The history of the development of realism. Realism as a literary trend: general characteristics Realism trend in literature a short formulation

Realism is a concept that characterizes the cognitive function of art: the truth of life, embodied by the specific means of art, the measure of its penetration into reality, the depth and completeness of its artistic knowledge. So, widely understood realism is the main trend in the historical development of art, inherent in its various types, styles, eras.

A historically specific form of artistic consciousness of the modern era, which originates either from the Renaissance ("Renaissance realism"), or from the Enlightenment ("Enlightenment realism"), or from the 30s. 19th century ("realism proper").

Among the largest representatives of realism in various forms of art of the 19th century are Stendhal, O. Balzac, C. Dickens, G. Flaubert, L.N. Tolstoy, F.M. Dostoevsky, M. Twain, A.P. Chekhov, T. Mann, W. Faulkner, O. Daumier, G. Courbet, I.E. Repin and V.I. Surikov, M.P. Mussorgsky, M.S. Shchepkin.

Realism arose in France and England under the conditions of the triumph of the bourgeois order. Social antagonisms and shortcomings of the capitalist system determined the sharply critical attitude of realist writers towards it. They denounced money-grubbing, blatant social inequality, selfishness, and hypocrisy. In its ideological purposefulness, it becomes critical realism.

The relevance of this topic in our time lies in the fact that until now, as well as about art in general, there is no universal definition of realism that has been established in all. Until now, its boundaries have not been determined - where is realism, and where is no longer. even within the narrower framework of realism in its various styles, although it has some common characteristics, signs and principles. Realism in the art of the 19th century is a productive creative method, which is the basis of the artistic world of literary works, the knowledge of the social ties of man and society, a truthful, historically specific depiction of characters and circumstances that reflected the reality of a given time.

The purpose of the course work is to consider and study realism in the art of the XIX century.

To achieve the goal, it is necessary to solve the following tasks:

1. Consider realism as an artistic direction of the 19th century;

2. Describe the prerequisites and features of the formation of realism in Russian art of the nineteenth century

3. Consider realism in all areas of Russian art.

In the first part of this course work, realism is considered as an artistic direction of the 19th century, its prerequisites for emergence in art, characteristic features and signs, as well as stages of development in world art.
The second part of the work examines the formation of realism in Russian art of the 19th century, characterizes the preconditions and features of the formation of realism in Russian art, namely in music, literature, painting.
When writing this course work, the greatest help was provided by the literature Petrov S. M "Realism", S. Vayman "Marxist aesthetics and the problems of realism."
Book S.M. Petrova "Realism", turned out to be very meaningful and valuable with specific observations and conclusions about the features of artistic creativity of different eras and trends, a general approach was formulated To studying the problem of the artistic method.
Book S. Vayman "Marxist aesthetics and problems of realism". At the center of this book is the problem of the typical and its coverage in the writings of Marx and Engels.
1. Realismas an artistic direction of the XIX centuryeka

1.1 Prerequisites for the emergencerealismbut in art

Modern natural science, which alone has reached the era of its systematic and scientific development, like all recent history, dates from that substitutional era, which the Germans called the Reformation, the French Renaissance, and the Italians the Quinquecento.

This phase begins from the second half of the 15th century. Blossoming in the field of art at this time, one of the sides of the greatest of the greatest progressive revolution, characterized by the breaking of feudal foundations and the development of new economic relations. The royal wall, relying on the townspeople, broke my feudal nobility and founded essentially large national monarchies, in which modern European sciences developed. These shifts, which took place in an atmosphere of powerful popular upsurge, are closely connected with the struggle for the independence of secular culture from religion. In the 15th-16th centuries, advanced realistic art was created

In the 40s of the XIX century. realism is becoming an influential trend in art. It is based on direct, lively and unbiased perception and true reflection of reality. Like romanticism, realism criticized reality, but at the same time it proceeded from reality itself, in which it also tried to identify ways of approaching the ideal. Unlike the romantic hero, the critical realist hero may be an aristocrat, convict, banker, landowner, or petty official, but he is always a typical hero in typical circumstances.

Realism of the XIX century, in contrast to the Renaissance and the Enlightenment, according to A.M. Gorky, is, first of all, critical realism. Its main theme is the exposure of the bourgeois system and its morality, the vices of the modern society of the writer. C. Dickens, W. Thackeray, F. Stendhal, O. Balzac revealed the social meaning of evil, seeing the reason in the material dependence of man on man.

In the disputes between classicists and romantics in the visual arts, the foundation was gradually laid for a new perception - realistic.

Realism, as a visually reliable perception of reality, assimilation to nature, approached naturalism. However, E. Delacroix already noted that "realism should not be confused with a visible semblance of reality." The significance of the artistic image depended not on the naturalism of the image, but on the level of generalization and typification.

The term "realism", introduced by the French literary critic J. Chanfleurie in the middle of the 19th century, was used to designate art opposed to romanticism and academic idealism. Initially, realism approached naturalism and the "natural school" in art and literature of the 60s and 80s.

However, later there is a self-determination of realism as a trend that does not in all coincide with naturalism. In Russian aesthetic thought, realism means not so much an accurate reproduction of life as a "truthful" display with a "judgment on the phenomena of life."

Realism expands the social space of artistic vision, makes the "common human art" of classicism speak the national language, and rejects retrospectivism more decisively than romanticism. Realistic worldview is the reverse side of idealism [9, p.4-6].

In the XV-XVI centuries, advanced realistic art was created. In the Middle Ages, artists, submitting to the influence of the church, moved away from the real image of the world inherent in the artists of antiquity (Apollodorus, Zeuxis, Parrasius and Palephilus). Art moved away to the side of the abstract and mystical, the real image of the world, the desire for knowledge, was considered a sinful matter. Real images seemed too material, sensual, and, therefore, dangerous in the sense of temptation. Artistic culture fell, graphic literacy fell. Hippolyt Ten wrote: "looking at church glass and statues, at primitive painting, it seems to me that the human race has degenerated, consumptive saints, ugly martyrs, flat-chested virgins, a procession of colorless, dry, sad personalities reflecting the fear of oppression."

Renaissance art introduces new progressive content into traditional religious subjects. In their works, artists glorify a person, show him as beautiful and harmoniously developed, convey the beauty of the world around him. But what is especially characteristic of the artists of that time - they all live by the interests of their time, hence the fullness and strength of character, that realism of their paintings. The broadest social upsurge led to the true nationality of the best works of the Renaissance. The Renaissance era is the time of the greatest cultural and artistic upsurge, which marked the beginning of the development of realistic art in subsequent eras. A new worldview took shape, free from the spiritual oppression of the church. It is based on belief in the strength and capabilities of man, a greedy interest in earthly life. Great interest in man, recognition of the values and beauty of the real world determine the activities of artists, the development of a new realistic method in art based on scientific research in the field of anatomy, linear and aerial perspective, chiaroscuro and proportions. These artists created deeply realistic art.

1.2 Characteristics, signs and principlesrealisma

Realism has the following distinctive features:

1. The artist depicts life in images that correspond to the essence of the phenomena of life itself.

2. Literature in realism is a means of a person's knowledge of himself and the world around him.

3. Cognition of reality proceeds with the help of images created by typing the facts of reality ("typical characters in a typical setting"). The typification of characters in realism is carried out through the veracity of the details in the "concretencies" of the conditions of the characters' existence.

4. Realistic art is life-affirming art, even with a tragic resolution of the conflict. The philosophical basis for this is gnosticism, belief in cognizability and adequate reflection of the surrounding world, the difference, for example, from romanticism.

5. Realistic art is characterized by the desire to consider reality in development, the ability to detect and capture the emergence and development of new forms of life and social relations, new psychological and social types.

In the course of the development of art, realism acquires concrete historical forms and creative methods (for example, educational realism, critical realism, socialist realism). These methods, interconnected by continuity, have their own characteristic features. The manifestations of realistic tendencies are different in different types and genres of art.

Aesthetics lacks a definitively established definition of both the chronological boundaries of realism and the scope and content of this concept. In the variety of developed points of view, two main concepts can be outlined:

· According to one of them, realism is one of the main features of artistic cognition, the main trend in the progressive development of the artistic culture of mankind, in which the deep essence of art is revealed as a method of spiritual and practical assimilation of reality. The measure of penetration into life, artistic knowledge of its important sides and qualities, and above all social reality, also determines the measure of the realism of this or that artistic phenomenon. In each new historical period, realism takes on a new look, sometimes showing up in a more or less clearly expressed tendency, then crystallizing into a complete method that determines the features of the artistic culture of its time.

· Representatives of a different point of view on realism limit its history to a certain chronological framework, seeing in it a historically and typologically concrete form of artistic consciousness. In this case, the beginning of realism refers to either the Renaissance or the 18th century, the Enlightenment. The most complete disclosure of the features of realism is seen in the critical realism of the 19th century, its next stage is in the 20th century. socialist realism, which interprets life phenomena from the standpoint of the Marxist-Leninist worldview. A characteristic feature of realism in this case is considered the way of generalization, typification of life material, formulated by F. Engels in relation to the realistic novel: " … typical characters in typical circumstances ... ".

