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Table of contents

1. General concepts of cultural history (What is culture. The subject and object of the study of culture. The structure of culture. Forms of culture, its classification. The meaning and functions of culture. Methods and problems of studying culture)
2. Culture from ancient to modern times (Change of cultures. Culture of primitive peoples. Culture of the Ancient World. Culture of the Middle Ages)
3. Russian culture (The culture of the ancient Slavs. Kievan Rus and the era of feudal fragmentation. The culture of Muscovite Rus'. Russian culture of the 17th-18th centuries. The cultural appearance of Russia in the 19th century)
4. Religion and culture (Paganism as a phenomenon of cultural history. Main religions: Buddhism, Islam, Christianity. The importance of religion in the history of culture)
5. Relationships between cultures (Causes of cultural differences. Communications and mutual influence of cultures)
6. Modern culture (Features of modern culture. Problems of culture of the late XX - early XXI centuries)

LECTURE No. 1. General concepts of the history of culture

1. What is culture

When in the Middle Ages a new way of cultivating grain appeared, more progressive and improved, called the Latin word culture, no one could yet guess how much the concept of this expression would change and expand. If the term agriculture and in our time means the cultivation of cereals, then already in the XVIII-XIX centuries. the very word culture will lose its usual meaning. A person who possesses elegance of manners, upbringing, and erudition began to be called cultural. The "cultured" aristocrats were thus separated from the "uncivilized" common people. In Germany, there was a similar word kultur, which meant a high level of civilization. From the point of view of the enlighteners of the XVIII century. the word culture was explained as "reasonableness". This rationality related primarily to social orders and political institutions, the main criteria for its evaluation were achievements in the field of art and science. To make people happy is the main goal of culture. It coincides with the desires of the human mind. This trend, which believes that the main goal of a person is to achieve happiness, bliss, joy, is called eudemonism. His supporters were the French Enlightener Charles Louis Montesquieu (1689-1755), Italian philosopher Giambattista Vico (1668-1744), French philosopher Paul Henri Holbach (1723-1789), French writer and philosopher Jean Jacques Rousseau (1712-1778), French philosopher Johann Gottfried Herder (1744-1803).

As a scientific category, culture began to be perceived only in the second half of the XNUMXth century. The concept of culture is becoming more and more inseparable from the concept of civilization. For some philosophers, these boundaries did not exist at all, for example, for the German philosopher Immanuel Kant (1724-1804), the existence of such boundaries was undeniable; he pointed out them in his writings. An interesting fact is that already at the beginning of the 20th century. German historian and philosopher Oswald Spengler (1880-1936)On the contrary, he contrasted the concept of “culture” with the concept of “civilization.” He “revived” the concept of culture, comparing it with a certain set of closed “organisms”, endowing them with the ability to live and die. After death, culture turns into the opposite civilization, in which naked technicalism kills everything creative.

The modern concept of culture has expanded significantly, but the similarities in its modern comprehension and in its understanding in the 250th-300th centuries. stayed. It, as before, for most people is associated with various types of art (theatre, music, painting, literature), good education. At the same time, the modern definition of culture has discarded the former aristocracy. Along with this, the meaning of the word culture is extremely broad; an accurate and well-established definition of culture does not yet exist. Modern scientific literature gives a huge number of definitions of culture. According to some data, there are about XNUMX-XNUMX of them, according to others - over a thousand. At the same time, all these definitions, in turn, are correct, because in a broad sense the word culture is defined as something social, artificial, it goes in contrast to everything natural, created by nature.

Many scientists and thinkers have been involved in the definition of culture. For example, the American ethnologist Alfred Louis Kroeber (June 11, 1876 – October 5, 1960), being one of the leading representatives of the school of cultural anthropology of the 20th century, studied the concept of culture, tried to group the main features of culture into one clear, clear core definition.

Let us present the main interpretations of the term “culture”.

1. Culture (from Latin culture- "education, cultivation") - a generalization of artificial objects (material objects, relationships and actions) created by man, which have general and special patterns (structural, dynamic and functional).

2. Culture is a way of life of a person, which is determined by his social environment (various rules, norms and orders accepted in society).

3. Culture is the various values ​​of a group of people (material and social), including customs, behaviors, institutions.

4. According to the concept of E. Taylor, culture is a combination of various activities, all kinds of customs and beliefs of people, everything created by man (books, paintings, etc.), as well as knowledge about adaptation to the natural and social world (language, customs, ethics, etiquette, etc.).

5. From a historical point of view, culture is nothing but the result of the historical development of mankind. That is, it includes everything that was created by man and transmitted from generation to generation, including various views, activities and beliefs.

6. It follows from the theory of learning that culture is the behavior of people that they learn, and not that which they received as a biological inheritance.

7. According to the ideological theory, culture is a certain flow of ideas, these ideas pass from person to person through various actions, means of communication (words, repetition of someone else's experience).

8. According to psychological science, culture is the adaptation of a person to the world around him (natural and social) in order to solve various problems at his psychological level. The concept of culture is precisely the sum of all these adaptations.

9. According to the symbolic definition of culture, it is nothing more than a collection of various phenomena (ideas, actions, material objects), organized using all kinds of symbols.

All these definitions are correct, but it is almost impossible to make one from them. One can only make a generalization. Culture is the result of people's behavior, their activities, it is historical, that is, it is transmitted from generation to generation along with the ideas, beliefs, values ​​of people through study. Each new generation does not assimilate culture biologically, it perceives it emotionally during its life (for example, with the help of symbols), makes its own transformations, and then passes it on to the next generation.

We can consider the history of mankind as the expedient activity of people. It is the same with the history of culture, which can in no way be separated from the history of mankind. This means that this activity approach can help us in studying the history of culture. It lies in the fact that the concept of culture includes not only material values, products of human activity, but this activity itself. Therefore, it is advisable to consider culture as a combination of all types of transformative activities of people and those material and spiritual values ​​that are the products of this activity. Only by considering culture through the prism of human activity, peoples, one can understand its essence.

Being born, a person does not immediately become a part of society, he joins it with the help of training and education, i.e., mastering the culture. This means that it is precisely this familiarization of a person with society, with the surrounding world of people that is culture. Comprehending culture, a person himself can make his own contribution, enriching the cultural baggage of mankind. A huge role in mastering this baggage is played by interpersonal relationships (they appear from birth), as well as self-education. Do not forget about another source that has become very relevant in our modern world - the media (television, Internet, radio, newspapers, magazines, etc.).

But it is wrong to think that the process of mastering culture affects only the socialization of a person. Comprehending cultural values, a person first of all leaves an imprint on his personality, makes changes in his individual qualities (character, mindset, psychological characteristics). Therefore, in culture there are always contradictions between socialization and individualization of the individual.

This contradiction is not the only one in the development of culture, but often such contradictions do not hinder this development, but, on the contrary, push it towards it.

Many humanities are engaged in the study of culture. First of all, it is worth highlighting cultural studies.

Culturology - This is a humanitarian science that deals with the study of various phenomena and laws of culture. This science was formed in the XX century.

There are several versions of this science.

1. Evolutionary, i.e. in the process of historical development. Its supporter was the English philosopher E. Taylor.

2. Non-evolutionarybased on education. This version was supported by an English writer Iris Murdoch (1919-1999).

3. Structuralist, this includes activities of any kind. Supporter - French philosopher, cultural and scientific historian Michel Paul Foucault (1926-1984).

4. Functional, for which the British anthropologist and cultural scientist spoke out Bronislaw Kasper Malinowski (1884-1942).

5. Gaming. Dutch historian and idealist philosopher Johan Huizinga (1872-1945) I saw the basis of culture in the game, and the game as the highest essence of man.

6. Synergetic.

7. Dialogical, whose supporter was the Russian philosopher, literary critic, and art theorist Mikhail Mikhailovich Bakhtin (1895-1975).

There are no specific boundaries between cultural studies and related philosophy of culture. But still, these are different sciences, since the philosophy of culture, unlike cultural studies, is engaged in the search for super-experimental principles of culture. Philosophers of culture include the French writer and philosopher Jean Jacques Rousseau, French writer and philosopher-educator, deist Voltaire (1694-1778), representative of the “philosophy of life” movement, German philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche (1844-1900).

In addition to these humanities, there are a number of others that are based precisely on culture. These sciences include: ethnography (studies the material and spiritual culture of individual peoples), sociology (studies the patterns of development and functioning of society as an integral system), cultural anthropology (studies the functioning of society among different peoples, which is determined by their culture), culture morphology (studies cultural forms), psychology (the science of the mental life of people), history (studies the past of human society).

Let us dwell on the basic concepts of culture in more detail.

Artifact (from lat. arte/actum - "artificially made") culture is a unit of culture. That is, an object that carries with it not only physical features, but also symbolic ones.

Such artifacts include clothes of a particular era, interior items, etc.

Civilization - the totality of all the characteristics of society, often this concept acts as a synonym for the concept of "culture". According to the public figure and thinker Friedrich Engels (1820-1895), civilization is the stage of human development following barbarism. The same theory was adhered to by the American historian and ethnographer Lewis Henry Morgan (1818-1881). He presented his theory of the development of human society in the form of a sequence: savagery, barbarism, civilization.

Etiquette - the established order of conduct in any circles of society. It is divided into business, casual, guest, military, etc.

historical traditions - elements of cultural heritage that are passed down from generation to generation. Distinguish optimistic и pessimistic historical traditions. Optimists include the German philosopher Immanuel KantEnglish philosopher and sociologist Herbert Spencer (1820-1903), German philosopher, esthetician and critic Johann Gottfried Herder. These and other optimistic philosophers viewed culture as a community of people, progress, love and order. In their opinion, the world is dominated by a positive principle, that is, good. Their goal is to achieve humanity.

The opposite of optimism is pessimism (from Latin pessimus - "worst"). According to pessimistic philosophers, it is not good that prevails in the world, but the negative principle, that is, evil and chaos. The pioneer of this doctrine was the German philosopher-irrationalist Arthur Schopenhauer (1788-1860). His philosophy became widespread in Europe at the end of the 19th century. In addition to A. Schopenhauer, supporters of the pessimistic theory were Jean-Jacques Rousseau, an Austrian psychiatrist and psychologist, the founder of psychoanalysis Sigmund Freud (1856-1939), as well as Friedrich Nietzsche, who advocated cultural anarchy. These philosophers were interesting because they denied all cultural boundaries and were against all kinds of prohibitions imposed on human cultural activity.

Culture is an integral part of human life. It organizes human life as a genetically programmed behavior.

2. The subject and object of the study of culture

The study of the history of human culture throughout its existence is based on such sciences as cultural studies, philosophy of culture, etc. What is the subject of study of all these sciences?

The subject of study is the identification of patterns of cultural processes (both global and national in general), as well as various phenomena of spiritual and material culture, cultural monuments, factors and starting points that have become prerequisites for the emergence, development and further development of cultural interests, horizons, needs and wants of the people. In addition, it is also important that these achievements, phenomena, monuments, etc., cultural material and spiritual values ​​should not only be consumed by people, but they should be multiplied, preserved and passed on from generation to generation. At the stage of this historical transfer of experience, a new contradiction of culture arises - the relationship between traditions and updates that each subsequent generation brings. More Nikolai Alexandrovich Berdyaev (1874-1948), a Russian religious philosopher, considered culture to be a complex antinomic (contradictory) system.

All aspects of people's social life are related to the concept of a cultural object. Also, the object is the study of all the features and achievements of the basic cultural and historical types, all kinds of processes and trends in the modern socio-cultural environment.

If the main sciences that study culture are culturology and the philosophy of culture, then there are sciences whose contribution to its study is also very significant. Such sciences include psychology, anthropology, sociology, history and, of course, philosophy. But the selection of specific subjects and objects related to certain sciences, just allows them to be distinguished. For example, for cultural studies, in contrast to sociology, the content side of the joint life of people plays an important role. Unlike history and social philosophy, which are more interested in the side of the event-activity content of the life of society, culturology is more interested in specific forms of the history of this life, ways to preserve them, streamline and regulate them. Although the emergence of cultural studies is attributed to the beginning of the 90th century, in Russia it happened even later, only in the XNUMXs. XNUMXth century At the same time, in the West there are no clear boundaries for the possession of this science. Its responsibilities were taken over and divided among themselves by such sciences as sociology, cultural anthropology, philosophy of culture, ethnography, ethnology, etc.

Scientists distinguish three stages in the formation of cultural studies.

1. Ethnographic (1800-1860).

2. Evolutionist (1860-1895).

3. Historical (1895-1925).

It is during these periods that the basic concepts of cultural studies are formed, which are also inherent in its modern version. Although from the second half of the XX century. culturology becomes inherent in a certain pragmatism. Valuable knowledge is becoming more and more in demand due to the emergence and expansion of the media, the application of this knowledge in diplomacy, politics, military affairs, etc.

3. Structure of culture

Many scientists and philosophers, such as N. A. Berdyaev, considered culture as a complex system. According to the German philosopher-historian O. Spengler, this complex system consists of "closed organisms". That is why it is quite logical to introduce the concept "culture structure". Let's consider the main features of this structure. To do this, we need to decide what kind of culture interests us: a culture at rest, repeating and unchanging, or one in constant process, in motion, changing all the time. The first type of culture was named cultural staticssecond - cultural dynamics.

What is the basis of the concept of culture? First of all, these are values. They are tangible and intangible. Accordingly, culture is divided into material and non-material. Most often, non-material culture is called spiritual. You should not try to always separately consider these seemingly different concepts, since in ordinary life they often intersect, and sometimes one cannot exist without the other. What are the characteristics of these types of cultures?

Under material culture is understood as the totality of all material goods, as well as the means and forms of their production and consumption. An important feature of material culture is the non-identity of the material life of society, as well as any material activity and production. Since material culture is understood as human activity as an influencing factor on the development of mankind. This development is of great importance for material culture, and with it the creative abilities and possibilities of man, which he received with this development.

Material culture has a complex structure, which includes the following components.

1. Material production.

2. Work culture.

3. Culture of topos (cities, villages, villages, houses).

4. Culture of one's own body, attitudes towards it.

5. Physical culture.

spiritual culture refers to cultural statics. These are various non-material objects (laws, norms, rules, religions, languages, spiritual values, traditions, mythology) that need a material intermediary. This means that spiritual culture is the totality of those areas of activity, knowledge, thinking, etc., which are related to the formation of spiritual values.

As mentioned above, there are no clear boundaries between material and spiritual cultures. There is such a thing as a "vertical section" of culture. It includes such types of culture that are equivalent to both the material and the spiritual side of the concept of culture. These types of culture include economics, politics, aesthetics, ecology, etc.

An important feature of cultural statics is that all its elements are subdivided according to temporal and spatial characteristics. Culture is historical, part of the material and spiritual values ​​created by one generation is passed on to the next generations if these values ​​have stood the test of time. This is the essence of such a phenomenon as cultural heritage. Cultural heritage plays a huge role in the formation of a unified society, since it is the decisive factor in assessing the cohesion of a nation.

What, if not cultural heritage, can unite and strengthen society in difficult times.

Cultural heritage is not the only concept related to cultural statics. An important concept is cultural area. It immediately becomes clear that we are talking about a geographical area. This concept includes those cultural features that are similar among different peoples, countries, and regions. After all, culture is influenced by a huge number of factors; it directly depends on the geographical location of a particular social group. Moreover, an important feature is that in different areas remote from each other, something can be found in common, especially in the modern world, where the media have become widespread, thanks to which knowledge is becoming increasingly accessible. That is why, along with the concept of a cultural area, it is appropriate to introduce another one that would express cultural heritage on a global scale. Such a concept is cultural universals. What is it? The word "universals" comes from the Latin universalis, which means "common." That is, when we talk about cultural universals, we are talking about those values, traditions, norms, laws and rules that are inherent not in any particular region, but in all cultures, regardless of their geographical location, historical period and other properties of society.

Culturologists have been studying such universals for many years. For example, American anthropologists distinguish about seventy such universals. These are concepts that are familiar to us. For example, cooking, having a calendar, age grading, numbers, personal names, family, dancing, religious rituals, etc.

Anthropologists usually distinguish four basic elements of culture.

1. Concepts, i.e. concepts that regulate and organize people's experience. Basically, concepts are contained in the language spoken by a particular people.

2. Valuables - those beliefs to which a person should aspire. They are based on morality, accepted norms, etc.

3. Rules - rules that regulate human behavior. Here there is a relationship between values ​​and rules, since it is precisely certain rules, laws and norms that establish.

4. Relations - means of communication between certain concepts of culture, even those that are scattered in space and time.

An important role in all these elements of culture is played by language. Being a communication system, it has its own complex structure. With the help of language, people are socialized; thanks to it, people gain experience, accumulate it, and pass it on from generation to generation. Language can both unite a society and lead to its disunity, when people speak different languages ​​but live in the same territory.

4. Forms of culture, its classification

Since culture is a complex system, it is customary to consider it from different angles according to certain characteristics.

The main classifications of culture are maintained:

1) by geographical features (East, West, etc.);

2) according to temporal characteristics (a chronology of cultures is maintained);

3) according to formation characteristics (Stone Age, Iron Age, etc.);

4) by technological features (characteristics of new information technologies);

5) according to the carrier of culture.

Let us dwell in more detail on the last classification - according to the culture carrier. Accordingly, culture is divided into world и national.

World culture includes all the best that has been achieved by the national cultures of various peoples around the world.

National culture is a collection of cultures no longer of peoples, but of various classes, groups and strata of society. National culture includes spiritual values ​​(language, religion, literature, etc.) and material values ​​(household management, tools, economic structure).

That culture, with its values, customs, beliefs, way of life and traditions, which is inherent in the majority of members of society, is dominant culture. But various factors (the disintegration of society into separate social groups) led to the emergence of so-called subcultures, i.e. cultures that are inherent in small cultural worlds. Such subcultures may include youth, pensioners, national minorities and other groups. Often the differences between the dominant culture and the subculture are small. But it happens that the differences are huge, groups appear that begin to resist the dominant culture. This phenomenon is called counterculture. Sometimes this contradiction develops from passive into extremist. Often such groups are characterized by anarchism and radicalism. It is worth remembering the sixties and seventies of the 20th century. In Europe and the USA, such a significant movement as hippies appeared. “Flower children,” as its participants called themselves, rejected the moral norms of society and lived according to their own principles and beliefs (“free love”). They did not agree with the conformism inherent in the society of that time, with its restraint and rationalism. The basis of the new movement was youth. The "flower children" were replaced by a new movement, already more radical and fierce - punk. Translated from English, the word punk means “rot, garbage.” Punks were characterized by anarchic ideals, music and paraphernalia, which distinguished them from the “consumer” society with its thirst for profit and outdated moral values.

A multi-level culture, depending on who creates this culture, has several forms: elite, folk, mass.

From the very names of these forms, it is already possible to draw conclusions about what kind of creators of culture we are talking about here. But nevertheless we will dwell on each of the forms of culture in more detail.

Elite culture often call high culture. It is created by order of the elite of society, its privileged part, by professionals in their field. This includes classical music, classical literature, and various types of fine art. The slogan is the saying “Art for art’s sake.” Elite culture is most often inaccessible to poorly educated people and is somewhat isolated from them.

An example of such a culture is the Russian art association "World of Art". It was created in St. Petersburg in 1898 by a Russian artist, critic and art historian Alexander Nikolaevich Benois (1870-1960) and Russian theatrical and artistic figure Sergei Pavlovich Diaghilev (1872-1929) and lasted until 1924. The leaders of this society stood for "pure" art, sought to "transform" life with this art.

The opposite of elitist (high) culture is the culture folk, other name - amateur culture. Its creators do not have any professional training in their field, and their names often remain unknown. The most commonly used definition for folk (amateur) culture is folklore. This includes various myths, fairy tales, traditions, dances and songs. Folk culture is divided into individual (narratives, fairy tales, legends), group (dances, songs) massive (carnivals).

Folklore, unlike elite culture, remains tied to a specific place, to its traditions and norms.

Another kind of culture Mass culture. Second name - public culture. She is not distinguished by any sophistication and aristocratic tastes. Mass culture appears in the middle of the 20th century. This is due to the proliferation of mass media in most countries. Mass art is art for everyone, and therefore must satisfy the tastes of the majority. That's why it directly depends on the market.

Popular culture is also subdivided, it includes international и national mass cultures.

Unlike elite culture, mass culture is intended for a larger audience, and in contrast to popular culture, which is characterized by anonymity, mass culture is authorial.

An important characteristic of mass culture is such a thing as fashion. Mass culture must satisfy the momentary desires of people, change quickly, and be relevant. All this leads to a number of disadvantages: primitivism, cultural mediocrity, the emergence of primitive cults, heroes, the desire to own things, etc. But there is also a virtue: mass culture is primarily based on archetypes. It is on this unconscious interest of people in certain things (sex, violence, money) that mass culture is based, which is why it is so understandable to everyone. All this leads to the reduction of society to the stage of silent consumption. No wonder many philosophers and writers began to address this problem. The German philosopher and historian O. Spengler was the first to start. His main work, "The Decline of Europe", written in 1918-1922, is dedicated to the death of culture, its transformation into a civilization without any creativity. The problem of possession and being, "freedom for" and "freedom from" was touched upon in his book "To have or to be" by the German-American philosopher, psychologist and sociologist Erich Fromm (1900-1980). For these philosophers, mass culture is just spiritual unfreedom.

5. The meaning and functions of culture

The importance of culture in our world is enormous. It plays the first role in the development of society. Consider the main functions of culture, its phenomenon.

1. Human-creative function. She is in charge. Its other name is humanistic. All the functions discussed below are, in one way or another, consequences of the humanistic function.

2. Transfer of accumulated social experience. Here we are talking mainly about the historicism of culture. Because culture is significant in that it is continuous, that is, it is passed on from generation to generation. These transfers of experience are carried out in various ways: with the help of oral traditions, through monuments of art, literature, religion, philosophy, science, etc. Moreover, not all the accumulated experience of a generation is transmitted, but only its best examples. Humanity needs to do everything possible to ensure that this continuity never ends, as this can lead to dire consequences. There is such a thing as anomie. It precisely denotes a break in this very continuity. As a consequence of anomie, humanity is losing its social memory and historical consciousness. This effect is called phenomenon of mankurtism.

3. Epistemological function. It is associated with the ability to know, and this knowledge leads to the accumulation of rich experience and knowledge about the world around us.

4. Normative function. It lies in the fact that culture regulates various aspects of people’s social and personal life. This regulation is carried out through systems such as morality and law.

5. Semiotic (sign) function. To It includes various sign systems of culture. For example, languages, sign systems in the natural sciences (biology, physics, chemistry, mathematics, trigonometry).

6. Value (axiological) function. Since culture is a system of material and spiritual values, by which one can already judge the degree of culture of a person, and, consequently, his morality and intelligence.

6. Methods and problems of studying culture

culture - a complex and multi-level system, therefore, its study is not uniform.

There are several approaches to the analysis of culture:

1) technological (assesses the level of development of production);

2) activity (philosophy, painting);

3) valuable;

4) genetic;

5) structural;

6) symbolic.

In the XVIII century. There are two main approaches to answering the question: what is culture?

One of the directions is pessimistic (irrational). Its founder was the French writer and philosopher-educator J.-J. Rousseau. In his understanding, man is a perfect being, and he saw the most favorable form of life for him in the natural environment, in the lap of nature. And since culture, according to Rousseau, draws the line between man and nature, he considered it the main evil. Advocating for the equality of all people, he accused culture, along with all religions, art and sciences, of preventing this equality.

A supporter of J. J. Rousseau was the German philosopher F. Nietzsche. He was an adherent of anti-culture as the true nature of man. Culture, in his opinion, is an evil that cannot give freedom, but only enslaves a person. The Austrian psychiatrist and psychologist, the founder of psychoanalysis 3. Freud agreed with this enslavement by culture. He saw the source of various mental suffering and deviations of people in the fact that they need to adapt to the world around them with its cultural norms.

In his writings, the German-American philosopher, psychologist and sociologist Erich Fromm just repelled from Freudian psychoanalysis, adding to it the theory of alienation K. Marx (1818-1883).

The XNUMXth century was marked by three theories of cultural development at once: O. Spengler, A. Schweitzer, M. Weber.

According to the theory of the German philosopher O. Spengler, rationalistic civilization led to the degradation of the spiritual values ​​of culture. According to Spengler, culture is an organism whose lifespan is about a thousand years. According to this, O. Spengler divided the entire world history into eight cultures: Egyptian, Indian, Babylonian, Chinese, Greco-Roman, Byzantine-Arab, Western European, Mayan culture.

Theory of a German scientist Max Weber (1864-1920) denied the collapse of the culture of Western Europe. According to the philosopher, some values ​​are inevitably replaced by others, which happened in Western Europe.

German-French thinker Albert Schweitzer (1875-1965) his work "The Decay and Revival of Culture" supported O. Spengler. A. Schweitzer also noted the decline of Western European culture, which led to its crisis. But at the same time, A. Schweitzer, unlike O. Spengler, did not believe that this was an irreversible process. He believed that the situation could be improved.

An interesting concept of researching the culture of a sociologist Pitirim Aleksandrovich Sorokin (1889-1968). He identified three main types of crops:

1) perfect;

2) sensual;

3) idealistic.

Ideal the type is based on the supersensible absolute, therefore, it mainly includes spiritual cultural values. The second type - sensual - puts the material at the head of everything. His needs are purely physical.

Idealistic type is a synthesis of ideal and sensual types of culture.

