Message on the topic of the culture of the Middle Ages. Culture of the Middle Ages briefly

Medieval European culture covers the period from the fall of the Roman Empire to the moment of the active formation of the culture of the Renaissance and divides the culture early period(V-XI centuries) and culture classical Middle Ages(XII-XIV centuries). The emergence of the term "Middle Ages" is associated with the activities of the Italian humanists of the 15th-16th centuries, who, by introducing this term, sought to separate the culture of their era - the culture of the Renaissance - from the culture of previous eras. The era of the Middle Ages brought with it new economic relations, a new type of political system, as well as global changes in the worldview of people.

The entire culture of the early Middle Ages had a religious connotation.

The basis of the medieval picture of the world was the images and interpretations of the Bible. The starting point for explaining the world was the idea of ​​a complete and unconditional opposition of God and nature, Heaven and Earth, soul and body. The man of the Middle Ages imagined and understood the world as an arena of confrontation between good and evil, as a kind of hierarchical system, including God, and angels, and people, and otherworldly forces of darkness.

Along with the strong influence of the church, the consciousness of medieval man continued to be deeply magical. This was facilitated by the very nature of medieval culture, filled with prayers, fairy tales, myths, magic spells. In general, the history of the culture of the Middle Ages is the history of the struggle between church and state. The position and role of art in this era were complex and contradictory, but nevertheless, throughout the entire period of development of European medieval culture, there was a search for a semantic support for the spiritual community of people.

All classes of medieval society recognized the spiritual leadership of the church, but nevertheless, each of them developed their own special culture, in which they reflected their moods and ideals.

Medieval culture developed in line with the period of early (V-XIII centuries) feudalism in the countries of Western Europe, the formation of which was accompanied by the transition from barbarian empires to the classical states of medieval Europe. It was a period of serious social and military upheaval.

At the stage of late feudalism (XI-XII centuries), craft, trade, and urban life had a rather low level of development. The reign of feudal lords was undivided. The figure of the king was decorative in nature, and did not personify strength and state power. However, from the end of the XI century. (especially France), the process of strengthening royal power begins and centralized feudal states are gradually created, in which the feudal economy rises, contributing to the formation of the cultural process.

Crusades carried out at the end of this period were of great importance. These campaigns contributed to the acquaintance of Western Europe with the rich culture of the Arab East and accelerated the growth of crafts.

On the second development of the mature (classical) European Middle Ages (XI century), there is a further growth in the productive forces of feudal society. A clear division between the city and the countryside is established, and crafts and trade are intensively developed. Royal power is of great importance. This process was facilitated by the elimination of feudal anarchy. Chivalry and rich townspeople become the mainstay of royal power. A characteristic feature of this period is the emergence of city-states, for example, Venice, Florence.

2. Features of the art of medieval Europe.

The development of medieval art includes the following three stages:

1. pre-Romanesque art (V-X centuries) ,

which is divided into three periods: early Christian art, the art of the barbarian kingdoms, and the art of the Carolingian and Ottonian empires.

AT early Christian Christianity became the official religion. By this time, the appearance of the first Christian churches. Separate buildings of centric type (round, octagonal, cruciform), called baptistery or baptismal. The interior decoration of these buildings were mosaics and frescoes. They reflected in themselves all the main features of medieval painting, although they were very far removed from reality. The images were dominated by symbolism and conventionality, and the mysticism of the images was achieved through the use of such formal elements as enlargement of the eyes, incorporeal images, prayer poses, and the use of different scales in the depiction of figures according to the spiritual hierarchy.

Art of the barbarians played a positive role in the development of the ornamental and decorative direction, which later became the main part of the artistic creativity of the classical Middle Ages. And which already did not have a close connection with ancient traditions.

characteristic feature of art Carolingian and Ottonian empires is a combination of ancient, early Christian, barbarian and Byzantine traditions, which are most clearly manifested in the ornament. The architecture of these kingdoms is based on Roman models and includes centric stone or wooden temples, the use of mosaics and frescoes in the interior decoration of temples.

An architectural monument of pre-Romanesque art is the Chapel of Charlemagne in Aachen, created around 800. In the same period, the development of monastic construction was actively going on. In the Carolingian Empire, 400 new monasteries were built and 800 existing ones were expanded.

2. Romanesque art (XI-XII centuries)

It arose during the reign of Charlemagne. This style of art is characterized by a semicircular vaulted arch, which came from Rome. Instead of wooden coverings, stone ones begin to predominate, usually having a vaulted shape. Painting and sculpture were subordinated to architecture and were mainly used in temples and monasteries. The sculptural images were brightly painted, and the monumental and decorative painting, on the other hand, seemed to be temple paintings of restrained color. An example of this style is the Church of Mary on the island of Laak in Germany. A special place in Romanesque architecture is occupied by Italian architecture, which, thanks to the strong ancient traditions present in it, immediately stepped into the Renaissance.

The main function of Romanesque architecture is defense. Exact mathematical calculations were not used in the architecture of the Romanesque era, however, thick walls, narrow windows and massive towers, being stylistic features of architectural structures, simultaneously carried a defensive function, allowing the civilian population to take refuge in the monastery during feudal strife and wars. This is explained by the fact that the formation and strengthening of the Romanesque style took place in the era of feudal fragmentation and its motto is the statement "My home is my fortress."

In addition to religious architecture, secular architecture also actively developed, an example of this is the feudal castle - a house - a tower of a rectangular or polyhedral shape.

3. Gothic art (XII-XV centuries)

It arose as a result of the development of cities and the emerging urban culture. The symbol of medieval cities is the cathedral, gradually losing its defensive functions. Style changes in the architecture of this era were explained not only by the change in the functions of buildings, but by the rapid development of building technology, which by that time was already based on precise calculation and verified design. Abundant convex details - statues, bas-reliefs, hanging arches were the main decorations of buildings, both from the inside and from the outside. World masterpieces of Gothic architecture are Notre Dame Cathedral, Milan Cathedral in Italy.

Gothic is also used in sculpture. A three-dimensional plastic of various forms appears, a portrait individuality, a real anatomy of figures.

Monumental Gothic painting is mainly represented by stained glass. Window openings are greatly enlarged. Which now serve not only for lighting, but more for decoration. Thanks to the duplication of glass, the finest nuances of color are transmitted. Stained glass windows begin to acquire more and more realistic elements. Especially famous were the French stained-glass windows of Chartres, Rouen.

In the book miniature, the Gothic style also begins to prevail, there is a significant expansion of its scope, there is a mutual influence of stained glass and miniature. The art of book miniature was one of the greatest achievements of Gothic. This type of painting evolved from the "classical" style to realism.

Among the most outstanding achievements of the Gothic book miniature, the psalter of Queen Ingeborg and the psalter of St. Louis stand out. A remarkable monument of the German school of the early XIV century. is the Manesse Manuscript, which is a collection of the most famous songs of the German Minesingers, decorated with portraits of singers, scenes of tournaments and court life, coats of arms.

Literature and music of the Middle Ages.

During the period of mature feudalism, along with and as an alternative to ecclesiastical literature, which had priority, secular literature also developed rapidly. Thus, chivalric literature, which included the chivalric epic, the chivalric romance, the poetry of the French troubadours and the lyrics of the German minizingers, received the greatest distribution and even some approval of the church. They sang the war for the Christian faith and glorified the feat of chivalry in the name of this faith. An example of the knightly epic of France is the Song of Roland. Its plot was the campaigns of Charlemagne in Spain, and the main character was Count Roland.

At the end of the 7th century Under the auspices of Charlemagne, a book-writing workshop was founded, where a special gospel was made.

In the XII century. Chivalric novels written in the genre of prose appeared and quickly became widespread. They told about the various adventures of the knights.

In contrast to the chivalric romance, urban literature is developing. A new genre is being formed - a poetic short story, which contributes to the formation of citizens as a whole.

During the development of Gothic, there were changes in music. A separate group in the music of the Middle Ages was the art of the Celts. The court singers of the Celts were bards who performed heroic songs - ballads, satirical, martial and other songs to the accompaniment of a stringed instrument - moles.

Since the end of the XI century. in the south of France, the musical and poetic creativity of the troubadours began to spread. Their songs sang of knightly love and heroic deeds during the Crusades. The work of the troubadours caused many imitations, the most fruitful was the German minnesang. The songs of the minnesingers - "singers of love" were not only the chanting of beautiful ladies, but also the glorification of influential dukes. Minnesingers served at the courts of rulers, participated in numerous competitions, and traveled around Europe. The heyday of their work came in the XII century, but already in the XIV century. they were replaced by meistersingers, or "masters of singing", united in professional workshops. The development of these vocal workshops marked a new stage in medieval singing art.