· Realism in this understanding explores the personality of a person in indissoluble unity with his contemporary social environment and social relations. This interpretation of the concept of realism was developed mainly on the material of the history of literature, while the first - mainly on the material of the plastic arts.

No matter what point of view one adheres to, and no matter how one connects them with each other, there is no doubt that realistic art has an extraordinary variety of methods of cognition, generalization, artistic interpretation of reality, manifested in the nature of stylistic forms and techniques. Realism of Masaccio and Pierrot de la Francesca, A. Durer and Rembrandt, J.L. David and O. Daumier, I.E. Repin, V.I. Surikov and V.A. Serov, etc., differ significantly from each other and testify to the broadest creative possibilities of objectively assimilating the historically changing world by means of art.

At the same time, any realistic method is characterized by a consistent orientation towards cognition and disclosure of the contradictions of reality, which, in the given, historically determined limits, is available for truthful disclosure. Realism is characterized by a conviction in the cognizability of creatures, features of the objective real world by means of art. realism art cognition

The forms and methods of reflecting reality in realistic art are different in different types and genres. Deep penetration into the essence of life phenomena, which is inherent in realistic tendencies and constitutes the defining feature of any realistic method, is expressed in different ways in a novel, lyric poem, in a historical picture, landscape, etc. Not every outwardly reliable depiction of reality is realistic. The empirical reliability of an artistic image takes on meaning only in unity with a truthful reflection of the existing sides of the real world. This is the difference between realism and naturalism, which creates only the visible, external, and not the true essential truth of the images. At the same time, in order to identify certain facets of the deep content of life, sometimes a sharp exaggeration, sharpening, grotesque exaggeration of "the forms of life itself," and sometimes a conventionally metaphorical form of artistic thinking are required.

The most important feature of realism is psychologism, immersion through social analysis into the inner world of a person. An example of this is the "career" of Julien Sorel in Stendhal's novel Red and Black, who experienced a tragic conflict of ambition and honor; psychological drama by Anna Karenina from the novel of the same name by L.N. Tolstoy, which was torn between the feeling and the morality of the estate society. The human character is revealed by representatives of critical realism in organic connection with the environment, with social circumstances and life collisions. The main genre of realistic literature in the 19th century. accordingly, it becomes a socio-psychological novel. It most fully meets the task of objective artistic reproduction of reality.

Consider the general features of realism:

1. Artistic depiction of life in images, corresponding to the essence of the phenomena of life itself.

2. Reality is a means of a person's knowledge of himself and the world around him.

3. Typification of images, which is achieved through the veracity of details in specific conditions.

4. Even in a tragic conflict, art is life-affirming.

5. Realism is characterized by the desire to consider reality in development, the ability to detect the development of new social, psychological and social relations.

The leading principles of realism in 19th century art:

· An objective display of the essential aspects of life in combination with the height and truth of the author's ideal;

· Reproduction of typical characters, conflicts, situations with the completeness of their artistic individualization (i.e., concretization of both national, historical, social signs and physical, intellectual and spiritual characteristics);

· Preference in the ways of depicting "the forms of life itself", but along with the use, especially in the 20th century, of conventional forms (myth, symbol, parable, grotesque);

· Prevailing interest in the problem of "personality and society" (especially in the inescapable opposition of social laws and the moral ideal, personal and mass, mythologized consciousness) [4, p.20].

1.3 Stages of development of realism in world art

There are several stages in the realistic art of the 19th century.

1) Realism in the literature of a pre-capitalist society.

Early creativity, both pre-class and early class (slave-owning, early feudal), is characterized by spontaneous realism, which reaches its highest expression in the era of the formation of a class society on the ruins of the tribal system (Homer, Icelandic sagas). In the future, however, spontaneous realism is constantly weakened, on the one hand, by the mythological systems of organized religion, on the other, by artistic techniques that have developed into a rigid formal tradition. A good example of such a process is the feudal literature of the Western European Middle Ages, which proceeds from the basically realistic style of "The Song of Roland" to the conventionally fantastic and allegorical novel of the 13th - 15th centuries. and from the lyrics of the early troubadours [early. XII century] through the conventional courtesy of the developed troubadour style to the theological abstractness of Dante's predecessors. The urban (burgher) literature of the feudal era does not escape this law either, which also proceeds from the relative realism of the early fablios and tales of the Fox to the bare formalism of the Meistersingers and their French contemporaries. The approach of literary theory to realism goes hand in hand with the development of the scientific world outlook. The developed slave-owning society of Greece, which laid the foundations of human science, was the first to put forward the idea of fiction as an activity reflecting reality.

The great ideological revolution of the Renaissance brought with it an unprecedented flourishing of realism. But realism is only one of the elements that found expression in this great creative effervescence. The pathos of the Renaissance is not so much in the knowledge of man in existing social conditions, as in the identification of the possibilities of human nature, in the establishment, so to speak, of its "ceiling". But the realism of the Renaissance remains spontaneous. Creating images that expressed the era in its revolutionary essence with brilliant depth, images in which (especially in Don Quixote) the emerging contradictions of bourgeois society, which were destined to deepen in the future, were unaware of the historical the nature of these images. For them, these were images of eternal human, not historical, destinies. On the other hand, they are free from the specific limitations of bourgeois realism. He is not divorced from heroism and poetry. This makes them especially close to our era, which creates the art of realistic heroism.

2) Bourgeois realism in the west.

The realistic style took shape in the 18th century. primarily in the field of the novel, which was destined to remain the leading genre of bourgeois realism. Between 1720-1760, the first flowering of the bourgeois realistic novel takes place (Defoe, Richardson, Fielding and Smollett in England, the Abbot Prévost and Marivaux in France). The novel becomes a story about a concretely outlined modern life, familiar to the reader, full of everyday details, with heroes who are types of modern society.

The fundamental difference between this early bourgeois realism and the "lower genres" of classicism (including the rogue novel) is that the bourgeois realist is freed from the obligatory conventional comic (or "rogue") approach to the average person, who becomes in his hands an equal person capable of the highest passions, for which classicism (and to a large extent the Renaissance) considered only kings and nobles to be capable. The main tenet of early bourgeois realism is sympathy for the average, everyday concrete person of bourgeois society in general, his idealization and his assertion as a replacement for aristocratic heroes.

Bourgeois realism rises to a new level along with the growth of bourgeois historicism: the birth of this new, historical realism coincides chronologically with the activities of Hegel and French historians of the era of the Restoration. Its foundations were laid by Walter Scott, whose historical novels played a huge role both in the formation of a realistic style in bourgeois literature and in the formation of a historical outlook in bourgeois science. Historians of the era of the Restoration, who were the first to create the concept of history as a class struggle, experienced the strongest influence of W. Scott. Scott had his predecessors; of which Maria Edgeworth is of particular importance , the story of which "Castle Rakrent" can be considered the true source of realism in the XIX century. For the characterization of bourgeois realism and historicism, the material to which bourgeois realism for the first time was able to approach historically is very indicative. Scott's novel is also an important stage in the development of realism because it destroys the class hierarchy of images: he was the first to create a huge gallery of types from the people who are aesthetically equal with heroes from the upper classes, are not limited to comic, roguish and lackey functions, but are carriers of all human passions and objects of intense sympathy.

Bourgeois realism in the West raised it to a higher level in the second quarter of the 19th century. Balzac , in his first mature work ("Chuanas"), who is still a direct student of Walter Scott. Balzac as a realist draws attention to modernity, interpreting it as a historical era in its historical originality. The exceptionally high appraisal that Marx and Engels gave to Balzac as an artistic historian of their time is well known. Everything they wrote about realism has in mind, above all, Balzac. Images such as Rastignac, Baron Nysengen, Cesar Biroto and countless others are the most complete examples of what we call "the depiction of typical characters in typical circumstances."

Balzac is the highest point of bourgeois realism in Western European literature, but realism became the dominant style of bourgeois literature only in the second half of the 19th century. At one time, Balzac was the only completely consistent realist. Neither Dickens, nor Stendhal, nor the Brontë sisters can be recognized as such. Ordinary literature of the 1930s-1940s, as well as of later decades, was eclectic, combining the individualizing everyday style of the 18th century. with a whole series of purely conditional moments that reflected the philistine "idealism" of the bourgeoisie. Realism as a broad trend emerged in the second half of the 19th century in the struggle against them. Rejecting apologetics and varnishing, realism becomes critical , rejecting and condemning the reality depicted by him. However, this criticism of bourgeois reality remains within the bourgeois worldview, remains self-criticism . Common features of the new realism are pessimism (rejection of a "happy ending"), weakening of the plot core as "artificial" and imposed by reality, rejection of the evaluative attitude towards heroes, rejection of the hero (in the proper sense of the word) and of the "villain", finally passivism , considering people not as responsible builders of life, but as "the result of circumstances." The new realism opposes the vulgar literature of bourgeois self-satisfaction as a literature of bourgeois self-disillusionment. But at the same time it opposes the healthy and strong literature of the rising bourgeoisie as a decadent literature, a literature of a class that has ceased to be progressive.

