Russian folk epics: history, canons and popular stories

The word "epic" for some reason is associated with something huge, large-scale, indisputably great. The first thing that comes to mind is the images of mighty warriors who protect Mother Russia, patrol the powerful borders of the state, drive away all kinds of misfortunes. Even the language on which these amazing works are written differs from the ordinary literary! Russian folk epics is an absolutely independent genre of folklore with established traditions and canons. What distinguishes them from ordinary fairy tales and legends?

What it is?

So, epic song is an epic song, usually transmitted from generation to generation, the main story of which revolves around the hero fighting against the forces of evil and defending the fatherland in every way possible. Usually the main character does not have a very simple destiny, moreover, he does not come to realize his "heroism" at once, but then, when the "silk" already runs over the edge, no one can resist the Russian knight.

The term for the designation of this form of folklore was introduced in the thirties of the last century and is taken from the "Lay of Igor's Campaign" (where there is the phrase "the epic of this time"). Most of all such legends have been preserved among the peasants of the northern part of Russia. Bylins (short works are rare) are often quite voluminous, as they tell of a long period of time.

History

It is difficult to say when the first historical songs appeared: it seems that they have always been among the people. The first documents containing Russian folk epics date back to the seventeenth century, and no one can say whether this is caused by illiteracy of the population or because such a genre did not exist before.

The first collection of "legends" of the Slavs was created by the order of the Englishman Richard James, interested in the culture of Russia, however, it had only five epic stories. In the eighteenth century, interest in the genre is growing, there are more authors who create whole collections of folklore songs. The peak of interest is in the sixties and seventies of the nineteenth century, when the ordering of bylinas not by characters, but by storytellers (this is how the northern peoples are called custodians of oral creativity) came into fashion.

Most often, Russian folk epic explorers discovered in Siberia. As a separate genre, the legends of the Russian Cossacks stand out.

rules

As for any literary genre, for the epics are typical of their canons. They say that before they were performed to the accompaniment of gusli, melodies, however, there were not many of them, but in combination with the narrator's voice they sounded really amazing. Such a phenomenon as the epics were short, did not exist at all, therefore each legend was delayed for long hours, often it was interrupted for the rest of both listeners and the narrator.

The epic genre of these works assumes a solemn style of narration. It was achieved with the help of repetitions (everything known "long time ago" came from there) and synonyms (live-life). Very often repeated whole phrases - at the end of the line and at the beginning of the next. Usually, the accusers did not focus on specific places, it was much more important for them to talk about "heroic" deeds, the process of horse saddling, for example, the epics contain detailed descriptions of harness horses, equipment of the hero himself, etc. Often and exaggerated, emphasizing certain qualities of the characters. The narrators adored epithets (a glorious hero, a nasty enemy), some of whom eventually became phraseological (hot blood). To highlight the "bright side" again, diminutive suffixes (Alyoshenka) were used, while for negative characters suffixes "magnifying" (tsarishche) were used.

Russian folk epics are presented in the present tense, there are no references to the past or the future. In addition, they usually consist of three composition parts: a chant (a kind of introduction that has little in common with the narrative itself), the beginning (the actual plot) and the ending.

Silushka Bogatyrskaya

The most famous genre of this element of folklore are the epics about the heroes. Stories about love for Russia, about dedication to business, true honor and friendship have always been popular. Such characters as Alyosha Popovich, Dobrynya Nikitich and Ilya Muromets are known to every Russian-speaking person. They are popularized even in cartoons, so that the youngest know that "superheroes" are not only in America, but also in Russia. Stories about the heroes bring up in children a love for the Motherland, an awareness of its value, while showing the historical life of the Old Russian state.

Conclusion

The culture of Russia is amazing and rich. Bylins, Russian folk tales, proverbs and sayings, various riddles are only a small part of all this wealth. Much remains to the end not explored, much - not understandable modern man, but in no case can not deny the value of folklore. Without the past, the present and the future are impossible, and only then will the people develop correctly when they learn to value their history.