In the ninth century there was polyphony, but by the end of the 11th century. voices become more and more independent. With the emergence of polyphony in Catholic churches, the organ becomes necessary. Numerous singing schools at major European monasteries also contributed a lot to the development of church professional polyphony.

13th century in the history of music is called the century of old art, while the art of the XIV century. It is customary to call it new, and it was at this time that the musical art of the Renaissance began to revive.

Conclusion.

The most important feature of European medieval culture is the special role of Christian doctrine and the Christian church. Only the church for many centuries remained the only social institution uniting all European countries, tribes and states. It was she who had a huge impact on the formation of the religious worldview of people, spread her main values ​​and ideas.

All classes of medieval society recognized the spiritual kinship of the church, but nevertheless, each of them developed its own special culture, in which it reflected its moods and ideals. The ruling class of secular feudal lords in the Middle Ages was chivalry. It was the knightly culture that included a complex ritual of customs, manners, secular, court and military knightly entertainments, of which knightly tournaments were especially popular. The chivalric culture created its own folklore, its own songs, poems, and a new literary genre arose in its bowels - the chivalrous novel. A great place was occupied by love lyrics.

With all the variety of artistic means and stylistic features, the art of the Middle Ages also has some common features: a religious character, because. the church was the only beginning uniting the disparate kingdoms; The leading place was given to architecture. Nationality, because the creator and spectator was the people themselves; the emotional beginning is deep psychologism, the task of which was to convey the intensity of religious feelings and the drama of individual plots.

Along with the dominance of Christian morality and the all-encompassing power of the church, which manifested itself in all spheres of the life of medieval society, including art and culture, nevertheless, this era was an original and interesting stage in the development of European culture and civilization. Some elements of modern civilization were laid down precisely in the Middle Ages, which in many ways prepared the age of the Renaissance and the Enlightenment.

The history of the Middle Ages of Europe covers the period from the 5th to the middle of the 17th centuries. within the period, the following stages can be distinguished: a) the early Middle Ages: V - XI centuries; b) developed Middle Ages: XI - XV centuries; c) Late Middle Ages: XVI - mid-XVII centuries. The term "Middle Ages" (Latin medium aevum - hence the name of the science that studies the Middle Ages, medieval studies) arose in Italy during the Renaissance among humanists who believed that this time was a period of cultural decline, as opposed to the high rise of culture in the ancient world and in the new time.

The Middle Ages is the time of feudalism, when humanity made significant progress in the development of material and spiritual culture, and the area of ​​civilization expanded.

Feudal society is characterized by: 1) the dominance of large landed property; 2) a combination of large landed property with small individual farms of direct producers - peasants, who were only land holders, and not owners; 3) non-economic coercion in various forms: from serfdom to class incompleteness.

Feudal property (lat. - feodum) - hereditary land property associated with compulsory military service. In medieval society, a hierarchy arises with a large role played by personal vassal-feudal ties.

The state went through different stages: the early feudal period is characterized by large but loose empires; for the developed Middle Ages - small formations, estate monarchies; for the late Middle Ages - absolute monarchies.

Feudal law protected the monopoly of landed property of the feudal lords, their rights to the identity of the peasants, to judicial and political power over them.

Religious ideology and the church played a huge role in society.

Thus, the features of feudal production gave rise to specific features of the social structure, political, legal and ideological systems.

The main features of medieval culture are:

• 1) the dominance of religion, God-centered worldview;
• 2) rejection of the ancient cultural tradition;
• 3) denial of hedonism;
• 4) asceticism; medieval art artistic culture
• 5) increased attention to the inner world of a person, his spirituality;
• 6) conservatism, adherence to antiquity, a tendency to stereotypes in material and spiritual life;
• 7) elements of dual faith (Christianity and paganism) in the public consciousness;
• 8) fetishization of works of art;
• 9) the internal inconsistency of culture: the conflict between paganism and Christianity, the opposite of scientific and folk culture, the relationship of secular and spiritual, church authorities, the duality of value orientations (spirituality and corporality, good and evil, fear of sin and sin);
• 10) the hierarchy of culture, in which one can single out the culture of the clergy, knightly culture, urban culture, folk, mainly rural culture;
• 11) corporatism: the dissolution of the personal beginning of a person in a social group, for example, an estate.

Medieval European culture developed on the ruins of the Roman Empire. In the early Middle Ages, the decline of culture, which took place even in late Rome, deepened. The barbarians destroyed cities that were the focus of cultural life, roads, irrigation facilities, monuments of ancient art, libraries, agrarianization of society took place with the dominance of natural economy, commodity-money relations were undeveloped.

The Church established for many centuries a monopoly on education and intellectual activity. All areas of knowledge were subordinated to the church-feudal ideology. Possessing a strong organization and established doctrine in times of political decentralization, the church also had powerful means of propaganda.

The essence of the Church's worldview was the recognition of earthly life as temporary, "sinful"; material life, human nature were opposed to "eternal" existence. As an ideal of behavior that provides afterlife bliss, the church preached humility, asceticism, strict observance of church rituals, submission to the masters, faith in a miracle. Reason, science, philosophy were despised, to which faith was opposed, although certain elements of philosophical and secular knowledge were borrowed from the ancient heritage. The education system: the so-called "seven free arts of antiquity" - was divided into the lowest - "trivium" (grammar, rhetoric, dialectics) and the highest - "quadrivium" (geometry, arithmetic, astronomy, part music). The works of ancient authors were used: Aristotle, Cicero, Pythagoras, Euclid, but within limited limits. The authority of Holy Scripture was placed above all sciences. In general, the system of knowledge of the Middle Ages was characterized by the following features:

• 1) universalism;
• 2) encyclopedism;
• 3) allegorism;
• 4) exegesis (Greek interpretation) - the ability to interpret and give a religious explanation of the Bible.

The universe (cosmos) was regarded as a creation of God, doomed to perish. The geocentric system dominated with various spheres, hell and the seat of god. Each material object was considered as a symbol of the innermost and ideal world, and the task of science is to reveal these symbols. Hence the refusal to study the true connections of things with the help of experience. Symbolism left its mark on the entire medieval culture. It was believed that words explain the nature of things. The direct realistic perception of the world in art and literature was often clothed in the form of symbols and allegories.

Feudal-church culture was opposed by folk culture. It was rooted in pre-feudal antiquity and is associated with barbarian cultural heritage, pagan myths, beliefs, legends, holidays. These traditions, preserved in the peasant environment throughout the Middle Ages, were permeated with pagan religious ideas, alien to the gloomy asceticism of Christianity, its distrust of wildlife: it was seen not only as a formidable force, but also as a source of life's blessings and earthly joys. Naive realism was inherent in the people's worldview. The forms of folk art are varied: fairy tales, legends, songs. Folk tales formed the basis of the epic (the Irish epic about the hero Cuchulainn, the Icelandic epic - the Elder Edda, the Anglo-Saxon epic - the poem Beowulf). The expressions and bearers of the musical and poetic creativity of the people were mimes and histrions, and from the 11th century. jugglers - in France, huglars - in Spain, spielmans - in Germany, wandering all over Europe.

The art of the early Middle Ages lost many of the achievements of antiquity: sculpture and the image of a person in general disappeared almost completely; the skills of stone processing were forgotten, in architecture, wooden architecture prevailed. The art of this period is characterized by: barbarization of taste and attitude; cult of physical strength; ostentatious wealth; at the same time, he has a lively, direct sense of the material, which was especially evident in the jewelry and book business, where complex ornament and "animal" style dominated. Under primitivism, barbarian art was dynamic, its main visual medium was color. Bright objects created a sense of materiality, corresponding to the barbaric sensual vision and perception of the world, far from Christian church asceticism.

In the early Middle Ages, VII - IX centuries. there was some rise in feudal-church culture at the court of Charlemagne (768 - 814) - the so-called "Carolingian Renaissance", caused by the need for literate people to manage the empire. Schools were opened at monasteries and for the laity, educated people from other countries were invited, ancient manuscripts were collected, stone construction began, but this rise in culture was fragile and short-lived.

The developed Middle Ages were marked by a significant growth of cities and the emergence of universities.