The new realism is divided into two main streams - reformist and aesthetic. At the source of the first is Zola, the second - Flauberealism Reformist realism is one of the consequences of the influence exerted on literature by the struggle of the working class for its liberation. Reform realism tries to convince the ruling class of the need to make concessions to the working people in the interests of preserving the bourgeois order. Stubbornly pursuing the idea of the possibility of resolving the contradictions of bourgeois society on its own soil, reformist realism provided the bourgeois agents in the working class with an ideological weapon. With a very vivid description of the monstrosities of capitalism, this realism is characterized by "sympathy" for the working people, to which, as reformist realism develops, fear and contempt are mixed - contempt for creatures who have failed to win a place for themselves at a bourgeois feast, and fear of the masses, who are winning their place altogether. in other ways. The path of development of reformist realism - from Zola to Wells and Galsworthy - is a path of increasing powerlessness to understand reality in its entirety, and especially of ever greater falsity. In the era of the general crisis of capitalism (the war of 1914-1918), reformist realism was destined to finally degenerate and lie.

Aesthetic realism is a kind of decadent rebirth of romanticism. Like romanticism, he reflects the typical bourgeois discord between reality and the "ideal," but unlike romanticism, he does not believe in the existence of any ideal. The only way left for him is to force art to transform the ugliness of reality into beauty, to overcome the ugly content in a beautiful form. Aesthetic realism can be very vigilant, since it is based on the need to transform this particular reality and thus, so to speak, take revenge on it. The prototype of the entire trend, the novel "Madame Bovary" by Flaubert, is undoubtedly a genuine and deep realistic generalization of very essential aspects of bourgeois reality. But the logic of the development of aesthetic realism leads it to a rapprochement with decadence and to a formalistic degeneration. Huysmans' path from aesthetically conditioned realistic novels to the "created legends" of such novels as "The Twist" and "Down There" is extremely characteristic. Subsequently, aesthetic realism rests on pornography, on purely psychological idealism, which retains only the external forms of realistic manner (Proust), and on formalistic cubism, where realistic material is entirely subordinated to purely formal constructions (Joyce).

3) Bourgeois-noble realism in Russia

Bourgeois realism received a peculiar development in Russia. The characteristic features of Russian bourgeois-noble realism in comparison with Balzac are much less objectivism and less ability to embrace society as a whole. The still weakly developed capitalism could not put pressure on Russian realism with such force as on Western one. It was not perceived as a natural state. In the minds of the bourgeois noble writer, the future of Russia was not predetermined by the laws of economics, but entirely depended on the mental and moral development of the bourgeois noble intelligentsia. Hence the peculiar educational, "teaching" character of this realism, whose favorite technique was to reduce socio-historical problems to the problem of individual fitness and individual behavior. Before the emergence of the conscious vanguard of the peasant revolution, bourgeois-noble realism directed its spearhead against serfdom, especially in the brilliant works of Pushkin and Gogol, which makes it progressive and allows it to maintain a high degree of truthfulness. From the moment the revolutionary democratic vanguard emerged [the eve of 1861], bourgeois noble realism, degenerating, acquired slanderous features. But in the works of Tolstoy and Dostoevsky, realism gives rise to new phenomena of world significance.

The creativity of both Tolstoy and Dostoevsky is closely connected with the era of the revolutionary democratic movement of the 60s and 70s, which raised the question of the peasant revolution. Dostoevsky is a genius renegade who put all his strength and all his organic instinct for revolution at the service of reaction. Dostoevsky's work is a gigantic distortion of realism: reaching an almost unprecedented realistic efficacy, he puts a deeply deceitful content into his images by means of a subtly mystifying shift of real problems and the replacement of real social forces with abstract mystical ones. In developing methods of realistic depiction of human individuality and motivation of human actions, Tolstoy in War and Peace raised realism to a new level, and if Balzac is the greatest realist in terms of embracing modernity, Tolstoy has no rivals in direct concrete processing of the material of reality. In Anna Karenina, Tolstoy is already freed from apologetic tasks, his truthfulness becomes freer and more conscious, and he creates a huge picture of how after 1861 "everything turned upside down" for the Russian nobility and the peasantry. In the future, Tolstoy goes over to the position of the peasantry, but not his revolutionary vanguard, but the patriarchal peasantry. The latter weakens him as an ideologist, but does not prevent him from creating unsurpassed examples of critical realism, which already merge with revolutionary democratic realism.

4) Revolutionary democratic realism

In Russia, however, revolutionary democratic realism also received its most striking development. Revolutionary-democratic realism, being an expression of the interests of the petty-bourgeois peasant democracy, expressed the ideology of the broad democratic masses in the conditions of the unconquered bourgeois revolution and was simultaneously directed against feudalism and its vestiges and against all existing forms of capitalism. And since the revolutionary democracy of that time merged with utopian socialism, it was sharply anti-bourgeois. Such a revolutionary-democratic ideology could develop only in a country in which the bourgeois revolution developed without the participation of the bourgeoisie, and it could remain full-fledged and progressive only until the working class emerged as the hegemon of the revolution. Such conditions existed in the most pronounced form in Russia in the 60s and 70s.

In the West, where the bourgeoisie remained the hegemon of the bourgeois revolution and where, consequently, the ideology of the bourgeois revolution was to a much greater extent specifically bourgeois, revolutionary democratic literature is a kind of bourgeois literature, and we do not find any developed revolutionary democratic realism The place of such realism is taken by romantic semi-realism , to-ry, although he was able to create major works ("Les Miserables" by V. Hugo), but fed not on the growing forces of the revolutionary class, which was the peasantry in Russia, but on the illusions of social groups doomed to damage and wanting to believe in a better future. This literature is not only essentially philistine in its ideals, but to a large extent was (albeit an involuntary) instrument of that enveloping the masses with the democratic intoxication that the bourgeoisie needed. On the contrary, revolutionary democratic realism is emerging in Russia, which stands at the highest level of historical understanding accessible to pre-Marxist consciousness. Its representatives are a remarkable galaxy of "fictionalists-raznochintsy", genius-realistic poetry of Nekrasov and especially the work of Shchedrin. The latter occupies an exceptional place in the general history of realism. Marx's comments on the cognitive and historical significance of his work are comparable to those on Balzac. But unlike Balzac, who created an ultimately objectivist epic about capitalist society, Shchedrin's work is thoroughly imbued with consistent militant partisanship, in which there is no place for the contradiction between moral and political assessment and aesthetic assessment.

Petty-bourgeois peasant realism was destined to experience a new heyday in the era of imperialism. It flourished most characteristically in America, where the contradictions between the illusions of bourgeois democracy and the realities of the era of monopoly capitalism were especially acute. Petty-bourgeois realism in America has gone through two main stages. In the pre-war years, it takes the forms of reformist realism (Crane, Norris, the early works of Upton Sinclair and Dreiser), which differs from bourgeois reformist REALISM (like Wells) in its sincerity, organic aversion to capitalism, and genuine (albeit half-thought) connection with the interests of the masses. Subsequently, petty-bourgeois realism loses its "conscientious" faith in reforms and faces a dilemma: merge with bourgeois self-critical (and esthetically decadent) literature or take revolutionary positions. The first path is represented by a biting, but essentially harmless satire on philistinism by Sinclair Lewis, the second - by a number of major artists who are close to the proletariat, primarily by the same Dreiser and Dos Passos. This revolutionary realism remains limited: it is unable to artistically see reality in its “revolutionary development,” that is, to see the working class as the bearer of the revolution. 5) proletarian realism

In proletarian realism, as in the realism of revolutionary democracy, at first the critical direction is especially strong. In the works of the founder of proletarian realism M. Gorky, purely critical works from "Okurov's Town" to "Klim Samgin" play a very significant role.

But proletarian realism is free from the contradiction between the subjective ideal and the objective historical task and is closely linked with a class that is historically capable of revolutionizing the world, and therefore, unlike revolutionary democratic realism, this realism has access to a realistic depiction of the positive and the heroic. Gorky's "mother" played the same role for the Russian working class as "What is to be done?" Chernyshevsky for the revolutionary intelligentsia of the 60s. But there is a deep line between the two novels, which does not boil down to the fact that Gorky is a larger artist than Chernyshevsky.

2 . Formation of realism in Russian art of the nineteenth century

2.1 Prerequisites and features of the formation of realism in Russian art

The assertion of realism in Russian art of the second half of the 19th century. inextricably linked with the rise of democratic social thought. A close study of nature, a deep interest in the life and fate of the people are combined here with an exposure of the bourgeois-serf system. Of course, this is the reform of 1861, which opened a new, capitalist era in the history of Russia. A new attempt to modernize Russian society 1860s 1870s touched upon the main aspects of life of the socio-economic emancipation of the peasants, the political reform of the court, the army, local government and the cultural reform of the education system, the press. This led to a revival and a certain democratization of cultural life. Reflecting on the problem of the tragic and the comic in Russian artistic culture of the 19th century, one is inclined to think that the tragic takes a much larger part. Further, looking over the entire 19th century, I would rather dwell on the period when realism arose in Russian art.

