Sentimentalism is not only a direction in culture and literature, it is primarily the mindset of human society at a certain stage of development, which began in Europe a little earlier and lasted from the 20s to the 80s of the 18th century, in Russia it came to the end of the 18th - beginning of the XIX century. The main signs of sentimentalism are that - in human nature the primacy of the senses is recognized, not the mind.
From the mind to the senses
Sentimentalism closes
the Enlightenment, which covered the whole XVIII century and spawned a number of
literary trends. This is classicism and rococo, sentimentalism and pre-romanticism. Some experts consider romanticism to be the next one after the described direction, and sentimentalism is equated with pre-romanticism. Each of these areas has its own characteristic distinguishing features, each has its own normative personality, one whose features better than others express a trend that is optimal for a given culture. There are some signs of sentimentalism. This is a focus on the individual, on the strength and power of the senses, the prerogative of nature over civilization.
Towards nature
This direction in literature from previous and subsequent trends distinguishes primarily the cult of the human heart. Preference is given to simplicity, naturalness, the hero of the works becomes a more democratic person, often a representative of the common people. Great attention is given to the inner world of man and the nature of which he is a part. These are the signs of sentimentalism. Feelings are always freer than the mind, which is worshiped, or even deified classicism. Therefore, sentimental writers had greater freedom of imagination and its reflection in the work, which also did not fit into the strict logical framework of classicism.
New literary forms
The main genres of sentimentalism are travel and novels, but not just, but instructive or in letters. Letters, diaries, and memoirs are the most frequently used genres, since they make it possible to reveal the inner world of a person more widely. In poetry, elegy and message prevail. That is, literary genres, in and of themselves, are also signs of sentimentalism. The pastoral cannot belong to any direction other than that described.
In Russia, sentimentalism was reactionary and liberal. The representative of the first was Shalikov Petr Ivanovich (1768-1852). His works were an idyllic utopia - infinitely good kings sent by God to the earth solely for the sake of peasant happiness. No social contradictions - magnanimity and universal goodness. Probably, thanks to such sweet and sour works, a certain tearfulness and far-fetchedness were fixed to this literary direction, which are sometimes perceived as signs of sentimentalism.
Founder of Russian sentimentalism
Bright representatives of the liberal trend are Nikolai Karamzin (1766-1826) and early Zhukovsky Vasily Andreevich (1783-1852), this is one of the famous. One can also name several progressive liberal-minded writers - these are A. M. Kutuzov, to whom Radishchev devoted “A Journey from St. Petersburg to Moscow”, M. N. Muravyov, a sage and poet,
I. I. Dmitriev, poet, fabulist and translator, V.V. Kapnist and N.A. Lvov. The earliest and most striking work of this direction was Karamzin's novel “Poor Liza”. It should be noted that the signs of
sentimentalism in Russian
literature have distinctive features from Europe. The main thing is the instructive, moral and enlightening nature of the works. Karamzin said that you need to write as you speak. Thus, another feature of Russian sentimentalism is the improvement of the literary language of the work. I would like to note that a positive achievement or even the opening of this literary trend is that it was the first to appeal to the spiritual world of the lower classes, revealing its wealth and generosity of the soul. Before sentimentalists, poor people, as a rule, seemed rude, callous, incapable of any spirituality.
"Poor Lisa" - the pinnacle of Russian sentimentalism
What are the signs of sentimentalism in Poor Liza? The plot of the story is straightforward. Her charm is not that. The very idea of the work conveys to the reader the fact that the natural naturalness and rich world of Lisa, a simple peasant woman, is incomparably higher than the world of a well-educated, secular, well-trained Erast, in general, and a good person, but clamped by the framework of conventions that did not allow him to marry beloved girl. But he did not think to marry, because, having achieved reciprocity, Erast, full of prejudice, lost interest in Lisa, she ceased to be for him the personification of purity and integrity. A poor peasant girl, even full of dignity, trusting a rich young man who had descended to a commoner (which should speak of a breadth of soul and democratic views), was initially doomed to a final run to the pond. But the dignity of the story is in a completely different approach and perspective of the rather banal events covered. It was the signs of sentimentalism in “Poor Liza” (the beauty of the soul of a simple person and nature, the cult of love) that made the story incredibly popular among contemporaries. And the pond in which Lisa drowned began to be called by her name (the place in the story is indicated quite accurately). The fact that the story was an event is also evidenced by the fact that even among the current graduates of Soviet schools almost everyone knows that “Poor Liza” was written by Karamzin, like “Eugene Onegin” by Pushkin, and “Mtsyri” by Lermontov.
Originally from France
Sentimentalism itself is a more significant phenomenon in fiction than classicism with its rationalism and dryness, with its heroes, who, as a rule, were crowned persons or generals. “Julia, or New Eloise” by Jean-Jacques Rousseau burst into fiction and laid the foundation for a new direction. Already in the writings of the founder of the trend, general signs of sentimentalism appeared in literature, forming a new art system that glorified a simple person who could empathize with others without any self-interest, endlessly love loved ones, and sincerely enjoy the happiness of others.
Similarities and differences
The signs of classicism and sentimentalism coincide in many respects, because both of these directions belong to the Enlightenment, but they also have differences. Classicism glorifies and deifies the mind, and sentimentalism - the feeling. The main slogans of these directions are also different: in classicism it is “a man subordinate to the dictates of reason” in sentimentalism - “a man who feels”. The forms of writing works also vary - the logic and rigor of the classicists, and the works of authors of a later literary direction rich in digressions, descriptions, memoirs and letters. Based on the foregoing, we can answer the question of what are the main features of sentimentalism. The main theme of the works is love. Specific genres are pastoral (elegy), a sentimental novel, letters and travels. In the works there is a cult of feelings and nature, a departure from straightforwardness.