The emergence of cities as centers of crafts and trade meant a new stage in the development of medieval culture. The prerequisites for the growth of cities were the intensive development of commodity production and money circulation on the basis of private property. There was a need for literate people; production gave rise to an interest in experimental knowledge and its accumulation; the townspeople are characterized by an active perception of life, sober calculation, efficiency, which contributed to the development of a rationalistic type of thinking; mental demands and interests grew and, accordingly, a craving for secular education. The Church's monopoly on education was broken, even though the Church dominated in ideology. City schools successfully competed with monastic ones.

Cities grew in connection with the influx of peasants who fled from their masters or were released for quitrent. In terms of population, medieval cities were small; in the XIV-XV centuries. those of them, where 20 thousand people lived, were considered large. The population of the cities actively fought for their independence from the feudal lords: the cities either paid off or gained independence in armed struggle. Many cities have become communes; they had the right to conduct an independent foreign policy, to have their own self-government, to mint coins, all the townspeople were free from serfdom. In fact, they were city-states, reminiscent of the ancient policy. The urban population, or the "third estate", became the spiritual leader and the primary bearer of culture.

With the development of urban culture, secular education appears, universities arise (from Latin universitas - association, community). In 1088, on the basis of the Bologna Law School, the University of Bologna was opened, in 1167 Oxford University began to work in England, in 1209 - Cambridge University, in France in 1160 the University of Paris was opened. In total, by the end of the fifteenth century. in Europe there were 65 universities (besides Italy, France, England, universities appeared in Spain, Germany, the Czech Republic, Poland). Teaching at universities was conducted in Latin, which became the European language of culture. A common language and religion created a certain cultural unity in Europe, despite feudal fragmentation and political conflicts. The main faculties (from Latin facultas - opportunity) were the junior one, where they studied the "seven free arts of antiquity", and the senior ones, where they studied theology, law, and medicine.

In its refined form, spiritual culture was expressed in philosophy. In the course of philosophical disputes, the main directions of medieval scholasticism (from Latin schola - school) developed. Two main trends arose: "nominalism" (from the Latin nomina - name), which believed that objectively there are only single things accessible to human sensations, and general concepts - "universals" do not really exist, nominalism was the embryo of materialism; "realism", which believed that only general concepts - "universals" really exist, single things were considered only as a product and an imperfect reflection of these concepts. The main question of scholasticism was the question of the relation of knowledge to faith. The problem of the relationship between faith and reason was embodied in literature, fine arts, and music. The religious worldview, as the core of spiritual culture, and the Christian God, as the basis of the moral world of medieval man, determined the subordinate role of philosophy in relation to religion.

Thomas Aquinas (1225/26 - 1274) - the largest scholastic philosopher argued that philosophy and science are servants of theology, since faith surpasses reason in human existence. He argued this by the fact that, firstly, the human mind is constantly making mistakes, while faith is based on the absolute truthfulness of God, and, secondly, faith is given to each person, and the possession of scientific and philosophical knowledge, requiring intense mental activity, is available far from everyone.

An outstanding scholastic was Pierre Abelard (1079 - 1142) - a French philosopher, theologian and poet, a vivid spokesman for free thought, who opposed extreme forms of both nominalism and realism. His freethinking was based on the primacy of reason over faith: "understanding in order to believe." He was declared a heretic with a ban on teaching and writing.

Along with scholasticism in the Middle Ages, there were other areas of philosophy and theology, in particular, mysticism. Mystics rejected the need to study Aristotle and use the logical proofs of faith. They believed that religious doctrines are learned not with the help of reason and science, but by intuition, insight or "contemplation", prayers and vigils. Denying the role of reason in the knowledge of the world and God, the mystics were more reactionary than the scholastics. But democratic sentiments were strong among them: mystical sects were critical of the feudal system and preached the need to establish the "kingdom of God on earth" without private property, inequality, and exploitation. Among the mystics, one can distinguish Bernard of Clairvaux, Johann Tauler, Thomas a Kempis.

In medieval Europe, although slowly, but there was a development of science and technology. So, Oxford professor Roger Bacon (1214 - 1294), proceeding from the fact that experience is the basis of knowledge, created the "Great Work" - an encyclopedia of that time. In medieval science, alchemy developed, which expressed the connection of craft, religion, mysticism, magic, occultism. Alchemy preceded the emergence of experimental natural science.

Arab-Islamic civilization, in particular, the works of Al-Biruni (980 - 1048), Ibn Sina (980 - 1037), had a significant impact on European philosophy and science.

In the Middle Ages, inventions were made that influenced the entire future life of society: the invention of gunpowder, paper, printing, glasses, a compass. Of particular importance was book printing, begun in Europe by Johannes Gutenberg (1400 - 1468), which contributed to the development of national literatures, the unification of spelling and, accordingly, education, science, and culture.

In the XII - XIII centuries. Latin-language literature flourishes, in particular, the poetry of vagantes (from the Latin vagary - to wander). National literature is developing, in particular, the epic is being written: French - "The Song of Roland", Spanish - "The Song of Side", German - "The Song of the Nibelungs". Chivalric literature is being formed: the secular lyrical poetry of the troubadours, glorifying "courtly love" (from the old French - courtier), chivalric novels. There is an interest in the personality of a person, his feelings. Urban literature in national languages ​​is developing: for example, the Romance of the Fox and the Romance of the Rose were created in French; Francois Villon (1431 - 1461) was the forerunner of the Renaissance in France. Geoffrey Chaucer (1340 - 1400), who created the Canterbury Tales, is considered the father of English literature.

In medieval Europe, the place of art was controversial. Art was seen as the Bible for the illiterate. The main task of art is to strengthen religious feelings, to reveal the images of Holy Scripture, works are usually anonymous. What is required of the artist is not realism, but the disclosure of the ideas of divine holiness. The transition from the space of the outer world to the inner space of the human spirit is the main goal of art. It is expressed by Augustine's famous phrase: "do not wander outside, but enter into yourself." Christian ideology rejected the ideals that inspired ancient artists: the joy of being, sensuality, physicality, truthfulness, the chanting of a person who realizes himself as a beautiful element of the cosmos - it destroyed the ancient harmony of body and spirit, man and the earthly world.

The most important form of art is architecture, embodied in two styles: Romanesque and Gothic. Romanesque architecture is distinguished by massiveness, squatness, its task is the humility of man, his suppression against the backdrop of the monumental grandeur of the universe, God. From the 12th century there is a Gothic style, the features of which are aspiration upwards, lancet arches, stained-glass windows. V. Hugo called Gothic "a symphony in stone." Unlike harsh, monolithic, imposing Romanesque churches, Gothic cathedrals are decorated with carvings and decorations, many sculptures, they are full of light, directed to the sky, their towers towered up to 150 m. the temple was perceived as a place of communication of the religious community and special attention was paid to the interior decoration.

Iconography was the main genre in painting. Painting acted as a silent sermon, "speculation in colors." Icons were seen as an emotional connection with God, accessible to the illiterate, they are deeply symbolic. Images are often deliberately deformed, conditional, there is an effect of the so-called reverse perspective for a greater impact on the viewer. In addition to icons, the fine arts of the Middle Ages are also represented by murals, mosaics, miniatures, and stained-glass windows.

The basis of musical culture was liturgical singing, praising God in tunes, and then in hymns, combining poetic text with song melody. The canonized music - Gregorian chant - also included chants intended for all services of the church calendar. Another layer of music is associated with the ideology of chivalry (the courtly lyrics of the troubadours) and the work of professional minstrel musicians.

In the developed Middle Ages, applied arts achieved significant success: carpet making, bronze casting, enamel, and book miniatures.

In general, medieval art is characterized by: sincere reverence for the Divine, typification, the absolute opposite of good and evil, deep symbolism, subordination of art to non-aesthetic, religious ideals, hierarchy, traditionalism, underdevelopment of the personal principle, - at the same time, medieval culture expresses an unfrozen forever the state of man and his world, but a living movement. The dynamics of cultural development is largely determined by the interaction and rivalry between official and folk cultures. In general, medieval culture had integrity; there was an authoritarian system of values; dogmatism prevailed; she was characterized by a craving for All-Unity (“the city of God on earth”) through the existing fragmentation of being; the Christian universality of man opposed the narrowness of national estates; along with the renunciation of the world there was a striving for a violent worldwide transformation of the world. Man began to turn to himself, and not only to God, but this greatest progressive upheaval in the history of mankind took place in full measure in the Renaissance, prepared by the Middle Ages.