A brilliant galaxy of realist masters of the last third of the 19th century. united in a group of the Itinerants (V.G. Perov, I.N. Kramskoy, I.E. Repin, V.I. Surikov, N.N. Ge, I.I. Shishkin, A.K. Savrasov, I.I. Levitan and others), who finally confirmed the position of realism in everyday and historical genres, portrait and landscape.

The beginning of the nineteenth century was marked by the appearance of the genius Pushkin. Pushkin, whose great life was cut short by a duel in 1837, when the poet was only 38 years old, not only became the founder of new Russian literature, but also inscribed his name in golden letters in the history of Russian literature, which is an integral part of world literature. Literature was ahead of other forms of art. Painting, criticism, music experienced a process of mutual penetration, mutual enrichment and development; a new era was created in the struggle against the then authorities and entrenched customs. This was the time when the masses who defeated Napoleon felt their strength, which led to the growth of self-consciousness, and the reform of serfdom and tsarism became simply necessary. The striving for common great goals contributed to the flourishing of the best creative qualities of the Russian people.

Pushkin, Lermontov, Gogol, Nekrasov, Turgenev, Tolstoy, Dostoevsky, Chekhov, Gorky and the Ukrainian poet and painter Shevchenko appeared in literature. In journalism - Belinsky, Herzen, Chernyshevsky, Pisarev, Dobrolyubov, Mikhailovsky, Vorovsky. In music - Glinka, Mussorgsky, Balakirev, Rimsky-Korsakov, Tchaikovsky, Rachmaninov and other great composers. And, finally, in painting - Bryullov, Alexander Ivanov, Fedotov, Perov, Kramskoy, Savitsky, Aivazovsky, Shishkin, Savrasov, Vereshchagin, Repin, Surikov, Ge, Levitan, Serov, Vrubel - great masters, each of whom can be called the pearl of the world art.

With the appearance of Gogol and Chernyshevsky in the thirties and forties of the 19th century in the realism created by Pushkin and Lermontov, social and critical tendencies intensified, the art of critical realism was established, fully exposing social evil, clearly defining the responsibility and purpose of the artist: "Art must recreate life and show your attitude to the phenomena of life. " This view of art, approved in literature by Pushkin and Gogol, had a significant impact on other types of art.

Realism in painting

Realism in painting manifested itself in the creation of a group of "Wanderers" artists, which included artists who protested against the conservative system of academism. This group, in order to educate the masses, portrayed the real Russian reality, it was associated with the populist movement of going to the people, contributed to the development of revolutionary democracy.

In Russia in the first half of the XIX century. tendencies of realism are inherent in the portraits of K.P. Bryullova, O.A. Kiprensky and V.A. Tropinin, paintings on the themes of peasant life by A.G. Venetsianov, landscapes by S.F. Shchedrin. Conscious adherence to the principles of realism, culminating in the overcoming of the academic system, is inherent in the work of A.A. Ivanov, who combined a close study of nature with a gravitation towards deep socio-philosophical generalizations. Genre scenes by P.A. Fedotov tells about the life of a "little man" in the conditions of feudal Russia. Their sometimes accusatory pathos defines Fedotov's place as the founder of Russian democratic realism.

The Association of Traveling Art Exhibitions (TPHV) was established in 1870. The first exhibition opened in 1871. This event had its own background. In 1863, the so-called "revolt of the 14" took place at the St. Petersburg Academy of Arts. A group of graduates of the Academy, headed by I.N. Kramskoy, protested against the tradition, according to which the competition program limited the freedom to choose the theme of the work. The demands of young artists expressed a desire to turn art to the problems of modern life. Having received a refusal from the Council of the Academy, the group demonstratively left the Academy and organized an Artists 'Artel similar to the workers' commune described in the novel by N.G. Chernyshevsky "What to do?" Thus, advanced Russian art was freed from the official tutelage of the court Academy.

By the early 1870s. democratic art has firmly won the public rostrum. It has its theorists and critics in the person of I.N. Kramskoy and V.V. Stasov, financially supported by P.M. Tretyakov, who at this time mainly acquired the works of the new realistic school. Finally, it has its own exhibition organization - TPHV.

Thus, the new art received a wider audience, which was mainly composed of commoners. The aesthetic views of the Itinerants were formed in the previous decade in an atmosphere of public controversy about the ways of further development of Russia, generated by dissatisfaction with the reforms of the 1860s.

The idea of the tasks of the art of future Itinerants was formed under the influence of the aesthetics of N.G. Chernyshevsky, who proclaimed the "generally interesting in life" as a worthy subject of art, which was understood by the artists of the new school as a demand for cutting-edge and topical topics.

The heyday of TPHV activity - 1870s - early 1890s. The program of the nationality of art put forward by the Itinerants was expressed in the artistic development of various aspects of folk life in the depiction of typical events of this life, often with a critical tendency. However, characteristic of the art of the 1860s. critical pathos, concentration on the manifestations of social evil gives way in the paintings of the Wanderers to a broader coverage of folk life, aimed at its positive aspects.

The Wanderers show not only poverty, but also the beauty of folk life ("The arrival of a sorcerer at a peasant wedding" by VM Maksimov, 1875, TG), not only suffering, but also resilience in the face of life's hardships, courage and strength of character ("Barge Haulers on Volga "I.E. Repin, 1870-1873. RM) (Appendix 1), the wealth and grandeur of native nature (works by A.K.Savrasov, A.I. Kuindzhi, I.I. Levitan, I.I. Shishkin) (Appendix 2), heroic pages of national history (works of VI Surikov) (Appendix 2), and the revolutionary liberation movement ("The arrest of a propagandist", "Denial of confession" by IE Repin). The desire to more widely cover various aspects of social life, to reveal the complex interweaving of positive and negative phenomena of reality attracts the Wanderers to enrich the genre repertoire of painting: along with the everyday picture that prevailed in the previous decade, in the 1870s. the role of portrait and landscape, and later - of historical painting is significantly increasing. The consequence of this process was the interaction of genres - the role of the landscape in the everyday picture increases, the development of the portrait enriches everyday painting with the depth of characterization, at the junction of the portrait and the everyday picture there is such an original phenomenon as a social portrait ("Woodsman" by IN Kramskoy: " Fireman "and" Kursistka "N. A. Yaroshenko). Developing individual genres, the Wanderers as an ideal to which art should strive, they thought of unity, a synthesis of all genre components in the form of a "choral picture", where the main character would be the mass of the people. This synthesis was fully carried out already in the 1880s. I.E. Repin and V.I. Surikov, whose work represents the heights of itinerant realism.

A special line in the art of the Itinerants is the work of N.N. Ge and I.N.

Kramskoy, resorting to the allegorical form of the Gospel stories to express complex issues of our time ("Christ in the Desert" by I.N. Kramskoy, 1872, TG; "What is Truth?", 1890, TG and pictures of the Gospel cycle by N.N. Ge 1890- x years). Active participants in traveling exhibitions were V.E. Makovsky, N. A. Yaroshenko, V. D. Polenov. Remaining faithful to the basic precepts of itinerant movement, the TPHV participants from the new generation of masters are expanding the range of themes and plots designed to reflect the changes that took place in the traditional way of Russian life at the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries. Such are the paintings of S.A. Korovin ("On the World", 1893, TG), S.V. Ivanova ("On the road. Death of a migrant", 1889, TG), A.E. Arkhipova, N.A. Kasatkina and others.

It is natural that it was in the works of the younger Itinerants that the events and moods associated with the onset of a new era of class battles on the eve of the 1905 revolution were reflected (painting "The Shooting" by SV Ivanov). Russian painting owes its discovery to the work and life of the working class to N.A. Kasatkin (painting "Miners. Change", 1895, TG).

The development of the traditions of itinerant movement takes place already in Soviet times - in the activities of the artists of the Association of Artists of Revolutionary Russia (AHRR). The last 48th exhibition of TPHV took place in 1923.

Realism in literature

Of great importance in the social and cultural life of Russia in the second half of the 19th century. acquired literature. A special attitude to literature goes back to the beginning of the century, to the era of the brilliant development of Russian literature, which went down in history as the "Golden Age". Literature was seen not only as an area of artistic creation, but also as a source of spiritual improvement, an arena of ideological battles, a guarantee of a special great future for Russia. The abolition of serfdom, bourgeois reforms, the rise of capitalism, the hard wars that Russia had to wage during this period found a lively response in the works of Russian writers. Their opinion was listened to. Their views largely determined the public consciousness of the population of Russia at that time.

The leading direction in literary creativity was critical realism. Second half of the 19th century turned out to be extremely rich in talents. The work of I.S. Turgenev, I.A. Goncharova, L.N. Tolstoy, F.M. Dostoevsky, M.E. Saltykov-Shchedrin, A.P. Chekhov.

One of the most remarkable writers of the middle of the century was Ivan Sergeevich Turgenev (1818-1883). A representative of an old noble family, who spent his childhood in the parental estate of Spassky-Lutovinovo near the town of Mtsensk, Oryol province, he, like no one else, was able to convey the atmosphere of a Russian village - peasant and landowner. Most of his life Turgenev lived abroad. Nevertheless, the images of Russian people are surprisingly alive in his works. The writer succeeded exceptionally truthfully in portraying a gallery of portraits of peasants in a series of stories that brought him fame, the first of which "Khor and Kalinich" was published in the journal "Sovremennik" in 1847. "Sovremennik" published stories one after another. Their release caused a great public outcry. Subsequently, the entire series was published by I.S. Turgenev in one book called "Notes of a Hunter". Moral quest, love, life of a landlord's estate are revealed to the reader in the novel "Noble Nest" (1858).

