Fables of Lomonosov Mikhail Vasilyevich. The development of the fable as a genre

2024 Author: Leah Sherlock | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 05:25

Fable occupies a special place in Russian literature. A short, funny, but at the same time instructive story fell in love and took root among the people. The recognized writer of fables was Ivan Andreevich Krylov. But few people know that one of the outstanding Russian scientists also worked in this genre. The fables of M. V. Lomonosov occupy a special place among his literary work.

What is a fable?

A fable is first and foremost a literary work. It is characterized by brevity, capacity and expressiveness of form. As a rule, the narration is conducted allegorically, metaphorically. Animals can act as actors. Each fable necessarily has its own moral, which, as a rule, is carried out at the end of the work.

This genre is one of the oldest. The first works resembling fables may have been written in ancient Egypt. Officially, its origin is associated with Greece and, as a rule, Aesop is remembered at the same time. In the Roman Empire, the most famous fabulist was the poet Phaedrus, who largely imitated hisGreek predecessor. Already in modern times, in the 17th century, the Frenchman Jean Lafontaine worked on fables, glorifying this literary genre.

Fable in Russian literature

Many Russian poets worked on translations and retellings of La Fontaine's popular fables. But in general, an original style has grown on Russian soil, reflecting and ridiculing typical national vices. The fable appeared in Russia in the 15th century, penetrating from Byzantium. We can talk about its heyday in the XVIII century.

V. K. Trediakovsky, A. P. Sumarokov, A. E. Izmailov, A. D. Kantemir worked on the fables. And, of course, the best samples belong to the pen of I. A. Krylov. Translations of foreign fables occupy an insignificant place in his creative heritage, but his own works have been translated into almost all European languages. Mikhail Vasilyevich Lomonosov also tried himself in this genre. The fables of the outstanding Russian scientist occupy a special place in his literary heritage.

Literary creativity of Lomonosov

Mikhail Vasilyevich Lomonosov can be compared with the geniuses of the Renaissance. This is exactly the case when talent is crowded in one area. And he tries to show up in everything. First of all, Lomonosov is known as a naturalist, chemist and physicist. He made a truly invaluable contribution to Russian science. But in addition to natural science disciplines, the scientist was engaged in both painting and literature. And in this field he has achieved tremendous success. It is no coincidence that Belinsky called him the father of Russian literature.

In the "Letter onrules of Russian poetry" Lomonosov made a real revolution, pointing out the possibility of using various poetic meters in Russian poetry, and not just the generally accepted iambic and chorea. Thus, the possibilities of literature have been enormously expanded. Lomonosov was the founder of the Russian ode (and, mainly, they glorified him as a poet). If many can easily remember his poems, then the fables of M. V. Lomonosov were completely undeservedly forgotten. Namely, all his literary and humanistic principles were reflected in them.

Fables of Mikhail Lomonosov

Contemporaries recalled that Lomonosov was a wonderful person - honest, pleasant in communication, decent, ready to help. He was sickened by low human vices - cowardice, hypocrisy, hypocrisy, ignorance, lies. This he wanted to share with the reader and give him food for thought. Lomonosov's fables served as a moral mentor. It was this genre that was the easiest to perceive and reached a large number of hearts. They are compelling and easy to read, yet stunningly realistic.

Dividing literature into three “calm”, Mikhail Vasilievich attributed the fable to “low”. This stylistic group is freed from sublime formality. Therefore, Lomonosov's fables contain components of colloquial, everyday speech, common expressions. The following works in this genre came out from the writer’s pen: “Mouse”, “Marrying is good, but there is a lot of annoyance”, “Listen, please, what happened to the old”,“The sky was covered with darkness at night” and many others. One of the most famous - "Only the noise of the day stopped." We'll talk about it further.

Only the noise of the day is silent

Some of Lomonosov's fables were written based on the works of Lafontaine. One of them is "The Wolf Who Became a Shepherd". It is impossible to call Lomonosov's work a literal translation, it is so imbued with the "Russian manner", a special author's approach. Some even argue: has the original Lafontaine morality changed in the translated fable? As for the content, it is as follows.

The unlucky wolf decided to outwit the sheep herd by dressing up as a shepherd and taking a horn with a staff. He found the sheep, the shepherd and the watchdog sleeping. But puffed up from his own ingenuity, he decided to cast a vote and make sure that he had fooled everyone. However, only a howl escaped from the open wolf's mouth, which was to be expected. Having alarmed everyone, the unfortunate kidnapper said goodbye to both clothes and skin. The main idea of Lafontaine's work is that a hypocrite will always give himself away. The moral of Lomonosov's fable is that "a wolf cannot be a fox." And do not try to squeeze into someone else's skin.

Mikhail Vasilyevich's works have always been thought out to the smallest detail. There is nothing random about them. Forever they will remain among the best examples of Russian literature.