Byzantium occupied a special place in medieval Europe. At the dawn of the Middle Ages, she remained the only guardian of the Hellenistic cultural traditions. But Byzantium significantly transformed the legacy of late antiquity, creating an artistic style that already entirely belonged to the spirit and letter of the Middle Ages.

Moreover, of all medieval European art, it was Byzantine that was the most orthodox Christian. In the Byzantine artistic culture, two principles are merged: magnificent spectacle and refined spiritualism. The East had a significant influence on the culture of Byzantium. In turn, Byzantium significantly influenced the culture of Southern and Eastern Europe, especially Russia.

Introduction…………………………………………2

Christian consciousness is the basis of the medieval mentality………….4

Scientific culture in the Middle Ages………….……7

Artistic culture of medieval Europe…….….10

Medieval music and theater………………16

Conclusion………………………………………..21

List of used literature……………….22

INTRODUCTION

Culturologists call the Middle Ages a long period in the history of Western Europe between Antiquity and New Time. This period covers more than a millennium from the 5th to the 15th centuries.

Within the millennial period of the Middle Ages, it is customary to distinguish at least three periods. It:

Early Middle Ages, from the beginning of the era to 900 or 1000 years (up to the 10th - 11th centuries);

High (Classical) Middle Ages. From the X-XI centuries to about the XIV century;

Late Middle Ages, 14th and 15th centuries.

The early Middle Ages is a time when turbulent and very important processes took place in Europe. First of all, these are the invasions of the so-called barbarians (from the Latin barba - beard), who from the 2nd century AD constantly attacked the Roman Empire and settled on the lands of its provinces. These invasions ended with the fall of Rome.

At the same time, the new Western Europeans, as a rule, accepted Christianity. , which in Rome towards the end of its existence was the state religion. Christianity in its various forms gradually supplanted pagan beliefs throughout the territory of the Roman Empire, and this process did not stop after the fall of the empire. This is the second most important historical process that determined the face of the early Middle Ages in Western Europe.

The third significant process was the formation of new state formations on the territory of the former Roman Empire. , created by the same "barbarians". Numerous Frankish, Germanic, Gothic and other tribes were in fact not so wild. Most of them already had the beginnings of statehood, owned crafts, including agriculture and metallurgy, and were organized on the principles of military democracy. Tribal leaders began to proclaim themselves kings, dukes, etc., constantly fighting with each other and subjugating weaker neighbors. On Christmas Day 800, Charlemagne, King of the Franks, was crowned Catholic in Rome and Emperor of the entire European west. Later (900) the Holy Roman Empire broke up into countless duchies, counties, margraviates, bishoprics, abbeys, and other destinies. Their rulers behaved like completely sovereign masters, not considering it necessary to obey any emperors or kings. However, the processes of formation of state formations continued in subsequent periods. A characteristic feature of life in the early Middle Ages was the constant robbery and devastation to which the inhabitants of the Holy Roman Empire were subjected. And these robberies and raids significantly slowed down economic and cultural development.

During the classical or high Middle Ages, Western Europe began to overcome these difficulties and revive. Since the 10th century, cooperation under the laws of feudalism has allowed the creation of larger state structures and the collection of sufficiently strong armies. Thanks to this, it was possible to stop the invasions, significantly limit the robberies, and then gradually go on the offensive. In 1024, the crusaders took the Eastern Roman Empire from the Byzantines, and in 1099 they seized the Holy Land from the Muslims. True, in 1291 both were lost again. However, the Moors were expelled from Spain forever. In the end, Western Christians won dominion over the Mediterranean and its. islands. Numerous missionaries brought Christianity to the kingdoms of Scandinavia, Poland, Bohemia, Hungary, so that these states entered the orbit of Western culture.

The onset of relative stability provided the opportunity for rapid growth of cities and the pan-European economy. Life in Western Europe has changed a lot, society was rapidly losing the features of barbarism, spiritual life flourished in the cities. In general, European society has become much richer and more civilized than during the ancient Roman Empire. An outstanding role in this was played by the Christian Church, which also developed, improved its teaching and organization. On the basis of the artistic traditions of Ancient Rome and the former barbarian tribes, Romanesque and then brilliant Gothic art arose, and along with architecture and literature, all its other types developed - theater, music, sculpture, painting, literature. It was during this era that, for example, such masterpieces of literature as "The Song of Roland" and "The Romance of the Rose" were created. Of particular importance was the fact that during this period Western European scholars were able to read the writings of ancient Greek and Hellenistic philosophers, primarily Aristotle. On this basis, the great philosophical system of the Middle Ages, scholasticism, was born and grew.

The late Middle Ages continued the processes of formation of European culture, which began in the period of the classics. However, their course was far from smooth. In the XIV-XV centuries, Western Europe repeatedly experienced a great famine. Numerous epidemics, especially the bubonic plague (“Black Death”), also brought inexhaustible human losses. The development of culture was greatly slowed down by the Hundred Years War. However, in the end, the cities were revived, crafts, agriculture and trade were established. People who survived pestilence and war were given the opportunity to arrange their lives better than in previous eras. The feudal nobility, the aristocrats, instead of castles began to build magnificent palaces for themselves both in their estates and in cities. The new rich from the "low" classes imitated them in this, creating everyday comfort and an appropriate lifestyle. Conditions arose for a new upsurge of spiritual life, science, philosophy, art, especially in northern Italy. This rise necessarily led to the so-called Renaissance or Renaissance.

Christian consciousness is the basis of the medieval mentality

The most important feature of medieval culture is the special role of Christian doctrine and the Christian church. In the context of the general decline of culture immediately after the destruction of the Roman Empire, only the church remained for many centuries the only social institution common to all countries, tribes and states of Europe. The church was the dominant political institution, but even more significant was the influence that the church had directly on the consciousness of the population. In the conditions of a difficult and meager life, against the background of extremely limited and most often unreliable knowledge about the world, Christianity offered people a coherent system of knowledge about the world, about its structure, about the forces and laws operating in it. Let us add to this the emotional appeal of Christianity with its warmth, universally significant preaching of love and all understandable norms of social coexistence (Decalogue), with romantic elation and ecstasy of the plot about the redemptive sacrifice, and finally, with the statement about the equality of all people without exception in the highest instance, so that at least approximately evaluate the contribution of Christianity to the worldview, to the picture of the world of medieval Europeans.

This picture of the world, which completely determined the mentality of the believing villagers and townspeople, was based mainly on the images and interpretations of the Bible. Researchers note that in the Middle Ages, the starting point for explaining the world was the complete, unconditional opposition of God and nature, Heaven and Earth, soul and body.

The medieval European was, of course, a deeply religious person. In his mind, the world was seen as a kind of arena of confrontation between the forces of heaven and hell, good and evil. At the same time, the consciousness of people was deeply magical, everyone was absolutely sure of the possibility of miracles and perceived everything that the Bible reported literally. According to the apt expression of S. Averintsev, the Bible was read and listened to in the Middle Ages in much the same way as we read fresh newspapers today.

In the most general terms, the world was then seen in accordance with some hierarchical logic, as a symmetrical scheme resembling two pyramids folded at the base. The top of one of them, the top one, is God. Below are the tiers or levels of sacred characters: first the Apostles, the closest to God, then the figures that gradually move away from God and approach the earthly level - archangels, angels and similar heavenly beings. At some level, people are included in this hierarchy: first the pope and the cardinals, then the clergy of lower levels, below them the simple laity. Then even farther from God and closer to the earth, animals are placed, then plants and then - the earth itself, already completely inanimate. And then comes, as it were, a mirror reflection of the upper, earthly and heavenly hierarchy, but again in a different dimension and with a “minus” sign, in the world, as it were, underground, with the growth of evil and proximity to Satan. He is placed on top of this second, chthonic pyramid, acting as a being symmetrical to God, as if repeating him with the opposite sign (reflecting like a mirror) being. If God is the personification of Good and Love, then Satan is his opposite, the embodiment of Evil and Hatred.

The medieval European, including the upper strata of society, up to kings and emperors, was illiterate. The level of literacy and education even among the clergy in the parishes was appallingly low. Only by the end of the 15th century did the church realize the need to have educated personnel, began to open theological seminaries, etc. The level of education of the parishioners was generally minimal. The mass of the laity listened to semi-literate priests. At the same time, the Bible itself was forbidden for ordinary laity, its texts were considered too complex and inaccessible for direct perception of ordinary parishioners. Only priests were allowed to interpret it. However, their education and literacy was in the mass, as said, very low. Mass mediaeval culture is a bookless, “pre-Gutenberg” culture. She relied not on the printed word, but on oral sermons and exhortations. It existed through the mind of an illiterate person. It was a culture of prayers, fairy tales, myths, magic spells.