It is worth noting that the process of development of society has similar types. The first type, ideal, belongs rather to the ancient world. It operates until the XNUMXth century. It is replaced by an idealistic culture. It persists until the XNUMXth century, then comes the sensual culture, in the XNUMXth century. she is in decline.

The Russian natural scientist had a great influence on the understanding of culture Vladimir Ivanovich Vernadsky (1863-1945). He introduced a new concept "noosphere", meaning "sphere of the mind", and also studied its influence on various processes that occur on our planet.

Another bright representative of the study of the phenomenon of culture - Karl Jaspers (1883-1969), German philosopher, representative of religious existentialism. At that time, the theory of cultural cycles dominated in Europe, but he was not its supporter and introduced a new concept - axial time. This axis is the time of about 500 BC. e. He associates the largest revolution in history with the presence of this axis.

There are a number of sciences that allow you to study the history of culture. These sciences include:

1) chronology - the science of measuring time, which allows you to set the dates of historical events;

2) metrology - a historical discipline that studies the development of systems of measures, money account, etc.;

3) heraldry - the discipline that studies coats of arms;

4) paleography - a historical discipline that studies the monuments of ancient writing;

5) genealogy - a historical discipline that studies the origin and history of family ties, compiles genealogies, etc.

LECTURE No. 2. Culture from ancient to modern times

1. Change of cultures

In understanding the theory of culture, an important role is played by such a principle as historicism. That is, the approach to the study of culture should be as a phenomenon developing over time. After all, history is characterized by such a pattern as a change of cultures. At first glance, it may seem that a particular culture strives for the greatest sustainability, which would lead to its long-term existence. But meanwhile, in history we observe that a certain culture is a temporary phenomenon.

This means that when studying the history of culture, one must not forget to consider it as a directed process. What is this direction? It is precisely connected with the historicism of culture. The orientation of culture is defined as a certain development in time from the past to the future. With such a view of culture, we will be able not only to consider it at a certain point in time, but also to determine its movement, transformation, and also to compare different temporary states.

But as noted above, one specific culture can not only move in time, but also be replaced by another specific culture.

There can be two reasons for this:

1) external circumstances, such as an ecological catastrophe, a political crisis, the acquisition of another culture, etc.;

2) cultural reform based on the continuity of cultures.

With the first reason, everything is more or less clear, so let's dwell on the consideration of the second - on the cultural reform. After all, at first glance, the established culture is not the only one. In addition to it, there will always be a number of smaller crops that can influence the main crop. Sometimes these minor cultures may even be in opposition to the dominant culture. This leads to its modifications. An example is the medieval culture of the Renaissance that appeared as if in opposition. Despite its differences, this culture has absorbed some of the features of the opposition culture, such as mysticism, nominalism, etc.

But the reforms of cultures do not always go quietly and calmly, when cultures, borrowing something new, change, move to new stages. Sometimes conflict between cultures is the source of a cultural revolution. History knows a number of such examples.

In 1966-1976 A cultural revolution took place in China, which led the country to a huge crisis. The Cultural Revolution took place in Europe in the XNUMXth-XNUMXth centuries. due to church reforms. It resulted in the emergence of a new branch of the Christian religion - Protestantism.

From the point of view of the temporal, historical classification of culture, epochs are distinguished:

1) primitive;

2) antiquity;

3) medieval culture;

4) the culture of the new time;

5) the culture of modern times.

Of course, these are not all cultural epochs, but significant ones.

2. Culture of primitive peoples

Primitiveness This is the childhood of all mankind. It is in the primitive era that most of the history of mankind falls. Despite this, our knowledge of these distant times is very scarce.

One of the most striking events of that time was the transition of a person from the stage of skillful (Homo habilis) to the reasonable stage (Homosapiens). This transition did not happen overnight; he had to overcome a long and difficult path. Scientists are still arguing about how everything happened, when Homo sapiens appeared, and how he settled throughout the globe.

Many people tend to think that humans descended from African monkeys 8-5 million years ago, since monkeys split into two branches. One had great apes, such as chimpanzees; in the other, Australopithecus, the ancestral form of humans.

How is man different from apes? The thing is that for a person the world around him is the object of his thoughts and speech. The formation of communities with specific goals led to the formation of mankind. As a result - the emergence of art.

The huge period of the primitive era makes it logical to periodize it. Periods of the primitive world:

1) Stone Age (2 million - 6 thousand years ago). It in turn is divided into:

a) ancient, another name is Paleolithic, it consists of lower, middle and upper (late);

b) medium (Mesolithic);

c) new (Neolithic);

2) copper age (4-3 thousand years BC);

3) the Bronze Age (beginning of the 1st millennium BC);

4) Iron Age (from the beginning of the 1st millennium BC).

One of the most striking achievements of primitive man is his mastery of such skills as agriculture and cattle breeding. This happened about ten thousand years ago. How did people feed themselves before that? Their extraction of means of subsistence at that time did not differ much from animal habits.

There were three ways to get food:

1) gathering;

2) hunting;

3) fishing.

An interesting fact is that already in the Paleolithic, reasonable solutions to problems can be traced among people of that time. For example, despite the fact that the tools for hunting were very primitive, brilliant tactics with which they hunted animals helped not to starve to death. Only at the beginning of the Mesolithic do bows and arrows appear, which means that the main quality of a hunter is now not strength and tactics of action, but accuracy. At the same time, fishing techniques improved, such devices as hooks and nets appeared, which are used to this day.

In the Mesolithic era, the first signs appear that people are moving from appropriation to agriculture. This is evidenced by such finds dating back to the Mesolithic era as sickles, grains of barley, wheat, etc.

In addition to agriculture, people began to master another type of producing economy - animal husbandry. Scientists tend to argue that it was the farmers who first began to domesticate animals.

All this contributed to the simplification of human life and, as a result, the growth of the human race.

Now man is not just a part of nature. He himself is able to change the world around him, in particular, through art.

Already in the Stone Age, the first signs were discovered that a person was beginning to express himself through various forms of art. In 1836 French geologist, archaeologist Edward Parte (1801-1871) in the grotto of Chaffaut in the department of Vienne, discovered a plate on which an engraving was made. E. Larte was the founder of paleontology, he discovered Aurignacian culture. This is the name of the Late Paleolithic culture in Western Europe. A variety of female figurines made of bone and stone have been preserved. These figurines, which speak of the cult of the ancestral mother, are called Venuses. It is interesting that similar Venuses have been found in various remote areas of the globe (Italy, Austria, Russia, France).

But still the main theme in art was the theme of hunting. And the main object of creativity were animals. Various depictions of prehistoric animals that have been found indicate that hunters have studied the various habits of animals very thoroughly. Comprehending the surrounding world, a person very accurately managed to depict animals on engravings, in sculptures made of stone, wood or clay. On the other hand, there were incomparably few images of people, since the person himself did not enjoy as much attention as the world around him.

In the primitive era, people begin to use all kinds of symbols to convey their feelings and visions. The symbols of that time can be not only realistic and understandable, but also extremely conditional. These symbols carry a great aesthetic load, which conveys the feelings and opinions of the author.

Consider the cultures of different eras of the primitive world separately and in more detail.

Paleolithic era

Art never stands still, it develops. This is primarily due to the fact that a person constantly learns something new, learns the world around him more and more. And art just reflects the knowledge gained by a person by various means.

So in the Paleolithic era, art did not stand still. Scientists usually distinguish three stages in visual activity, which are characterized by different artistic forms.

Stages in the visual arts of the Paleolithic following:

1) more natural creativity. This stage is based on creating natural layouts. Basically, these are various pictorial compositions from the carcasses of killed animals, their bones, etc.;

2) artificial figurative form. Natural models give way to other natural materials, mainly clay. Here you can find sculptures, profile contours, bas-reliefs and other compositions;

3) Upper Paleolithic art. These are various paintings on the walls of caves, engravings on bones, etc.

natural creativity most often accompanied by a set of ritual actions. They were carried out with the carcass and skin of a dead animal. Then a natural model was made, when the skin of an animal was thrown over a natural mound, and an animal head was put on top.

The gradual accumulation of creative experience has led people to start using artificial materials. This was expressed in the next step, in an artificially figurative form, when three-dimensional sculptures began to be created, gradually simplified to a bas-relief image, when a convex three-dimensional image protrudes above a flat background.

Bright images in a three-dimensional image, already colored, appear in the third stage - in Upper Paleolithic art. The main examples of fine art of this period are cave paintings. Some of the first such paintings date back to the Late Paleolithic. The palette of that time was not very rich. It has only four colors: black, white, yellow and red.

But fine art is not all the art of the Paleolithic era. One striking example is the development of musical art.

There are also three main stages:

1) imitation of the sounds of nature, when the heard motives are imitated with a voice;

2) an artificial intonation form, when motives are performed, while the pitch, tone position remain fixed;

3) intonational creativity - polyphonic motives (in two or three voices).

One important feature of Paleolithic art should be noted. All cultural monuments of this period performed not only the aesthetic functions of art, but were also used in religious and magical rites, they were a kind of guide in nature for a person.

Mesolithic and Neolithic eras

It was in the Mesolithic that a person moves from an appropriating way of obtaining food to a producing one. He begins to master agriculture and cattle breeding. This was facilitated by the appearance of the first metal tools.

Another achievement of the Mesolithic is the production of refractory clay. New types of fine art appear - decorations on the surfaces of clay vessels. This was mainly done by farmers.

The ornament that was used to decorate the surface of the dishes became noticeably more complicated in the Neolithic era. The Neolithic is marked by the emergence of such art forms as metalworking, ceramics. At this time, bows and arrows were invented, pottery began to be created.

The first metal products were forged. On the territory of Russia found metal products dated to the seventh millennium BC. And about five thousand years ago they began to make knives and hooks from copper. They were found in the Urals. Four thousand years ago, the first artistic castings appeared, and very skillful ones.

The Bronze Age

The visual art of the Bronze Age is characterized primarily by the fact that the image of the animal gradually disappears in the images created by the artists of the past. The main object for the fine arts are geometric shapes.

One of the brightest cultures of that time is considered Maykop culture. It belongs to the people who lived in the North Caucasus in the third millennium BC. One of the most significant and famous attractions is Maikop mound. It represents the burial of a tribal leader. The burial was very rich; it contained gold and silver jewelry, as well as a silver vessel on which a mountain range was depicted. The Maykop mound was discovered in the city of Maykop in 1897.

Another important advantage of the Bronze Age is the emergence of metallurgy and metalworking. This phenomenon belongs to the last stage of the Bronze Age. The centers of metallurgy were found in the northwest of the Caucasus.

Iron age

Along with bronze objects, iron objects begin to appear. As a result, the development of production is increasing. As a consequence of this development, there was a transition from pastoral tribes to nomadic pastoralism. But not all tribes were engaged in cattle breeding. The life of many tribes was based primarily on agriculture. But during the Iron Age, it was already plow agriculture. During this period, the social structure of the tribes changes.

An important feature of the Iron Age is the development of artistic crafts. These are mainly products made of gold, silver and bronze.

There was also great progress in architecture. In the Iron Age, structures such as fortresses appeared, designed to strengthen settlements. They were built most often from roughly hewn stones.

At the end of the primitive era, these types of settlements appear.

1. Unfortified settlements, these include settlements и parking. The sites date back to the Stone and Bronze Ages. The villages belong to the monuments of the Bronze and Iron Ages.

2. Fortified settlements. These are settlements such as settlements, common in the Neolithic era and in the Iron Age.

In addition to settlements, burials were common in the primitive era.

Burials are of two types:

1) unpaved burials, they were built without any grave structures;

2) burials with grave structures. These include mounds, tombs and megaliths.

Burials are real monuments of culture. Let's consider them in more detail.

Very interesting mounds Yamnaya culture. The Yamnaya culture is understood as a community of archaeological cultures dating back to the Neolithic and Early Bronze Ages (second half of the third - beginning of the second millennium BC). At the base of the mounds there was a belt of stone blocks or slabs. This belt is usually called cromlech. Often such slabs were covered with a carved geometric pattern. A wooden tent was placed on top of this stone belt; underground there was a wooden base.

Very often, in addition to all this construction, stone tombstones in the form of a statue of a person - stone women were placed above the barrows. This is a very significant phenomenon, since the image of a person in art begins to appear.

Another type of burials is megaliths, megalithic burials. They are more complex structures than mounds.

Megaliths are of two types.

Dolmens - structures made of large stones, which are a huge box, which was covered with a flat slab from above. Such designs were distributed primarily in the coastal regions of Europe and Asia, as well as in northern Africa. Translated from the Breton language, dolmen is a "table-stone".

Menhirs - structures, which are a long stone (from four meters), which was dug into the ground. Menhir in Breton means "long stone". Such megalithic burials were widespread in the west of Europe, North Africa, Siberia, the Caucasus and India.

One more variety of megalithic burials can be distinguished. Since the stones were placed in different ways, sometimes entire alleys were built from them. For example, in Carnac in France, 2683 menhirs were placed in the form of long alleys. And sometimes menhirs are placed in a circle, then it is customary to call them already cromlech.

From the foregoing, we can conclude that the culture of the primitive era was the basis for the further development of the entire world culture. All ancient cultures relied primarily on what had already been introduced by primitive peoples.

3. Culture of the Ancient World

The era of primitive society is being replaced by a period that is usually called the Ancient World in historiography. Its culture is based primarily on the culture of primitive predecessors.

The Ancient World is commonly understood as the ancient period in the history of Greece and Rome, as well as the Ancient East, which includes such countries as Egypt, India, China, Mesopotamia, etc. Let us dwell on the culture of the Ancient East.

The Ancient East

The culture of the Ancient East is represented by the cultures of several countries. For example, such as Ancient Egypt, Ancient Mesopotamia, Ancient China, Ancient India. The cultures of these countries have many similarities, but there are also a number of differences due to various factors, such as geographical location.

Consider the culture of ancient Egypt.

Ancient Egypt

Ancient Egypt is a very significant country not only for the Ancient East, but for the whole world, since it was Ancient Egypt that became the first state on Earth that grew to a great power, subsequently becoming a huge and powerful empire, also the first in the world. In this empire, there were laws that were unshakable and incomprehensible, all power belonged to the ruling class, to which the rest of the Egyptian people obeyed.

So where did such a powerful empire and the Egyptians come from? There is a lot of controversy here. But most Egyptologists are inclined to two opinions.

1. The ancient Egyptians were from Asia. This is evidenced by their language and character traits.

2. The ancient Egyptians are relatives of the Negro peoples. This version is supported by the Egyptian cult of the dead, their worship of animals and inanimate objects (fetishism).

But whoever turns out to be right, in any case, by the fourth millennium BC, the Egyptian people formed on the banks of the Nile River, and the first signs of statehood began to form there.

What was the state in ancient Egypt?

The head of state in Egypt was the pharaoh, who held absolute power, all of Egypt with all its many resources. Such absolute rights of the pharaoh were given primarily by the religion of the ancient Egyptians. It is according to religion that a person must unquestioningly obey the pharaoh, otherwise terrible consequences threaten him.

Religion played a big role in the life of the ancient Egyptians. They were pagans, that is, they worshiped not one, but many gods. According to some reports, there were from hundreds to thousands of different gods. The main one was the god of the Sun, who, depending on the time of day, had different names (Ra, Atum, etc.). It was the gods who endowed the pharaohs, according to the Egyptian religion, with unlimited power. But despite their divinity, not all pharaohs were pleased with the way the Egyptians thought, their worship of a huge number of gods. Namely, the existing polytheism could in no way contribute to the strengthening of the Egyptian state, its centralization. All this resulted in religious reform. Its essence was that the Egyptian pharaoh Amenhotep IV(1368-1351) declared the solar disk to be the true god. He gave him the name of the god Aton, he called himself Akhenaten, which in translation meant "pleasing to the god Aton." The next stage of his reforms was the closure of temples in which other gods were worshiped, all the property of these temples was confiscated. As a result, many dissatisfied people appeared. The priests did not want to put up with changes in religious life. Therefore, these reforms of Akhenaten turned out to be short-lived, the cults of the old gods were soon restored.

The religion of the Egyptians greatly influenced their culture.

A special place in the art of Ancient Egypt was occupied by architecture, and the most significant profession was the architect, who continuously monitored the construction of grandiose construction sites typical of Egypt at that time.

An interesting fact is that if the dwellings of the ancient Egyptians were built from short-lived materials, such as raw bricks, then various religious buildings were built from durable stone. This explains the fact that they were able to stand up to our times.

The architecture of Ancient Egypt can no longer be imagined without its main cultural asset - the pyramids. The pyramids were buildings for the gods. They were built from strong stones.

The construction of the pyramids was such a grand undertaking that it is difficult to imagine how ruinous it was for the treasury of the state, how much human labor was expended, how numerous the human losses were.

According to the teachings of the Egyptian priests, the human soul was immortal. In ancient Egypt, the funeral cult played an important role. According to him, only the material basis of a person, i.e., his body, perishes with death. And in order for the intangible basis of a person, his soul, to continue to live, it is necessary to create the most favorable conditions for this, that is, try to preserve the body of a deceased person. So a new art arose - making mummies. And for the mummy there should be a specially designated place - a tomb. As such tombs, in which the human body would be under powerful protection from everything extraneous, grandiose pyramids were built. According to the beliefs of the Egyptians, the body was united with the soul exactly seventy days after death, the deceased came to life and went to the Land of Eternity. But despite the fact that, according to the doctrine, the soul of every person is immortal, the pyramids were built only for the nobility and, of course, for the pharaohs.

The very first pyramid for the pharaoh Djoser (2780-2680) was erected about five thousand years ago, its architect was Imhotep (circa 1800 BC). He will be honored as a great royal architect and wise magician for many generations after him.

In total, there were about a hundred pyramids, of which only a part has come down to us.

The most famous and grandiose is the pyramid of Pharaoh IV of the Cheops dynasty (Khufu). It is located in the Egyptian city of Giza. Its dimensions are enormous: the height is 146,6 m, and the area is about 55 square meters. m. It was built from huge limestone stones, the mass of which reached 000 tons. According to scientists, 3 such stones were spent on the construction of the Cheops pyramid. Inside the pyramid is a system of passages, the inner walls are covered with polished slabs.

In addition to the Pyramid of Cheops, there are other famous pyramids in Giza: Pharaoh Khafre and Pharaoh Mikherin. All three of these pyramids at Giza are one of the seven wonders of the world.

By the second millennium BC, there are some changes in the construction of the pyramids. They cease to be so grandiose and become less ruinous, since they are no longer built from stones, but from bricks.

Numerous robberies of the pyramids led to the fact that by the first millennium the pyramids began to be replaced by secret tombs, although they continued to be robbed. One of the most famous of these tombs is the mortuary temple of Pharaoh Mentuhotep I, which is a rock tomb, and the mortuary temple of Queen Hatshepsut, located on three rocky terraces in the Deir el-Bahri valley and built by Senenmut.

In addition to architecture, fine arts made a rich contribution to the culture of Ancient Egypt.

Very often various obelisks were placed in front of palaces or temples. They were thin and tall, often covered with copper on top. Obelisks were often painted with hieroglyphs.

Hieroglyph is a pictorial symbolic letter, which is very characteristic of the culture of ancient Egypt. It is from Egyptian hieroglyphic writing that the syllabic script originated.

Another widely used image in ancient Egypt was a stone image of a creature with the body of a lion and the head of a man. Such statues were most often placed in front of mortuary temples and were called sphinxes. In front of the pyramid of Pharaoh Khafre stands the largest of the sphinxes, which was created in the first half of the third millennium BC. The length of this statue is about 57 m. Later, in the sixteenth century BC, a temple was erected between the paws of the “father of awe,” as the sphinx was called for the fear it inspired.

In addition to these monuments, there were many more masterpieces of art, all kinds of statues, steles and other monuments depicting the Egyptian rulers and their families.

It was in ancient Egypt that one of the most beautiful female images was created - a sculptural portrait of Queen Nefertiti, who was the wife of the pharaoh Amenhotep IV (1368-1351).

According to the beliefs of the ancient Egyptians, portrait statues are doubles of dead people. Therefore, the sculptural portrait was widespread in Egypt in ancient times.

All cultural monuments (murals, portraits, etc.) in Ancient Egypt were distinguished by a sense of harmony, a desire for beauty, for integrity. This craving for integrity determines the fact that architectural ensembles were widespread in ancient Egypt, representing a kind of synthesis of all kinds of art. Sculptors, architects, painters worked together, creating complete works of art, many of which have no equal to this day. The architects had a very unusual approach to business creating their architectural monuments, they did not forget about very small details, took into account many characteristics, such as geographical location, illumination at different times of the day, etc. This sometimes gave unusual effects. No wonder architects were often credited with magical powers, some were deified.

Considering the fine arts of Ancient Egypt, do not pay attention to its decorative and applied part. After all, the level to which arts and crafts rose at that time was very high. First of all, this applies to various items of utensils. All kinds of dishes and vessels made of crystal and alabaster appear. The manufacture of jewelry has been greatly developed. Exquisitely shaped, with an elegant finish, jewelry was made from various materials. Mostly it was gold, precious stones, etc.

An important feature of the fine arts of Ancient Egypt is the fulfillment and preservation of its main accepted canons. Technique, style, proportions and other aspects of fine art have been unchanged for centuries and even millennia.

What happened in ancient Egypt with writing? Very few texts from that time have come down to us. Basically, these are various prayers and records related to housekeeping. They belong to the second millennium BC. But we must assume that there were more ancient texts.

The work "Conversation of the disappointed with his soul" is interesting. It is significant in that it is a very abstract essay. In it, a man who has not found meaning in his life thinks about suicide. His soul, on the contrary, tries to dissuade him in every possible way.

In general, the literature of Ancient Egypt is very diverse, there were works of completely different genres: stories, teachings, songs, spells, autobiographies, etc.

The emergence of writing is usually attributed to the thirtieth century BC, this is associated primarily with the fact that the government of Egypt required it.

There are three stages in the development of writing in ancient Egypt:

1) hieroglyphic letter;

2) hieratic letter (business cursive);

3) demotic letter (folk cursive).

It is worth noting that it was in ancient Egypt that such an art form as music appeared. Its appearance is associated primarily with various ritual rites and festivities, which led to the emergence of dances, pantomime, etc. The music that appeared then began to be divided into:

1) cult;

2) folk;

3) courtier.

Very often on the Egyptian frescoes of the second millennium BC you can find images of various musical instruments (drums, harps, lyres, etc.). This suggests that music played a huge role in the life of the Egyptians. No wonder the musicians were considered relatives of the pharaohs, they enjoyed great honor and respect in society.

Various life situations and needs led to the development of science in the country, without which then no further existence was seen.

First of all, it's math. After all, how can one create such a grandiose structure as a pyramid without mathematics, without calculating areas and volumes?

By observing the heavenly bodies, the Egyptians created a completely accurate calendar. It, like the modern one, consisted of 365 days, but differed in that it had only three, not four seasons, each of which had three months.

Another merit of the ancient Egyptians is the clock, they were water, solar.

There were also great achievements in medicine. Medical books began to be created, in which there were quite real recipes and several magical ones. Teachings about blood circulation appeared, the doctrine about the main organ - the heart.

In ancient Egypt, there were several types of doctors:

1) "uterine";

2) dental;

3) eye.

There was also such a type of medical activity as surgery.

In addition to the above sciences, such humanities as geography and history developed.

All this cultural development led to the fact that the first schools began to appear in ancient Egypt. At first, these were schools for scribes, which were located at the court of the pharaoh, then all boys from the age of five to sixteen began to be sent to school. At school, they were taught writing, reading, sports, etiquette, etc. Military schools and others appeared.

The culture of Ancient Egypt is very rich and diverse. She made a huge contribution to the culture of all mankind.

Ancient Mesopotamia

Mesopotamia also called Mesopotamia due to its geographical location. Since Mesopotamia includes lands located between two rivers: Tiger и Euphrates.

Mesopotamia began to be inhabited about forty thousand years BC. By the XNUMXth millennium BC. e. the first settlements of Mesopotamia began to appear on the territory. The first cities appeared in the middle of the XNUMXth millennium BC. e. By the third millennium BC, about twenty city-states had appeared. These were Ur, Uruk, Akkad, Lagash, Kish, Umma, Babylon, etc.

Most of these cities were founded by the Sumerians. That is why the culture of Ancient Mesopotamia (Mesopotamia) is also called Sumerian culture.

One of the most significant achievements of the culture of Ancient Mesopotamia is the invention of writing. This achievement dates back to the XNUMXth millennium BC. This means that it is Sumerian writing that is the most ancient.

Many cultural values ​​and achievements of the Sumerians were inherited by the people of the city of Akkad. As a result, the influence of this city on the culture of Mesopotamia as a whole became enormous. Therefore, it is more expedient to understand the culture of Mesopotamia as Sumerian-Akkadian culture. Let's look at it in more detail.

As mentioned above, the writing of Mesopotamia played a huge role in the history of civilization and specifically the ancient peoples. But it is worth noting that the Sumerian script was different from the script of Akkad. She is older.

Sumerian writing developed in several stages. At first everything was very primitive. Thoughts were fixed in ways unimaginable to modern man, for example, by tying knots on ropes or carving scars on tree trunks. Then pictorial writing appeared, when objects and concepts were carefully and in detail depicted with the help of drawings. Gradually, this method became much simpler. Picturesque writing has evolved into sketchy writing. That is, the detail in the description disappeared, specific drawings were replaced by symbols. Such an expression of one's thoughts was far from ideal, since so many concepts were almost impossible to depict, they were replaced by similar ones, the essence of "written" was lost. So, ideograms began to appear that conveyed the essence of the depicted word. For example, a painted eye could mean the verbs "see" or "look." This letter is called ideographic-rebus. This letter was characterized by a wedge-shaped form of writing. That's why Sumerian writing very often called cuneiform.

