Russian and foreign poets of the 18th century

Great Russian literature consists of a huge number of genres. One of the most interesting and most revealing is poetry. Famous poets of the 18th century had a significant impact on its development.

What is poetry?

This is a special kind of art, quite complex and multifaceted. In the world literature poetry is of great importance. From ancient times to the present day, it exists in various spheres of people's life. Suffice it to recall how the people are singing funny songs at the holidays, the texts of which were created by poets of the 18th century, the 19th and 20th. In the war, poetic lines and corresponding melodies raised the patriotic spirit of the fighters who fought for the Fatherland.

In the Middle Ages especially popular was the singing of serenades under the balconies of beautiful ladies - in this way men admitted their love feelings. Russian and foreign poets of the 18th century (among them Friedrich Schiller and Robert Burns) created such delightful masterpieces that in the following century a fashionable tendency appeared for noble gentlemen to recite poems to ladies dear to their hearts.

Thanks to poetry it is possible to convey the emotions, feelings and mood of a person, his attitude to surrounding events. Among the poetic works, lyrics, drama, a novel in verse and a poem stand out. All of them, unlike prose, have other ways of organizing artistic speech. Today, despite the changed life rhythm, other tastes and preferences, poetry remains a faithful companion of man.

The time of the appearance of poetry in Russia

Russian poetry originated in the seventeenth century. Speaking about the famous poets of Russia, we should mention the name of Simeon of Polotsk - the first poet, the Russian poet-professional. To him belong solemn poems, which rightly consider the prototype of an ode. Russian poets of the 18th century learned a lot from his most interesting works. Simeon Polotsky, being the main poet of his time, created two collections of syllabic poems. Another great merit of the poet is that he acquainted Moscow with dramatic art, composing three plays in the spirit of medieval mysteries. These plays were staged at the royal court.

Russian poetry of the 18th century

Russian poets of the 18th century used syllabic versification in their works. Thus they continued the foundations and traditions laid down by Simeon Polotsky. Since the middle of this century, syllabic versification has been replaced by a syllabo-tonic verse. The founders of the new poetic system were well-known poets of the 18th century: Lomonosov MV, Sumarokov AP And Trediakovsky V.K. Of the genres that existed at that time, they preferred a laudatory ode. The great Russian scientist Mikhail Vasilyevich Lomonosov was no less remarkable poet. Most often in his work he used iambic. In his opinion, it was the iamb that gave the poem a special splendor and nobility. He proposed to apply in poetry all kinds of rhymes.

Russian poets of the 18th century. List

1. Alexander Nikolayevich Radishchev.
2. Alexei Andreevich Rzhevsky.
3. Alexander Petrovich Sumarokov.
4. Anna Petrovna Bunina.
5. Anna Sergeevna Zhukova.
6. Andrei Andreevich Nartov.
7. Antioch Dmitrievich Cantemir.
8. Vasily Petrovich Petrov.
9. Vasily Vasilyevich Popugaev.
10. Vasily Lvovich Pushkin.
11. Vasily Kirillovich Trediakovsky.
12. Gavrila Romanovich Derzhavin.
13. Gavriil Petrovich Kamenev.
14. Ermil Ivanovich Kostrov.
15. Ivan Semenovich Barkov.
16. Ippolit Fedorovich Bogdanovich.
17. Ivan Ivanovich Dmitriev.
18. Ivan Petrovich Pnin.
19. Ivan Ivanovich Chemnitzer.
20. Ivan Mikhailovich Dolgoruky.
21. Ivan Perfil'evich Elagin.
22. Mikhail Vasilyevich Lomonosov.
23. Mikhail Ivanovich Popov.
24. Mikhail Matveyevich Kheraskov.
25. Nikolai Nikitich Popovsky.
26. Nikolai Aleksandrovich Lvov.
27. Pavel Pavlovich Ikosov.
28. Semyon Sergeyevich Bobrov.
29. Sergei Nikiforovich Marin.
30. Yakov Borisovich Knyazhnin.

Principal differences of Russian poetry of the 18th century from Old Russian literature

Alexander Sergeevich Pushkin in one phrase stressed the new nature of literature, which poets of the 18th century brought with them. What were the cardinal differences of this century from the previous stages of the history of literature? First of all, the Old Russian literature completely lacked the author's origin. A huge number of writers were nameless. Then there was literature impersonal, which corresponded to feudal ideology and religious consciousness. In this regard, Old Russian literature resembles folk folklore, where the author's origin was also absent. There were great masters of their craft, but not artists with a vivid and characteristic personality. In the Renaissance in the West, the idea of personality arose. At this time, a new literature appeared, where the author's beginning came to the fore. In Russia, the idea of personality was born much later, in the great Petrine era. Poets of the 18th century and their works marked the beginning of a new period. Russian literature has received a dynamic and rapid development. In just 70 years there have been such successes in literature, which in other countries have been won for centuries.

The first steps of the Russian literature of modern times

A solid foundation was laid for three decades by just three poets.

In 1729, from the pen of A.D. Cantemir was the first satire, which opened the whole direction. In 1735, V.K. Trediakovsky sets a goal to create national-original literature and performs the reform of versification. The syllabo-tonic system, proposed by the poet, opened the prospect of the development of Russian poetry. Its importance and wisdom, as well as broad opportunities, were confirmed. Until now, this system is used by modern artists.

In 1739, M.V. Lomonosov creates an ode "To take Khotin," based on the reform developed by Trediakovsky.

The great Russian poet M.V. Lomonosov his work radically changed the face and character of literature, its role and place in the cultural and social life of the country. Our literature confirmed its right to exist in poetic genres and "spoke" with the reader in a completely new language. This was achieved by the poets of the 18th century. The Russian poems of these creators are so magnificent that for a whole century poetry held the dominant position. It is thanks to her that prose, which emerged from the 1760s and received its flourishing in the 30s of the 19th century, is successfully perceived. Then, when they lived and created their unique creations, A.S. Pushkin and N.V. Gogol. After that, prose will take its first place in the literature.

Conclusion

Thus, poets of the 18th century made a great contribution to the development of Russian poetry. They used in their works syllabic versification. Thus they continued the foundations and traditions laid down by Simeon Polotsky. The creators of the new verse system were: A.D. Cantemir, M.V. Lomonosov, A.P. Sumarokov and VK Trediakovsky. Thanks to them, poetry for a whole century occupied a dominant position. Poems of Russian poets of the 18th century are magnificent. They conquered the hearts of many readers.