At the same time, the meaning of the word, written and especially sound, in medieval culture was unusually great. Prayers, perceived functionally as spells, sermons, biblical stories, magic formulas - all this also formed the medieval mentality. People are accustomed to intensely peer into the surrounding reality, perceiving it as a kind of text, as a system of symbols containing some higher meaning. These symbol-words had to be able to recognize and extract the divine meaning from them. This, in particular, explains many features of medieval artistic culture, designed to perceive in space just such a deeply religious and symbolic, verbally armed mentality. Even the painting there was first of all the revealed word, like the Bible itself. The word was universal, suited to everything, explained everything, was hidden behind all phenomena as their hidden meaning. Therefore, for medieval consciousness, medieval mentality, culture first of all expressed the meanings, the soul of man, brought man closer to God, as if transferred to another world, to a space different from earthly existence. And this space looked like it was described in the Bible, the lives of the saints, the writings of the church fathers and the sermons of the priests. Accordingly, the behavior of the medieval European, all his activities, was determined.

Scientific culture in the Middle Ages

The Christian Church in the Middle Ages was completely indifferent to Greek and, in general, to pagan science and philosophy. The main problem that the Church Fathers tried to solve was to master the knowledge of the "pagans", while defining the boundaries between reason and faith. Christianity was forced to compete with the mind of the pagans, such as the Hellenists, Romans, with Jewish learning. But in this rivalry, it had to remain strictly on a biblical basis. It may be recalled here that many of the Church Fathers had an education in the field of classical philosophy that was essentially non-Christian. The Church Fathers were well aware that the many rational and mystical systems contained in the works of pagan philosophers would greatly complicate the development of traditional Christian thinking and consciousness.

A partial solution to this problem was proposed in the 5th century by St. Augustine. However, the chaos that occurred in Europe as a result of the invasion of the Germanic tribes and the decline of the Western Roman Empire pushed back serious debates about the role and acceptability of pagan rational science in Christian society for seven centuries, and only in the X-XI centuries, after the conquest of Spain and Sicily by the Arabs, did interest in the development of ancient science revive. heritage. For the same reason, Christian culture was now capable of accepting the original works of Islamic scholars. The result was an important movement that included the collection of Greek and Arabic manuscripts, their translation into Latin, and commentary. The West received in this way not only the complete corpus of Aristotle's writings, but also the works of Euclid and Ptolemy.

Universities, which appeared in Europe from the 12th century, became centers of scientific research, helping to establish the unquestioned scientific authority of Aristotle. In the middle of the 13th century, Thomas Aquinas synthesized Aristotelian philosophy and Christian doctrine. He emphasized the harmony of reason and faith, thus strengthening the foundations of natural theology. But the Thomistic synthesis did not go unanswered. In 1277, after the death of Aquinas, the Archbishop of Paris invalidated 219 of Thomas' statements contained in his writings. As a result, the nominalist doctrine was developed (W. Ockham). Nominalism, which sought to separate science from theology, became the cornerstone in redefining the realms of science and theology later in the 17th century. More complete information about the philosophical culture of the European Middle Ages should be given in the course of philosophy. During the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries, European scholars seriously touted the fundamental tenets of Aristotelian methodology and physics. The English Franciscans Robert Grosseteste and Roger Bacon introduced mathematical and experimental methods to the field of science, and contributed to the discussion about vision and the nature of light and color. Their Oxford followers introduced the quantitative, reasoning, and physical approach through their studies of accelerated motion. Across the Channel, in Paris, Jean Buridan and others became the concept of momentum, while investing a number of bold ideas in astronomy that opened the door to the pantheism of Nicholas of Cusa.

Alchemy occupied an important place in the scientific culture of the European Middle Ages. Alchemy was devoted primarily to the search for a substance that could turn ordinary metals into gold or silver and serve as a means of indefinitely prolonging human life. Although its aims and means were highly dubious and most often illusory, alchemy was in many respects the forerunner of modern science, especially chemistry. The first reliable works of European alchemy that have come down to us belong to the English monk Roger Bacon and the German philosopher Albert the Great. They both believed in the possibility of transmuting lower metals into gold. This idea struck the imagination, the greed of many people, throughout the Middle Ages. They believed that gold is the most perfect metal, and the lower metals are less perfect than gold. Therefore, they tried to make or invent a substance called the philosopher's stone, which is more perfect than gold, and therefore can be used to improve the lower metals to the level of gold. Roger Bacon believed that gold dissolved in aqua regia was the elixir of life. Albertus Magnus was the greatest practical chemist of his time. The Russian scientist V. L. Rabinovich did a brilliant analysis of alchemy and showed that it was a typical product of medieval culture, combining a magical and mythological vision of the world with sober practicality and an experimental approach.

Perhaps the most paradoxical result of medieval scientific culture is the emergence, on the basis of scholastic methods and irrational Christian dogma, of new principles of knowledge and learning. Trying to find the harmony of faith and reason, to combine irrational dogmas and experimental methods, thinkers in monasteries and theological schools gradually created a fundamentally new way of organizing thinking - disciplinary. The most developed form of theoretical thinking of that time was theology.

It was theologians, discussing the problems of synthesis of pagan rational philosophy and Christian biblical principles, who groped for those forms of activity and transfer of knowledge that turned out to be the most effective and necessary for the emergence and development of modern science: the principles of teaching, evaluation, recognition of the truth, which are used in science today. “The dissertation, defense, dispute, title, citation network, scientific apparatus, explanation with contemporaries using supports - references to predecessors, priority, a ban on repetition-plagiarism - all this appeared in the process of reproduction of spiritual personnel, where the vow of celibacy forced the use of “foreign "For the Spiritual Profession of the Rising Generations".

The theology of medieval Europe, in search of a new explanation of the world, for the first time began to focus not on a simple reproduction of already known knowledge, but on the creation of new conceptual schemes that could unite such different, practically incompatible systems of knowledge. This eventually led to the emergence of a new paradigm of thinking - forms, procedures, attitudes, ideas, assessments, with the help of which the participants in the discussions achieve mutual understanding. M. K. Petrov called this new paradigm a disciplinary (Ibid.). He showed that medieval Western European theology acquired all the characteristic features of future scientific disciplines. Among them - "the main set of disciplinary rules, procedures, requirements for the completed product, ways to reproduce disciplinary personnel." The pinnacle of these ways of reproducing personnel has become the university, the system in which all the above finds flourish and work. The university as a principle, as a specialized organization, can be considered the greatest invention of the Middle Ages. .

Artistic culture of medieval Europe.

Roman style.

The first independent, specifically European artistic style of medieval Europe was Romanesque, which characterized the art and architecture of Western Europe from about 1000 to the rise of the Gothic, in most regions until about the second half and the end of the 12th century, and in some even later. It arose as a result of the synthesis of the remains of the artistic culture of Rome and the barbarian tribes. At first it was the proto-Romanesque style.

At the end of the Proto-Roman period, elements of the Romanesque style were mixed with Byzantine, with Middle Eastern, especially Syrian, which also came to Syria from Byzantium; with Germanic, with Celtic, with features of the styles of other northern tribes. Various combinations of these influences created many local styles in Western Europe, which received the common name Romanesque, meaning "in the manner of the Romans." Since the main number of surviving fundamentally important monuments of the Proto-Romanesque and Romanesque style are architectural structures: the various styles of this period often differ in architectural schools. Architecture V-VIII centuries is usually simple, with the exception of buildings in Ravenna, (Italy), erected according to Byzantine rules. Buildings were often created from elements removed from old Roman buildings, or decorated with them. In many regions, this style was a continuation of early Christian art. Round or polygonal cathedral churches, borrowed from Byzantine architecture, were built during the Proto-Roman period;

later they were built in Aquitaine in the south-west of France and in Scandinavia. The most famous and best-designed examples of this type are the Cathedral of San Vitalo of the Byzantine emperor Justinian in Ravenna (526-548) and the octagonal palace chapel built between 792 and 805 by Charlemagne in Ai la Capella (now Aachen, Germany), directly inspired by the Cathedral of San Vitalo. One of the creations of Carolingian architects was the westwork, a multi-storey entrance facade flanked by bell towers, which began to be attached to Christian basilicas. Westworks were the prototypes for the facades of giant Romanesque and Gothic cathedrals.