Cuneiform script was written in the following way: appropriate recesses were made on soft, damp clay with sticks, with the help of which symbols were obtained that had a wedge-shaped shape. Cuneiform, which appeared in Sumer, was later used in the Akkadian language. And then it spread further, even reaching Siberia and Persia. In the second half of the second millennium BC cuneiform was recognized as an international type of writing.

Subsequently, pictorial writing gave way to another type of writing, when with the help of symbols not specific objects or actions were transmitted, but sounds. First, signs appeared to indicate syllables, then they began to appear alphabetic characters. And by the middle of the first millennium BC, cuneiform completely becomes alphabetical writing.

But not only writing is the only achievement of the culture of Mesopotamia. She played a huge role in the development of mathematics. It was here that complex counting systems arose.

Another science originating in the Ancient Mesopotamia is astronomy. It was in Mesopotamia that the first scientific thoughts arose, which formed the basis of astronomy.

The literary achievements of the peoples of Mesopotamia are magnificent. They created the first library catalogs. Literary genres such as the poem and the elegy first appeared in Mesopotamia.

It is worth noting the monumental art of Mesopotamia, which was left an imprint by the local religion. An example of architectural achievements are the temples of Mesopotamia. Their role in people's lives was huge. Thousands of peasants and slaves worked on their territory, the temples traded, and cultural life was developed in them: they had their own schools and libraries.

The architectural forms that originated in Ancient Mesopotamia became the basis of the architecture of Ancient Rome and subsequently Europe of the Middle Ages.

Ancient india

The culture of India is very original, because it went its own ways. It has a uniqueness and originality that distinguishes Indian culture from the cultures of other countries.

The origins of Indian culture go far, to the third millennium BC, when the Harappan civilization appeared on the territory of the Hindustan peninsula in the Indus River valley.

In general, the development of the culture of Ancient India can be divided into several stages, which correspond to the historical development of the Indian state:

1) Ancient India. Two periods can be distinguished here:

a) Harappan culture;

b) Vedic culture;

2) Magadho-Maurian era;

3) Kushano-Gupta era.

Let's look at each era in more detail.

Harappan culture

Various archaeological finds testify to the high level of culture of the peoples living there. It was found that already in the third millennium BC there were highly developed urban-type settlements with a very competent arrangement and architecture of buildings. For example, for the convenience of the passage of carts and movement, the corners of houses at intersections were made rounded. The houses were mostly built of brick and had two floors. An important achievement of the Harappan culture was the urban sewer system. The houses of that time already had original bathrooms for washing. There were city baths, the air in which was heated, there were pools.

In addition to the high level of architectural skills, during the Harappan culture, many types of various crafts were developed, such as metal processing, working with stone, copper, and bronze. This is evidenced by the found tools, jewelry, weapons, and various decorative items.

Writing was also developed in Harappa. Basically, it was a picture letter, in which there were about four hundred pictographs. Syllabic signs also began to appear.

Already at the beginning of the second millennium BC, scientists record the decline of the Harappan culture, which soon disappeared altogether as a result of a natural disaster. According to most geologists, such a natural disaster was a strong earthquake, which entailed other cataclysms.

Despite its collapse, the Harappan culture served as a kind of starting point for the entire further development of the culture of Ancient India.

Vedic culture

The ancestors of the Vedic culture were the tribes of the Aryans, who invaded the territory of India in the middle of the second millennium BC.

At the initial stage, they did not differ in high culture, they did not go far from the nomadic way of life, they were mainly engaged in cattle breeding. Then agriculture appeared, which developed noticeably thanks to the tools that appeared.

Since the main occupations of the Aryan tribes were cattle breeding and agriculture, it is obvious that the majority of the population were rural residents. There were no cities, there were only fortified points, the main task of which was to protect the population from enemies.

The Aryans had a well-developed spiritual culture, in particular, this applies to literature. Important literary monuments of this period are works written in the ancient Indian language. (Sanskrit). These works, called Vedas, gave the name to the entire Indo-Aryan culture.

There were four collections of the Vedas.

1. Sama-Veda. This is a collection consisting of chants and rituals of the Indo-Aryans.

2. Rig Veda. A collection consisting of a book composed of Indo-Aryan hymns.

3. Yajur Veda. AT In this collection, prayer formulas were collected, according to which sacrifices were made.

4. Atharva Veda. This is a collection of various chants and rituals of the Aryans.

Before the advent of writing, the Vedas were passed from mouth to mouth, were part of oral creativity. But then the priests wrote them down, supplementing each collection with their own ritual commentary. Such ritual comments were called Brahmins... Subsequently Brahmins called the highest caste in India.

In addition to the Brahmins, the Vedas began to be supplemented with religious and philosophical commentaries. These were:

1) Aranyaki. Translated from Sanskrit - “linen books”. These are comments intended for hermits who go into the forests;

2) Upanishads. Translated from Sanskrit - “secret knowledge”. These comments were placed at the end of the Veda. There were about two hundred of them in total, ten of them are considered the main ones.

The sacred books that served as assistants to people in solving various issues were the "Mahabharata" (which means "The Great War of the descendants of Bharata") and the "Ramayana" ("Tales of the exploits of Rama"). These are two poems, huge in size, containing poems, legends, traditions, treatises on various topics (from religion to housekeeping).

The heroes of these poems are Krishna и Frame.

Vedic literary achievements are so great, they are so comprehensive, striking in the refinement of their form, that we can conclude how developed the people were, how great were the philosophical knowledge of people. Vedic collections are real encyclopedias of knowledge on various topics (medicine, mathematics, geometry, agriculture, astronomy, crafts, military affairs, etc.).

The original polytheism of the Indo-Aryans gradually came down to one stream - Brahmanism, according to which the creator of the universe is Brahma, emerging from a golden egg split by the power of his thoughts. Brahmanism greatly influenced Indian religion. For example, there is a theory such as samsara (differently - metempsychosis), according to which the soul is reborn all the time. That is, after the death of a person, it does not die, but inhabits another person or some creature. Here, according to Brahmanism, everything depends on karma a person, which is predetermined from above, and also consists of the actions and deeds of a person. The better the karma, the better the person behaved during life, the better his subsequent life will be. If a person led an unrighteous life, then according to the theory of Brahmanism, severe punishment awaits him in the next life. For example, a drunkard will turn into a moth, a thief will turn into a rat, and the soul of a murderer will turn into the body of a predatory animal.

Already by the middle of the first millennium BC on the territory of modern India there will be many slave-owning states that will constantly be at enmity with each other. The victory in these constant wars will be won by the state Magadha, in which a dynasty would be formed in the second half of the first millennium BC Mauryan. The Mauryan dynasty would last until the second century BC.

The state of Magadha became the first slaveholding power in the history of India. The main religion based on Brahmanism is Jainism, which will subsequently grow into an entire ideology of slave-holding powers. The prophet of this religion is Jaina (Gina the winner). He with his followers creates church organizations, monasteries and temples.

A characteristic feature of the new religion was asceticism, i.e. suppression of various desires, a tendency to loneliness, renunciation of many benefits, etc. All this was necessary in order to achieve the main result of the entire life of a supporter of Jainism - nirvana. Nirvana is understood as the highest state of the spirit, its complete satisfaction.

With its striving for asceticism followed by nirvana, Jainism called into question the basic Vedic values ​​and Brahmanism, since according to Jainism the path to salvation is open to everyone without exception, and according to Brahmanism - only to the elect, to whom the Brahmin priests belonged.

In addition to Jainism, in the sixth century BC, another religion appeared, which also became contrary to Brahmanism. This religion, which later became world, is Buddhism. Its founder is Siddhartha Gautama (ca. 560-480 BC). e.). Spending his life in luxury and wealth, without knowing troubles, at the age of twenty-nine, having learned that not everyone’s life is as carefree as his, he indulged in asceticism. After much thought, Siddhartha Gautama fell into nirvana and became Buddha, which means "awakened to a new life." He began to pass on his knowledge to his students, his teachings developed into a new religion - Buddhism.

Buddhism is a cross between Brahmanism and Jainism.

At the center of Buddhism are the "four noble truths":

1) life is suffering;

2) the cause of suffering is the desire for pleasure;

3) to stop suffering, it is necessary to destroy desires;

4) maintaining the eightfold path, i.e. the middle path between the two religions: Brahmanism and Jainism.

During the reign Ashoka (273-232 BC) Buddhism becomes the state religion.

In the Magadho-Maurian era, many types of art reached a high level. Particularly architecture and fine arts.

The most famous architectural monuments are:

1) Stambach, which are monolithic pillars;

2) stupa - cult Buddhist structures of a hemispherical shape;

3) cave temples, which later gave way to chaityas - temples for prayer with oblong halls, rows of columns and a stupa.

The literature of the Mauryan dynasty also reached a high level. The first grammars of the Sanskrit language appeared.

The Mauryan dynasty lasted two centuries until the sons Ashoka the whole state was not fragmented and the dynasty did not come to an end. It was replaced by new dynasties - first the Kushan dynasty, which was replaced by the Gupta dynasty. At the same time, a new period in the development of the culture of Ancient India began.

Kushano-Gupta era

The culture of the Kushan dynasty (I-III centuries AD) is characterized by the presence of two schools of art:

1) Gandharian (with her anthropomorphic Buddha image);

2) mathura (the main direction is secular sculpture).

In the fourth century AD, the Kushan state collapsed and gave way to the Gupta state, which was the last slave-owning power in this territory.

The period of Gupta rule is significant for the flourishing of material culture. So, agriculture, various crafts (making jewelry, weapons) developed noticeably, sericulture spread, the finest fabrics made of silk and cotton began to appear, and metallurgy reached a high level.

In addition, fine arts and architecture have made progress. The most common structures were stone buildings, cave temples with many sculptures, wall paintings, and carvings. Fine art most often uses scenes from the life of the Buddha, mythological themes, as well as magnificent patterns, images of nature and everyday life.

Changes in power led to changes in religious beliefs. If during the Kushan dynasty the main religion was still Buddhism (but Buddha is now not just a teacher, he is a deity), then after the collapse of the Kushan dynasty, the flowering of Buddhism ended, which gradually gave way to Hinduism.

The main impetus for the adoption of the new faith was primarily the social system that was formed under the Guptas. It is about the resulting social inequality caste system. Castes were groups of people who were united by the same social functions that they performed, their professions, etc. And it was the new religion (Hinduism) that recognized the existence of such castes.

The main feature of Hinduism is the veneration of the triad of gods, which included:

1) Brahma - creator god. According to the Hindus, he was the creator of the universe;

2) Vishnu - guardian god, guardian of the world order;

3) Shiva - God-destroyer, "master of animals." He appeared to the Hindus as the embodiment of cosmic energy.

But despite the great importance of religion in people's lives, scientific knowledge played a huge role. Astronomy has developed greatly. It was the ancient Indian astronomers who began to divide the year into twelve months, each of which had thirty days. For the first time, theories began to appear about the sphericity of the Earth and about its rotation around its own axis.

In addition to astronomy, mathematics also achieved notable successes. Back in the days of the Harappan culture, the decimal number system was formulated, which people use to this day. Such sciences as algebra, trigonometry and geometry stood out.

The religion of the ancient Indian people influenced the development of such sciences as medicine and chemistry. Surgery especially developed, during operations they began to use a huge number of instruments, anesthesia was used. Among physicians, the most prominent doctors can be distinguished: who lived in the XNUMXth-XNUMXth centuries. BC e. Javak and who lived already in the XNUMXst century AD. e. Charaka. These doctors, thanks to their merits, were known even outside their country.

The significance of the culture of Ancient India for world culture is enormous, its contribution is colossal and irreplaceable for the modern world.

Ancient China

China is a huge country in size, statehood in which arose in the second millennium BC.

The culture of ancient China is characterized by originality and originality.

At the initial stage of their development, the Chinese were characterized by the cult of nature and ancestors. The Chinese believed that everything in the world changes under the influence of two main forces: Light and Darkness.

With the advent of statehood, a new cult appeared - the deification of the power of the king. According to the ancient Chinese, the king is the son of God on earth, and China is Celestial.

All these views later formed into a system of three main religions, which included Taoism, monism и Confucianism.

Taoism, which arose in the VI-V centuries. BC BC, was founded by the Chinese sage Laozi. It was Laozi who introduced in his work “The Book of Tao and Te” the main concept of Taoism - tao. Tao had a huge number of meanings, first of all, it is the spiritual principle, the source of everything on earth. It is Tao, according to Laozi, that all laws in nature are subordinated, because Tao is the main unified law.

The teachings of Laozi and his followers were formed in the so-called philosophical Taoism, the central concept of which was doctrine of immortality. Later, another direction of Taoism, coming from the philosophical path, will emerge - religious Taoism. AT this doctrine was the central concept absolute tao. According to this concept, the return to the true Tao is seen only through death.

In parallel with Taoism, another religion was born - Confucianism. The founder of this religion was Kongzi (Confucius). He considered the cause of many troubles on earth as a consequence of the moral decline of people. Confucius called on people to be humane, obedient, and respectful to their elders. The teachings of Confucius represented a certain set of rules and guidelines for life, this largely contributed to the fact that Confucianism from a simple ideology turned into a state religion. According to Confucianism, the emperor is the son of heaven, the father of the people, and the people are the children of the emperor.

The significance of Confucianism in ancient China was so great that even the life of the ancient Chinese was regulated with its help. With the help of the basic rules and laws of Confucianism, various human actions were assessed, certain norms of life were developed that could not be violated. The Chinese society never doubted the correctness of these truths, this was their characteristic feature - the desire for dogmatism. People believed these dogmas so much that they could not somehow contradict them, as a result of which the people became passive in making their decisions. As a rule, any new thought was just a continuation of a well-known dogma, a truth expressed by an old sage.

But despite this tendency to dogmatism, the development of science deserved great respect in ancient China. Basically, the humanities were formed, since the technical disciplines were considered not prestigious. But still, the rest of the sciences did not stand still.

Chinese astronomy was characterized by great achievements. It was the Chinese who compiled the world's first star catalog, which described about 800 luminaries. The first books on astronomy appeared, in which there were maps of the starry sky. The Chinese were the first to create a celestial globe.

The Chinese made a great contribution to world medicine. It was they who began to use acupuncture and moxibustion, created the first drugs. Chinese emperor Shen Nongcu authored the first book on existing drugs.

The writing and literature of ancient China reached great heights. An interesting fact is that it is the Chinese hieroglyphic script that is the only one that still exists today. Already in the third century AD, there were over eighteen thousand hieroglyphs.

The development of writing and literature in general was strongly influenced by the manufacture of paper. It was invented by a Chinese official Tsai Lun, it is he who made from tree bark, hemp and other components in 105 AD. e. I received the paper for the first time.

The monuments of ancient Chinese literature are magnificent and significant. It is worth noting the "Book of Songs" and "Book of Changes" written in the first millennium BC. The most famous poets in China were Qu Yuan (c. 340 - OK. 278 years BC.

e.), his poetry was characterized by the sublimity of feelings, the transition from folklore traditions to the author's transmission of his thoughts; Luzi - the author of the main treatise of Taoism "Tao de jing"; Xunzi is the author of the treatise "Xunzi".

Originality is also characteristic of various types of fine arts of ancient Chinese masters. Painting and sculpture mostly have religious themes. Buddhism came from India to China, which greatly influenced the culture of the Celestial Empire, especially the artistic component. Ink painting on silk and paper was greatly developed, and frescoes began to be made.

Among the various types of applied art, it is worth noting the manufacture of the most wonderful jewelry of the finest work. An important place was occupied by stone and bone carving. In China, green jade was especially held in high esteem, which was called the "eternal stone" and was compared with gold and silver.

The development of Chinese artistic ceramics provided the prerequisite for the production of porcelain.

Originality was also inherent in ancient Chinese architecture. They were the first to build multi-storey buildings. The most characteristic were the buildings that were called pagodas. They can still be seen in modern China. The pagodas were wooden pillars to support the tiled roof, with typical raised edges.

The most famous building in China the great Wall of China about four thousand kilometers long, built by Chinese prisoners in 221-207. BC e.

But one cannot give a complete picture of the culture of Ancient China without mentioning the art of music and the theater.

Already in the second millennium BC, more than twenty different musical instruments existed in China. The first books began to appear, telling about the musical ideas of the Chinese people. The most popular book is the treatise "Yuezi". Professional musicians began to appear, who were invited to perform at various ceremonies, holidays, etc.

In ancient China, a characteristic happiness concept, according to which our life is the only one, we should value it and try to make it as good as possible. This concept primarily influenced the literature of Ancient China, as well as another form of art that received enormous development and spread in the Middle Kingdom - theater.

Although actors were considered the lowest stratum of society, the importance of theater in people's lives was enormous. Under its wing, the Chinese theater united various types of art: music, painting, dance, singing, etc.

The origin of theatrical art in ancient China is associated, firstly, with various religious activities, such as cult worship, all kinds of rituals, which were characterized by a certain theatricality.

In ancient China, there was a division of various theatrical performances by type. These were:

1) performances of mimes;

2) musical and dramatic performances;

3) shadow theater, which originated in China;

4) the puppet theater, which performed its works mainly at weddings and feasts to funeral music;

5) acrobatic dances;

6) circus programs.

The contribution of the Chinese people to the cultural treasury of the Ancient East and the whole world was very significant.

Antiquity

Ancient culture is understood as the culture of Ancient Greece and Ancient Rome. The word antique in translation from Latin means "ancient". And to determine the culture of the two ancient states was introduced during the Renaissance.

The cultures of Ancient Greece and Ancient Rome had many common features. And they also had a huge impact on the entire European and world culture as a whole. Let us consider in more detail the development of each culture separately.

Ancient Greece

The development of the culture of Ancient Greece is usually divided into the following time stages:

1) the preclassical period, which is subdivided into:

a) the period of the most ancient civilizations (III-II millennium BC).

This includes:

▪ Minoan culture;

▪ Mycenaean culture;

b) the Homeric period (XI-IX centuries BC);

c) archaic period (VIII-VI centuries BC);

2) the classical period, it is subdivided into:

a) the heyday (XNUMXth century BC);

b) the era of the crisis of the policy (VI century BC);

3) the culture of the Hellenistic era.

Let us follow the development of Greek culture in stages.

Preclassic period

The most ancient civilizations that existed in Greece were the Minoan and Mycenaean (Achaean). Already at the turn of the third and second millennia BC, the first cities appeared on the island of Crete, a new civilization was born, named after the famous king Minos Minoan.

Archaeological excavations have shown that the life of the Minoan people was concentrated around palaces, consisting of various structures. These palaces were constantly growing, more and more decorated, becoming real works of art. The miraculously executed frescoes, weapons, bronze figurines that have come down to us speak of a high level of development, the flourishing of the Minoan culture. But a natural disaster (volcanic eruption on the island of Thera), various invasions of warlike strangers led to the collapse of the Minoan civilization, which gave way to another civilization, the Mycenaean. These two cultures, due to their close geographical location, were very interconnected. That is why in Mycenae, as in the Minoan civilization, life centered around the palaces. But in the Mycenaean culture, a certain warlike mood prevailed. This was manifested in the more fortified walls of the palaces, and in the images on the frescoes. If, say, the main subjects of the Minoan frescoes were scenes from life and everyday life with images of animals and plants, then the Mycenaean frescoes were dominated by subjects with military scenes, hunting episodes, etc.

The Mycenaean civilization ceased to exist in the XNUMXth century. BC e., when the Greek tribes came to the territory of this civilization - Dorians. This time is marked by the heyday of the Iron Age in Greece, a new period begins, named after the great ancient Greek poet Homer's period. It was his famous and magnificent poems "Iliad" and "Odyssey" that made it possible to learn about this time.

The Homeric period is not distinguished by the grandeur of architecture and fine arts. According to the works of Homer, even the nobility lives in wooden houses or houses made of unbaked bricks, while several centuries before that palaces were so common. But there were cultural achievements during the Homeric period as well. For example, ceramic vases, painted with wonderful ornaments in the form of geometric figures, bronze figurines, and terracotta figurines testify to great skill.

The Homeric period ended with the beginning of a new stage - Great Colonization, which took place during the period VIII-V centuries. BC e. A new period has begun archaic.

The development of sciences begins, especially astronomy and geometry are worth noting. Egyptian influence played a big role here. This influence was also reflected in Greek art. The architecture and sculpture of ancient Greece of the archaic period originate precisely in ancient Egypt.

There are also changes in the social structure of society. The tribal community is being replaced by city-states called policies. The largest of them are: Athens, Thebes, Sparta, etc. Initially, separately functioning policies begin to unite under the common name of Hellas. So-called centers are formed, which are sanctuaries, and a common pantheon of gods appears, common to all policies. Zeus the Thunderer became the supreme god. His Hera was the mistress of the sky, there were many of their children (Athena - the goddess of wisdom, Apollo - the god of light, patron of the arts, Aphrodite - the goddess of beauty and love, etc.), whom the people worshiped. But the Greeks did not only worship gods. There were many myths about Greek heroes (Hercules, Perseus, etc.).

The most important phenomenon of the archaic period of Ancient Greece was the beginning Olympics, dedicated to Zeus. The first Olympic Games took place in 776 BC. e. and have been held since then every four years.

In addition to the Olympic Games, others were also held: the Isthmian Games were held every two years in honor of Poseidon (lord of the seas), the Pythian Games were held every four years, in which athletes and musicians competed in honor of the god Apollo.

The ancient Greeks made a great contribution to the development of such a science as philosophy. It was in one of the developed regions of Greece, Ionia, that during the archaic period such a philosophical science was born as natural philosophy. In Ionia lived such thinkers as Anaximenes (585-525 BC), Thales (624-546 BC) and more

Mathematics also reached great heights. Here the main merit belongs to the ancient Greek philosopher, mathematician Pythagoras of Samos (540-500 BC) to н. e.). He studied whole numbers and proportions. He also made great contributions to astronomy and music theory.

Lyric poetry occupies a leading position in archaic literature. If the epic prevailed in the Homeric period, now all attention has been transferred to the inner experiences of a person. A significant place is occupied by such poets as Sappho (approximately 610-580 BC), Anacreon (second half of the XNUMXth century BC), Alcaeus (turn of the XNUMXth-XNUMXth centuries BC).

В the sixth century BC, a new literary genre appears - fable. Its appearance is primarily associated with the name of Aesop.

In the archaic period, the Greek theater appears, the origins of which were round dances in honor of Dionysus, when from the general choir they began to single out characters who later became actors.

The art of the archaic period is characterized by the search for beauty, some kind of aesthetic ideal. That is why the main types of sculpture have become:

1) kuros - naked young man;

2) kora - a young girl in long clothes with a smile, later called archaic.

During the archaic period, architecture was greatly developed. First of all, these are temples and sculptures that form single ensembles.

Temples are characterized by orders of two types:

1) strict and geometrically correct Doric;

2) more decoratively saturated ionic.

In addition to architecture, ceramics flourished in the archaic period. Three types of vessel painting were invented:

1) black-figure technique (red clay was painted black, then painted with various subjects);

2) red-figure technique (differed in more detailed drawing);

3) attic technique (depicting scenes from the life and life of the people).

Archaic culture left its mark on the next stage in the development of culture - the classical period.

Classical period

The beginning of the classical period is established with the victory of the Greeks in the long Greco-Persian wars, which lasted from 500-449 BC. BC e. During this period, Athens became the center of Greece.

Great importance in the classical period was given to the upbringing and education of citizens. Physical education played a huge role. Dancing and gymnastics were compulsory subjects in schools. In addition to physical education, a lot of time was devoted to spiritual improvement. Wandering philosophers, called sophists, who appeared in the classical period, were of great importance. They could be hired for money to teach various disciplines.

Thanks to the sophists, who were able to brilliantly conduct discussions and disputes, such a branch of philosophy as dialectics was formed in the classical period. Its ancestor was the great thinker Socrates (470-399 BC). e.).

The knowledge of nature has been greatly expanded. Greek scientist Democritus (c. 460 - OK. 360 AD BC e.) introduced a new and very progressive concept for that time atoms as indivisible particles.

The medicine of the classical period is associated primarily with the name of a doctor known today Hippocrates (c. 460 - OK. 370 years BC. e.).

He introduced a number of innovations into medicine, abandoned all religious prejudices in identifying the causality of the disease. He introduced the concept of ethical norms of a doctor, who, firstly, has no right to harm the patient. And to this day, in many countries of the world, becoming doctors, people take the Hippocratic oath, the so-called code of doctors.

In classical literature, the predominance of two genres stood out: comedy and tragedy. It also affected the theatre.

Aeschylus is considered one of the greatest authors of tragedies. (525-456 BC). His tragedies are imbued with a desire for kindness and patriotism. A striking example is his work “Prometheus Bound”.

The themes of a person's struggle with difficult reality, his fate and punishment were raised in the literary works of another no less significant tragedian Sophocles (496-406 BC). The heroes of his works were people close to the ideal, the way Sophocles wanted all people to be.

The emergence of a new literary genre - psychological drama - is associated with the name Euripides (c. 485 - OK. 406 AD BC e.). His most famous works are “Phaedra” and “Medea”, in which the main conflict occurs between the mind and the heart, between reason and desires. Very often this conflict ends in the death of the main character.

Magnificent monuments of architecture related to the classical period. A new order appears - Corinthian. It is characterized by a foliage-like finish.