The conflict between generations, unfolding against the background of a clash between the nobility in crisis and a new generation of commoners (embodied in the image of Bazarov), who made denial ("nihilism") the banner of ideological self-affirmation, is shown in the novel Fathers and Sons (1862).

The fate of the Russian nobility was reflected in the works of I.A. Goncharova. The characters of the heroes of his works are contradictory: Ilya Ilyich Oblomov (Oblomov, 1859), soft, frank, conscientious, but passive, unable to "get off the couch"; educated, gifted, romantic-minded, but again Oblomov-like inactive and weak-willed Boris Raysky ("The Break", 1869). Goncharov managed to create an image of a very typical breed of people, to show a widespread phenomenon of social life of that time, which received, with the filing of the literary critic N.A. Dobrolyubov's name "Oblomovism".

The middle of the century marks the beginning of the literary activity of the greatest Russian writer, thinker and public figure, Count Lev Nikolaevich Tolstoy (1828-1910). His legacy is enormous. The titanic personality of Tolstoy is the figure of the author, characteristic of Russian culture, for whom literature was closely connected with social activities, and the ideas professed were promoted primarily by the example of his own life. Already in the first works of L.N. Tolstoy, published in the 50s. XIX century. and brought him fame (trilogy "Childhood", "Adolescence", "Youth", Caucasian and Sevastopol stories), showed a powerful talent. In 1863, the story "Cossacks" was published, which became an important stage in his work. Tolstoy came close to creating the historical epic novel War and Peace (1863-1869). His own experience of participation in the Crimean War and the defense of Sevastopol allowed Tolstoy to reliably depict the events of the heroic 1812. The novel combines a huge and varied material, its ideological potential is immeasurable. Pictures of family life, love line, characters of people are intertwined with large-scale canvases of historical events. According to L.N. Tolstoy, the main idea in the novel was "people's thought". The people are shown in the novel as the creator of history, the folk environment as the only true and healthy soil for any Russian person. The next novel by L.N. Tolstoy - "Anna Karenina" (1874-1876). It combines the story of the protagonist's family drama with artistic comprehension of acute social and moral issues of our time. The third great novel by the great writer is "Resurrection" (1889-1899), called by R. Rolland "one of the most beautiful poems about human compassion." Dramatic art of the 2nd half of the 19th century was presented by the plays of A.N. Ostrovsky ("Our people - we will count", "A profitable place", "The Marriage of Balzaminov", "The Thunderstorm", etc.) and A.V. Sukhovo-Kobylin (trilogy "Krechinsky's Wedding", "Delo", "Death of Tarelkin").

An important place in the literature of the 70s. is occupied by M.E. Saltykov-Shchedrin, whose satirical talent manifested itself most forcefully in The History of a City. One of the best works of M.E. Saltykov-Shchedrin's "Lord Golovlevs" tells about the gradual disintegration of the family and the extinction of the Golovlev landowners. The novel shows the lies and absurdity underlying the relationship within the noble family, which ultimately leads to their death.

The consummate master of the psychological novel was Fyodor Mikhailovich Dostoevsky (1821-1881). The genius of Dostoevsky was manifested in the writer's extraordinary ability to reveal to the reader the hidden, sometimes terrifying, truly mystical depths of human nature, showing monstrous mental catastrophes in the most ordinary setting (Crime and Punishment, The Brothers Karamazov, Poor People, The Idiot).

The pinnacle of Russian poetry in the second half of the 19th century. was the work of Nikolai Alekseevich Nekrasov (1821-1878). The main theme of his works was the depiction of the hardships of the working people. To convey the power of the artistic word to the educated, prosperous reader, the depth of national poverty and grief, to show the greatness of a simple peasant - this was the meaning of N.A. Nekrasov (poem "Who Lives Well in Russia", 1866-1876) The poet understood his poetic activity as a civic duty of serving his country. In addition, N.A. Nekrasov is known for his publishing activities. He published the magazines Sovremennik, Otechestvennye zapiski, on the pages of which the works of many later famous Russian writers were first seen. In Nekrasov's "Sovremennik" he first published his trilogy "Childhood", "Boyhood", "Youth" by L.N. Tolstoy, published the first stories of I.S. Turgenev, Goncharov, Belinsky, Herzen, Chernyshevsky were published.

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Realism is the dominant ideological and stylistic trend in the culture and art of Europe and America in the second half of the 19th century and the beginning of the 20th century. It replaced such a powerful stylistic trend in culture and art as romanticism.

The basic principle of creativity in realism- this is an image of reality, man and the world as real, as they are. Not invented, not embellished in the direction of any ideal. This is the fundamental difference between realism and previous trends and trends - baroque, where the image is pretentious and unnatural, classicism, where the world "improved" by rationality is depicted, romanticism, where the cult of violent passions and strong emotions reigns, where the world of healing and majestic nature is glorified. Truthfulness in realism (not similarity with truth, but compliance with truth) is one of the most important values.

Therefore, the realist tries to recreate as accurately as possible the details and facts of those events or phenomena that he describes.

Realism in literature (as well as in painting, however) conveys the typical features of objects: objects, phenomena and people. The more relevant and topical the topic raised by the author in a literary work, the better in realism. The sharper the social sound of the work right here and right now, the better again. Realists explore modernity and try to keep up with it - and this is a fact. This, however, does not negate the historical plots in the literature of realism. Accuracy and historical truthfulness are highly valued in their reproduction.

Famous realists of European literature- Honore de Balzac, Emile Zola, Bertold Brecht, Guy de Maupassant and other authors. In Russian literature, these are Anton Chekhov, Fyodor Dostoevsky, Leo Tolstoy, Nikolai Chernyshevsky, Yuri Olesha and other authors. At the beginning of the 20th century, the dominance of realism in culture and art began to decline - it is being pushed by modernist movements with their cult of freedom of creativity, and for modernists it does not matter whether the world they portray is similar to the real one, whether it is authentic. Realism is pushed aside by symbolism and futurism.

In some countries, realism as a trend in art and in literature in particular reigned undividedly until the middle of the 20th century. The USSR was no exception, where socialist realism (socialist realism) was the dominant ideology in art for a long time. Its prominent representatives in literature are Maxim Gorky, Konstantin Paustovsky, Alexander Fadeev, Konstantin Simonov and others. A good example of socialist realism in the visual arts is the personality of the sculptor Vera Mukhina, the author of the sculpture "Worker and Collective Farm Woman", famous in the USSR.

There is in literature and painting and such an interesting phenomenon as "Magic realism". Basically, this term refers to the work of authors of the middle of the 20th century and the end of the 20th century. Colombian prose writer Gabriel García Márquez is considered to be his recognized "father" in literature. These are artworks where the theme of magic and wizardry is incorporated into an otherwise realistic work of art. Companions of Marquez in "magical realism" are also such famous authors as Julio Cortazar and Jorge Borges. In painting, this is the work of the Frenchman Marc Chagall.

Realism

Realism (- material, real) is an artistic trend in art and literature, which was established in the first third of the 19th century. The origins of realism in Russia were I.A.Krylov, A.S. Griboyedov, A.S. Pushkin (in Western literature, realism appears somewhat later, its first representatives were Stendhal and O. de Balzac).

Features of realism. The principle of truth in life, which guides the artist-realist in his work, striving to give the fullest reflection of life in its typical properties. The fidelity of the depiction of reality, reproduced in the forms of life itself, is the main criterion for artistry.

Social analysis, historicism of thinking. It is realism that explains the phenomena of life, establishes their causes and effects on a socio-historical basis. In other words, realism is inconceivable without historicism, which presupposes an understanding of a given phenomenon in its conditioning, in its development and connection with other phenomena. Historicism is the basis of the worldview and artistic method of the realist writer, a kind of key to understanding reality, allowing to connect the past, present and future. In the past, the artist seeks answers to pressing questions of the present, and he comprehends the present as a result of the previous historical development.

A critical portrayal of life. Writers deeply and truthfully show the negative phenomena of reality, focus on exposing the existing order. But at the same time, realism is not devoid of life-affirming pathos, for it is based on positive ideals - patriotism, sympathy for the masses, the search for a positive hero in life, belief in the inexhaustible possibilities of man, the dream of a bright future for Russia (for example, Dead Souls). That is why in modern literary criticism, instead of the concept of "critical realism", which was first introduced by N. G. Chernyshevsky, they often speak of "classical realism". Typical characters in typical circumstances, that is, characters were portrayed in close connection with the social environment that brought them up, shaped them in certain socio-historical conditions.

The relationship between the individual and society is the leading problem posed by realistic literature. The drama of this relationship is important to realism. As a rule, the focus of attention of realistic works are outstanding personalities, dissatisfied with life, “breaking out” from their environment, people who are able to rise above society and challenge it. Their behavior and deeds become the subject of close scrutiny and research for realist writers.