Important buildings were also constructed in the monastic style. Monasteries, a characteristic religious and social phenomenon of that era, required huge buildings that combined both the dwellings of monks and chapels, rooms for prayers and services, libraries, and workshops. Elaborate proto-Roman monastic complexes were erected at St. Gall (Switzerland), on the island of Reichenau (German side of Lake Constance) and at Monte Cassino (Italy) by Benedictine monks.

The outstanding achievement of the architects of the Romanesque period was the development of buildings with stone volts (arched, supporting structures). The main reason for the development of stone arches was the need to replace the flammable wooden ceilings of Proto-Romanesque buildings. The introduction of voltaic structures led to the general use of heavy walls and pillars.

Sculpture. Most Romanesque sculpture was integrated into church architecture and served both structural, constructive and aesthetic purposes. Therefore, it is difficult to talk about Romanesque sculpture without touching on church architecture. Small-sized sculpture of the Proto-Roman era made of bone, bronze, gold was made under the influence of Byzantine models. Other elements of numerous local styles were borrowed from the crafts of the Middle East, known for imported illustrated manuscripts, bone carvings, gold objects, ceramics, fabrics. Motifs derived from the arts of the migrating peoples were also important, such as grotesque figures, images of monsters, intertwining geometric patterns, especially in areas north of the Alps. Large-scale stone sculptural decorations only became common in Europe in the 12th century. In the French Romanesque cathedrals of Provence, Burgundy, Aquitaine, many figures were placed on the facades, and the statues on the columns emphasized the vertical supporting elements.

Painting. Existing examples of Romanesque painting include decorations on architectural monuments, such as columns with abstract ornaments, as well as wall decorations with images of hanging fabrics. Picturesque compositions, in particular narrative scenes based on biblical stories and from the life of saints, were also depicted on the wide surfaces of the walls. In these compositions, which predominantly follow Byzantine painting and mosaics, the figures are stylized and flat, so that they are perceived more as symbols than as realistic representations. Mosaic, just like painting, was mainly a Byzantine technique and was widely used in the architectural design of Italian Romanesque churches, especially in the Cathedral of St. Mark (Venice) and in the Sicilian churches in Cefalu and Montreal.

decorative arts . Proto-Romanesque artists reached the highest level in illustrating manuscripts. In England, an important school of manuscript illustration arose already in the 7th century in Holy Island (Lindisfarne). The works of this school, exhibited in the British Museum (London), are distinguished by the geometric interweaving of patterns in capital letters, frames, and whole pages, which are called carpet, are densely covered with them. Drawings of capital letters are often animated by grotesque figures of people, birds, monsters.

Regional schools of manuscript illustration in southern and eastern Europe developed different specific styles, as can be seen, for example, in a copy of the Apocalypse of Beata (Paris, National Library) made in the middle of the 11th century in the monastery of Saint-Sever in Northern France. At the beginning of the 12th century, the illustration of manuscripts in the northern countries acquired common features, just as the same happened at that time with sculpture. In Italy, the Byzantine influence continued to dominate both in miniature painting and in wall paintings and mosaics.

Proto-Romanesque and Romanesque metal processing- a widespread art form - were used mainly to create church utensils for religious rituals. Many of these works are kept to this day in the treasuries of great cathedrals outside of France; French cathedrals were robbed during the French Revolution. Other metalwork from this period is early Celtic filigree jewelry and silverware; late products of German goldsmiths and silver items inspired by imported Byzantine metal products, as well as wonderful enamels, especially cloisonne and champlevé, made in the areas of the Moselle and Rhine rivers. Two famous metalworkers were Roger of Helmarshausen, a German known for his bronzes, and the French enameller Godefroy de Claire.

The best-known example of a Romanesque textile work is an 11th-century embroidery called the Baia Tapestry. Other examples have survived, such as church vestments and draperies, but the most valuable fabrics in Romanesque Europe were imported from the Byzantine Empire, Spain, and the Middle East and are not the product of local craftsmen.

Gothic art and architecture

In place of the Romanesque style, as cities flourished and social relations improved, a new style came - Gothic. Religious and secular buildings, sculpture, colored glass, illustrated manuscripts and other works of fine art began to be executed in this style in Europe during the second half of the Middle Ages.

Gothic art originated in France around 1140 and spread throughout Europe over the next century and continued to exist in Western Europe for most of the 15th century, and in some regions of Europe well into the 16th century. Initially, the word gothic was used by Italian Renaissance authors as a derogatory label for all forms of architecture and art of the Middle Ages, which were considered comparable only to the works of the Goth barbarians. Later use of the term "Gothic" was limited to the period of the late, high or classical Middle Ages, immediately following the Romanesque. Currently, the Gothic period is considered one of the most prominent in the history of European artistic culture.

The main representative and spokesman of the Gothic period was architecture. Although a huge number of Gothic monuments were secular, the Gothic style served primarily the church, the most powerful builder in the Middle Ages, which ensured the development of this new architecture for that time and achieved its fullest realization.

The aesthetic quality of Gothic architecture depends on its structural development: ribbed vaults became a characteristic feature of the Gothic style. Medieval churches had powerful stone vaults, which were very heavy. They sought to open, to push out the walls. This could lead to the collapse of the building. Therefore, the walls must be thick and heavy enough to support such vaults. At the beginning of the 12th century, masons developed ribbed vaults, which included slender stone arches arranged diagonally, transversely and longitudinally. The new vault, which was thinner, lighter and more versatile (because it could have many sides), solved many architectural problems. Although early Gothic churches allowed for a wide variety of forms, the construction of a series of large cathedrals in Northern France, beginning in the second half of the 12th century, took full advantage of the new Gothic vault. Cathedral architects found that now the external bursting forces from the vaults are concentrated in narrow areas at the junctions of the ribs (ribs), and therefore they can be easily neutralized with the help of buttresses and external arches-flying buttresses. Consequently, the thick walls of Romanesque architecture could be replaced by thinner ones, which included extensive window openings, and the interiors received hitherto unparalleled lighting. In the construction business, therefore, there was a real revolution.

With the advent of the Gothic vault, both the design, form, and layout and interiors of cathedrals changed. Gothic cathedrals acquired a general character of lightness, aspiration to the sky, became much more dynamic and expressive. The first of the great cathedrals was Notre Dame Cathedral (begun in 1163). In 1194, the foundation stone for the cathedral at Chartres is considered the beginning of the High Gothic period. The culmination of this era was the cathedral at Reims (begun in 1210). Rather cold and all-conquering in its finely balanced proportions, Reims Cathedral represents a moment of classical calm and serenity in the evolution of Gothic cathedrals. Openwork partitions, a characteristic feature of late Gothic architecture, were the invention of the first architect of Reims Cathedral. Fundamentally new interior solutions were found by the author of the cathedral in Bourges (begun in 1195). The influence of French Gothic quickly spread throughout Europe: Spain, Germany, England. In Italy it was not so strong.

Sculpture. Following Romanesque traditions, in numerous niches on the facades of French Gothic cathedrals, a huge number of figures carved from stone, personifying the dogmas and beliefs of the Catholic Church, were placed as decorations. Gothic sculpture in the 12th and early 13th centuries was predominantly architectural in character. The largest and most important figures were placed in openings on both sides of the entrance. Because they were attached to columns, they were known as pillar statues. Along with column statues, free-standing monumental statues were widespread, an art form unknown in Western Europe since Roman times. The earliest surviving statues are columns in the western portal of Chartres Cathedral. They were still in the old pre-Gothic cathedral and date from about 1155. The slender, cylindrical figures follow the shape of the columns to which they were attached. They are executed in a cold, strict, linear Romanesque style, which nevertheless gives the figures an impressive character of purposeful spirituality.

From 1180, the Romanesque stylization begins to move into a new one, when the statues acquire a sense of grace, sinuosity and freedom of movement. This so-called classical style culminates in the first decades of the 13th century in a large series of sculptures on the portals of the north and south transepts of Chartres Cathedral.

The emergence of naturalism. Beginning around 1210 on the Coronation Portal of Notre Dame Cathedral and after 1225 on the west portal of Amiens Cathedral, the rippling, classical features of the surfaces begin to give way to more austere volumes. At the statues of the Reims Cathedral and in the interior of the Cathedral of Saint-Chapelle, exaggerated smiles, emphasized almond-shaped eyes, curls arranged in tufts on small heads and mannered poses produce a paradoxical impression of a synthesis of naturalistic forms, delicate affectation and subtle spirituality.