A striking example of architectural achievement is the Acropolis of Athens, a rocky hill 300 m long and 170 m wide, on which a complex of structures was built. This complex includes:

1) Propylaea (437-432 BC) - the front gate, their architect was Mnesicles;

2) Parthenon (447-436 BC) - the main temple built in honor of the goddess Athena according to the project of architects Iktina и Callicrates, in 432 was supplemented with statues, metopes and friezes created by the ancient Greek sculptor Phidiem;

3) Temple of Niki Apteros (443-420 BC) - Temple of the Wingless Victory, built by the architect Callicrates;

4) Erechtheion (421-406 BC) - the temple of Athena and Poseidon, made in the Ionic style with the famous portico of caryatids (supports in the form of figures of women), leading to the next temple;

5) Temple of Pallas Athena - city temple;

6) Sanctuary of Poseidon-Erechtheus.

In addition to these temples, on the territory of the Athenian Acropolis there were magnificent statues (the statue of Athena Promachos cast by Phidias).

In 431 BC. e. The Peloponnesian War began between Athens and Sparta. She divided the entire classical period into two stages: before the war and after. The period before the war is called heyday, the period beginning with the Peloponnesian War was called the era of the polis crisis.

The war could not but affect the way of life and thoughts of people. The main goal of people has become the search for happiness.

On this basis, in the era of the crisis of the polis, two philosophical schools are formed:

1) cynical, which recognized happiness for a person as his spiritual freedom. Its founder was the ancient Greek philosopher Antisthenes (c. 450 - c. 360 BC);

2) hedonic - I saw the highest good in pleasure. Founded by an ancient Greek philosopher Aristippus (second half of the 5th century - beginning of the 4th century BC).

The development of philosophy was promoted by two outstanding philosophers who lived in the era of the crisis of the policy - Plato and Aristotle.

Plato (c. 427 - OK. 347 years BC. BC) was a student of Socrates. He founded a new school in Athens - academy. He developed a theory about the world of ideas and the world of things that are a reflection of ideas. He believed that knowledge is nothing but a mental memory of ideas. His famous project is an ideal state, which is a hierarchy of three estates:

1) rulers-philosophers (rulers-wise men);

2) warriors and various officials;

3) peasants, merchants and artisans.

Aristotle (384-322 BC). BC) was a student of Plato. He is called a philosopher-encyclopedist for his works, which can be divided into four groups:

1) works devoted to the natural sciences ("Physics", "Meteorology", "On the Origin and Destruction", "History of Animals", "On the Parts of Animals", "On the Origin of Animals", "On the Movement of Animals", "On the Sky" );

2) works devoted to logic ("Categories", "On Interpretation", "Topic" and "Analytics");

3) works on the beginning of being ("Metaphysics");

4) works devoted to political, public, state, historical, etc. problems ("Politics", "Poetics", "Rhetoric", etc.).

For his merits, Aristotle was called the standard of wisdom. His influence on philosophy and on the development of human thought in general was enormous.

Rhetoric achieves high skill in the era of the crisis of the polis. Mainly it's merit Isocrates (436-338 BC) и Demosthenes (384-322 BC). e.). Their speeches were examples of the highest literary skill.

Despite the crisis, architecture does not stand still. Here there is a predominance Corinthian style (the theater of Dionysus in Athens, the mausoleum in Halikornass, the theater in Epidaurus, etc.).

Sculpture has also changed. It has become more dramatic in comparison with the sculpture of the heyday. Sculptures began to convey the inner life of the depicted hero, a certain plot was outlined ("Hermes at rest", "Aphrodite of Cnidus", "Hercules", "Alexander the Great", etc.). Outstanding sculptors of the era of the crisis of the policy were Scopas, Lysippus, Praxiteles and more

With a hike Alexander the Great (356-323 BC). e) a new cultural era of Ancient Greece begins to the East, replacing the classical period. This is the so-called Hellenistic culture.

Hellenistic era

During this period, Greek culture begins to go beyond the territory of the Greek state. This happens under the influence of more and more new conquests of Alexander the Great.

One of the main merits of the culture of the Hellenistic era is the disappearance of the boundaries that were previously between science and technology, that is, between theory and practice. In many ways, this is the merit of the ancient Greek scientist, mathematician and mechanic Archimedes (287-212 BC). He used his knowledge and discoveries to create his own technical devices and instruments. He created the screw pump, defensive guns and throwing machines.

In the era of Hellenism, there lived another outstanding scientist, the creator of elementary geometry Euclid (about 365-300 BC). e.).

Thanks to such great thinkers as Aristarchus of Samos (320-250 BC), Eratosthenes (c. 320-250 BC) и Hipparchus of Alexandria (190-125 BC). BC), there was a rise in astronomy and geography.

Changes in people's lives contributed to a number of transformations in philosophy.

Two new philosophical schools emerged:

1) Epicureanism ("The Garden" of Epicurus), the founder of the school - an ancient Greek philosopher Epicurus (c. 335-262 BC). BC), according to whom the highest goal of man is bliss, peace of mind, the absence of all suffering and fears;

2) stoicism - the founder was an ancient Greek philosopher Zeno (c. 490-430 BC). Adherents of this school believed that the ideal norm of human behavior is apathy and dispassion, when actions do not depend in any way on feelings.

Among the monuments of architecture, it is worth highlighting such famous buildings as faros lighthouse in Alexandria, which is one of the seven wonders of the world, Wind tower in Athens. Among the statues The Colossus of Rhodes, also one of the seven wonders of the world Venus de Milo, Nike of Samothrace.

The significance of the culture of Ancient Greece is enormous. It is still called the most human of cultures, the "golden age" of mankind.

Ancient Rome

The influence of the Ancient World can be traced in many cultures of the world.

Being part of ancient culture, Roman culture had a number of common features with the culture of ancient Greece. This was facilitated by the fact that during its heyday, Ancient Rome annexed Greece. But despite the fact that many features of Roman culture were borrowed from more ancient cultures, the culture of Rome brought a lot of its own, it has a certain originality and originality, which makes it so significant for the whole world culture.

The formation of the culture of Ancient Rome took place in several stages, mainly related to the historical and political changes that took place on the territory of the Roman civilization. The conditional division according to the stages of development of ancient Roman culture is as follows:

1) the period of Etruscan culture;

2) the royal period;

3) the period of the republic:

a) early republic

b) late republic;

4) Empire period:

5) early empire;

6) late empire.

It is impossible to consider these stages as unrelated time intervals. On the contrary, the interconnection of these periods is reflected in the transfer of accumulated knowledge and experience from generation to generation.

Let's consider each stage separately and in interconnection with subsequent periods.

Etruscan culture

The name of this stage in the development of Roman culture comes from the name of the civilization that formed on the Apennine Peninsula. Appearance Etruscan civilization refers to the first millennium BC. At this time, the first city-states appeared on the territory of Ancient Rome, which united into a federation.

The Etruscans had a very developed culture. This was especially true for architecture. Archaeological studies have shown that the architecture of the Etruscan cities was specific. The layout of city streets was very characteristic of extreme clarity, geometric consistency of forms, orientation of buildings in accordance with the cardinal points.

Another architectural merit of the Etruscan culture is the appearance of buildings with a domed vault.

The importance of the Etruscans for world writing is also great. It is during the Etruscan period that Latin alphabet, which, as you know, was extremely widespread, and in the Middle Ages and the New Age was generally considered mandatory for any educated person. And in the modern world, although it ceased to be used as a colloquial language by the 9th century, it is used in medicine, biology, other related sciences and even in jurisprudence; Latin letters are widely used for various designations in physics, mathematics, etc. .

Roman numerals, invented back in the days of the Etruscan civilization, are widely used to this day.

The applied art of the Etruscans reached great heights. Magnificent works of art were ceramics, especially lacquered in such a way as to imitate a metal surface.

Archaeologists have discovered wonderful ornaments, jewelry, sculptures made of bronze and terracotta, testifying to the high level of craftsmen of that time.

The opinion about the perfection of the Roman portrait was noticeably influenced by Etruscan painting with its desire for realism. There was no idealization familiar to ancient centuries, works of fine art conveyed everything as it is.

The religious beliefs of the Etruscans were noticeably influenced by the beliefs of Ancient Greece. Etruscan culture adopted the Greek pantheon of gods, although their worship was not widespread enough, and all kinds of divination and interpretation of various occurring phenomena were of great importance in religion.

Having absorbed various cultural achievements of neighboring states, the Etruscan civilization itself was the creator of its own culture, which was spread and adopted by other civilizations.

The Etruscan civilization as an independent existed until the fifth century BC. Gradually, she lost her possessions as a result of invasions from neighboring territories. And by the third century BC, the Etruscan civilization was completely conquered by the city of Rome that arose on the territory of the Apennine Peninsula. This event marked the end of Etruscan culture and the beginning of a new cultural stage - tsarist period.

royal period

The royal period is primarily associated with the emergence of a new city, in the future the capital of an entire empire, Rome. There are several versions of its origin, but the most common is the legend of Romulus and Remus, two brothers who were thrown into the Tiber River as babies, but survived. Subsequently, at the place where they were thrown, the brothers created a city. A long feud over who would rule this city led to Romulus killing his brother Remus and becoming the first king of Rome, named after him. It is believed that Rome was founded in 753 BC. e.

The development of Rome took place under Etruscan influence. Many Etruscan achievements were borrowed, for example, in the field of construction, various crafts. Rome borrowed writing, Roman numerals, methods of interpretation and divination, and much more.

The influence of the Etruscan religion on the Roman religion led to the fact that from the habitual veneration of all kinds of spirits, they moved to the veneration of the gods in human form. That is, anthropomorphism has replaced the once animistic religiosity.

Gradually, a certain structure appears in the religion of the Romans. The division of priests according to their functions begins.

There were the following colleges of priests.

1. Pontiffs. They were the high priests who were in charge of all the other colleges. Their functions included conducting various religious ceremonies and burials, writing calendars with marks of favorable and unfavorable days.

2. Augurs - priests, whose functions included divination by the flights and cries of birds, called auspices.

3. Haruspics - a college of priests, which was engaged in divination by the entrails of animals that had previously been sacrificed, and also carried out the interpretation of various natural phenomena, such as snow, lightning, rain, thunder, etc.

4. Fecials - priests who monitored the implementation of the principles of international law, they performed rituals at the conclusion of peace or the declaration of war.

5. Flamins - priests who worshiped individual gods.

The development of religion also led to its influence on architecture, the first temples began to appear (the temple of Jupiter on the Capitoline Hill, built during the reign of the legendary Roman king Tarquinia Prisca (Ancient)).

The last king in Rome was Tarquin the Proud (534/533-510/509 BC). BC), under his rule, Rome in 510 became an aristocratic slave-owning republic, a new historical and cultural stage in the development of Ancient Rome began, called Republic period.

Republic period

The period of the republic is divided into two stages: early republic (late VI - early III centuries BC) and late republic (mid III - the end of the I centuries BC).

During the period of the early republic, the entire territory of the Apennine Peninsula fell into the hands of Rome. Rome begins to conquer Greek cities (Southern Italy), thereby joining the higher Greek culture at that time. For example, if earlier the Etruscan alphabet was used to designate the letters of the Latin language, now it has given way to Greek letters, which are more convenient for this.

In Rome, a new art form appears - the theater and a new profession - the artist.

Roman culture has always been distinguished by the observance of the rights and obligations of citizens, faith in the power of law and the state. Already in the fifth century BC, the makings of Roman law appear in the form of compiled "The Laws of the Twelve Tables".

With the advent of the civil community and the speeches of senators and officials, the emergence of Roman oratory. Roman orators are a kind of standard - how to be able to persuade.

The Romans achieved success in the era of the early republic and in military affairs. The organization of the Roman army begins to take shape. Its main unit is legion, which included from three to six thousand infantry.

In turn, the legions were divided into divisions.

1. cohorts - units, which included 360-600 people, were adopted in the second century BC.

2. Maniples, which numbered 60-120 people, were part of the cohort.

3. Centuries - divisions of one hundred people.

The Roman army was celebrated for its excellent discipline, which was maintained through harsh punishments for those who violated it, as well as rewards for distinguished soldiers.

From the sixties of the third century BC, the period of the late republic begins in Rome. Its beginning was marked by such historical events as the transformation of Macedonia and Greece into Roman provinces, as well as the destruction of the main Roman enemy - Carthage.

In the middle of the second century BC, civil wars began in Rome, which led to the collapse of the republic. A new form of government appears - principate, which is a hereditary dictatorship. The basic principles of the new government were laid down by the Roman emperor Octavian Augustus (63-14 AD) to н. e.).

Due to the fact that the Roman state at that time was an association of many conquered states, Roman culture was also many-sided, it traced Etruscan, Roman, Greek, Italian roots. Therefore, this period of development of Roman culture is characterized by such a phenomenon as eclecticism. Eclecticism is understood as a mechanical combination of dissimilar and even opposing views, judgments, opinions, principles, etc.

For example, eclecticism is very characteristic of the Roman religion. Most of the Roman gods could be identified with the Greek ones (see table).

But there were also differences between the Greek and Roman religions. For example, Apollo, the god of love and beauty, was very revered in ancient Greece, while in the Roman religion there was no such deity. But in Rome there was a cult of the god Janus, who was depicted with two faces: directed to the past and directed to the future. In Greece, there was no god like the Roman Janus.

An interesting fact, characteristic of the Romans, was that the pantheon of their gods was not constant, often replenished with new foreign gods. This is because the Romans believed that each new god could only increase the power of Rome. The love of the Romans for jurisprudence led them to make legal deals even in religion. In their opinion, if everything is done without violating all the formalities, then any ritual or other religious act will bring the desired result.

In general, in the days of Ancient Rome, legal science reached colossal heights. There was a huge library dedicated to jurisprudence. Its main authors were Servius Sulpicius Rufus (c. 105-43 BC) и Mucius Scaevola (c. 140-82 BC.

e.). Mucius Scaevola wrote works on private law, which were the basis for the emergence of civil rights.

Jurisprudence is not only the writing of laws and rights, but also practical activities related primarily to speaking in court. Trials served as a great impetus to the development of rhetoric, that is, eloquence.

A prominent representative of oratory in the period of the republic in Rome was Cicero (106-43 BC). His outstanding oratorical talent is evidenced by his surviving judicial and political speeches (58 speeches). But Cicero was not only a brilliant orator, but also a writer. Many of his works have reached us: 19 treatises on rhetoric, philosophy and politics, as well as more than 800 of his letters, from which many facts about the history of Ancient Rome during the period of the Republic were collected.

As in ancient Greece, in ancient Rome great importance was attached to education, with minor amendments. For example, mathematics has given way to jurisprudence and rhetoric. A great place was occupied by the history of Rome, its language and literature. There is a certain practicality in Roman education. Subjects such as music and gymnastics began to be replaced by fencing and horseback riding, which were more necessary for that time. Philosophy also faded into the background.

Greek influence can also be seen in Roman literature. Among the writers, it should be noted the famous creator of comedies Plautus (c. 250-184 BC), comedian Terentia (190-159 BC). An important feature of their works was that they practically did not reflect Roman reality, all the actions took place in Greek cities, all the heroes bore Greek, not Roman, names.

The first authors who wrote in Latin were Cato the Elder (234-149 BC), Varro (116-27 BC) и Cicero.

For Roman architecture, originating in Greek, was characterized by the desire to emphasize strength, power, greatness. The practicality characteristic of the Romans led to the fact that the construction of temples faded into the background. First of all, buildings and structures with specific functions were built.

The architectural buildings were characterized by pomp, abundance of decorations, and a penchant for ideal geometry.

During the Roman Republic, new types of architectural structures appeared.

1. basilicas. They were rectangular structures, which were broken from the inside by rows of columns. Most often, basilicas served as places for trade and trials.

2. Thermae. These were primarily bathhouses; in addition, there were libraries, sports halls, places for games, etc.

3. amphitheaters - buildings with an oval arena with seats for spectators located in a circle. Designed for gladiator fights.

4. Circuses. AT they held competitions between chariots.

The great contribution of the Romans was made in the creation of sculptures. A new type of sculpture appeared - the togatus, a statue depicting a man in a toga (Roman clothes), mainly a speaker. In addition to togatus, busts were created by the Romans. The most famous of them: the busts of Caesar and Cicero, Brutus and the Orator.

At the end of the first century BC, the era of the Roman Republic ends, a new period begins - The Roman Empire.

Empire period

The empire period is divided into two phases: early empire (late I century BC - II century AD) and late empire (late III - late V centuries).

The early empire is usually called the principate; it is characterized by the flourishing of a huge Roman state.

There have been a number of developments in religion. The roles of the state and the emperor were so great that the emperor was declared divine after death. A new cult appeared - the patron goddess of the entire Roman Empire, Roma, began to be revered.

In the era of the early empire, science flourished in Rome. Cities such as Rome, Athens, Carthage, Alexandria, and others become scientific centers. Geography and medicine can be singled out among the sciences.

Roman writer and scholar Pliny the Elder (23/24-79 AD). BC) creates an encyclopedia on geography, zoology, botany and mineralogy, called “Natural History”. Ancient Greek scientist and historian Strabo (64/63 BC - 23/24 AD) sums up all the knowledge of the ancient world in geography in his work Geography, which consisted of seventeen books. Another ancient Greek scholar Ptolemy (after 83 - after 161 AD) created an encyclopedia, where he collected all the knowledge of the ancient era on astronomy, his work was called "Almagest". In the book "Geography" gave basic information on geography, which were known in antiquity. Among physicians, it is worth highlighting the doctor Galena (129-199 AD). BC), who studied human respiration, the activity of the human spinal cord and brain. His main work is “On the Parts of the Human Body.” In it he gives a complete description of human anatomy. During the era of the early empire, jurisprudence continued to develop. It is primarily associated with the names of such lawyers as Guy (second half of the XNUMXnd century) (his main work is the study guide to Roman law "Gaius Institution", consisting of four books), Papinian (c. 145- 212) (in 426 his writings were legally binding), Ulpian (c. 170-228) (like the writings of Papian, his writings were also recognized as legally binding in 426). The literature of the era of the early empire also reached greatness. A special role here is assigned to the approximate emperor Augustus - Gaius Cilnius Maecenas (74/64-8 BC). BC), whose name would later become a household name, since he helped the Roman poets in every possible way.

The literature is represented by such names as Virgil (17-19 BC e.) (his famous poem "Aeneid"), Horace (65-8 BC. e.) (his "Science of Poetry" is the basis of classicism), Ovid (43 - 18 years old n. e.) (author of the poem "Metamorphoses"), Apuleius (P century) (author of the novel "Metamorphoses, or the Golden Ass"), Plutarch (c. 46 - 119 years n. e.) (his famous work "Comparative Lives"). The development of the architecture of the era of the early empire is manifested in such architectural monuments as the Colosseum (a huge amphitheater designed for 50 thousand spectators), the Pantheon - a temple in the name of all the gods 43 m high.

At the end of the second century, there was a crisis of the Roman Empire, and with it a cultural crisis. The era of the early empire is replaced by the era of the late empire in the third century. There are changes in the state system - the principate is replaced dominant (unrestricted monarchy). But these changes could not save the Roman Empire, and in 395 it fell apart into two parts: the western (center - Rome) and the east (center - in Constantinople). At this time, the first signs of the Christian religion appeared on the territory of the Roman Empire, especially in its eastern provinces. At the initial stage, Christianity was forbidden, but with the coming to power of the emperor Constantine (272-337 AD). e.) the situation is changing. He allows Christians to preach their religion, and later Christianity becomes the state religion. The new religion significantly influenced both fine art and architecture. The first Christian churches (basilicas) appear. The culture of Ancient Rome, together with the culture of Ancient Greece, gave a powerful impetus to the development of European culture and are themselves great cultural monuments of all mankind.

4. Culture of the Middle Ages

You can treat culture differently middle ages, some believe that in the Middle Ages there was some kind of cultural stagnation; in any case, they cannot be thrown out of the history of culture. After all, even in difficult times there have always been talented people who, despite everything, continued to create. It is impossible to say exactly when the historical period called the Middle Ages or Middle Ages began and ended. This period follows the history of the ancient world and precedes the modern era. It spans about ten centuries and is divided into two stages:

1) early Middle Ages (V-XI centuries);

2) the classical Middle Ages (XII-XIV centuries).

Early middle ages

The main feature of the early Middle Ages is the spread of Christianity.

Christianity appeared in the first century in Palestine, then, spreading across the Mediterranean, in the fourth century became the state religion of the Roman Empire. Gradually begins to take shape priesthood institution.

The influence of religion on the cultural life of the Middle Ages was so great that it is impossible to consider cultural achievements without taking into account the important spiritual factor. The church becomes the center of all cultural and social processes in society. That is why it is theology (theology) in the Middle Ages that becomes the head of all other cultures, which in one way or another had to obey it.

Theology was primarily supposed to protect the official church from all sorts of heresies. This concept arose in the early Middle Ages and meant those movements of Christianity that deviated from the official doctrines of the Christian church. They were treated.

1. Monophysitism - a trend that denied the duality of Christ, his God-human nature.

2. Nestorianism - a trend that preached the position that the human nature of Christ exists in itself. According to their teaching, Christ was born a man, and only then took on the divine nature.

3. Adoption heresy - the doctrine according to which Christ was born a man, and then was adopted by God.

4. Cathars - heresy, according to which everything earthly, material is a product of the devil. Its supporters preached asceticism and were against the institution of the church.

5. Waldenses - adherents of heresy, who opposed the clergy and the official church, were supporters of asceticism and poverty.

6. Albigenses - a heretical movement that opposed the official church, its dogmas, church land ownership, and the clergy.

The official church did not put up with heresies, in every possible way fought against their spread. In the classical Middle Ages, such a method as inquisition.

Among the various cultures of the Middle Ages, philosophy can be distinguished.

Philosophy in the Middle Ages is the first "servant" of theology. Among the philosophers who fully satisfied the wishes of theologians, one should single out Thomas Aquinas (1225-1275 AD). e.). In his works he sought to prove the existence of God. In his opinion, God is the supreme cause of all phenomena and processes, and it is to her that the mind seeking an answer must come.

Astronomy, history, geometry, etc. were considered lower sciences. They were subordinate to philosophy, which itself was subordinate to theology. Therefore, everything created, founded by these sciences was under the constant control of the church. The accumulation of knowledge resulted in the creation of encyclopedias, textbooks on mathematics and medicine. But everywhere the religious dominant was still felt, which did not give free rein to the thoughts of scientists. The Church managed to affect even artistic creativity. The artist had to strictly follow church canons. First of all, it had to reflect the perfection of the world order. In the period of the early Middle Ages, the Romanesque style in art takes shape. All architectural structures of the Romanesque style (temples, castles, monastic complexes) were distinguished by their massiveness, severity, fortress character, and great height. The most famous examples of the Romanesque style are such buildings as the cathedrals of Notre Dame in Poitiers, Toulouse, Arne (France), the cathedrals in Noritch, Oxford (England), the church of the monastery Maria Lach (Germany), etc.

In literature, there has been a predominance of works of the heroic epic. The most famous works are "The Poem of Beowulf" (England) and "Elder Eda" (Scandinavia). These works belonged to oral poetry and were transmitted by singer-musicians.

In addition to the epic, during the early Middle Ages were widespread sagas. The most famous of them were “The Saga of Egil”, “The Saga of Njal”, “The Saga of Eric the Red”, etc. The sagas told about the past, they were sources from which one can learn about ancient peoples.

Classic Middle Ages

In the classical period of the Middle Ages, the influence of religion on cultural life became even more significant. Of great importance, as mentioned above, have become widespread inquisition (from Latin inqusitio - "search"). Inquisitions were ecclesiastical trials of non-Christians. Interrogations were carried out with the use of torture, after which public executions were held when heretics were burned (auto-da-fé). AT the period of the classical Middle Ages in art there has been a predominance gothic style, which replaced the Romanesque style. The architecture of the Gothic style was characterized by the fact that the temple buildings seemed to be carried upward by slender columns, the windows were decorated stained glass windows, the towers had openwork decorations, many curved statues and complex ornaments. Vivid examples of the Gothic style in architecture are Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris, Notre Dame Cathedral in Reims, Notre Dame Cathedral in Amiens (France), etc. A new direction appears in literature - chivalric literature. Its main character is a feudal warrior. Vivid monuments of knightly literature are such works as “The Song of Roland” about the campaigns of Charlemagne (France), “Tristan and Isolde” - a tragic novel about the love of the knight Tristan and the wife of the Cornish king Isolde (Germany), “The Song of My Side” ( Spain), "Song of the Nibelungs" - a legend about the destruction of the Nibelungs by the Huns (Germany).

During the Classical Middle Ages, church theater. During liturgies, small skits on biblical themes began to be staged. (mysteries). Later, these sketches began to be staged outside the church, and scenes from ordinary people’s lives were added to religious themes. (farces).

At the beginning of the fourteenth century, interest in the human person intensified in cultural life. This marks the arrival of a new period in the development of the culture of Western Europe - renaissance, which is also called Renaissance.

Renaissance (Renaissance)

The first trends towards the advent of a new cultural era were outlined in Italy as early as the thirteenth century, while the Renaissance came to the rest of Western European countries only in the fourteenth century.

At its initial stage, the Renaissance was presented as a return to the achievements of antiquity. In Italy, forgotten literary works and other cultural monuments of antiquity began to rise. But do not assume that the Renaissance is just a retelling of the culture of the ancient world. Absorbing all the best of ancient cultural values, the Renaissance created its own vision of the world, in the center of which is a person. Unlike the opinions of the ancient world, according to which a person should learn from nature, according to Renaissance thinkers, a person is the creator of his own destiny, he is able to do what he wants, even separated from nature. By this, the Renaissance contradicts the teachings of the Middle Ages, according to which the head of the world is not man, but God, the Creator.

