Towards the Romantic Age Essays on Sentimental and Preromantic Liter
Russian literature between 1750 and the romantic age presents a confus ing picture. Various literary movements arose and existed side by side, while new trends made themselves felt. At no other time in the history of Russian literature was there a simila
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TOWARDS THE ROMANTIC AGE ESSAYS ON SENTIMENTAL AND PREROMANTIC LITERATURE IN RUSSIA
RUDOLF NEUHAUSER
II MARTINUS NIJHOFF/THE HAGUE/1974
© 1974 by Martinus Nijhoff, The Hague, Netherlands. All rights reserved, including the right to translate or to reproduce this book or parts thereof in any form.
ISBN-13: 978-90-247-1549-7 DOl: 10.1007/978-94-010-1988-0
e-ISBN-13: 978-94-010-1988-0
TABLE OF CONTENTS
VII
Preface. Introduction .
IX
I Sentimentalism: The Conceptual Background 1. 2. 3. 4.
A Russian Sentimentalist: I. I. Dmitriev The Philosophical Background . The Sensualist Approach in Russian Aesthetics. Freemasonic Concepts
1 8 13 17
II Sentimentalism: Literary Influences from the West and the Russian Response
1. 2. 3. 4.
Three Trends Translated Literature between 1750 and 1780 . Changing Genre Concepts . Sentimental Aestheticism: Patterns and Motifs
27 32 52 71
III The Transition to Preromantic Writing 1. From Sentimental Cliches to Preromantic Concepts . 2. Major Influences on Preromantic Writing in Russia . Jean Jacques Rousseau, William Shakespeare, Johann Gottfried Herder, Friedrich Schiller, Johann Wolfgang Goethe 3. German Aesthetic Theories in Russia . 4. Folklore and Mythology .
85 90
117 127
VI
TABLE OF CONTENTS
IV Preromantic Themes and Motifs 1. Basic Concepts of Preromantic Literature: Nature, Poetry, and the Genius . 2. Major Genres of Preromantic Literature. The Novel and Drama 3. Early Russian Interpretations of the Romantic: The Term "romanicheskii" .
143 150
162
V Russian Preromantic Writing
1. 2. 3. 4.
N. M. Karamzin's Preromantic Period. The Friendly Literary Society. The Free Society of Lovers of Literature, Science and the Arts Three Preromantic Authors V. T. Narezhnyi, N. I. Gnedich, D. V. Davydov
169 193 205 222
Conclusion .
237
Index of Names .
241
Index of Terms .
247
Index of Russian Periodicals .
249
PREFACE
Russian literature between 1750 and the romantic age presents a confusing picture. Various literary movements arose and existed side by side, while new trends made themselves felt. At no other time in the history of Russian literature was there a similar influx of widely disparate literary and intellectual influences from the West. The complex evolution of literature is reflected in the area of literary classification. Period terms have been used in great variety, yet without general agreement as to the extent, or even the nature of the trends described. The essays of this study are devoted to two major literary trends of the 18th and early 19th century, -sentimentalism and preromanticism. They aim to elucidate their evolution as well as at defining and describing the conceptual framework on which they rest. Since the 18th century did not draw a sharp line between translated and original literature, both have been included here. Literary, philosophical, and general cultural influences from the West were of considerable importance for Russian literature. The concepts, motifs and themes which reached Russian writers in translations moulded their
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