Medieval music and theater

medieval music It is predominantly spiritual in nature and is a necessary component of the Catholic Mass. At the same time, secular music begins to take shape already in the early Middle Ages.

The first important form of secular music was the songs of the troubadours in Provençal. Since the 11th century, troubadour songs have been influential in many other countries for more than 200 years, especially in northern France. The pinnacle of troubadour art was reached around 1200 by Bernard de Ventadorne, Giraud de Bornel Folke de Marseille. Bernard is famous for his three lyrics about unrequited love. Some of the verse forms anticipate the 14th century ballad with its three stanzas of 7 or 8 lines. Others talk about the crusaders or discuss any love trifles. Pastorals in numerous stanzas convey banal stories about knights and shepherdesses. Dance songs such as rondo and virelai are also in their repertoire. All of this monophonic music could sometimes have string or wind instrument accompaniment. This was the case until the 14th century, when secular music became polyphonic.

Medieval theatre. Ironically, theater in the form of liturgical drama was revived in Europe by the Roman Catholic Church. As the church sought ways to expand its influence, it often adapted pagan and folk festivals, many of which contained theatrical elements. In the 10th century, many church holidays provided the opportunity for dramatization: generally speaking, the Mass itself is nothing more than a drama.

Certain holidays were famous for their theatricality, such as the procession to the church on Palm Sunday. Antiphonal or question-and-answer, chants, masses and canonical chorales are dialogues. In the 9th century, antiphonal chimes, known as tropes, were incorporated into the complex musical elements of the mass. The three-part tropes (dialogue between the three Marys and the angels at the tomb of Christ) by an unknown author from about 925 are considered the source of the liturgical drama. In 970, a record of an instruction or manual for this little drama appeared, including elements of costume and gestures.

Religious drama or miraculous plays. Over the next two hundred years, the liturgical drama slowly developed, incorporating various biblical stories enacted by priests or choir boys. At first, church vestments and existing architectural details of churches were used as costumes and decorations, but more ceremonial decorations were soon invented. As the liturgical drama developed, many biblical themes were presented in succession, usually depicting scenes from the creation of the world to the crucifixion of Christ. These plays were called differently - passions (Passion), Miracles (Miracles), holy plays. Appropriate decorations were raised around the church nave, usually with heaven in the altar and with the Hell's Mouth - an elaborate monster's head with gaping mouth, representing the entrance to hell - at the opposite end of the nave. Therefore, all the scenes of the play could be presented simultaneously, and the participants in the action moved around the church from one place to another, depending on the scenes.

The plays, obviously, consisted of episodes, covered literally millennium periods, transferred the action to the most diverse places and represented the atmosphere and spirit of different times, as well as allegories. Unlike ancient Greek tragedy, which clearly focused on creating the prerequisites and conditions for catharsis, medieval drama did not always show conflicts and tension. Its purpose was to dramatize the salvation of the human race.

Although the church supported the early liturgical drama in its didactic capacity, entertainment and spectacle increased and began to predominate, and the church began to express suspicion of the drama. Not wanting to lose the useful effects of the theater, the church compromised by bringing dramatic performances from the walls of the church churches themselves. The same material design began to be recreated in the market squares of cities. While retaining its religious content and focus, the drama has become much more secular in its staged character.

Medieval secular drama. In the 14th century, theatrical productions were associated with the feast of Corpus Christi and developed into cycles that included up to 40 plays. Some scholars believe that these cycles developed independently, albeit simultaneously with the liturgical drama. They were presented to the community for a whole four to five year period. Each production could last one or two days and was staged once a month. The staging of each play was financed by some workshop or trade guild, and usually they tried to somehow connect the specialization of the workshop with the subject of the play - for example, the shipbuilders' workshop could stage a play about Noah. Because the performers were often illiterate amateurs, the anonymous playwrights tended to write in easy-to-remember primitive verse. In accordance with the medieval worldview, historical accuracy was often ignored, and the logic of cause and effect was not always respected.

Realism was used selectively in productions. The plays are full of anachronisms, references to purely local circumstances known only to contemporaries; the realities of time and place received only minimal attention. Costumes, furnishings and utensils were entirely modern (medieval European). Something could be depicted with extreme accuracy - there are reports of how actors almost died due to a too realistic performance of a crucifixion or hanging, and of actors who, playing the devil, literally burned to death. On the other hand, the episode with the retreat of the waters of the Red Sea could be indicated by a simple throwing of a red cloth over the Egyptian pursuers, as a sign that the sea had swallowed them up.

The free mixture of the real and the symbolic did not interfere with medieval perception. Spectacles and folk plays were staged wherever possible, and the infernal mouth was usually a favorite object of exertion for mechanical marvels and pyrotechnics. Despite the religious content of the cycles, they increasingly became entertainment. Three main formats were used. In England, carnival carts were the most common. The old church decorations were replaced by elaborate moving scenes, such as small modern ships that moved from place to place in the city. Spectators gathered in each such place: the performers worked on the platforms of the wagons, or on the stages built on the streets. They did the same in Spain. In France, synchronized productions were used - various scenery rose one after another along the sides of a long, raised platform in front of the assembled spectators. Finally, again in England, plays were sometimes staged "round" - on a circular platform, with scenery placed around the circumference of the arena and spectators sitting or standing between the scenery.

Moral plays. In the same period, folk plays, secular farces, and pastorals appeared, mostly by anonymous authors, who stubbornly retained the character of worldly entertainment. All this influenced the evolution of morality plays in the 15th century. Though written on themes of Christian theology with related characters, the moralites were not like cycles in that they did not represent episodes from the Bible. They were allegorical, self-contained dramas and performed by professionals such as minstrels or jugglers. Plays such as "Everyman" usually dealt with the individual's life path. Among the allegorical characters were such figures as Death, Gluttony, Good Deeds and other vices and virtues.

These plays are sometimes difficult and boring for modern perception: the rhymes of the verses are repeated, they are in the nature of improvisation, the plays are two or three times longer than Shakespeare's dramas, and the morality is announced straightforwardly and instructively. However, the performers, by inserting music and action into performances and using the comic possibilities of numerous characters of vices and demons, created a form of folk drama.

Conclusion

So, the Middle Ages in Western Europe is a time of intense spiritual life, complex and difficult searches for worldview structures that could synthesize the historical experience and knowledge of the previous millennia. In this era, people were able to enter a new path of cultural development, different from what they knew in previous times. Trying to reconcile faith and reason, building a picture of the world based on the knowledge available to them and with the help of Christian dogmatism, the culture of the Middle Ages created new artistic styles, a new urban lifestyle, a new economy, and prepared people's minds for the use of mechanical devices and technology. Contrary to the opinion of the thinkers of the Italian Renaissance, the Middle Ages left us the most important achievements of spiritual culture, including the institutions of scientific knowledge and education. Among them, first of all, the university as a principle should be named. In addition, a new paradigm of thinking arose, a disciplinary structure of cognition without which modern science would be impossible, people got the opportunity to think and cognize the world much more effectively than before. Even the fantastic recipes of the alchemists played their part in this process of improving the spiritual means of thinking, the general level of culture.

The image proposed by M.K. Petrov seems to be the most successful: he compared medieval culture with scaffolding. It is impossible to build a building without them. But when the building is completed, the scaffolding is removed, and one can only guess what it looked like and how it was arranged. Medieval culture in relation to our modern culture played precisely the role of such forests:

without it, Western culture would not have arisen, although medieval culture itself was largely unlike it. Therefore, one must understand the historical reason for such a strange name for this long and important era in the development of European culture.

BIBLIOGRAPHY

· Gurevich A. Ya. Medieval world; silent majority culture. M., 1990.

· Petrov MK Socio-cultural foundations for the development of modern science. M., 1992.

Radugin A.A. Culturology: textbook. M., 1999.

Culture is a variety of forms and ways of human self-expression. What features did the culture of the Middle Ages, summarized, have? The Middle Ages cover a period of more than a thousand years. During this huge period of time, great changes took place in medieval Europe. The feudal system appeared. It was replaced by the bourgeois. The Dark Ages gave way to the Renaissance. And in all the changes taking place in the medieval world, culture played a special role.

The role of the church in medieval culture

An important role in the culture of the Middle Ages was played by the Christian religion. The influence of the church in those days was enormous. In many ways, this determined the formation of culture. Among the completely illiterate population of Europe, the ministers of the Christian religion represented a separate class of educated people. The church in the early Middle Ages played the role of a single center of culture. In the monastery workshops, the monks copied the works of ancient authors, and the first schools were opened there.