The new line of thought was called humanism (from lat. humanus - "human"). This idea, which puts a person at the center of everything, influenced people's desire for personal success, which is possible with constant development, enrichment of their scientific and cultural knowledge, development of creative energy. As a consequence of this approach, there is a huge cultural heritage left to us by the Renaissance. And above all, this High Renaissance, to which the cultural period in Italy belongs.

Italian Renaissance

As already mentioned, the Renaissance began in Italy in the thirteenth century. This initial period, which lasted from the thirteenth to the beginning of the fourteenth century, was called Proto-Renaissance. The basis for the Italian Renaissance was given by such cultural figures as painters Pietro Cavallini (c. 1240/1250-1330) - Author of mosaics in the Church of Santa Maria in Trust Vera, frescoes in the Church of Santa Cecilia in Trastevere; Giotto di Bondone (1266/1267-1337) - his frescoes are in the Arena Chapel in Padua and in the Church of Santa Croce in Florence; poet and creator of the Italian literary language Dante Alighieri (1265-1321) (the story "New Life", the poem "The Divine Comedy", etc.); sculptor and architect Arnolfo Di Cambio (c. 1245-1310) (Church of San Domenico in Orvieto); sculptor Niccolò Lisano (c. 1220-1278/1284) - he owns the chair of the baptistery in Pisa.

The Renaissance itself in Italy is usually divided into three stages:

1) early Renaissance (tricento and quatricento) (mid-XIV-XV centuries);

2) high renaissance (cinquecento) (the end of the XV - the middle of the XVI centuries);

3) late renaissance (second third of the XNUMXth - first half of the XNUMXth centuries).

The literary work of the early Renaissance is primarily associated with such names as Giovanni Boccaccio (1313-1357) и Francesco Petrarch (1304-1374).

Main achievement Petrarch is that he was the first humanist who put man at the center of everything. His most famous work is "Canzoniere" ("Book of Songs"), consisting of sonnets, ballads and madrigals on the life and death of the Madonna Laura.

Product Giovanni Boccaccio The "Decameron", which consists of several short stories, is permeated with humanistic ideas, and even today it remains very instructive, although it was created more than six hundred years ago.

In the fine arts of the early Renaissance, it is worth noting the outstanding Italian painter Sandro Botticelli (1445-1510). Most of his works were of a religious and mythological nature, permeated with spiritual sadness, lightness, and distinguished by a subtle coloring. His most famous masterpieces: “Spring” (1477-1478), “Birth of Venus” (c. 1483-1484), “Lamentation of Christ” (c. 1500), “Venus and Mars” (1483 .), "Saint Sebastian" (1474), "Pallas and the Centaur" (1480), etc.

Among the sculptors of the early Renaissance in Italy, the most famous representative of the Florence school is Donato di Niccolò Betto Bardi, better known as Donatello (1386-1466). He created new forms of sculpture: the type of round statue and sculptural group. An example would be his works such as “David” (1430), “Judith and Holofernes” (1456-1457).

Another talented sculptor and architect of the early Renaissance Philippe Brunelleschi (1377-1446). He was the creator of the theory of linear perspective. Based on the architecture of antiquity, he constantly used the achievements of modernity and introduced innovative ideas into his works. That is why his architectural structures (Pazzi Chapel in the courtyard of the Church of Santa Croce, the dome of the Cathedral of Santa Maria del Fiore, etc.) can rightfully be called the standard of engineering and construction thought.

The High Renaissance is associated with the names of three great artists: Leonardo da Vinci, Raphael и Michelangelo Buonarroti.

Leonardo da Vinci (1452-1519) was a painter, architect, sculptor, scientist and engineer. There are few cultural figures who could be compared with a brilliant creator and thinker. No one can remain indifferent to the name of his painting "La Gioconda", everyone immediately understands what kind of work he is talking about. This portrait has become the most famous portrait not only of the Renaissance, but, perhaps, of the entire history of culture.

The image of man in the works of Leonardo da Vinci is fully consistent with the ideas of humanism, carries a high ethical content. It is worth taking a look at least at the famous painting in the monastery of Santa Maria della Grazie in Milan "The Last Supper", where all the characters have very clear and distinct facial expressions, understandable gestures. Known are the artist's sketches ("Heads of Warriors", "St. Anna with Mary, the Infant Christ and John the Baptist", "Women's Hands" and "Woman's Head"), in which he very successfully conveys the emotions, feelings of the characters, their inner world. Leonardo da Vinci's notes have been preserved, in which he himself talks about his many-sided talents and the possibility of their application.

Another prominent High Renaissance painter Raphael Santi (1483-1520). His enormous talent was revealed already at an early stage of his work. An example of this is his painting "Madonna Conestabile" (c. 1502-1503). Raphael's works are the embodiment of the humanistic ideal, the strength of man, his beauty and spirituality. Perhaps the most famous work of the master is the Sistine Madonna, painted in 1513.

Closes the top three of the legendary Italian painters Michelangelo Buonarroti (1475-1564). His most famous artistic work is the painting of the vault of the Sistine Chapel in the Vatican Palace (1508-1512). But Michelangelo Buonarroti was not only a talented painter. The master gained fame as a sculptor after his work “David”. In it, he, like a true humanist, admires human beauty.

In the literature of the High Renaissance, it is worth highlighting the Italian poet Ludovico Ariosto (1474-1533), the author of the heroic knightly poem “Furious Roland” (1516), imbued with the ideas of humanism, and the comedies “The Warlock” (1520) and “The Matchmaker” (1528), permeated with subtle irony and lightness.

The further development of humanistic ideas was hindered by the church, which tried in every possible way to restore its rights, which it had in the Middle Ages. Various repressive measures were carried out, which were directed against cultural figures. This could not but affect the further development of the culture of the Renaissance. As a result, many creative people began to move away from the ideas of humanism, leaving only the skills that the masters of the early and high Renaissance achieved. This programming, with which cultural figures began to work, was called mannerism. And of course, it cannot lead to anything good, because all creative meaning is lost. But despite the leading positions of Mannerism, there were masters who still followed humanistic ideals. Among them were artists Paolo Veronese (1528-1588), Jacopo Tintoretto (1518-1594), Michelangelo da Caravaggio (1573-1610)sculptor Benvenuto Cellini (1500-1571).

The end of the Renaissance was marked by the release of the "List of Forbidden Books" in 1559 by order of Pope Paul IV. This list was constantly updated, and disobedience to this prescription was punished by excommunication from the church. The "List of banned books" also included works of the Renaissance, for example, books Giovanni Boccaccio.

So, by the forties of the seventeenth century, the last stage of the Italian Renaissance, the late Renaissance, ended.

But the Renaissance affected not only Italy, there was also the so-called Northern Renaissance, which belonged to such countries as England, the Netherlands, France, Germany, Switzerland, Spain, etc. These countries cannot be left without attention, since their culture at this stage is no less significant than the culture of Italy, and even on the contrary, very interesting at least by the fact that it did not have such a rich ancient cultural layer as Italy had, and was formed during the difficult period of the Reformation.

Northern Renaissance

The literature of the Northern Renaissance reached great heights.

In the Netherlands, the flowering of literature is associated primarily with the name Erasmus of Rotterdam (1469-1536). The most famous works of this humanist are “Praise of Folly” (1509) and “Home Conversations”. In them, he ridicules many vices and calls people to free-thinking and the pursuit of knowledge. In France, the ideas of humanism were developed in their literary works François Rabelais (1494-1553) (his outstanding work "Gargantua and Pantagruel") and Michel de Montaigne (1533-1592), who affirmed the ideas of rationalism in his main work, “Experiments.”

The work of the Spanish writer had a huge impact on world literature. Miguel de Cervantes (1547-1616). It is especially worth noting his main work - the novel Don Quixote. It is the standard for humanistic literature. Cervantes' compatriot, another Spanish writer Lope de Vega (1562-1635) thanks to his works "Dog in the Manger", "Blood of the Innocents", "Star of Seville", "Dance Teacher" and others, remains relevant today. Raising important questions for each person, he does not lose his novelty and significance today.

And finally, in England, the literature of the Renaissance is associated with the name of an outstanding author William Shakespeare (1564-1616). He owns thirty-seven plays ("Hamlet", "Othello", "King Lear", "Richard III", "Romeo and Juliet" and many others), the productions of which have not left theater stages all over the world to this day.

It was thanks to W. Shakespeare that theatrical art in England received tremendous development during the Renaissance.

Outstanding creators were not only in the literary environment. Painting received a big boost. Major painters in the Netherlands were Jan van Eyck (c. 1390-1441) - the author of a new oil painting technique at that time, Hieronymus (c. 1460-1516), Frans Hale (1581/1585-1666) - virtuoso painter, Pieter Bruegel (1525-1569). And perhaps the most significant names in the world of painting - Peter Paul Rubens (1577-1640) и Harmens van Rijn Rembrandt (1606-1669). Rubens's works are characterized by pomp, high spirits, and a lot of decorations and decorations. The main theme of his works were religious and mythological subjects (“The Union of Earth and Water” (1618), “Perseus and Andromeda” (early 1620), “The Judgment of Paris” (1638-1639)), as well as portraits (“Portrait of Helena Faurment with her children” (circa 1636), “The Chambermaid” (circa 1625)). Rembrandt mainly painted portraits, which were characterized by extreme accuracy and vitality of the images. For example, it is worth noting his portraits “Portrait of Floris Soop”, “Philosopher”, “Rembrandt’s Mother”, etc. Rembrandt also painted paintings on religious (“Return of the Prodigal Son”) and historical (“Conspiracy of Julius Civilis”) themes.

Among German painters, it is worth noting the masters of realistic portrait Hans Holbein the Younger (1497/1498-1543), humanist Grunewald (1470/1475-1528), as well as a graphic artist Lucas Cranach the Elder (1427-1553).

Spanish painting reached great heights thanks to the work of great artists El Greco (1541-1614) ("Opening the Fifth Seal", "Savior of the World", "Christ drives out the merchants on the hill", "Descent of the Holy Spirit", etc.) and Diego Velasquez (1599-1660) ("Surrender of Breda", "Breakfast", "Portrait of Prince Carlos Baltazar on a pony").

The Renaissance, which originated in Italy, was of such great importance for the culture of the whole world that it could not remain on the territory of one state and spread throughout Western Europe. In each country, the Renaissance had its own national features, but there was also much in common. First, the idea of ​​humanism, characteristic of the Renaissance in all countries, which can be traced in most works of art. And although the church tried in every possible way to stop the development of this new thinking of people, sometimes resorting to the most extreme measures, the Renaissance was the basis for all further cultures of Western European civilizations and even largely influenced the cultures of the countries of the East.

5. Culture of the New Age

New time covers the period of the end of the XVII-XIX centuries. It is usually divided into two stages:

1) the Age of Enlightenment ("Age of Reason"), referring to the XVII-XVIII centuries;

2) culture of the XNUMXth century.

Let us dwell in more detail on one of the brightest eras in the cultural history of European countries.

Age of Enlightenment

The impetus for the transition to the Age of Enlightenment in all countries is the rejection of the feudal way of life, the transition to a more democratic system. What is the manifestation of its democracy? Firstly, the culture of the Enlightenment is intended not for some chosen stratum of society, not for its rich top, but for the whole people.

The purpose of the Enlightenment is to make the whole people more educated. That is why the significance of the Enlightenment as a whole for the entire cultural process in the world is very great. Thanks to him, the cultural framework was noticeably expanded, which until then covered only an insignificant layer of society. It is thanks to such a concept as the Enlightenment that the terms "cultured" and "educated" could refer to any person striving to enrich his inner world, even if this person had little means.

Equality is what the Enlightenment brought to life. It was the concept of equality that became the key to further cultural development. The fact that all people are initially equal among themselves and have the same rights to their further development as individuals served as the basis for the creation of the ideals of the Enlightenment. Who was the ideal of this era, which is often called "Age of Reason"? Of course, a person, who is distinguished from an animal by the ability to think rationally. It is he who possesses not only physical, but also spiritual power.

According to many thinkers, the Enlightenment is the main engine of social progress.

For example, the German philosopher Immanuel Kant (1724-1804) wrote that “Enlightenment is a person’s emergence from the state of his minority...”. And “minority” “is the inability to use one’s reason without guidance from someone else.” According to I. Kant, a person “is in this minority through his own fault,” solely because of the “lack of determination and courage to use” his own reason.

This desire for independence, the participation of each person in the reorganization of the world around him through the possibilities of his mind, led to the fact that the religious understanding and thinking of the people radically changed. One of the extremes of these changes is the emergence of atheist enlighteners who denied religious ideas and cults and, contrary to these ideas, put man above all else. As a consequence - the emergence in the Enlightenment of a new form of faith - deism. Enlighteners-deists did not deny the existence of God as the world mind, as well as the fact that it is he who is the root cause of the world. That is, according to the deists, God is the creator of the world as a kind of "machine", by which he determined the laws of its movement. Any further intervention of God in the arrangement of this "machine" is rejected by the deists, here a person comes to the fore, who makes his own adjustments.

It is worth noting that the Enlightenment era was characterized by optimistic moods associated with the belief that a person can be changed for the better. No wonder there was another definition of the Enlightenment as the "golden age of utopia." This utopia referred primarily to a change in the political and social foundations. A harmonious society, living according to reason, with a sense of responsibility for each individual person - this is the ideal social structure of utopian enlighteners. But despite the great desire to obtain such a society, many utopians, for example Jean Jacques Rousseau (1712-1778), had little faith in its possibility.

The feudal system gave way to a new bourgeois type of economic relations. But the transition was not very smooth. It was preceded not just by gradual progressive transformations, but by real upheavals that affected various aspects of human life.

The Age of Enlightenment, which began with the last revolution in England (1689), subsequently included three revolutions at once:

1) industrial in England;

2) political in France;

3) philosophical and aesthetic in Germany.

But the Enlightenment affected not only the social structure of society, but also cultural development.

Leadership emerges in philosophy rationalism, which replaced metaphysics. That is, it was the mind that began to be revered as the basis of human knowledge and behavior. Only reason was recognized as having the final say, both in life and in science, and even in religion.

Although the Age of Enlightenment covered many countries, each of them had its own characteristics, primarily related to national identity.

England is considered the birthplace of the Enlightenment. Even the church here did not go against the Enlightenment, but accepting its values ​​and ideals. The reorganization of society after the revolution and civil wars, the strengthening of the rule of law with its desire for equality made England a kind of standard that other states aspired to.

The first to formulate the program of the English Enlightenment, which was also followed in France, was the philosopher John Locke (1632-1704). In his work "An Essay on Human Understanding", written in 1689, he identified three basic human rights, which are referred to as "inalienable rights":

1) the human right to life;

2) the human right to freedom;

3) the right to property.

D. Locke saw the result of the adoption of these three rights in the "legal equality of individuals."

D. Locke attributed great importance to human labor. In his opinion, it is labor that determines what kind of property a person will possess.

The idea of ​​equality was also adhered to by another English educator, the philosopher Thomas Hobbes (1588-1679). He believed that all people are equal by nature, and inequality is the cause of many troubles, such as conflicts, wars, etc. And in order to avoid these troubles, T. Hobbes believed, every person needs to get rid of his selfish passions.

But there were thinkers who held a completely opposite opinion. Thus was born a new direction in philosophy, called ethics of self-love or reasonable selfishness. His followers were the English thinker and writer Bernard Mandeville (1670-1733), as well as an English philosopher and sociologist Jeremiah Ventham (1748-1832). According to supporters of the ethics of self-love, selfishness is the driving force in the cultural and moral life of people.

Among the Scottish educators, it is worth highlighting the economist and philosopher Adam Smith (1723-1790). He put forward his innovative idea of ​​​​civic behavior and social relations, in which he assigned a large role to the market. It was thanks to the market, according to A. Smith, that man was able to throw off the shackles of feudalism. Human freedom is determined primarily by his role in economic relations.

The Enlightenment in France became famous for the names of great thinkers. Primarily - Voltaire, Jean Jacques Rousseau, Appreciate Diderot и Charles Louis Montesquieu.

One of the supporters of deism in France was a writer and educator Voltaire (1694-1778), whose real name is Marie Francois Arouet. Already in his early works his indignation towards absolutism was evident; he ridiculed feudal society with its principles and moral values ​​in every possible way. Such works as “Philosophical Letters,” written in 1733, and “Philosophical Dictionary,” written between 1764 and 1769, are devoted to criticism of the feudal-absolutist system. But Voltaire’s work covered not only philosophical and political themes. His prose was devoted to very diverse topics, written in various genres: from tragedy and comedy to poetry and novels. Voltaire's ideas played an important role in the development of world thought. In particular, in Russia it has become very widespread Voltairianism, which was associated with freethinking, religious skepticism, and the overthrow of authorities.

Another critic of absolutism was a contemporary and compatriot of Voltaire, a jurist and philosopher. Charles Louis Montesquieu (1689-1755). His main works are “Persian Letters,” written in 1721, and the book “On the Spirit of Laws,” written in 1748. In them, S. L. Montesquieu discusses the causality of the emergence of one or another form of statehood, sees a solution to problems associated with legality, separation of powers.

Irreconcilable with religious ideas, as well as absolutism, the great French writer and philosopher remained in power throughout his life. Denis Diderot (1713-1784). He was a materialist, that is, a supporter of the idea that matter is primary, and all thinking and consciousness are only properties of this matter. One of the greatest achievements of D. Diderot is the idea of ​​​​creating the Encyclopedia (1751-1780). He was not only its inspiration, but also its creator and editor. The Encyclopedia consisted of thirty-five volumes.

Jean Jacques Rousseau (1712-1778), a French writer and philosopher who, like other educators, treated the official church with distrust and even indignation. His works trace the main idea of ​​the Enlightenment - the idea of ​​universal equality. This theme is typical for such of his works as “Discourse on the Beginning and Foundations of Inequality” (1755), “On the Social Contract” (1762). In them he criticizes absolutism and extreme despotism of power.

According to J. J. Rousseau, many of the problems of a person are the result of his spoiled morals. This depravity came from bad upbringing and inequality. Therefore, Rousseau saw the way out in the eradication of all inequality, in the correct education of people who could serve for the benefit of society. That is why one of the most famous works of J. J. Rousseau is his novel "Emil, or on Education", dedicated to pedagogical problems in the education system. The main goal of education, according to Rousseau, is the development in a person of an inner consciousness of goodness and the protection of his moral feelings from the corrupting influence of society.

The Enlightenment did not stand still. The difficult situation in which Germany was located, its fragmentation and economic instability left their characteristic national imprint on the German Enlightenment.

Among the German philosophers of the Enlightenment, it is worth highlighting Immanuel Kantham his contemporaries: Gotthold Ephraim Lessing и Johann Gottfried Herder.

The main idea of ​​the German philosopher, art theorist and playwright Gotthold Ephraim Lessing (1729-1781) there was a political renewal which he saw in the unity of the human race. The purpose of this renewal is the final stage in the development of human civilization, "the era of the new, eternal Gospel."

Another German philosopher-educator, critic and esthetician was a supporter of humanistic ideas. Johann Gottfried Herder (1744-1803). He stood for originality in art, for national differences and diversity. Some of his most significant works, imbued with the ideas of humanism, were the essay “Another Philosophy of History for the Education of Humanity”, as well as “Letters for the Encouragement of Humanity” (1793-1797).

I. Kant had his own concept of the Enlightenment, according to which Enlightenment is the liberation of man from moral and intellectual dependence. In this regard, it is worth noting such a work by I. Kant as "Observation of the Feeling of the Beautiful and the Sublime." The beautiful and the sublime are the two main categories according to I. Kant. I. Kant observes all human feelings only through the prism of these categories.

And if the beautiful and sublime, rather, refers to the world of art and creativity, then there were other topics that I. Kant touched upon in his writings. He is concerned about many social issues. For example, questions close to art, such as the development of a culture created by man, the laws of this development. I. Kant sees the reason for any development as the natural competition of people in the pursuit of their personal freedom, self-realization, and the achievement of the significance of their personality.

An important concept in the philosophy of I. Kant is the concept of "thing in itself". This concept means a thing considered from the side of its qualities that do not depend on a person in any way. Interestingly, in the first edition of his Critique of Pure Reason, written in 1781, I. Kant denies any existence of a "thing in itself." And already in the second edition it proves the opposite, that the "thing in itself" can be real.

The significance of the philosophy of I. Kant for the subsequent development of philosophical thought is enormous. It was I. Kant who was the founder of German classical philosophy.

The art of the Enlightenment was characterized by its own style and genre features. There are three main trends characteristic of European art.

1. Classicism, from the Latin classicus, meaning “exemplary.”

2. Romanticism, from the French word romanticisme.

3. Sentimentalism, from the French word sentiment, which means “feeling.”

It was the sentimentalists who created the cult of nature characteristic of the Enlightenment. In their opinion, such natural areas as gardens and parks are the most favorable places for a person who strives for his development and improvement.

Here parks are not just places with natural or planted vegetation. They include various cultural buildings such as museums, libraries, theaters, art galleries and temples, etc. From this we can conclude that the art of the Enlightenment reached great heights.

Art in France is associated primarily with such a new concept as rococo. It is characterized by asymmetry, playfulness and pretentiousness, luxury and mannerism.

An example of Rococo are the works of the French painter Francois Boucher (1703-1770), such as “Venus Consoling Cupid” (1751), “Breakfast” (1750), “Diana’s Bath” (1742), “Morning” (1745), “Resting Girl” (1752 .), "Toilet of Venus" (1751), etc.

The ancestor of the Rococo style is considered to be a French draftsman and painter. Antoine Watteau (1684-1721). His works, from everyday scenes to gallant celebrations, stand out for their brightness, sophistication, and colorfulness. His most famous paintings: “Society in the Park” (1716-1719), “Dance” (1710-1720), “Mezzeten” (1717-1719), “Lovers on Vacation”, “Pilgrimage to the Island” Kiefer" (1717-1718).

But the very first painter-educator was an Englishman William Hogarth (1697-1764). It was he who was the first to introduce secular themes into painting, whereas previously works of art with religious themes had predominated. W. Hogarth's paintings were characterized by satire; he used painting to ridicule the vices of the aristocracy. An example of this is his paintings “The Career of a Prostitute” (1730-1731), “The Career of a Spendthrift” (1732-1735), “The Marriage Contract”, “Elections” (c. 1754), etc.

His compatriot, Enlightenment painter Thomas Gainsborough (1727-1888) was one of the most prominent portrait painters. His portraits ("Self-portrait" (1754 and 1758), "Portrait of a lady in blue" (1770), "Girl with piglets" (1782), "Morning walk" (1785), etc.) spiritualized, poetic, full of lyricism and spiritual refinement.

In Italy, namely in Venice, in the XVIII century. a new direction of painting was born - veduta.

Veduta (from the Italian word veduta) is an urban architectural landscape. Representatives of this trend were the Venetian painters-enlighteners Giovanni Canaletto (1697-1768) ("Portello and the Brenta Canal in Padua", "Stonecutter's Yard", "Square of Saints John and Paul in Venice", "Church of Santa Maria della Salute in Venice" , "Piazza San Marco in Venice"), Francesco Guardi (1712-1793) ("View of the square with the palace", "Capriccio on the embankment of the Venetian lagoon", "Departure of the Doge on the" Bucentoro "to the church of San Nicolò on the Lido", "View of the Venetian Lagoon with the Tower of Malghera").

The literary art of the Enlightenment did not stand still. This is largely due to the flourishing of theatrical art. After all, it is not for nothing that the Enlightenment is called the "golden age of the theater."

In England, it is associated with the name of the playwright Richard Brinsley Sheridan (1751-1816). He became famous for his satirical comedies: The Rivals (1775), Trips to Scarborough (1777), The School for Scandal.

Theatrical art was highly developed in Venice. Here, in a small town, there were seven theaters. Venetian theaters existed largely thanks to the merits of outstanding playwrights: Carlo Goldoni and Carlo Gozzi.

The most famous works Carlo Goldoni (1707-1793) - "The Sly Widow" (1748), "The Innkeeper" (1753), "The Servant of Two Masters" (1745-1753). Thanks to his wit and sparkling humor, K. Goldoni became widely known all over the world.

His contemporary Carlo Gozzi (1720-1806) wrote fairy tales (fiabs) for the theater, which were based on folklore: "The Love for Three Oranges" (1761), "The Deer King" (1762), "Turandot" (1762) and others. And if K. Goldoni refused method of commedia dell'arte (improvisation based on the script), then C. Gozzi, on the contrary, continued to widely use this method.

Comedy of manners reached great heights in the work of the French playwright of the Enlightenment Pierre Augustin Beaumarchais (1732-1799). The heroes of his works tried in every possible way to protest and ridicule the existing regime. (The Barber of Seville (1775) and The Marriage of Figaro (1784)).

In the Age of Enlightenment, a "universal genius" appeared in Germany, the founder of German literature, a writer Johann Wolfgang Goethe (1749-1832). His works are imbued with anti-feudal sentiments, they describe the problems of human relationships, the search for the meaning of life (the play "Egmont" (1788), the tragedy "Faust" (1803-1832), the autobiographical book "Poetry and Truth", etc.) . I. Goethe was not only a talented writer, but also a brilliant natural scientist (“An Essay on the Metamorphosis of Plants” (1790), “The Doctrine of Color” (1810)).

Musical art can be put on a par with theater and literary art. Operas and other musical works were written on the themes of the works of great writers and playwrights.

The development of musical art is primarily associated with the names of such great composers as J.-S. Bach, G. F. Handel, I Haydn, W. A. ​​Mozart, L. V. Beethoven and others.