The versatility of the characters' characters: their actions, deeds, speech, lifestyle and inner world, the "dialectic of the soul", which is revealed in the psychological details of her emotional experiences. Thus, realism expands the possibilities of writers in the creative assimilation of the world, in the creation of a contradictory and complex personality structure as a result of the finest penetration into the depths of the human psyche.

Expressiveness, brightness, imagery, accuracy of the Russian literary language, enriched with elements of lively, colloquial speech, which realist writers draw from the general Russian language.

A variety of genres (epic, lyric, dramatic, lyroepic, satirical), in which all the richness of the content of realistic literature is expressed.

Reflection of reality does not exclude fiction and fantasy (Gogol, Saltykov-Shchedrin, Sukhovo-Kobylin), although these artistic means do not determine the main tonality of the work.

Typology of Russian realism. The question of the typology of realism is associated with the disclosure of known patterns that determine the dominant of certain types of realism and their change.

In many literary works there are attempts to establish typical varieties (trends) of realism: Renaissance, educational (or didactic), romantic, sociological, critical, naturalistic, revolutionary democratic, socialist, typical, empirical, syncretic, philosophical and psychological, intellectual, spiral, universal, monumental ... Since all these terms are rather conventional (terminological confusion) and there are no clear boundaries between them, we propose to use the concept of "stages of development of realism." Let us trace these stages, each of which develops in the conditions of its time and is artistically justified in its uniqueness. The complexity of the problem of typology of realism is that the typologically unique varieties of realism not only replace each other, but also coexist and develop simultaneously. Consequently, the concept of "stage" does not mean at all that within the same chronological framework there cannot be another kind of flow, earlier or later. That is why it is necessary to correlate the work of one or another realist writer with the work of other realist artists, while revealing the individual originality of each of them, revealing the closeness between groups of writers.

First third of the 19th century. Krylov's realistic fables reflected the real relations of people in society, depicted living scenes, the content of which is diverse - they could be everyday, social, philosophical and historical.

Griboyedov created a "high comedy" ("Woe from Wit"), that is, a comedy close to drama, reflecting in it the ideas that lived the educated society of the first quarter of a century. Chatsky, in the fight against serf-owners and conservatives, defends national interests from the standpoint of common sense and popular morality. Typical characters and circumstances are given in the play.

In the work of Pushkin, the problematics, the methodology of realism have already been outlined. In the novel "Eugene Onegin" the poet recreated the "Russian spirit", gave a new, objective principle of depicting the hero, was the first to show the "superfluous person", and in the story "The Station Keeper" - the "little man". In the people, Pushkin saw the moral potential that determines the national character. The novel "The Captain's Daughter" manifested the historicism of the writer's thinking - both in the correct reflection of reality, and in the accuracy of social analysis, and in understanding the historical regularity of phenomena, and in the ability to convey the typical features of a person's character, to show him as a product of a certain social environment.

30s of the XIX century. In this era of "timelessness", of social inaction, only the bold voices of A. Pushkin, V. G. Belinsky and M. Yu. Lermontov were heard. The critic saw in Lermontov a worthy successor to Pushkin. Man in his work carries the dramatic features of the time. In destiny

Pechorin, the writer reflected the fate of his generation, his "century" ("A Hero of Our Time"). But if Pushkin devotes the main attention to the description of the actions, actions of the character, gives "character outlines", then Lermontov focuses on the inner world of the hero, on an in-depth psychological analysis of his actions and experiences, on the "history of the human soul."

40s of the XIX century. During this period, the realists received the name "natural school" (N. V. Gogol, A. I. Herzen, D. V. Grigorovich, N. A. Nekrasov). The works of these writers are characterized by accusatory pathos, rejection of social reality, increased attention to everyday life, everyday life. Gogol did not find the embodiment of his lofty ideals in the world around him, and therefore was convinced that in the conditions of contemporary Russia, the ideal and beauty of life can only be expressed through the negation of an ugly reality. The satirist explores the material, material and everyday basis of life, its "invisible" features and spiritually wretched characters arising from it, firmly convinced of their dignity and right.

Second half of the 19th century. The work of writers of this time (I.A.Goncharov, A.N. Ostrovsky, I.S.Turgenev, N.S. Leskov, M.E.Saltykov-Shchedrin, L.N. G. Korolenko, A. P. Chekhov) is distinguished by a qualitatively new stage in the development of realism: they not only critically comprehend reality, but also actively seek ways to transform it, reveal close attention to the spiritual life of a person, penetrate into the "dialectic of the soul", create a world inhabited by complex, contradictory characters, saturated with dramatic conflicts. The writers' works are characterized by subtle psychologism and great philosophical generalizations.

The turn of the XIX-XX centuries. The features of the era were most clearly expressed in the works of A.I. Kuprin, I. A. Bunin. They keenly grasped the general spiritual and social atmosphere in the country, deeply and faithfully reflected the unique pictures of the life of the most diverse strata of the population, created an integral and true picture of Russia. They are characterized by such themes and problems as the continuity of generations, the legacy of centuries, the root ties of man with the past, the Russian character and features of national history, the harmonious world of nature and the world of social relations (devoid of poetry and harmony, personifying cruelty and violence), love and death , fragility and fragility of human happiness, riddles of the Russian soul, loneliness and tragic predetermination of human existence, ways of liberation from spiritual oppression. The original and distinctive work of the writers organically continues the best traditions of Russian realistic literature, and above all, a deep penetration into the essence of the life depicted, the disclosure of the relationship between the environment and the individual, attention to the social background, the expression of the ideas of humanism.

Pre-October decade. A new vision of the world in connection with the processes taking place in Russia in all areas of life defined a new face of realism, which significantly differed from classical realism in its "modernity". New figures have emerged - representatives of a special trend within the realistic direction - neorealism ("renewed" realism): I.S.Shmelev, L.N. Andreev, M.M. Prishvin, E.I. Zamyatin, S.N.Sergeev-Tsensky A. N. Tolstoy, A. M. Remizov, B. K. Zaitsev and others. They are characterized by a departure from the sociological understanding of reality; mastering the sphere of the "earthly", deepening the concrete sensory perception of the world, the artistic study of the subtle movements of the soul, nature and man, coming into contact, which eliminates alienation and brings them closer to the original, unchanging nature of being; a return to the hidden values of the folk-village element, capable of renewing life in the spirit of "eternal" ideals (pagan, mystical coloring of the depicted); comparison of the bourgeois urban and rural structure; the thought of the incompatibility of the natural force of life, of existential good with social evil; the combination of the historical and the metaphysical (next to the features of everyday or concrete historical reality there is a “super-real” background, mythological subtext); the motive of purifying love as a kind of symbolic sign of the all-human natural unconscious beginning, carrying enlightened peace.

Soviet period. The distinctive features of the socialist realism that arose at that time were partisanship, nationality, the depiction of reality in its "revolutionary development", the propaganda of the heroism and romance of socialist construction. In the works of M. Gorky, M. A. Sholokhov, A. A. Fadeev, L. M. Leonov, V. V. Mayakovsky, K. A. Fedin, N. A. Ostrovsky, A. N. Tolstoy, A. T. Tvardovsky and others, a different reality, a different person, different ideals, a different aesthetics, principles were established, which formed the basis of the moral code of a fighter for communism. A new method in art was promoted, which was politicized: it had a pronounced social orientation, expressed the state ideology. In the center of the works there was usually a positive hero, inextricably linked with the collective, who constantly exerted a beneficial influence on the personality. The main sphere of application of the forces of such a hero is creative work. It is no coincidence that the production novel has become one of the most widespread genres.

20-30s of the XX century. Many writers who were forced to live under a dictatorial regime, under conditions of severe censorship, managed to preserve their inner freedom, showed the ability to remain silent, to be careful in their assessments, to switch to an allegorical language - they were devoted to the truth, the true art of realism. The genre of dystopia was born, in which a harsh criticism of a totalitarian society based on the suppression of personality, individual freedom was given. The fates of A.P. Platonov, M.A.Bulgakov, E.I. Zamyatin, A.A.

The period of the "thaw" (mid-50s - first half of the 60s). In this historical time, young poets of the sixties (E.A. Evtushenko, A.A.Voznesensky, B.A.Akhmadulina, R.I. The "masters of thought" of their generation, together with representatives of the "third wave" of emigration (V.P. Aksenov, A.V. Kuznetsov, A.T. Gladilin, G.N. Vladimov,

A.I.Solzhenitsyn, N.M. Korzhavin, S.D.Dovlatov, V.E. Maksimov, V.N. the human soul in the conditions of the command-administrative system and internal opposition to it, confession, moral quest of heroes, their release, emancipation, romanticism and self-irony, innovation in the field of artistic language and style, genre diversity.

