TWÓRCZOŚĆ MICHAŁA LERMONTOW A W OCENIE S. P. SZEWYRIOWA
MIKHAIL LERMONTOV’S LITERARY OUTPUT IN THE EVALUATION OF S. P. SHEVIRIOV

Summary/Abstract: Stiepan Sheviriov, professor of the University' of Moscow, a poet, theoretician and historian of literature — he was at the same time one of the most interesting literary critics in Russia of the first half of the nineteenth century. The representative of the theory of “official popular character” decisively con­servative as for his views tried, however, by means of the philosophy of history to justify these views. In 1891 Sheviriov took the position in the historical and literary division of the journal “Moskvitianin” and in the columns conducted his own activity. Professing official ideas he had to have critical opinion on the whole literary output of Mikhail Lermontov, permeated by the spirit of protest and discontent caused by the surrounding reality and the lack of faith in the future. In the discussion of the work “The hero of our times” the critic did not explain the drawbacks of Piechorin by the social reasons but by bad propensities and Western way of education. When looking by the prism of his own view's Sheviriov evaluated appropriately the volume of Lermontov’s poetry. The most important problem, or the social and political views of the poet were moved by him further on and he put forward the discrediting of a young author from the formal point of view. He accussed him of the lack of originality and imitation of Pushkin, Zukovsky, Bieniediktov and others. From Sheviriov’s point of view the struggle with Lermontov w'as necessary since his wrorks constituted the threat to the ideology directing Russian literatrue, on the way of “Orthodox Church, samodierzhavie (despotism) and popular character”.

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