An unsurpassed master of polyphony was a German composer, organist and harpsichordist Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750). His works were imbued with deep philosophical meaning and high ethics. He was able to summarize the achievements in musical art that his predecessors had achieved. His most famous works are “The Well-Tempered Clavier” (1722-1744), “The St. John Passion” (1724), “The St. Matthew Passion” (1727 and 1729), many concerts and cantatas, the Mass of the minor (1747-1749), etc.

Unlike I.-S. Bach, who did not write a single opera, to a German composer and organist George Frideric Handel (1685-1759) belong to more than forty operas. As well as works on biblical themes (oratorios "Israel in Egypt" (1739), "Saul" (1739), "Messiah" (1742), "Samson" (1743), "Judas Maccabee" (1747), etc.), organ concertos, sonatas, suites, etc.

The master of classical instrumental genres such as symphonies, quartets, as well as sonata forms was the great Austrian composer Joseph Haydn (1732-1809). It was thanks to him that the classical composition of the orchestra was formed. He owns several oratorios (“The Seasons” (1801), “The Creation of the World” (1798)), 104 symphonies, 83 quartets, 52 piano sonatas, 14 masses, etc.

Another Austrian composer Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-1791), was a child prodigy, thanks to which he became famous in early childhood. He owns over 20 operas, including the famous “The Marriage of Figaro” (1786), “Don Giovanni” (1787), “The Magic Flute” (1791), more than 50 symphonies, many concerts, piano works (sonatas) , fantasies, variations), unfinished "Requiem" (1791), songs, masses, etc.

The difficult fate that left its mark on all creativity was with the German composer Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827). His genius manifested itself already in childhood and did not leave him even in the terrible trouble for any composer and musician - hearing loss. His works have a philosophical character. Many works were influenced by his republican views as a composer. Beethoven owns nine symphonies, instrumental sonatas (Moonlight, Pathétique), sixteen string quartets, ensembles, the opera Fidelio, overtures (Egmont, Coriolanus), concertos for piano and orchestra and other works.

His famous expression: "Music should carve fire from human hearts." He followed this idea to the end of his life.

19th century culture.

Early XNUMXth century characterized by major changes in social and political life. Bourgeois revolutions break out in many countries. People strive to get rid of political oppression and all injustice.

In addition to changes in the structure of society, the transformation also affected the scientific side of life. The first signs of an industrial society are observed. This is primarily due to the industrial revolution, scientific discoveries, etc.

Here are just a few scientists who have had a significant impact on the development of science: a German naturalist and doctor who formulated the law of conservation of energy, Julius Robert Mayer (1814-1878); English physicist who experimentally proved the law of conservation of energy James Prescott Joule (1814-1878); creator of the thermodynamic theory of chemical processes, the theory of vortex motion of a liquid and anomalous dispersion, German scientist Hermann Ludwig Ferdinand Helmholtz (1821- 1894). Biology has achieved enormous results thanks to such German scientists as Theodor Schwann (1810-1882) ("Microscopic studies on the correspondence in the structure and growth of animals and plants" (1839)) and Matthias Jacob Schleiden (1804-1881). Together they created the cell theory. The grandiose evolutionary doctrine was introduced into biology by an English naturalist Charles Robert Darwin (1809-1882). His main work is On the Origin of Species by Means of Natural Selection (1859).

Physics of the XNUMXth century was able to overcome the boundaries and move into the realm of the microcosm and the world of high speeds. First of all, this is the merit of the two greatest minds of the XNUMXth century: the German theoretical physicist, the founder of modern physics, the creator of the theory of relativity Albert Einstein (1879-1955) and German physicist, founder of quantum theory Max Planck (1857-1947).

In the art of the XIX century. two main styles continued to develop: classicism and romanticism.

Classicism began to take shape in XVII in. It was characterized by a return to the achievements of the ancient world.

The main principles of classicism were philosophical rationalism, rationality, regularity, ennobled beauty. Education played an important role. At the same time, the public was placed above the personal. Heroes of classicism struggled with their passions for the good of society, duty, etc.

In literature, classicism was reflected in the works of such masters as the German poet, playwright Johann Friedrich Schiller (1759-1805) ("Mary Stuart", "Maid of Orleans", "William Tell", etc.), French poet and playwright Marie Joseph Chenier (1764-1811) ("Charles IX, or A Lesson to Kings", "Kai Gracchus", etc.), his brother, poet and playwright André Marie Chenier (1762-1794) (cycle "Yamba").

Classicism in painting is associated primarily with the French painter Jacques Louis David (1748-1825). Adopting the ancient example, he created real masterpieces of classicism: “The Oath of the Horatii” (1784), “The Death of Marat” (1793), “The Sabine Women” (1799), “Andromache at the Bedside of Hector” (1783). ), portraits “Doctor A. Leroy” (1783), “Greengrocer”, “Old Man in a Black Hat”, etc.

A student of J.-L. David was an excellent portrait painter, a French painter Jean Augutes Ingres (1780-1867) ("Portrait of the Artist" (c. 1800), "Portrait of Bertin" (1832), "Madame Devose" (1807)).

The musical art of classicism in connection with the French Revolution took on somewhat new forms. First of all, this is due to the emergence of new ideals, the desire for mass character. The emergence of a new musical genre "opera of salvation" was possible thanks to two composers of this era: François Joseph Gossecou (1734-1829) (opera "The Triumph of the Republic, or the Camp at the Grand Pre", 1793) and Etienne Megule (songs for revolutionary celebrations, the opera Stratonika (1792), Joseph (1807), etc.).

Disappointment in the revolution, social cataclysms led to a change in ideals. Disgust for the bourgeois system with its rationalism and enlightenment led to the fact that classicism began to become obsolete. It was replaced by a new direction - romanticism. Romantics began to abandon objectivity in favor of subjective creative imagination.

Among the writers of romanticism, it is worth highlighting Jean Paul (1763-1825), founder of romantic ethics, author of the novels "Hesperus", "Siebenkäz" and others, as well as a romanticist, a brilliant German writer Ernst Theodor Hoffmann (1776-1822) ("Devil's Elixir", "Golden Pot", "Lord of the Fleas", "Little Tsakhes", "Ondine", "Notes of the Cat Murr", etc.).

The pinnacle of English romanticism was the lyricist George Noel Gordon Byron (1766-1824). His works are characterized by protest. The main character, a rebel and an individualist, strives for freedom and is often pessimistic. His most famous works: the poems “Childe Harold’s Pilgrimage”, “Manfred”, “Cain”, oriental poems “Lara”, “Corsair”, “Giaour”, etc.

In the XNUMXth century Progressive romanticism began to stand out in France. His followers include writers Victor Hugo (1802-1885) ("Notre Dame Cathedral", "The Man Who Laughs", "Les Misérables", etc.) and Georges: Sand (1804-1876) ("Indiana", "Valentine", "Sin of Mr. Antoine", "Consueto", "Horas", etc.).

Among romantic composers, a special place is occupied by F. Schubert, K. M. Weber, R. Wagner, G. Berlioz, N. Paganini, F. Chopin, F. Liszt.

Austrian composer Franz Schubert (1797-1828) is the creator of romantic songs and ballads, he owns several vocal cycles, symphonies, ensembles. He is rightly called the largest representative of early romanticism.

The founder of the German romantic opera is a composer and conductor, as well as a music critic Carl Maria von Weber. He wrote ten brilliant operas, among them "The Magic Shooter" (1821), "Evryant" (1823), "Oberon" (1826).

Another German composer and conductor brought innovations to the opera Richard Wagner (1813-1883). In his operas ("The Rienza" (1840), "The Flying Dutchman" (1841), "Tristan and Isolde" (1859), "Parsifal" (1882), etc.) he took a musical basis added a poetic and philosophical meaning.

The French romantic composer, as well as the conductor, was also an innovator in music. Hector Berlioz (1803-1869) - the creator of the romantic program symphony.

Speaking of romanticism in music, one cannot fail to mention the greatest Polish composer and pianist Frederic Chopin (1810-1849). His love for his homeland was very strongly reflected in his works. They have a national connotation, a folklore imprint. F. Chopin owns 2 concertos, 3 sonatas, ballads, scherzos, nocturnes and etudes, as well as other works for piano.

Romanticism was also reflected in the visual arts.

In France, romanticism is associated primarily with the painter Theodore Gericault (1791-1824). His works are distinguished by dramatic tension and psychologism. The main thing is that T. Gericault finds his subjects in everyday life and uses everyday scenes. His most famous works: "The Raft of Medusa" (1818-1819), "Epsom Derby" (1821).

Another romantic painter is compatriot T. Gericault Eugene Delacroix (1798-1863), the works are imbued with the spirit of love of freedom, tension, excitement ("The Orphan in the Cemetery", "The Death of Sardanapalus", "Greece Dying on the Ruins of Missolunga", "Massacre on Chios", "Freedom on the Barricades"). Delacroix's influence on subsequent generations is enormous.

But romanticism did not last forever. The time has come when he completely exhausted himself. Then he was replaced by a new direction of art - realism. It began to take shape in the thirties of the XIX century. And by the middle of the century it becomes the dominant trend in the art of the New Age. It is characterized by the transmission of the truth of life.

In literature, realism reached its peak in the work of the French writer Support de Balzac (1799-1850). His main work is the epic "The Human Comedy", consisting of 90 novels and short stories. In his works, O. Balzac paints realistic pictures, reflecting social mores and contradictions.

Another realist writer, French Prosper Merimee (1803-1870) rightfully considered the master of the novel. His works ("Carmen", "Colombes", "Chronicle of the reign of Charles IX", etc.) are elegant, concise, and have a refined form.

The greatest realist in England is the writer Charles Dickens (1812-1870), the founder of a new direction - critical realism. Describing the various layers of English society, he ridicules its vices and shortcomings.

In the art of music, realism is characterized by the emergence of a new direction - verism. Its representatives are Italian composers, the founders of verismo in opera Ruggero Leoncavallo (1857-1919), Piero Mascagni (1863-1945). Another Italian composer significantly expanded the scope of opera verism Giacomo Puccini(1858-1924). He owns such operas as “Tosca”, “Turandot”, “Madama Butterfly”, “Manon Lescaut”, “La Bohème”, “The Girl from the West”, “Cio-Cio-san”.

After the revolution, realism strengthened its position in the visual arts. One of the most brilliant realist artists is considered Francisco José de Goya (1746-1828). His works are permeated by the theme of love of freedom. They are distinguished by richness, passion, and vivid emotionality. An example of this is his works such as “Caprichos”, “Bullfight”, “Saturn Devours One of His Children”, “Panic (Colossus)”. Very often, Goya's paintings are imbued with the national spirit, despite their uniqueness.

By the end of the XIX century. new directions in art begin to take shape:

1) symbolism;

2) naturalism;

3) impressionism.

Symbolism is characterized by the transmission of images using various symbols. In literature, French poets are prominent representatives of symbolism. Arthur Rimbaud (1854-1891), Stéphane Mallarmé (1842-1898).

An English draftsman can be called a symbolist in painting Aubrey Vincent Beardsley (1872-1898) ("Spleen Cave", 1895-1896, "Toilet of Salome", 1893, "Lysistrata", 1896).

Naturalism was characterized by an objective transmission of reality, and artistic perception was preferred to scientific perception.

A supporter of naturalism in literature was a French writer Emile Zola (1840-1902). His main work, dedicated to the life of one family, is Rougon-Macquart, written between 1871 and 1893, consisting of twenty volumes. In his book "The Experimental Novel" (1880), he acted as a supporter of naturalism in art.

In the transfer of fleeting impressions, changes in the real world, the Impressionists achieved great success. Impressionism appeared in France in the works of such painters as Edouard Monet (1832-1883) ("Breakfast on the Grass", "Bar Folies Bergère", "Seascape", "On the Bench") and Pierre Auguste Renoir (1841-1919) ("Ball at the Moulin de la Galette", "Neighbourhood of Menton", "Girl Playing the Guitar").

After analyzing the culture of the New Age, we saw how diverse it is in its styles and genres. Very often, under the influence of external factors, such as political and social changes, the forms and methods of art changed right before our eyes.

Of greatest importance for subsequent generations was the development in the XNUMXth century. realistic direction in art.

6. Culture of modern times

XNUMXth century - the newest time in culture. For the XNUMXth century characterized by constant progress, it has been outlined in all areas of life.

Another characteristic of the XNUMXth century. indicator - a constant desire for unification, internationalization. If earlier culture had clearer and more definite national boundaries, expressed in cultural differences between different states, then for modern times these boundaries have become less and less strict and distinct. The main reason for such an interethnic association is the scientific and technological revolution, which made it possible to establish closer contact between countries. Of course, this interpenetration of the cultures of different states was not always calm and peaceful. It is worth remembering the political conflicts leading to world wars and other confrontations. And, if we follow the course of history, we can see that the most problematic relations between states were characteristic of the first half of the XNUMXth century. The second half turned out to be more calm and serene, as a result of which internationalization went much faster and more progressively.

Global changes in people's lives associated with the transition to a new type of society - capitalist, as well as a huge leap in the development of scientific knowledge and other factors could not but affect culture. As a reaction to these changes - the emergence of new cultural forms.

Let's take painting as an example. A number of new, very often completely original forms have appeared, such as:

1) nabizm (from the French nabis - "vices" and from the Hebrew nabi - "prophet");

2) fauvism (from the French fauve - "wild");

3) cubism (from the French cubisme, from cube - "cube").

Nabizm originated in Paris around 1890. Its creators were artists Maurice Denis (1870-1943), Pierre Bonnard (1867-1947) and more

The Nabists, starting from Art Nouveau, united literary symbolism, the musicality of rhythms and the decorative generalization of forms.

From 1905 to 1907 there was another trend in painting - fauvism. It, like Nabism, appeared in France under the influence of such painters as Henri Matisse (1869-1954), Albert Marquet (1875-1947), Georges Rouault (1871-1958), Raoul Dufy (1877-1953), Maurice de Vlaminck (1876-1958). Fauvism was characterized by the desire for emotionality in the transmission of the artistic image, dynamism and color intensity.

In the first quarter of the XNUMXth century, cubism began to flourish in France, which later appeared in other countries. Its most famous representative is Pablo Picasso (1881-1973). In 1907 he, together with the French painter Georges Braque (1882-1963) created a direction, which was characterized by the promotion of formal experiments, such as three-dimensional forms on a plane, geometric figures (ball, cube, cylinder, etc.). Cubism is characterized by a certain analysis, i.e., the decomposition of complex forms into simpler ones. Picasso, using neutral tones, combining various geometric shapes, creates absolutely radical works of art ("Queen Isabeau", "Lady with a Fan" (1909); "Portrait of A. Vollard" (1910); "Dryad", " Farmer", "Three Women" (1909-1910)).

Cubism had two stages of development:

1) analytical (1907-1909);

2) synthetic (since 1913).

The synthetic stage of cubism differs from the analytical stage in the greater color of forms, in the flat image of objects.

But Picasso did not stand still, he was constantly looking for new forms of expression. As a result, in the early 20s, he came to a new direction - surrealism ("Metamorphoses" (1930)).

Surrealism (from the French surrealisme - "superrealism") chose the sphere of the subconscious as a source of artistic images. Surrealists used instincts, their dreams and hallucinations.

At the initial stage, surrealism served as a kind of reflection of the absurd reality that the post-war world seemed to be. And if you pull the subconscious out, then, according to artists, in this way you can improve the world. The largest figure in the world of surrealist painting was the Spanish painter Salvador Dali (1904-1989). His works (“Poetry of America” (1943), “Portrait of Picasso” (1947), “Madonna of the Port of Lligat” (1949), “A Dream Caused by the Flight of a Bee Around a Pomegranate, a Second Before Awakening” (1944 g.), "Atomic Leda" (1947), etc.) are distinguished by courage, boundless imagination, virtuosity in execution, as well as many contradictions and a combination of seemingly incompatible things and objects.

But surrealism also touched other types of art (literature, theater, cinema).

If the transition to the XX century. affected painting, it did not have a noticeable effect on literature. Literary art continued to develop, but without fundamental changes.

The beginning of the XNUMXth century is associated with the emergence of a huge number of talented writers. In France it is worth highlighting Marcel Proust (1871-1922), Andre Gide (1869-1951), Georges Bernanos (1888-1948), Francois Mauriac (1885-1970) and others. At this time, the heyday of the French novel falls, which becomes more intense, heartbreaking and frank.

In English and German literature, there has been a tendency to follow the classical traditions. An example is the work of the English novelist John Galsworthy (1867-1933), German writer Thomas Mann (1875-1955).

Despite following the classical traditions, in the literature of the XX century. the influence of modernism is very noticeable. This influence can be traced in the novel by Marcel Proust "In Search of Lost Time", the works of the Austrian writer Franz Kafka ("The Trial", "America", etc.), the Irish writer James Joyce (1882-1941) ("Dubliners", "Ulysses", "Portrait of the Artist in his youth"). Many writers in their works use a new creative principle, characteristic of Western European literature at the beginning of the XNUMXth century, the "stream of consciousness". For the first time this term was used by an American philosopher and psychologist William James in his book The Scientific Foundations of Psychology (1890). This principle is understood as the transfer of the processes of mental life, a kind of "inner monologue". This makes, when reading the book, to believe in one's presence in the conditions described by the author, to empathize with the characters more strongly.

The Second World War affected not only people's lives, but also culture. A new direction emerged in philosophy and literature - existentialism (from late Latin exsistentia - "existence"). The main theme of existentialism is human existence with its manifestations (fears, worries, conscience, etc.).

Existentialism has two branches:

1) religious existentialism (German philosopher Karl Jaspers, French philosopher and playwright Gabriel Honore Marcel, etc.);

2) atheistic existentialism (French writer Jean Paul Sartre, French writer and thinker Albert Camus).

Probably one of the most significant events in the history of culture of the XX century. - the emergence of a new ("seventh") art form, cinematography. At the initial stage it was silent cinema, but in 1927 cinema became sound. Cinematography cannot be considered as a separate art form, because it is a synthesis of literature, theater, music, fine arts, etc. At the initial stage of its existence, cinema is associated with such names as Rene Clair, Jean Renoir, Jean Cocteau и Marcel Carne. These outstanding French directors made cinema independent.

The cinema of the post-war period is, first of all, films Jean Luc Godard, Francois Truffaut, Roberto Rossellini, Luis Buñuel, Frederico Fellini and more

For the first two decades after the end of the Second World War, the problematic cinema of the "new wave" is in the lead. In its place comes the heyday of comedy. Fantasy films, melodramas, adventures, action films and many other genres appear. The United States plays a huge role in cinema. Hollywood is of particular importance. It was here until the 50s. was the bulk of the American film industry. A new national genre appears in American cinema - western. Gradually, the United States is becoming a leader in cinema. The largest number of films and movie stars appear here. Hollywood becomes the pioneer of American aesthetics and standards of mass culture in the United States, the influence of which on the rest is enormous.

LECTURE No. 3. Culture of Russia

1. Culture of the ancient Slavs

Slavs - part of the ancient Indo-European ethnic unity. They are part of the Indo-European family along with Europeans. Their history is presented in ancient books. For example, the Bible speaks of the three sons of Noah, and from one of them, Jophet, the Slavs descended. The biblical version of the origin of the Slavs is not the only one, there are a number of versions, and disputes on this issue are ongoing to this day.

One of the most significant sources of information about the Slavic tribes II-I millennium BC. e. the Veles book is considered to be dedicated to Veles, the god of wealth among the ancient Slavs. In 1943, during the occupation of Brussels by the Germans, she disappeared. But some notes have survived, copied and translated by the writer Yu. P. Mirolyubov.

The book talks about the Triglav of the gods, which was worshiped by the ancient Slavs, consisting of Svarog, Perun and Sventovit. But this composition was not permanent. For example, in Kyiv, Triglav was represented by Svarog, Dazhdbog and Stribog, and in Novgorod by Svarog, Perun and Beles (in the Book of Veles - Did, Oak and Sheaf).

At this time, the ancient Slavs had a very common maternal cult (the patron bird of Russia, the Slavic mother of the cheese earth) and the cult of ancestors - manism.

Analyzing the beliefs of the Slavs, we come to the conclusion that their worldview was characterized by anthropotheocosmism, which manifested itself in the fact that they did not have a clear distinction between the spheres of human, natural and divine.

The ancient Slavs had a lot of all kinds of rituals and customs. For example, on the day of the vernal equinox, a funeral ceremony was held for Marena, symbolizing victory over winter (death). On the day of the summer solstice, the feast of Ivan Kupala (the deity of the sun) was held. On the night of June 24, according to the old style, rituals were held with fire and water, gathering herbs and flowers, games, songs, divination and round dances, after which they burned the effigy of Kupala as a sign that he is a solar deity.

Sorcery was also common among the Slavs, that is, New Year's divination for the harvest with the help of deep vessels called charms. Archaeologists have found an ancient Slavic sanctuary dating back to the XNUMXnd-XNUMXth centuries, the altar of which was made of fragments of clay bowls. Various vessels were also found, intended not only for New Year's divination, but also for other rituals.

Any spiritually developed people comes to the need for the existence of writing. The ancient Slavs had their own original writing system - knot writing. The signs were knots on threads, and the books were balls.

Nodular writing was replaced by pictographic letter. It can be seen in the ornament of ritual objects.

A new round in the history of the Slavs is associated with the 862th century. It was at this time that they were reunited under princely rule into a single young state. The era of Kievan Rus begins with the Varangian princes (Rurik, Sineus and Truvor) in 988. In order to further strengthen and unify the state in XNUMX, the prince Vladimir / adopted Christianity as the unified state religion of Russia. With the beginning of his reign, Russia enters the period of its heyday and international recognition.

An important cultural stage in Russia was the creation of writing. This event is associated with the names of two brothers, Cyril (827-869) и Methodius (815-885). Slavic writing was based on Greek writing. There are documents confirming that already in the 10th century. Cyrillic alphabet was used. And from the 11th century. children of rich people began to be taught to read and write, and libraries began to appear.

The first literary monuments written by East Slavic authors: "The Tale of Bygone Years", "The Tale of Boris and Gleb", "The Life of Theodosius of the Caves", "The Word of Law and Grace". In the XI-XII centuries. There are three main literary genres:

1) annals - historical work. Chronicles were divided into all-Russian and local;

2) life (biographies);

3) word - and a solemn speech, and a military story.

2. Kievan Rus and the era of feudal fragmentation

The main idea of ​​the "Tale of Bygone Years", written by a monk of the Kiev-Pechersk Lavra Nestor в 1113 g., - the unity of Russia. In his work, Nestor points to the beginning of princely strife and strife, condemning them.

To the beginning XII in. there was a huge number of principalities (Vladimir-Suzdal, Galicia-Volyn, etc.), which sought to have power in Russia, waged constant wars. By the beginning of the Mongol-Tatar invasion, there were about 50 independent principalities. That is why the period of the XII-XIII centuries. called in Russia period of feudal fragmentation, "the destruction of the Russian land." But despite the difficult period for Rus', this era was accompanied by the flourishing of culture and the progressive growth of cities.

Literature continues to flourish. In the XI-XII centuries. the names of 39 scribes are known, 15 of them were clergy. As in Europe, during the Middle Ages, the culture of Russia was greatly influenced by the church. As a result, the most widespread church literature. The development of literature in Russia was hampered by the fact that literature existed only within the framework of the manuscript tradition. Until the XV-XVI centuries. continued to write on parchment, calfskin. Quills and ink (or cinnabar) were used for writing. This situation continued until the XNUMXth century. That is why, due to the high cost of the material, scribes always tried to save money with handwriting and abbreviations under titles. The words were written without syllable separation. Thanks to its clarity and solemnity, the handwriting of the 11th-13th centuries. got the name charter. Often, to increase the speed of writing, a type of charter was used - semi-charter, it appeared in the 14th century.

The appearance of luxurious books with cinnabar letters falls on the XNUMXth century. Artistic miniatures appear in books. Two books serve as an example: "Ostromir's Gospel" (XI century) and "Mstislav's Gospel" (XII century). Books have a very rich finish, their binding was bound with gold or silver, and also decorated with precious stones, gold, etc.

Old Russian literature can be divided into two sections:

1. Translated literature, which was considered part of national literature. These were mainly church works.

2. Original literature, written by East Slavic authors.

In addition to the three well-known genres of ancient Russian literature (chronicle, life and word), speechrelated to the genre of eloquence. Mostly the speeches were of an edifying nature, so they were often called teachings. The most famous teaching that has come down to us as part of the Tale of Bygone Years is the Teaching of Vladimir Monomakh. It contains moral instructions, a will, and lessons for sons on the topic of government. Also a striking example of this genre are the “Teachings of Archbishop Luke to the Brothers” (1058), written by the Novgorod bishop Luka Zhidyata, and "Teachings to the priests" (XIII c.), written by an ancient Russian preacher and writer Serapion of Vladimir. The main themes of these works are themes of morality, spiritual purification and Christian piety.

In addition to speeches (teachings), there was another genre that required, in addition to ideology, and literary skill. This genre is called solemn eloquence. A striking example of this is what was written by the Kyiv Metropolitan Illarion "The Word of Law and Grace". Illarion was known not only as an ecclesiastical politician, but also as a brilliant orator. He first uttered his "Word" in 1038 at the feast of the Annunciation of the Most Holy Theotokos at the Golden Gate in Kyiv. "The Word of Law and Grace" has three parts.