The last decades of the XX century. The new generation of writers, already living in somewhat relaxed political conditions within the country, came out with lyric, urban and rural poetry and prose that did not fit into the rigid framework of socialist realism (N.M. Rubtsov, A.V. Zhigulin,

V. N. Sokolov, Yu. V. Trifonov, Ch. T. Aitmatov, V. I. Belov, F. A. Abramov, V. G. Rasputin, V. P. Astafiev, S. P. Zalygin, V. M. Shukshin, F. A. Iskander). The leading themes of their work are the revival of traditional morality and the relationship between man and nature, in which the closeness of the writers to the traditions of Russian classical realism is manifested. The works of this period are permeated with a sense of attachment to their native land, and therefore, responsibility for what happens on it, a sense of the irreplaceability of spiritual losses due to the rupture of age-old ties between nature and man. Artists comprehend the turning point in the sphere of moral values, the shifts in society in which the human soul is forced to survive, reflect on the catastrophic consequences for those who lose their historical memory, the experience of generations.

The latest Russian literature. In the literary process of recent years, literary scholars have recorded two trends: postmodernism (blurring the boundaries of realism, awareness of the illusory nature of what is happening, mixing different artistic methods, style diversity, increasing the influence of avant-garde - A.G. Bitov, Sasha Sokolov, V.O. Pelevin, T.N. Tolstaya, T. Yu. Kibirov, D. A. Prigov) and post-realism (traditional for realism attention to the fate of a private person, tragically lonely, in the vanity of humiliating his everyday life, losing his moral guidelines, trying to self-determine, - V. S. Ma- Kanin, L. S. Petrushevskaya).

So, realism as a literary and artistic system has a powerful potential for continuous renewal, which manifests itself in a particular transitional era for Russian literature. In the works of writers who continue the traditions of realism, there is a search for new themes, heroes, plots, genres, poetic means, a new manner of speaking with the reader.

Realism at the turn of the century remained a large-scale and influential literary movement. Suffice it to say that L. Tolstoy and A. Chekhov still lived and worked in the 1900s.

The brightest talents among the new realists belonged to the writers who united in the Moscow circle "Sreda" in the 1890s, and in the early 1900s formed the circle of permanent authors of the publishing house "Knowledge" (one of its owners and the actual leader was M. Gorky). In addition to the leader of the association, in different years it included L. Andreev, I. Bunin, V. Veresaev, N. Garin-Mikhailovsky, A. Kuprin, I. Shmelev and other writers. With the exception of I. Bunin, there were no major poets among the realists; they showed themselves primarily in prose and, less noticeably, in drama.

The influence of this group of writers was largely due to the fact that it was she who inherited the traditions of the great Russian literature of the 19th century. However, the immediate predecessors of the new generation of realists, already in the 1880s, seriously renewed the appearance of the trend. The creative searches of the late L. Tolstoy, V. Korolenko, A. Chekhov introduced into artistic practice much that was unusual by the standards of classical realism. The experience of A. Chekhov was especially important for the next generation of realists.

Chekhov's world includes many different human characters, but with all its originality, his characters are similar in that they all lack something of the most important. They try to join the real life, but, as a rule, they never find the desired spiritual harmony. Neither love, nor passionate service to science or social ideals, nor faith in God - none of the previously reliable means of gaining wholeness can help the hero. The world in his perception has lost a single center, this world is far from hierarchical completeness and cannot be embraced by any of the worldview systems.

That is why life according to some ideological template, a world outlook based on a fixed system of social and ethical values, is interpreted by Chekhov as vulgarity. Life turns out to be vulgar, repeating the patterns set by tradition, devoid of spiritual independence. None of the Chekhov's heroes have unconditional righteousness, so the Chekhovian type of conflict looks unusual. Comparing heroes on one or another basis, Chekhov most often does not give preference to any of them. It is not "moral investigation" that is important to him, but the clarification of the reasons for mutual misunderstanding between people. This is why the writer refuses to be the prosecutor or the advocate of his heroes.

Outwardly mild plot situations in his mature prose and drama are designed to reveal the misconceptions of the characters, to determine the degree of development of their self-awareness and the degree of personal responsibility associated with it. In general, the various moral, ideological and stylistic contrasts in Chekhov's world are losing their absolute character, becoming relative.

In a word, Chekhov's world is a world of fluid relations, where various subjective truths interact. In such works, the role of subjective reflection (introspection, reflections of the heroes, and their understanding of their actions) increases. The author controls the tone of his assessments well: it cannot be unconditionally heroic or recklessly satirical. Subtle lyrical irony is perceived by the reader as a typical Chekhovian tonality.

Thus, the generation of realist writers at the beginning of the 20th century inherited new principles of writing from Chekhov - with much greater freedom of authorship than before; with a much wider arsenal of artistic expression; with an obligatory sense of proportion for the artist, which was ensured by the increased inner self-criticism and self-reflection.

Making generous use of some of Chekhov's findings, the realists of the turn of the century did not always possess the last of the aforementioned qualities of an artist. Where Chekhov saw the diversity and relative equivalence of options for life behavior, his young followers were fond of one of them. If Chekhov, for example, shows how strong the inertia of life is, which often negates the hero's initial desire to change, the realist of the Gorky generation sometimes absolutes the very strong-willed impulse of a person, without testing it for strength and therefore replacing the real complexity of a person with the dream of “strong people”. Where Chekhov predicted a long-term perspective, urging one drop to "squeeze the slave out of oneself," the "knowledgeist" writer gave a much more optimistic forecast of the "birth of a man."

Nevertheless, it is extremely important that the generation of realists at the beginning of the 20th century inherited from Chekhov constant attention to the person's personality, his individuality. What are the main features of realism in the late 19th and early 20th centuries?

Themes and heroes of realistic literature. The thematic range of works of realists at the turn of the century is wider than that of their predecessors; for most writers at this time thematic constancy is uncharacteristic. Rapid changes in Russia forced them to vary the subject matter, to invade the previously reserved thematic layers. At that time, the spirit of artels was strong in the Gorky writers' environment: through joint efforts, the "Znanievites" created a wide panorama of the country undergoing renewal. The large-scale thematic capture was palpable in the titles of the works that made up the collections "Knowledge" (it was this type of publications - collections and almanacs - that spread in the literature of the beginning of the century). So, for example, the table of contents of the 12th collection "Knowledge" resembled sections of a certain sociological study: the names of the same type "In the city", "In the family", "In prison", "In the village" designated the spheres of life being examined.

Elements of sociological descriptiveness in realism are not yet overcome legacy of socio-essay prose of the 60s and 80s, in which the orientation towards empirical research of reality was strong. However, the prose of the "Znanievites" was distinguished by more acute artistic problems. The crisis of all forms of life - this is the conclusion that the readers of most of their works summed up. The important thing was the changed attitude of realists to the possibility of transforming life. In the literature of the 60s and 80s, the living environment was portrayed as sedentary, possessing a terrible force of inertia. Now the circumstances of a person's existence are interpreted as devoid of stability and subject to his will. In relations between man and the environment, the realists of the turn of the century emphasized the ability of man not only to withstand the adverse effects of the environment, but also to actively rebuild life.

The typology of characters was also noticeably updated in realism. Outwardly, the writers followed tradition: in their works one could find recognizable types of a "little man" or an intellectual who survived a spiritual drama. The peasant remained one of the central figures in their prose. But even the traditional "peasant" characterology has changed: more and more often a new type of "pensive" muzhik appears in stories and novellas. The characters got rid of sociological averaging, became more diverse in psychological characteristics and outlook. “The diversity of the soul” of the Russian person is a constant motif in I. Bunin's prose. He was one of the first in realism to widely use foreign material in his works (Brothers, Chang's Dreams, The Lord from San Francisco). The use of such material has become characteristic of other writers as well (M. Gorky, E. Zamyatin).

Genres and stylistic features of realistic prose. The genre system and stylistics of realistic prose were significantly updated at the beginning of the 20th century.

The central place in the genre hierarchy was occupied at this time by the most mobile story and essay. The novel practically disappeared from the genre repertoire of realism: the story became the largest epic genre. Not a single novel in the exact meaning of this term was written by the most significant realists of the early 20th century - I. Bunin and M. Gorky.

Beginning with the work of A. Chekhov, the importance of the formal organization of the text has noticeably grown in realistic prose. Certain methods and elements of form received greater independence in the artistic structure of the work than before. So, for example, the artistic detail was used more variedly, at the same time, the plot more and more often lost its value as the main compositional means and began to play a subordinate role. The expressiveness in the transmission of the details of the visible and audible world has deepened. In this respect, I. Bunin, B. Zaitsev, I. Shmelev stood out. A specific feature of the Bunin style, for example, was the amazing fusion of visual and auditory, olfactory and tactile characteristics in the transmission of the surrounding world. The realist writers attached great importance to the use of rhythmic and phonetic effects of artistic speech, to the transmission of the individual characteristics of the oral speech of the characters (mastery of this element of the form was characteristic of I. Shmelev).

Having lost, in comparison with the classics of the 19th century, the epic scale and integrity of the vision of the world, the realists of the beginning of the century compensated for these losses with a sharpened perception of life and greater expression in expressing the author's position. The general logic of the development of realism at the beginning of the century was to strengthen the role of heightened expressive forms. The writer was now important not so much the proportions of the reproduced fragment of life, but the "power of the cry", the intensity of the expression of the author's emotions. This was achieved by sharpening plot situations, when extremely dramatic, "borderline" states in the life of the characters were described in close-up. The figurative series of works was built on contrasts, sometimes extremely sharp, “screaming”; the leitmotif principles of narration were actively used: the frequency of figurative and lexical repetitions increased.

