
name; but head to toe
Nobody could find it
The fact that fashion is autocratic
In the high London circle
It's called vulgar. (I can not...

"Really, - thinks Eugene, -
Is she? But definitely... no...
How! from the wilderness of steppe villages..."
And the unobtrusive lorgnette
He draws every minute
On the one whose appearance reminded vaguely
He has forgotten features.
"Tell me, prince, don't you know,
Who is there in a raspberry beret
Are you talking to the Spanish ambassador?
The prince looks at Onegin.
- Yeah! You haven't been in the world for a long time.
Wait, I'll introduce you. -
"But who is she?" - My Zhenya. -..."

For men, the most common headdress of Pushkin's time was a top hat. It appeared in the 18th century and later changed color and shape more than once. In the second quarter of the 19th century, a wide-brimmed hat came into fashion - the bolivar, named after the hero of the liberation movement in South America, Simon Bolivar. Such a hat meant not just a headdress, it indicated the liberal public mood of its owner.Gloves, a cane and a watch complemented the men's suit. Gloves, however, were more often worn in the hands than on the hands, so as not to make it difficult to take them off. There were many situations where this was required. In gloves, good cut and high-quality material were especially appreciated.
The most fashionable thing of the 18th - early 19th centuries was a cane. The canes were made of flexible wood, which made it impossible to lean on them. They were worn in the hands or under the arm solely for panache.

In the second quarter of the 19th century, the silhouette of women's dress changes again. The corset is back. The waistline dropped to its natural place, lacing went into action. The skirt and sleeves have flared out a lot to make the waist appear thinner. The female figure began to resemble an inverted glass in shape. Cashmere shawls, capes, boas were thrown over the shoulders, which covered the neckline. Additions - umbrellas with frills in summer, in winter - muffs, handbags, gloves.

Here is how Pushkin put it in Eugene Onegin:

"... The corset was worn very narrow
And Russian N, like French N,
I was able to pronounce it through my nose ... "

The heroes of novels and short stories by A.S. Pushkin followed fashion and dressed according to fashion, otherwise the venerable public would not have read the works of our Great writer, he lived among people and wrote about what was close to people. And insidious fashion, meanwhile, went on and on ...

You can be a smart person and think about the beauty of your nails!

A.S. Pushkin

DICTIONARY

names of clothing and toilet items used in the novel "Eugene Onegin"

Beret- soft, loose-fitting headpiece. Who is there in a crimson beret // Is he talking to the Spanish ambassador?
Boa- women's wide shoulder scarf made of fur or feathers. He is happy if she throws // a fluffy boa on her shoulder ...
Bolivar- men's hat with very wide brim, a type of cylinder. Putting on a wide bolivar, // Onegin goes to the boulevard ...
Fan- a small manual folding fan, in expanded form, having the shape of a semicircle, a necessary ladies' ball accessory.
Diadem- women's head jewelry, originally. headdress of kings, and earlier - priests.
Vest- short men's clothing without a collar and sleeves, over which a frock coat, tailcoat is put on. Here they show dandies in notes // Their impudence, their waistcoat ...
Carrick- men's winter coat, which had several (sometimes up to fifteen) large decorative collars.
caftan- old Russian men's clothing in a figure with a small collar or without it. In glasses, in a tattered caftan, / With a stocking in his hand, a gray-haired Kalmyk ...
Necklace- women's neck decoration with pendants in front.
Corset- a wide elastic belt covering the torso and tightening the waist under the dress. The corset was very tight...
Sash- a belt several meters long, to which various objects were fastened. The coachman sits on the box // In a sheepskin coat, in a red sash ...
Lorgnette- optical glass, to the frame of which a handle is attached, usually folding. A double lorgnette points obliquely // At the lodges of unfamiliar ladies...
Mac- a coat or raincoat made of rubberized fabric.
Trousers- men's long pants with drawstrings without cuffs and smoothed pleats. But pantaloons, tailcoat, vest, // all these words are not in Russian...
Gloves- a piece of clothing that covers the hands from the wrist to the end of the fingers and each finger individually.
Handkerchief- 1. item of clothing - a piece of fabric, usually square, or a knitted product of this shape. With a gray-haired handkerchief on her head, // An old woman in a long padded jacket ... 2. the same as a handkerchief. ... Or raise a handkerchief to her.
redingote- women's and men's oar long fitted coat with a wide turn-down collar, fastened to the top with buttons.
Reticule- handmade small women's handbag.
frock coat- originally men's outerwear to the knees, deaf or with an open chest, with a standing or turn-down collar, at the waist, with narrow long sleeves.
Telogreyka- women's warm jacket without sleeves with assemblies at the waist. With a gray-haired scarf on her head, // An old woman in a long quilted jacket ...
Cane- a straight thin stick.
Sheepskin coat- long fur coat, usually naked, not covered with cloth. The coachman sits on the box // In a sheepskin coat, in a red sash ...
feronierka- a narrow ribbon worn on the forehead with a precious stone in the middle.
tailcoat- men's clothing, cut off at the waist, with narrow long tails at the back and cut-out front floors, with a turn-down collar and lapels, often trimmed with velvet. But pantaloons, tailcoat, vest, // All these words are not in Russian...
Robe- indoor clothing, wrapped or fastened from top to bottom. And he himself ate and drank in a dressing gown ...
Cylinder- a high solid men's hat with small hard fields, the upper part of which has the shape of a cylinder.
Cap- women's headdress, covering the hair and tied under the chin. At Aunt Princess Elena's // Still the same tulle cap...
Shawl- a large knitted or woven scarf.
Schlafor- home clothes, a spacious dressing gown, long, without fasteners, with a wide smell, girdled with a cord with tassels. And finally updated // On cotton wool dressing gown and cap.