1. Introduction, here the author contrasted the New and Old Testaments.

2. The narrative part, in which some biblical stories are interpreted, the author connects them with law and grace.

3. Conclusion, in which Hilarion praises the Christian religion and Prince Vladimir, who baptized Russia.

In the Lay, Illarion deals with issues of equality, independence of the Russian people, patriotism and other topics related to the meaning of the Fatherland. Like a true literary master, Hilarion uses various literary forms and tropes to embellish his speech. That is why the "Sermon on Law and Grace" is an example of the literary language, according to which the scribes of the XII-XV centuries studied.

1185th century - the time of exacerbation of feudal fragmentation. It was at this time that the most significant work appeared, written in Kyiv around 1812 - "The Tale of Igor's Campaign". The fate of this manuscript was very tragic, in XNUMX the Moscow fire on Razgulyav carried away a great literary monument, and at the same time instilled many doubts in scientists. Since a copy of the manuscript has survived to this day, this has given rise to disputes about the originality of the text in it. Versions about the unreliability of this copy are offered to this day.

Despite everything, The Tale of Igor's Campaign remains the greatest work of ancient Russian literature. It is worth noting the language in which the "Word" is written. The author uses different rhythms depending on the plot being described. Recall at least the famous cry of Yaroslavna. The rhythm in it is like folk crying, makes the reader breathe faster. Another important feature of the work is the use of various metaphors: “he circled the field like an eagle like a gray wolf, soared under a cloud”, “damp mother earth groans with a groan”, etc.

"The Tale of Igor's Campaign" is a unique work of the lyrical-epic genre, imbued with love for the motherland, for the Russian people, for its history. The "Word" greatly influenced subsequent generations, becoming a source of inspiration not only for writers, but also for artists and musicians.

The invasion of Batu did not go unnoticed in ancient Russian literature. By 1238-1246. The creation of the "Word about the destruction of the Russian land" also concerns the creation of the "Tale of the devastation of Ryazan by Batu" on the topic of the invasion.

In general, the literature of the XII-XIII centuries. represented by works, the main feature of which is patriotism, faith in one's people. The heroes of these works are always endowed with traits of high morality, spirituality, church diligence.

Another art of Ancient Russia, architecture, also received great development. The church had a huge influence on architecture, as well as on literature. That is why churches and monasteries remained the main architectural monuments.

The Kiev Caves Monastery was the very first in Russia. Its founders Feodosia и Anthony Pechersky. In 1069, Anthony of Pechersk was forced to hide in Chernigov to avoid anger Izyaslav Yaroslavovich. There he founded the equally famous Ilyinsky underground monastery. Such underground monasteries became very common in Russia and served as centers hesychia, i.e. silence and detachment. In them, cultural life was very developed, since it excluded strict orders, and monastery residents could engage in completely secular activities. That is why it was monasteries that for a long time remained the main centers of spiritual culture, where most of the literary and artistic values ​​were created.

With the adoption of Christianity in Russia, the beginning of stone construction is associated, since at the first stages the construction was carried out precisely by Byzantine masters. One of the first buildings Church of the Assumption of the Virgin in Kyiv. Only archaeological excavations allowed us to find out how majestic this building was, how skillfully everything was done, since the church has not survived to this day, as it was destroyed during the invasion of Batu in 1240.

During the reign Yaroslav the Wise in 1037, another magnificent architectural monument was erected, an indicator of the skill of the builders - Sophia Cathedral in Kyiv. This cathedral became the main church and public building of all Kievan Rus. Sophia Cathedral had five naves (interiors), thirteen domes, and was built of brick and stone. In the XI century. it was decorated, adding to the majestic building mosaics (images from colored stones) and frescoes (painting on wet plaster with paints).

In the 30s of the XI century. by order of Yaroslav the Wise were built Golden Gate in Kyiv with the Gate Church of the Annunciation, as well as the monasteries of St. George and Irina. All these buildings from the reign of Yaroslav the Wise characterized Kyiv as a new center of the Orthodox world.

In addition to Kyiv, construction was carried out in other cities in Russia. Considered a great architectural monument Sophia Cathedral (1045-1050) in Novgorod. It was built during the reign of the son of Yaroslav the Wise, Prince Vladimir Yaroslavovich. This is a five-nave cathedral with five domes, distinguished by its external severity and lack of decoration. It was built of stone and had a sixth huge staircase tower.

In the XI century. temples were built in Polotsk, Vyshgorod, Chernigov and other cities. In the era of feudal fragmentation, architecture did not decline, but, on the contrary, it flourished. Of particular note is the Novgorod and Vladimir architecture.

Novgorod architecture was characterized by such features as the severity of forms, simplicity, symmetry, and small decor. An example is the Church of the Savior on Nereditsa, built in 1198, the small church of Peter and Paul on Sinichya Gora, built by the inhabitants of Lukina Street in 1185-1192, the stone church of St. Nicholas on Lipna (1292), Yuriev and Antoniev monasteries.

In addition to religious buildings in Novgorod, it is worth noting the detinets located on a high Kremlin hill - an internal fortification in the city. The center of the trading life of the Novgorodians was Yaroslav's yard, and the residence of princes Settlement.

The architecture of Vladimir Rus has great cultural value. It belongs to the XII-XIII centuries. One of the largest buildings Assumption Cathedral, built during the reign of the prince Andrey Bogolyubsky in 1158-1160 The cathedral was made of white hewn stone and originally had three naves, six pillars, the height of the cathedral was 32,3 m. The Assumption Cathedral served as a model for the construction of many cathedrals in Russia. Under the prince Vsevolod the Big Nest in 1194-1197 built in Vladimir Dmitrievsky Cathedral. He was the prince's cathedral and at the first stages was part of the complex of the prince's palace. Dmitrievsky Cathedral is a one-domed four-pillar temple, which has many sculptural decorations on its facade.

An outstanding monument of the Vladimir-Suzdal school is Church of the Intercession on the Nerl (Church of the Intercession of the Virgin Mary), built in 1165. This single-domed temple is distinguished by its amazing harmony, it seems to be directed upward.

Along with architecture, painting also developed. Basically, it was represented by two areas: frescoes and icons.

Since a huge number of temples were destroyed, very few frescoes of those times have come down to us. But many icons have been preserved. Among the most famous are the icon of the Apostles Paul and Peter (XI century), the icon of St. George (c. 1170), the Savior Not Made by Hands (XII century), the icon of Our Lady of Vladimir, which became the main shrine of the Moscow state, the icon of the Prophet Elijah, etc.

In the XIII century. Russia was subjected to the Mongol-Tatar invasion, which tormented the state for almost 250 years. After the expulsion of the invaders, the Russian state begins to take shape around Moscow, so the period of the XIV-XVI centuries. called Muscovite Russia.

3. Culture of Moscow Russia

The victory over the Mongol-Tatar invaders marks the beginning of the rise of Russian culture. Starting from the second half of the XIV century. Moscow is given a leading role in the Russian state. Firstly, this is due to the fact that the city is located in the center of the north-east of the country, a huge number of Russian citizens flock here, and secondly, profitable trade routes pass through Moscow, which makes it the center of the state's foreign policy. Therefore, it was the Moscow princes who began to acquire the title of the Grand Dukes of All Russia. The great importance of Moscow for the whole of Russia made it a new cultural center.

In the XV-XVI centuries. Russia finally got rid of the Mongol-Tatar invaders, the Russian united state was fully formed. These phenomena had a significant impact on culture. After all, it was the struggle of the Russian people against foreigners, the new tasks of the state that became the main topics in the development of Russian culture. In particular, this theme can be traced in the literature.

The most famous literary works of that time were "The Tale of the Capture of the City of Vladimir by Batu", "The Tale of the Devastation of Ryazan by Batu" (XIV century), telling about the times of the Mongol-Tatar invasion, praising the courage and courage of the Russian soldiers-liberators. Another literary work telling about the life of the prince Alexander Nevsky (1221-1263), about the Battle of the Neva (1240) and the Battle of the Ice (1242), “The Life of Alexander Nevsky” is a literary monument written for the glory of the Russian state and its people.

Another victory over the Golden Horde, on the Kulikovo field (September 8, 1380), is dedicated to the work "Zadonshchina", written at the end of the XNUMXth century. It is assumed that the author is Sofoniy Ryazanets. The main idea of ​​the work is the unification of Russian lands for a joint struggle for the Russian state in the face of foreign invaders.

After the final unification of the Russian lands in the XV century. there is also a fusion of local cultures. Appears common Russian culture with its characteristic features that have been preserved for many centuries.

Features of the new united state, its policy are described in such works as "Tales of the Princes of Vladimir" and "The Tale of Vladimir Monomakh" (XVI century).

In the XV century. a new literary genre appeared - literary travel. Merchant Afanasiy Nikitin described his journey to India (1466-1472) in his notes "Journey Beyond the Three Seas". This work is distinguished by its versatility.

Another talented author, Russian writer-publicist Ivan Semyonovich Neresvetov. AT in his works ("The Tale of Tsar Constantine", "The Tale of Mohammed-Saltan", "Predictions of Philosophers and Latin Doctors about Tsar Ivan Vasilievich") he described the transformations in the country, advocated strengthening autocratic power. In 1549, he handed over all his writings Ivan IV.

On the contrary, another Russian writer, Prince Andrei Mikhailovich Kurbsky (1528-1583). He owns the work “The History of the Grand Duke of Moscow” (1573), as well as three messages to the Tsar with an accusatory text. Of course, this could not please the “fierce autocrat” Ivan IV the Terrible, and Andrei Kurbsky was forced to flee to Lithuania in 1564.

An important stage in the development of Russian literature was the emergence of printing at the end of the XNUMXth century. Prior to this, parchment began to be replaced by paper. The first printing house appeared in Moscow, headed by Ivan Fedorov (c. 1510-1583) и Peter Mstislavets. The first book, published in 1564, was The Apostle. By the end of the XNUMXth century. They and their students wrote about twenty books on church and religious topics.

In the XVI century. with the help of a priest Sylvester a set of rules and instructions "Domostroy" appeared, in which family patriarchy was supported, advice was given on housekeeping, etc.

Along with literature in Muscovite Russia, other areas of art, such as painting and architecture, are also developing.

At the initial stage of the formation of a unified Russian state, Novgorod and Pskov were the most developed architecturally. Since it was these cities that suffered the least during the Mongol-Tatar invasion.

In the XIV century. New architectural forms began to take shape in Novgorod. An example of this is the Church of the Savior on Koval (1345), the Church of the Assumption on the Volotovo Field (1352), the Church of Fyodor Stratilat on the Brook (1360-1361) and the Church of the Transfiguration of the Savior on Ilyina Street (1374). The new style is characterized by elegant external decoration. These are fresco paintings, and sculptural crosses, and decorative niches. But not only temples were erected in Novgorod, civil construction was widely carried out. A striking example of urban architecture are Faceted Chamber (1433) and Stone Kremlin (1302).

A huge pace of construction has been outlined in Pskov. By the 22th century 9 new churches appeared here, as well as a huge Kremlin with a length of about XNUMX km.

And of course, in the new state, the construction of the capital begins. The most famous of the architectural works of Moscow - Moscow Kremlin. It was originally fortified with a rampart. But during the reign Ivan III began its transformation. In 1485-1495. the white stone walls were replaced with brick. During the reign of Ivan III in 1475-1479. was built Assumption Cathedral, and in 1484-1489. - Blagoveshchensky cathedral, and was also built Faceted Chamber (1487-1491). During the reign of his son Basil III (1505-1508) was built Cathedral of the Archangel Moscow Kremlin, the bell tower "Ivan the Great" (1505-1508), which was built on in 1600.

Inseparably from architecture, painting also developed. First of all, iconography. Brilliant artists of the XIV-XV centuries. were Theophanes Greek (c. 1340 - after 1405) и Andrei Rublev (c. 1360/70 - c. 1430).

In the work of Theophan the Greek, two periods can be distinguished:

1) Novgorod (Church of the Transfiguration of the Savior (1378));

2) Moscow (Church of the Nativity of the Virgin (1395-1396)), Archangel Cathedral (1399), Cathedral of the Annunciation (1405)).

The Annunciation Cathedral was painted by Theophan the Greek together with the greatest master Andrei Rublev. Rublev owns many frescoes, miniatures, icons. His most famous works are: "Archangel Michael" (beginning of the 1420th century), "Savior" (beginning of the XNUMXth century), "Trinity" (XNUMX) from the Trinity Cathedral of the Trinity-Sergius Monastery. Now these works are in the largest museum of Russian art - the Tretyakov Gallery in Moscow.

By the XNUMXth century the range of themes of painting has noticeably expanded. A new genre begins to develop - historical portrait. Now these are not only images of saints, portraits of great princes, thinkers and poets of the ancient world, and Byzantine emperors appear.

So, the culture of Muscovite Russia in the XIV-XVI centuries. - this is a symbol of prosperity, the beginning of the formation of a single all-Russian culture.

4. Russian culture of the XNUMXth-XNUMXth centuries

In the XNUMXth century not everything was smooth in Russia. If by this time the majority of European countries had taken the path of "bourgeois development", then Russia lingered at the stage of feudal relations. This largely hindered the development of Russian culture, which, as it were, remained at the stage of the Middle Ages. But despite this, new trends began to emerge.

Attempts to bring Russia to a higher level are made during the reign of the first Russian emperor Peter I the Great (1672-1725). Russia's external relations with other countries of the world are developing. In the 18th century The capitalist system begins to take shape. The main cultural event of this time was the final formation national Russian culture. New areas of culture are beginning to develop, such as science, secular painting, fiction, theater, etc.

The turning point in the history of Russian culture was secularization of culture, i.e. deviation from church traditions towards secular life. This process is also called secularization. To For example, everyday and historical tales appear in literature, while the ecclesiastical element is lost ("The New Tale of the Glorious Russian State"). New literary genres are being laid: life ("The Life of Archpriest Avvakum, written by him"), democratic satire (“About the Shemyakin Court”, “About Ersha Ershovich - the son of Shchetinnikov”), poetic works (“The Parable of the Prodigal Son” by Simeon of Polotsk, “The Tale of Woe-Misfortune”). Worldliness is also characteristic of architecture. Here there is a departure from the canons proposed by the church. The new style, which appeared in the 17th century, was called “marvelous patterning” by contemporaries. It is characterized by an abundance of scenery. The so-called tent temple, for example, the Church of the Nativity in Putinki (built by 1652). But Nikon, who ascended the patriarchal throne in 1652, prohibited the construction of tented churches and called for a return to the five-domed structure traditional in the Russian state. Under Nikon, the buildings of the New Jerusalem Monastery, the Patriarchal Chambers in the Kremlin, the Resurrection Monastery, etc. were built in this style.

Despite the return to tradition, by the end of the XVII century. and new architectural trends are beginning to take shape. One of the most striking styles, rich in decorations and patterns, was the style Moscow Baroque. An example of this style is the Church of the Intercession in Fili (1690-1693).

Painting had a huge development. Here a new everyday genre appears, portraiture, which uses the techniques of icon painting. Such portraiture is called parsuna. Among the artists of the 17th century. worth highlighting Simon Fedorovich Ushakov (1626-1686). He, following traditions, introduced many innovative ideas into painting. His main works: “The Savior Not Made by Hands”, “Trinity”, “Our Lady of Vladimir - the Tree of the Russian State”, etc.

In the XVIII century. education is of great importance in the development of the state, it is especially worth noting the period of the reign of Peter I, when education became a state policy. Schools appeared, including a number of vocational schools (Engineering, Artillery, Medical, etc.), in 1724 the Academy of Sciences began to work, and in 1755, with the assistance of a Russian scientist of world importance Mikhail Vasilyevich Lomonosov (1711-1765) The first Moscow University opens. Already by the end of the XVIII century. There are 550 educational institutions in Russia.

The development of education is impossible without well-formed book publishing. There are such books as "ABC", "Arithmetic", written by a Russian teacher of mathematics Leonty Filippovich Magnitsky in 1703, "Grammar" by M. Smotrytsky, it was subsequently replaced by "Russian Grammar" by M. V. Lomonosov, created in 1757.

Fiction also began to develop. Its largest representatives were the Russian poet, the representative of Russian classicism Gavrila Romanovich Derzhavin (1743-1816) ("Felitsa", "God", etc.), Russian writer and educator Denis Ivanovich Fonvizin (1744/1745-1792) ("Undergrowth", "Notes of the first journey"), Russian historian and writer Nikolai Mikhailovich Karamzin (1766-1826) ("Poor Liza", "History of the Russian State", etc.).

In 1702, by order of Peter I, the first public theater in Russia was created in Moscow. Soon theaters began to appear in other cities of Russia. The most famous theatrical figure of this time was the Russian writer Alexander Petrovich Sumarokov (1717-1777). He worked in the St. Petersburg theater, where he staged plays by Russian masters, including his own ("Khorev", "Sinav and Truvor"), with cadets performing as actors.

In the XVII-XVIII centuries. continue to develop Russian national traditions in culture. They paved the way for the XNUMXth century, which was the heyday of Russian culture.

5. The cultural image of Russia in the XNUMXth century

In the 1812th century there is an unimaginable rise of Russian culture, despite the fact that in political and economic terms, Russia still lagged behind the leading European states. Works of literature, painting, music of the XIX century. were included in the world cultural treasury. The Patriotic War of XNUMX had a strong influence on cultural development, primarily this influence can be traced in the increased patriotism that united the Russian people.

First half of the XNUMXth century significant development of science. At this time, major scientific discoveries were made.

Nikolai Ivanovich Lobachevsky (1792-1856) - the great Russian mathematician. He owns the creation of non-Euclidean geometry, later called Lobachevsky geometry.

Boris Semenovich Jacobi (1801-1876) - Russian physicist-inventor. In 1834 he created an electric motor, in 1838 - electroplating, in 1840-1850. - Several telephones. Together with another Russian physicist and electrical engineer Emil Khristianovich Lenz (1804-1865) B. S. Jacobi studied electromagnets.

The first Russian steam-powered railway appeared thanks to two Russian inventors: Efim Alekseevich и Miron Efimovich Cherepanov. The first steam locomotive was created in 1833-1834.

Huge progress in metallurgy too, thanks in large part to two metallurgical engineers, Pavel Petrovich Anosov (1799-1851) и Pavel Matveevich Obukhov (1820-1869).

Geography also developed rapidly. Knowledge on it was replenished thanks to outstanding navigators. Among them Yury Fedorovich Lisyansky, who discovered one of the Hawaiian Islands, later named in his honor; Ivan Fedorovich Krusenstern - Head of the first Russian round-the-world expedition, founder of oceanology in Russia, mapped thousands of kilometers of the coast of Sakhalin Island. Discovery of Antarctica and a huge number of islands in 1819-1821. belongs to Russian sailors Faddey Faddeevich Bellingshausen и Mikhail Petrovich Lazarev.

At the beginning of the XIX century. historical science is also developing. The Society of Russian History and Antiquities opens at the university in Moscow. It was the members of this society who found a literary monument of the XNUMXth century. "The Tale of Igor's Campaign".

XNUMXth century - this is also the flowering of Russian literature. One need only mention the names of such literary masters as A. S. Pushkin, Yu. M. Lermontov, N. V. Gogol, F. M. Dostoevsky, L. N. Tolstoy etc., as no one will have any doubts about it.

The appearance of romanticism in Russian literature is associated primarily with the names of two literary geniuses: Alexander Sergeevich Pushkin (1799-1837) и Mikhail Yuryevich Lermontov (1814-1841).

The Golden Age came to literature with A.S. Pushkin. He is the creator of the modern literary language. This is truly a Russian poet who was able to convey reality in unique and vivid images, by studying people, he was able to correctly understand the character of the Russian person. The works of A. S. Pushkin are multi-genre. He wrote poems ("Ruslan and Lyudmila", "Prisoner of the Caucasus", etc.), and stories ("The Queen of Spades"), and novels ("The Captain's Daughter", "Eugene Onegin"), and fairy tales ("The Tale of the Tsar Saltan...", "The Tale of the Priest and His Worker Balda"), and poetry.

We can say that M. Yu. Lermontov was the heir to the work of A. S. Pushkin and the successor of his work. After the tragic death of Pushkin, Lermontov dedicated his poem "Death of a Poet" to him, since such a loss for all of Russia could not but excite the Russian people. The works of M. Yu. Lermontov are imbued with the themes of love of freedom, aspirations for a rebellious life, romanticism and even Decembrist moods. An example of this is his works "Mtsyri", "The Prophet", "I go out alone on the road", etc. But there are also works whose main theme is patriotism, love for the Fatherland - "Borodino", "Motherland". M. Yu. Lermontov was deeply worried about the fate of his state and the Russian people. Often in his works he expressed discontent, rebellion against the world order.

The cycle of "Little Russian stories" brought fame and recognition to the great Russian writer Nikolai Vasilyevich Gogol (1809-1852). His appearance in the literary world began to symbolize the transition from romanticism to realism. The works of N.V. Gogol are filled with lyricism, humor, romantic and humanistic sentiments. Meanwhile, they touch on many pressing problems of people, for example, the problem of the “little man” (“The Overcoat”), the moral depravity of people (“The Inspector General,” “Dead Souls”).

The "Natural School" of N.V. Gogol was continued by the next generation: I. S. Turgenev, M. E. Saltykov-Shchedrin, N. A. Nekrasov, F. I. Tyutchev, A. A. Fet. These great Russian writers and poets conveyed in their works love for the Motherland, faith in the high spiritual qualities of the Russian people, and showed its pressing problems.

End of the XNUMXth century was crowned with the work of two outstanding writers, Fedor Mikhailovich Dostoevsky (1821-1881) и Lev Nikolaevich Tolstoy (1828-1910).

In the book "Problems of Dostoevsky's Poetics" (1929), an outstanding Russian literary critic and art theorist M. M. Bakhtin wrote: "Dostoevsky is the creator of a polyphonic novel. In his works, a hero appears, whose voice is built in the same way as the voice of the author himself is built in a conventional type novel. Dostoevsky thought not in thoughts, but in points of view, consciousnesses, voices. He strove to perceive and formulate every thought so that the whole person is expressed and resounded in it. The most famous works of F. M. Dostoevsky: "Crime and Punishment", "The Idiot", "The Brothers Karamazov", "Demons", etc.

The great artist and the great moralist united in the personality of the famous Russian writer Leo Tolstoy. In his works ("The Cossacks", "Anna Karenina", "War and Peace", etc.), Tolstoy sought to explore the inner world of man, his aspirations, spiritual values, moral ideals, and other problems.

For the XNUMXth century accounts for the flourishing of the fine arts in Russia. At the first stage, classicism occupied a leading position. It was presented by the work of the artist Karl Pavlovich Bryullov (1799-1852) ("The Last Day of Pompeii", "Bathsheba"). Realism appeared thanks to the Russian painter and draftsman Pavel Andreevich Fedotov (1815-1852). He owns such works as “Fresh Cavalier”, “Major’s Matchmaking”, “Widow”, “Anchor, More Anchor!” and etc.

Realism was traced in the works I. E. Repina ("Ivan the Terrible and his son Ivan"), V. I. Surikova ("Boyar Morozova"), V. A. Serova ("Girl with peaches"), I. I. Levitan ("Evening Bells"), etc.

The development of music is continuously connected with the development of literature and painting. A large place in the musical culture is given to the musical group "Mighty Handful", which included outstanding composers. M. A. Balakirev, A. P. Borodin, Ts. A. Cui, M. P. Mussorgsky and N. A. Rimsky-Korsakov. The work of these composers was built on the traditions of classical music, a desire for nationality and a penchant for program music.

A huge number of brilliant works belong to the great Russian composer Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky (1840-1893). He owns operas ("Eugene Onegin", "The Queen of Spades", "The Enchantress", etc.), ballets ("The Nutcracker", "Swan Lake", "Sleeping Beauty"), 6 symphonies, overtures, fantasies, concerts, etc.

Late XIX - early XX century. It is customary to call the "silver age" of Russian culture. Its representatives depart from the classical traditions in their work, the main idea of ​​which is critical idealism. In literature, there has been a new direction - symbolism. Its representatives: V. Bryusov, K. Balmont, Z. Gippius, A. Bely and others. At the initial stage of his work, A. A. Blok also belonged to the Symbolists, but revolutionary moods changed his work. An example of this is the poem "The Twelve", which describes the revolution.

Another major movement in literature was the Futurists, who advocated the art of the future and called for "throwing Pushkin, Dostoevsky, Tolstoy off the ship of modernity." Futurist poets were V. Khlebnikov, I. Severyanin, A. Kruchenykh, V. Mayakovsky. Their work is characterized by an anarchist attitude, freedom of speech.

Vladimir Vladimirovich Mayakovsky (1893-1930) - the most famous and prominent representative of the futurists.

In his works, reality is the apocalypse, and he is forced to scream in order to be understood. V. V. Mayakovsky was a reformer of the literary language. His language is militant, rude, contrasting. The most famous of his works: "A cloud in pants", "Man", "Protsessed", "At the top of his voice" and others.

Painting of the "Silver Age" is represented by such artists as M. A. Vrubel, N. Roerich, K. Korovin and others. The main style is modern, which is characterized by the desire for a symbolic transmission of reality. Vrubel used a special color and "crystal" clarity of forms, so his works have a tensely tragic color ("Demon", "Pan"). Roerich is called an artist-mystic. His works are colorful and emotional. Their main theme is the history of Russia, mythology and oriental nature ("Messenger", "Patrol", "Overseas guests").

6. Culture of the USSR and the RSFSR

According to many culturologists, the culture of the USSR is of no value. Of course, the totalitarian regime constantly held back the development of culture, set boundaries. But at the same time, even in these difficult times for creativity, there were figures in the opposition who formed a culture of dissent, many of them were forced to create abroad.