Expression in style was especially characteristic of L. Andreev, A. Serafimovich. It is also noticeable in some of the works of M. Gorky. There are many journalistic elements in the work of these writers - “montage” joining of statements, aphorism, rhetorical repetitions; the author often comments on what is happening, intrudes into the plot with lengthy journalistic digressions (examples of such digressions can be found in M. Gorky's stories "Childhood" and "In People"). In L. Andreev's stories and dramas, the plot and arrangement of characters were often deliberately schematic: the writer was attracted by universal, “eternal” types and life situations.

However, within the limits of the work of one writer, a single style manner was rarely maintained: more often, artists of the word combined several style options. For example, in the works of A. Kuprin, M. Gorky, L. Andreev, precise depiction coexisted with generalized romantic imagery, elements of life-likeness - with artistic conventions.

Stylish two-part, an element of artistic eclecticism - a characteristic sign of the realism of the beginning

XX century. Of the major writers of that time, only I. Bunin avoided a variety of styles in his work: both his poetic and prose works preserved the harmony of accurate descriptiveness and the author's lyricism. The instability of style in realism was a consequence of the transition and the well-known artistic compromise of the direction. On the one hand, realism remained faithful to the traditions bequeathed by the previous century, on the other, it began to interact with new trends in art.

Realist writers gradually adapted to new forms of artistic search, although this process was not always peaceful. Further along the path of rapprochement with modernist aesthetics went L. Andreev, B. Zaitsev, S. Sergeev-Tsensky, somewhat later - E. Zamyatin. Most of them were often reproached by critics - adherents of the old traditions - of artistic apostasy, or even ideological desertion. However, the process of renewal of realism as a whole was artistically fruitful, and its total achievements at the turn of the century were significant.

Realism is a trend in literature and art, truthfully and realistically reflecting the typical features of reality, in which there are no various distortions and exaggerations. This trend followed romanticism, and was the forerunner of symbolism.

This trend originated in the 30s of the 19th century and reached its heyday by the middle. His followers strongly denied the use in literary works of any sophisticated techniques, mystical tendencies and idealization of characters. The main feature of this trend in literature is the artistic display of real life with the help of ordinary and well-known readers of images that for them are a part of their daily life (relatives, neighbors or acquaintances).

(Alexey Yakovlevich Voloskov "At the tea table")

The works of realist writers are characterized by a life-affirming beginning, even if their plot is characterized by a tragic conflict. One of the main features of this genre is the authors' attempt to consider the surrounding reality in its development, to discover and describe new psychological, social and social relations.

Replacing romanticism, realism has the characteristic features of art, seeking to find truth and justice, and wanting to change the world for the better. The main characters in the works of realist authors make their discoveries and conclusions, after much thought and deep introspection.

(Zhuravlev Firs Sergeevich "Before the crown")

Critical realism is developing almost simultaneously in Russia and Europe (approximately 30-40s of the 19th century) and soon emerges as the leading trend in literature and art throughout the world.

In France, literary realism is primarily associated with the names of Balzac and Stendhal, in Russia with Pushkin and Gogol, in Germany with the names of Heine and Buchner. All of them experience the inevitable influence of romanticism in their literary work, but they gradually move away from it, abandon the idealization of reality and move on to portraying a broader social background, where the life of the main characters proceeds.

Realism in Russian literature of the 19th century

The main founder of Russian realism in the 19th century is Alexander Sergeevich Pushkin. In his works "The Captain's Daughter", "Eugene Onegin", "Belkin's Tale", "Boris Godunov", "The Bronze Horseman" he subtly captures and masterfully conveys the very essence of all important events in the life of Russian society, represented by his talented pen in all its diversity , colorfulness and inconsistency. Following Pushkin, many writers of that time came to the genre of realism, deepening the analysis of the emotional experiences of their heroes and depicting their complex inner world ("A Hero of Our Time" by Lermontov, "The Inspector General" and "Dead Souls" by Gogol).

(Pavel Fedotov "The Choosy Bride")

The tense socio-political situation in Russia during the reign of Nicholas I aroused a keen interest in the life and fate of the common people among progressive public figures of that time. This is noted in the later works of Pushkin, Lermontov and Gogol, as well as in the poetic lines of Alexei Koltsov and the works of the authors of the so-called "natural school": I.S. Turgenev (cycle of stories "Notes of a Hunter", stories "Fathers and Sons", "Rudin", "Asya"), F.M. Dostoevsky ("Poor People", "Crime and Punishment"), A.I. Herzen ("Magpie-thief", "Who is to blame?"), I.A. Goncharova ("An Ordinary History", "Oblomov"), A.S. Griboyedov "Woe from Wit", L.N. Tolstoy ("War and Peace", "Anna Karenina"), A.P. Chekhov (stories and plays "The Cherry Orchard", "Three Sisters", "Uncle Vanya").

Literary realism of the second half of the 19th century was called critical, the main task of his works was to highlight the existing problems, to touch upon the issues of interaction between a person and the society in which he lives.

Realism in Russian literature of the 20th century

(Nikolay Petrovich Bogdanov-Belsky "Evening")

The turning point in the fate of Russian realism was the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries, when this trend was going through a crisis and a new cultural phenomenon - symbolism - loudly announced itself. Then a new, updated aesthetics of Russian realism arose, in which history itself and its global processes were now considered the main environment that forms the personality of a person. The realism of the early 20th century revealed the complexity of the formation of a person's personality, it was formed under the influence of not only social factors, history itself acted as the creator of typical circumstances, under the aggressive influence of which the protagonist fell.

(Boris Kustodiev "Portrait of D.F.Bogoslovsky")

There are four main trends in realism at the beginning of the twentieth century:

Critical: Continues the traditions of mid-19th century classical realism. The works emphasize the social nature of phenomena (the work of A.P. Chekhov and L.N. Tolstoy);
Socialist: displaying the historical and revolutionary development of real life, analyzing conflicts in the context of class struggle, revealing the essence of the characters of the main characters and their actions, committed for the benefit of others. (M. Gorky "Mother", "The Life of Klim Samgin", most of the works of Soviet authors).
Mythological: reflection and rethinking of real life events through the prism of the plots of famous myths and legends (LN Andreev "Judas Iscariot");
Naturalism: an extremely truthful, often unsightly, detailed depiction of reality (AI Kuprin "The Pit", VV Veresaev "Notes of a Doctor").

Realism in foreign literature of the XIX-XX centuries

The initial stage of the formation of critical realism in European countries in the middle of the 19th century is associated with the works of Balzac, Stendhal, Beranger, Flaubert, Maupassant. Merimee in France, Dickens, Thackeray, Bronte, Gaskell in England, poetry of Heine and other revolutionary poets in Germany. In these countries, in the 30s of the 19th century, tension was growing between two irreconcilable class enemies: the bourgeoisie and the labor movement, there was a period of upsurge in various spheres of bourgeois culture, a number of discoveries were taking place in natural science and biology. In countries where a pre-revolutionary situation has developed (France, Germany, Hungary), the doctrine of scientific socialism by Marx and Engels arises and develops.

(Julien Dupre "Return from the fields")

As a result of complex creative and theoretical polemics with the followers of romanticism, critical realists took for themselves the best progressive ideas and traditions: interesting historical themes, democracy, trends of folklore, progressive critical pathos and humanistic ideals.

Realism of the early twentieth century, which survived the struggle of the best representatives of the "classics" of critical realism (Flaubert, Maupassant, France, Shaw, Rolland) with the trends of new unrealistic trends in literature and art (decadence, impressionism, naturalism, aestheticism, etc.), acquires new specific traits. He turns to the social phenomena of real life, describes the social motivation of the human character, reveals the psychology of personality, the fate of art. The modeling of artistic reality is based on philosophical ideas, the author's attitude is given, first of all, to the intellectually active perception of the work when reading it, and then to the emotional one. Classic examples of an intellectual realistic novel are the works of the German writer Thomas Mann The Magic Mountain and The Confession of the Adventurer Felix Krul, and the playwright of Bertold Brecht.

(Robert Kohler "The Strike")

In the works of the realist authors of the twentieth century, the dramatic line is strengthened and deepened, there is more tragedy (the works of the American writer Scott Fitzgerald "The Great Gatsby", "Tender Night"), a special interest in the inner world of man appears. Attempts to portray the conscious and unconscious moments of a person's life lead to the emergence of a new literary device close to modernism called "stream of consciousness" (works by Anna Zegers, V. Keppen, Y. O'Neill). Naturalistic elements are evident in the work of American realist writers such as Theodore Dreiser and John Steinbeck.

Realism of the twentieth century has a bright life-affirming color, faith in man and his strength, this is noticeable in the works of American realist writers William Faulkner, Ernest Hemingway, Jack London, Mark Twain. The works of Romain Rolland, John Galsworthy, Bernard Shaw, Erich Maria Remarque enjoyed great popularity in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.

Realism continues to exist as a trend in modern literature and is one of the most important forms of democratic culture.