The culture of the Middle Ages. Briefly about literature

In literature, the main trends were heroic epics, the lives of saints, and a chivalric romance. Later, the genre of ballads, courtly romance, and love lyrics appear.
If we talk about the early Middle Ages, then the level of cultural development was still extremely low. But, starting from the 11th century, the situation begins to change radically. After the first Crusades, their participants returned from the eastern countries with new knowledge and habits. Then, thanks to the journey of Marco Polo, Europeans get another valuable experience of how other countries live. The worldview of medieval man is undergoing major changes.

Science of the Middle Ages

It is widely developed with the advent of the first universities in the 11th century. Alchemy was a very interesting science of the Middle Ages. The transformation of metals into gold, the search for the philosopher's stone - her main tasks.

Architecture

It is represented in the Middle Ages by two directions - Romanesque and Gothic. The Romanesque style is massive and geometric, with thick walls and narrow windows. It is more suitable for defensive structures. Gothic is lightness, considerable height, wide windows and an abundance of sculptures. If in the Romanesque style they built mainly castles, then in the Gothic style - beautiful temples.
In the Renaissance (Renaissance), the culture of the Middle Ages makes a powerful leap forward.

University

Chivalry

Carnival

Brief outline of the culture of the Middle Ages (V-XV centuries)

Lecture 4

Medieval Culture: Phenomena of Carnival, Chivalry, University

The culture of the Middle Ages powerfully and visibly expressed itself in architecture in the emerging artistic styles - Romanesque and Gothic. This topic is presented in detail in the course textbooks, so students will be able to study it on their own, paying special attention to the periods of development of the Romanesque and Gothic styles in France, Spain, Italy, Germany.

The Middle Ages in Europe were defined by Christian culture. Feudalism was asserted with a rural community and the dependence of a person on it and the feudal lord. Many European countries have self-determined and strengthened, the center of cultural improvement is not a set of city-states or one Roman Empire, but the entire European region. Spain, France, Holland, England and other countries come to the forefront of cultural development. Christianity, as it were, unites their spiritual efforts, spreading and asserting itself in Europe and beyond. But the process of establishing statehood among the peoples of Europe is far from over. Large and small wars arise, armed violence is both a factor and a brake on cultural development.

A person feels like a community member, and not a free citizen, as in ancient society. The value of “serving” God and the feudal lord, but not oneself or the state, arises. Slavery is replaced by mutual communal responsibility and subordination to the community and the feudal lord. Christianity supports feudal class, subordination to God and master. The Church extends its influence to all major spheres of society, to the family, education, morality, and science. Hereticism and any non-Christian dissent is persecuted. From the establishment of Christianity as the state religion of the Roman Empire (325), it rigidly subjugated the entire life of European society, and this continued until the Renaissance.

Thus, the defining feature of medieval culture, the essence of the phenomenon of the culture of the Middle Ages, is a worldview based on Christian doctrine. The theological system of Christianity covered any of the phenomena of culture, in turn, any of the phenomena had its own specific hierarchical place. Hierarchical ideas were embodied in public life (seigneurs - vassals; ethics of personal service), in the spiritual sphere (God - Satan).

However, it would be wrong and one-sided to evaluate the culture of the Middle Ages only negatively. She developed and achieved success. In the XII century. in Flanders, a loom without a mechanical engine was invented. Sheep breeding is developing. In Italy and France, they learned how to produce silk. In England and France, blast furnaces began to be built and coal was used in them.

Despite the fact that knowledge was subordinated to the Christian faith, religious and secular schools and institutions of higher learning arose in a number of European countries. In the 10th-11th centuries, for example, philosophy, mathematics, physics, astronomy, law, medicine, and Muslim theology were already taught in the higher schools of Spain. The activity of the Roman Catholic Church, the non-observance of the norms of morality and religious worship by its ministers often caused discontent and ridicule among the broad masses. For example, in the 12th-13th centuries in France, the movement of vagants - wandering poets and musicians - became widespread. They sharply criticized the church for greed, hypocrisy and ignorance. There is a poetry of minstrels and troubadours.

The poetry and prose of chivalry are developing, masterpieces of the folk epic are being recorded (“The Song of the Nibelungs”, “The Song of My Sid”, “Beowulf”). Biblical-mythological painting and icon-painting are widely spread. In the spirituality of people, Christianity affirmed not only humility, but also the positive ideal of salvation. Following the commandments of God and honoring him, a person can achieve such a desirable state of himself and the state of the whole world, which are characterized by overcoming any lack of freedom and evil.

Since the 14th century, European Catholicism has been experiencing an acute crisis generated by the internal struggle of popes and other hierarchs for religious and secular power, the non-observance of moral standards by many clergy, their desire for wealth and luxury, and the deception of believers. The crisis of the Catholic Church escalated significantly as a result of the Inquisition and the Crusades. The Catholic faith was losing its status as the spiritual basis of European culture. Orthodoxy functioned more smoothly in Byzantium and other countries of Eastern Europe.

Byzantium, or the Eastern Roman Empire, arose in 325 after the split of the Roman Empire into Western and Eastern. In 1054, the division of the Christian church also takes place. Orthodoxy is established in Byzantium.

Byzantine culture existed for 11 centuries, being a kind of "golden bridge" between Western and Eastern culture. Byzantium went through five stages in its historical development:

The first stage (IV - the middle of the VII centuries). The independence of Byzantium is affirmed, the power, the military bureaucracy, the foundations of the "correct" faith on the traditions of pagan Hellenism and Christianity are formed. Outstanding monuments of the middle of the 5th-6th centuries. - Mausoleum of Galla Placidia in Ravenna; hippodrome; Temple of Sophia (Anfimy and Isidore); mosaic paintings in the Church of San Vitale in Ravenna; mosaics in the Church of the Assumption in Nika; icon "Sergius and Bacchus".

Second stage (second half of the 7th - first half of the 9th centuries). The invasions of the Arabs and Slavs are reflected. The ethnic basis of culture is consolidated around the Greeks and Slavs. Alienation from the Western Roman (European) elements of culture is observed. The Church triumphs over secular power. The orthodox-conservative foundations of Orthodoxy are getting stronger. Culture is becoming more and more localized, acquiring originality, gravitating towards oriental cultures.

The third stage (the second half of the 9th - the middle of the 11th centuries). "Golden Age" of Byzantine culture. There are schools, universities, libraries.

Fourth period (second half of the 11th - beginning of the 13th centuries). In 1071 Byzantium was defeated by the Turks, in 1204 it was subdued by the knights of the Fourth Crusade. The resulting Latin Empire is losing the authority of power. The Orthodox Church assumes protective and unifying functions. Cultural development slows down significantly.

The fifth stage (1261 - 1453). After the liberation from the power of the Latin knights, Byzantium was unable to restore its former greatness due to internal unrest and civil strife. Receive development: religious and literary creativity, theology, philosophy, miniature, icon, fresco painting.

After the capture of Constantinople by the Turks in 1453, Byzantium ceased to exist.

The features of Byzantine culture are:

Orthodoxy as an orthodox-conservative version of Christianity as a spiritual basis

a small degree of losses on the part of the conquerors in comparison with the Western Roman culture

cult of the emperor as a representative and exponent of secular and spiritual power

protection of the power of the emperor, the preservation of the unity of the state through the efforts of the Orthodox Church

traditionalism and the canon of the creeds of Orthodoxy

From 622, first in Mecca, then in Medina on the Arabian Peninsula, a new religion arose - Islam (submissive to God). The spiritual foundations of medieval Arab-Muslim culture have some common features with Christianity in terms of ideas about God and monotheism, in terms of the relationship between God and being, God and man.

The establishment of Christianity and Islam as monotheistic religions contributed to the general development of the culture of many peoples, the formation of historically new types of it.

The lecture reveals in more detail the phenomenal phenomena of medieval culture: carnival, chivalry, the university, which will allow one to comprehend both the universalism and the depth of the contradictions of medieval culture, the features of which have been preserved in culture until the 21st century.

Questions for self-control

1. Give a brief description of the culture of the European Middle Ages.

2. Explain what is the essence of medieval culture.

3. What, in your opinion, is the uniqueness of Byzantine culture?

4. Describe the most famous monument of Byzantine architecture - the Temple of Hagia Sophia in Constantinople.

5. What are the features of Byzantism?

6. Give the realities of modern life, which can be considered the legacy of the Middle Ages (institution, symbolism, architectural monument, custom, tradition, clothing, food, drink, spices).