In Soviet times, sciences developed very rapidly, especially natural and exact sciences. Great merits - the Russian physiologist I. P. Pavlova (1849-1936). He carried out works on the study of higher nervous activity, the physiology of blood circulation and digestion, the development of the method of conditioned reflexes, etc. The founder of the complex of modern earth sciences, such as radiogeology, hydrogeology, biogeochemistry, geochemistry, etc., was a natural scientist V. I. Vernadsky (1863-1945). He introduced the concept of the noosphere - the sphere of the mind where man is the decisive factor. The flourishing of botany and biology is largely associated with the name of geneticist and plant scientist N. I. Vavilova (1887-1943). He owns the teachings on the biological foundations of selection, etc. In the development of physical science, it is worth noting the theoretical physicist L. D.

Landau.

He dealt with the issues of magnetism, superfluidity, solid state physics, atomic physics, quantum electrodynamics, astrophysics, etc. During the Great Patriotic War, good engineers and inventors were needed. Among aircraft designers, one can distinguish A. S. Yakovleva, A. I. Tupoleva, V. M. Petlyakova and others, in the construction of tanks - A. A. Morozova, Zh. Ya. Kostina и A. F. Shamshurina.

Soviet literature is represented by such writers as M. A. Sholokhov ("Quiet Don"), L. N. Seifullina ("Virineya"), A. A. Fadeev ("Destruction"). Many literary figures were forced to leave their homeland and write outside of it. Among them is the Russian poetess M. I. Tsvetaeva ("Craft", "After Russia"), writers IA Bunin ("The Gentleman from San Francisco", "The Village"), E. I. Zamyatin ("We"), A. I. Kuprin ("Garnet Bracelet", "Olesya"), master of the historical novel A.K. Tolstoy ("Peter I") and more

In the second half of the XX century. the most significant figures in literature are A. T. Tvardovsky ("Vasily Terkin"), A. I. Solzhenitsyn ("Gulag Archipelago"), poet E. A. Evtushenko ("Intimate Lyrics"), etc.

In musical culture, the work of composers was of great importance. D. D. Shostakovich, V. S. Solovyov-Sedogo, A. V. Alexandrov, S. S. Prokofiev, D.

B. Kabalevsky and others. The stage begins to form. The first vocal and instrumental ensembles appear. Composers who wrote popular songs - A. Pakhmutova, R. Pauls, E. Martynov and more

Cinema continues to evolve. Movies are shot on completely different topics: from classics to military-political and documentaries. Famous directors are G. Chukhrai ("Forty-first", "Ballad of a Soldier"), S. Bondarchuk ("War and Peace"), E. Ryazanov ("Beware of the Car", "Irony of Fate, or Enjoy Your Bath"), N. Mikhalkov ("Burnt by the Sun", "The Barber of Siberia"), G. Danelia ("Seryozha", "Way to the pier"), S. Govorukhin ("Ten Little Indians"), A. Tarkovsky ("Solaris", "Andrey Rublev", "Stalker") and many others.

After the collapse of the Soviet Union and the recognition of Russia as a democratic state, artists received greater freedom for creativity. Now culture is designed for mass character, entertainment, commercial benefits, so it is based on archetypes.

On the one hand, freedom of creativity and self-expression is a big plus. To make themselves known, people of creative professions do not need to hide or leave the country. On the other hand, there has been a backlash. In culture, nationality is being lost, Western trends are being instilled, which are not always a high indicator. Many new directions in culture appear, new genres in the existing types of culture, but very often quality is lost behind quantity. Therefore, the Russian people should think about how not only to preserve the cultural wealth of their country, but also to increase them.

LECTURE No. 4. Religion and culture

1. Paganism as a phenomenon of cultural history

What is paganism? A clear word "paganism" has a very vague meaning. The term has Church Slavonic roots (from the word "yazypi" - "foreigners") and appeared in the era of Kievan Rus after the adoption of Christianity. The introduction of this term made it possible to divide the development of religious views in Russia into two stages: before the adoption of Christianity (pagan beliefs) and after the adoption of Christianity. But there is also a broader, global definition of paganism, according to which paganism is a system of ideas, beliefs, rituals, views of people that existed before the adoption of world religions. World religions include Christianity, Islam and Buddhism. Paganism served as the basis for these beliefs.

It is hard to imagine how broad the concept of paganism is. Firstly, it is very diverse: here are the beliefs of primitive tribes, and ancient religious beliefs, and the religion of the ancient Slavs, etc. Secondly, there was an unlimited number of phenomena, objects with which certain religious ideas were associated. paganism includes fetishism - belief in the supernatural abilities of any objects (worship of stones, trees, etc.), animism - belief in the existence of the soul, as well as spirits (human features were attributed to various phenomena), totemism - belief in the kinship of man and animals (worship of animals and plants), etc.

What are the roots of paganism, why did the ancient man need to look for objects of worship and reverence?

The thing is that throughout its history a person is constantly developing, he has more and more new activities (hunting, fishing, farming, etc.). These occupations required new knowledge and skills, but the ancient man, who understood the laws of nature in a very primitive way, could not explain them without giving them some kind of supernatural beginning. The stock of knowledge accumulated by him was so small that even very obvious phenomena today, the ancient man attributed some kind of divine essence. The farmers prayed in the sun and rain, believing that they were commanded by forces from above. Hunters were worried about such phenomena as the wind and the presence of stars in the sky, they were characterized by a fetishism regarding tools for obtaining food. That is, people doing different things estimated the phenomena of nature in different ways, creating different objects for themselves to honor. Here it is worth noting such an important quality of the pagans as tolerance towards each other. People believed in their gods and in strangers. The gradual development of relations between ancient people leads to the formation of statehood. There is a union of all gods and beliefs, a pantheon of gods appears. Now paganism is not only an assistant to the ancient man, not only helps to explain the world around him and make it closer and more understandable. With the advent of statehood, paganism becomes an important political factor. Firstly, because the common views and beliefs of people are an important component in the matter of uniting them to create a single state. Secondly, paganism often acted as a kind of justifying factor for the rulers of states, since in many countries religious views endowed the rulers with the authority of the gods. A striking example is Ancient Egypt, where the pharaoh was considered the son of a god. Such a judgment endowed the pharaoh with almost unlimited power. That is, religion significantly strengthened the position of the rulers. Throughout the history of mankind, views and beliefs have changed, one religion has replaced another, while the relationship between the state and religion has also changed. It is worth noting that it was during the times of pagan beliefs that the state power acted as the center of religion, which in a noticeable way, due to the importance of religion for ancient people, affected the authority of the state.

Gradually, paganism begins to become obsolete, and new religions come to replace it. But interest in his study does not disappear. First, it is impossible, when studying history, to dismiss the religious views of people of various epochs as an important component of the historical development of man. Secondly, paganism did not disappear without a trace, it greatly influenced the religions that replaced it and continues to be traced in many customs and views of people, in the cultural monuments they create.

2. Major religions: Buddhism, Islam, Christianity

Religion (from Latin religio - "shrine", "piety") - a system of views and attitudes of a person, which largely determines his behavior, is based on belief in the supernatural (gods, spirits, etc.). Religion allows a person to build a generalized picture of the world, to orient his behavior.

From the point of view of historical development, three stages of religious development are distinguished:

1) tribal religions (various pagan religions);

2) national-state religions (Confucianism, Brahminism, Judaism, etc.);

3) world religions.

World religions include Buddhism, Christianity and Islam. We will dwell on them in more detail.

Buddhism

Buddhism - the oldest of the world religions, which arose in the VI-V centuries. in ancient India. Founder of Buddhism Siddhartha Gautama (later Buddha). There are two main branches of Buddhism:

1) southern (hinayana);

2) northern (Mahayana).

An important feature of Buddhism is its ethical and practical orientation. It is based on the internal manifestations of a person's religious life, but not on external ones, such as the ritualism inherent in many religions, there is no church organization, institutions. There is only a rule that it is necessary to keep three Jewels (triratna). These include Buddha, Dharma - the primary element of existence, Sangha - the monastic community. According to Buddhism, there is an omniscient being - Buddha - enlightenment, he discovered the law - Dharma, which determines all the laws by which world processes are carried out. To store this knowledge and laws, to transmit them, societies for equals are formed - sanghas.

The main problem for Buddhism is the problem of the existence of a person as an accumulation of "changeable" forms. Personality in the representation of Buddhism consists of five elements: corporality, desire, sensation, knowledge and representation.

The core of Buddhism is the "Four Noble Truths".

1. Existence (birth, aging, death) is suffering (duhkha).

2. All suffering due to the thirst for sensual pleasures, passion.

3. Liberation from suffering in the destruction of desires, for this it is necessary to go through the middle path (eightfold).

4. Eightfold way of avoiding extremes, includes constant reflection, reflection, meditation to come to a state of absolute peace - nirvana.

Most of the texts of Buddhism are collected in the essay "Tripitaka" ("Three Baskets"), which appeared in the 5th century. BC e. The final version of the canonical work appeared in the 3rd century. BC e.

Buddhism did not remain in the territory of one state. The scope of its distribution is huge, all over the globe, therefore its influence on people's lives, on its components such as politics, economics, culture, etc. is great.

Христианство

Appeared in the 988st century. n. e. among the Jews of Palestine. Already in the IV century. became the state religion of the Roman Empire. In 989-XNUMX. the Baptism of Russia took place under the influence of Byzantium, and by the XIII century. Christianity became the state religion in all European countries.

Christianity has three branches.

1. Orthodoxy - the oldest direction, arose in 395 during the division of the Roman Empire into Western and Eastern.

2. Католицизм, separated from Orthodoxy in 1054-1204, differs from Orthodoxy by adding the filioque to the symbols of faith (the origin of the Holy Spirit not only from God the Father, but also from the Son).

3. ProtestantismIn XVI in. separated from Catholicism, differs in a more simplified cult, rejection of the church hierarchy, recognizes only two sacraments: baptism and communion.

Christianity is based on faith in Jesus Christ, the Savior. The main dogma of Christianity is the Trinity, according to which God is one, but exists in three hypostases: God the Father (the Beginning without Beginning), God the Son (the Word, the semantic and shaping Beginning) and the Holy Spirit (the life-giving Beginning). The content of Christianity is conveyed in Holy Tradition, the most important parts of which are the Holy Scripture, which includes the Bible and the Creed.

According to Christian anthropology, mystical dignity refers not only to the spirit of man, but also to his physical body. Therefore, in the Christian doctrine of immortality, we are talking not only about the immortality of the soul, but also about the rebirth of the body. In this, many observe sharp contradictions with many other concepts in Christianity. After all, it is precisely in the fall - the first act of disobedience - that the bodily component is to blame.

Of great importance for Christianity is sinfulness, the recognition of one's guilt. No wonder most of the saints recognized themselves as great sinners. Here we can draw a parallel with Buddhism, since it is in suffering that Christianity sees a way to atone for sins, and the highest goal of a person is eternal bliss (in Buddhism - nirvana). But at the same time, if a Buddhist goes to his nirvana through meditation and reflection, stoically silently, then a Christian must "accept his cross" and suffer not only for himself, but also for others. Once Christ came to people to atone for their sins, now a person must ascend to God.

The spread of Christianity is enormous, today there are more than one billion Christians.

Islam

It originated in Arabia in the XNUMXth century, therefore it is the youngest world religion. The founder was the prophet Muhammad. The basic principles of Islam are set forth in the Koran - the holy book of Muslims (VII-VIII centuries).

Islam has two main currents.

1. Sunnism. Along with the Koran, the Muslim sacred tradition recognizes - Sunna (VII-XI centuries).

2. Shiism. Unlike Sunniism, it does not recognize Sunni caliphs; it only recognizes the Alids.

The main dogma of Muslims is the worship of one god - Allah. Mohammed, who is the messenger of Allah, is very revered among Muslims.

Like Christianity, Islam believes in the immortality of the soul. Muslims also believe in an afterlife.

It is very important for Muslims islamic columns. These are five instructions that Muslims must follow. These include.

1. Shahada - belief in one god - Allah, veneration of his messenger Muhammad.

2. Salad - one of the main Islamic rituals, consisting in five daily prayers.

3. Sauna - fasting during the month of Ramadan (Ramazan) of the Muslim lunar Hijri year.

4. Sunset - charity to the poor.

5. Hajj. At least once in your life you need to make a pilgrimage to the main religious center of Islam - to Mecca, to the Kaaba temple.

Islam is characterized by a very strict monotheism (the idea of ​​a single god). Allah is omnipotent, terrible and incomprehensible. And the whole human world is a sign of the God of Allah, which indicates his power. The difference between Islam and other world religions is that a person cannot ascend to God, cannot fully comprehend all his secrets, but at the same time he is obliged to believe in these secrets. Islam is not tolerant of other religions and worldviews. One of the basic precepts of Islam is jihad (war for faith), according to which it is necessary to spread Islam, even waging a "holy war" against adherents of other faiths.

Islam is a very influential religion; if the importance of other religions in the modern world fades into the background, then in the Muslim world the influence of religious views on the life and culture of supporters of Islam is enormous. Today there are about 900 million adherents of Islam. Islam mainly covers the countries of the East.

3. Significance of religion in the history of culture

Studying the history of the development of world culture, the factors that influenced this development, the fact becomes indisputable that the significance of religion in the history of culture is enormous.

At the first stage of human development, phenomena and objects, human occupations created the first religion. Ancient man worshiped the tools of labor, thanks to which he survived. (fetishism), believed in the divine origin of natural phenomena (rain, wind, sun, etc.) (animism). That is, it was the culture of ancient people that influenced the development of religion. Then everything began to change. This is due to the transition from pagan, tribal beliefs to national, state, and then to world religions, since now it was religion that largely determined the development of human culture.

Let's turn to art. For a long time, cultural monuments were mainly of a religious nature. Since the time of primitive society, the ancient world, etc., there has been a tendency in architecture to build temples and other religious buildings. The cult of the afterlife in ancient Egypt determined the direction in architecture, where all the forces and means were given to the construction of pyramids, mortuary temples. Antique culture, with its monuments of architecture, painting, literature, etc., is a clear example of religious influence. And on these cultures, in turn, the culture of subsequent generations is based.

There are cases in the history of culture when religion was not a source of cultural development, but, on the contrary, it restrained this development. An example of this is the era of the Middle Ages and the Renaissance. Of course, one should not forget about the monuments of architecture and painting, which have replenished the world's cultural baggage. But at the same time, the influence of the church sometimes went beyond the boundaries of the normal mutual influence of culture and religion. An example is the medieval Inquisition, when any free-thinking was severely punished. And how can a person create if he is not given freedom? Religion negatively influenced the development of not only the arts, but also the sciences. The Church could not allow the existence of scientific statements that would contradict her doctrines.

Many great minds of the Middle Ages became victims of the Inquisition (Italian physicist, mechanic and astronomer Galileo Galilee, Spanish thinker and physician Miguel Sereet and etc.).

By the beginning of the New Age, the negative influence of the church had noticeably weakened. The Age of Enlightenment had a special influence on the secularization of culture. Atheistic tendencies began to develop.

But, despite the weakening of the influence of religion on culture in comparison with the early stages of development, even today this influence is noticeable and significant. A religious imprint is present in many works of art: from painting and architecture to cinema and music, since it is religion that is very often the determining factor in the development of a person's worldview, in his ideas about the world around him.

LECTURE No. 5. The relationship of cultures

1. Causes of cultural differences

Studies of the cultures of different countries point to the fact that they have both similarities and differences. The national culture of one country differs from the national culture of another country, and at the same time they are included in the general concept - world culture. And on a global scale, it is very important to have such a concept as cultural universals. What is it? Cultural universals include those norms, rules, cultural values, traditions, etc. that are common to all cultures in the world. Cultural universals do not depend either on the historical moment, or on the geographical location, or even on the social structure. Different scientists count different numbers of cultural universals, there are about seventy of them. These are cooking, age gradation, calendar, family, holidays, music, number, person’s name, etc. Many thinkers see the reason for the existence of such universals in biological circumstances, such as the human need for food, the existence of two sexes, the need for warmth, the presence of age-related differences, etc. But despite the fact that these cultural universals are inherent in everyone, they can also be different for different cultures. For example, different names are common in different countries, what is eaten in one country will never be eaten in another, clothes and jewelry in some countries differ from clothes and jewelry in other countries, etc.

There are many factors that explain such differences in the cultures of many countries. One of the most important factors is geographical position. A striking example is the East-West cultural boundary. If we compare the countries of the West and the East in the ancient world, then there are not very many such differences in cultures; basically, development went in the same directions. Many scientists believe that the similarities in the cultures of the ancient East and the ancient world are only accidental.

The evidence for this is further cultural divergence. Gradually, various forms of state power, social structures in society, and religious beliefs developed. An important factor is the role of a person in relation to the state and religion. In the East, very often there was a contrast between a strong and powerful ruler, state power and a weak and submissive person. In the West, the development went in the direction of democratic relations, the government did not suppress the individual. The same is true for religious views. In Europe, adherents of Christianity predominate, in many eastern countries Islam is the state religion. And if in Christianity God descends to man, and man ascends to God, then in Islam there is always a boundary between God and man, God is strong and mighty, and man will never understand all his secrets and laws, it remains only to believe in them.

Do not forget that cultural differences are also found on the territory of one country in the same historical period. Indeed, along with dominant culture always is subculture and even counterculture, which are completely opposite to the majority culture. This often depends on age differences (the culture of young people differs from the culture of older people), on differences in the professional employment of people, urban culture differs from rural culture, etc. The existence of such cultural opposites does not have a negative impact on the development of culture, but on the contrary, it occurs its comprehensive development, freer and more comprehensive.

2. Communication and mutual influence of cultures

An important factor in the formation of, say, a national culture is the influence of other cultures on it. This process is not easy, almost imperceptible, but it has existed throughout the history of culture.

In ancient times, the mutual influence of cultures was very weak. After all, there were no means of communication. The sources of such mutual influence were the migration of peoples, nomadic tribes, the conquest of new lands by powerful empires, etc. These phenomena transferred signs of one culture from one territory to others, sometimes slightly affecting the original culture, and sometimes changing it radically. An example of this is the Roman Empire. As a result of the conquests by the II century. n. e., during the reign of the emperor Trajan (53-117), the empire has reached its maximum borders. It includes Greece, Dacia, Mesopotamia, Greater Armenia, Arabia, etc. Of course, the culture of Ancient Rome significantly influenced the cultures of the conquered states. But it is worth noting that this process did not go in one direction: the culture of the states that became provinces of Rome influenced Roman culture, which absorbed all the best and most advanced.

Civilization developed, more and more reasons for cultural communications appeared: trade, development of new lands, great geographical discoveries, travel, etc. So, in 988, under the influence of Byzantium, Christianity was adopted in Russia, later Byzantine masters (architects, painters , artisans, etc.) shared their experience with Russian craftsmen. The result of this penetration of culture is the magnificent architectural monuments of Kievan Rus (temples, churches, monasteries, etc.), which, as a result of development, have acquired a peculiar and inimitable national connotation.

In the modern world, communicative cultural communication has acquired a huge scale as a result of scientific and technological progress. The emergence of such means of communication as telephone, television, the Internet, etc., has changed the picture of the world. On the one hand, there is a huge plus - cultural achievements in one country immediately become the property of other countries, cultural boundaries have become very blurred, one does not have to wait for years to absorb what was achieved in another country in order to share skills, and national culture becomes the property of all mankind. On the other hand, there is also a minus - originality and originality in culture disappear, everything accumulated is lost in the pursuit of leading countries, the development of culture is not comprehensive, but along a strictly defined path depending on the wishes of the market, and this is not always a high bar.

LECTURE No. 6. Modern culture

1. Features of modern culture

The appearance of modern culture differs markedly from other eras of its development. Part of the world's population remains adherents of traditional cultures, there are tribes where cultural development is at a primitive stage, but still a huge proportion of the population is adherents of modern culture. The development of the media and mass communication has significantly influenced the structure of modern culture. The life of a modern person cannot be seen without such scientific inventions as the telephone, computer, Internet, television, etc. Science is moving forward with great strides, thereby giving a person the opportunity to master an ever greater stock of knowledge. As a result, culture becomes public. Since the middle of the XX century. a new form of culture emerges Mass culture, intended for a large audience. It is constantly changing in order to satisfy the needs of most people, i.e. mass culture directly depends on the market, fashion and relevance at the moment.

Let's consider some types of arts and see how they have been transformed in the modern world.

Music plays an important role in the life of a modern person. Now it's not just classical music. A huge number of genres and directions have appeared, it is very difficult to keep track of the changes. The new pop music emerged, separating from traditional music, with the advent of rock and roll in the 50s XX century The largest rock and roll performers, thanks to whom he gained his fame, are Elvis Presley, Jerry Lee Lewis, Bill Haley, David Bowie, Charles Bury, etc. One of the most famous rock bands of the 60s. XX century became the Beatles. This Fab Four (John Lennon, Paul McCartney, Ringo Star, George Harrison) had a huge influence not only on their generation, but also on those following. They became the trendsetters of new fashion and lifestyle. An important stage in the development of modern musical art is the emergence of the movement "new wave", which included pop and rock music. The basis of the "new wave" was punk rock, distinguished by its sound, uncensored text, and defiant appearance of the performers. The most famous and significant representatives of this movement are Iggy Pop, the Sex Pistols, Exploited, The Clash and others. He came out of punk rock Hard rock and others. For the generation of the 90s of the XX century. the rock band Nirvana had a huge influence. The founder of the group, Kurt Cobain, with his anarchist ideas of the destruction of all foundations, became the idol of a whole generation.

Modern music is mainly built on electronic sound, dance dynamism. An important feature of modern musical culture is the fact that not only the music itself is of great importance, but also the image of its performer, his image. As a result, the appearance in the 80s of the XX century. video clips as a video interpretation of the song. Very often it is the video clip that determines the popularity of a musical composition. At the same time, a new kind of dance is being created - variety dance. It can act both as a design for performing a song on stage, and as an independent work.

Visual arts, like music, did not stand still. In the modern world, culture is of a mass industrial and commercial nature, therefore a huge role is given to advertising as a means of popularizing works of art and increasing demand for them. The reaction of painting to this was the emergence of a new artistic direction - pop Art. Pop art originated in the 50s of the XX century. in the USA and UK. One of the main themes of this movement is the depiction of everyday objects in various combinations. The American artist is rightfully considered one of the leaders of pop art. Andy Warhol (1928-1987). In addition, E. Warhol is known as a master of experimental cinema. In his art, he masterfully mixes the principles of mass art with elite and avant-garde art.

The range of cinema has also expanded markedly, largely due to scientific and technological progress, as directors have more and more new methods of creating films. New direction - soap opera - serial film. In particular, in the XX century. originated in the USA soap opera - a sentimental series (less often a film) about love, problems in family relationships, etc. Initially, the soap opera was intended for housewives whose husbands serve in the army to brighten up their everyday life.

With the development of technology and the media, a new kind of culture has emerged - information culture. Information culture consists in a person’s ability to work with a large amount of information, using computer information technology and other modern means of obtaining and processing information. In terms of the development of information culture, the leading position is occupied by countries such as the USA, Japan, Germany, France, and Great Britain.

2. Problems of culture of the late XX - early XXI century

So, we have seen that modern culture differs markedly from previous cultural epochs. And first of all, this is a consequence of the development of information technologies, which have nurtured a mass culture intended for the majority.

An important feature of modern art is that it is very multifaceted, a modern creative person is provided with huge opportunities for his self-expression: traditional methods and technologies in art are being improved, new technological means are emerging. But what does the modern cultural image of humanity actually look like? It turns out that despite all the opportunities provided for its improvement, it sometimes looks very primitive. Maybe the Russian literary critic was right Yuri Mikhailovich Lotman (1922-1994), who believed that “culture begins with prohibitions.” After all, if you trace the history of culture, then it was the masters of art, who worked secretly, in disgrace, who created real masterpieces. Polish writer Stanislaw Jerzy Lem, wrote about mass culture: “The reader should be mass, not art.”

Today, mass culture must satisfy the momentary needs of people. In most cases, people do not demand a high level of art, but entertainment and fun in art. The figures of such a "culture" are based in their work on the unconscious interest of people (archetypes) to violence, eroticism, etc. Television plays a huge role here. According to Ann Landers, “television does not broadcast violence,” it “produces” it. Of course, television is a source of information, but for the most part this information is aimed not at human development, but at satisfying his needs. “The more you watch TV, the lower your level of intelligence” - you can argue with this, but if you look closely at the problem, it turns out that you were right Georges: Elgozy, when he said that there are “two of the greatest inventions in history: printing, which put us in front of books, and television, which took us away from them.” Television largely discourages people from thinking. In modern television there has been a tendency to move from quality to quantity. This is a huge problem in modern culture. After all, it turns out that television is filled not with what is truly art, but with what brings profit and success. Take the art of cinema, for example, which does not inspire much hope.

Modern cinema is divided into two categories:

1. Mass cinema, the purpose of which is to satisfy the mass primitive needs. People silently consume what is imposed on them.

2. The so-called "other cinema", more creative, intellectual, author's, often commercially less profitable than mass cinema.

C. Ponti said on this occasion a wonderful phrase: "If the film is successful, it is business. If the film is not successful, it is art." It is worth remembering the words of the Russian writer Boris Pasternak (1890-1960):

The goal of creativity is dedication, // Not hype, not success. // It’s shameful, meaning nothing, // To be a byword on everyone’s lips.

These words are as relevant today as ever. It is worth looking at the current idols: now the cult of success and wealth, the possession of money and things is progressing, material wealth is becoming much more important than spiritual wealth.

Author: Dorohova M.A.

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