The work "Town in a Snuffbox" belongs to the pen of Vladimir Fedorovich Odoevsky. This is one of the first Russian writers who can be ranked among the founders of Russian children's literature.
Vladimir Fedorovich Odoevsky
Prince, senator, Russian writer, thinker and philosopher, translator, art critic, public figure - this is not a complete list of titles, titles, professional skills that Vladimir Fedorovich possessed.
Odoevsky's literary work is characterized by innovative ideas and research. This was immediately noticed by the contemporaries of the writer and highly appreciated by his descendants.
Odoevsky’s works make you think, they allow you to take a different look at the familiar phenomena of life, moving the reader forward in his development. All of the above fully applies to what was created by the writer specifically for children. The unsurpassed essay of the writer is considered to be the fairy tale "Town in a Snuffbox". Its author to this day is among the best children's writers in world literature.
Artworks for children
In 1833, the first works of Odoevsky for children were published. The collection was called "Colorful Tales." In 1834, the Town in the Snuffbox was printed as a separate publication. The genre of this work was also defined as a fairy tale.
High appreciation of literary tales for children who came out from the pen of Odoevsky was given by N.V. Gogol. He believed that the figurativeness of the language, tonality and its melody are unparalleled not only in Russian, but also in world children's literature. Perhaps in comparison there can only be the works of the great storyteller Hans Christian Andersen.
Over the following years of work on writing works intended for the children's reading circle, Odoevsky tried to maintain the bar he set. Great interest in the work of the writer was shown by a true expert on literature V. Dahl, who considered the language of his works to be the standard of Russian literature.
In 1838, Tales and Tales for the Children of Grandfather Irenaeus were published. Many works from the collection immediately entered the list of textbooks and remain so after 177 years. This fact is an indicator of the literary talent of V.F. Odoevsky.
Odoevsky successfully used the mask of Uncle Irenaeus (and later grandfathers) throughout the entire period when he was engaged in children's literature. Thanks to a well-chosen image, loved by children, the author could speak about the complex phenomena of life with the guys in a language that they understood.
"Town in a snuffbox." Genre of work
The cycle under the general title "Tales of Grandfather Irenaeus" includes several works for children. Enters here and "Town in a snuffbox." The genre of the work is defined as a cognitive tale.
Reading the work, the child not only gets acquainted with the fabulous inhabitants of the musical snuffbox, but also learns about the mechanism of its work. The process is described exactly exactly without distorting the facts, the work contains a large amount of cognitive material. An entertaining form of description, which Odoevsky uses, allows us to rank the work as a fairy tale genre.
The combination in one work of scientific encyclopedic information and magic, fiction inherent only in fairy tales, was unusual for literature of the first half of the 19th century. V.F. Odoevsky managed to put this together. The reception was very successful, it was appreciated not only by small readers and their parents, but also by literary critics.
The main characters of the work
The protagonist of the tale is the boy Misha, to whom his father gave a musical snuffbox. At the beginning of the story, the boy’s father talks about how to use the box. Misha learns that the thing is very complicated and requires careful treatment.
Like any other boy at his age, Misha wants to understand the secrets that are hidden inside the snuff box. From this moment, miracles begin. Thanks to them, the boy gets acquainted with unusual residents of a magical country, which the author calls the town in a snuffbox.
A fairy tale, its magic captures not only Misha, but also every reader. The heroes of the work are becoming more and more - these are residents of a fabulous country. Each of them has its own responsibilities, which they must strictly fulfill, otherwise the lifestyle of the town will be destroyed.
The idea of a fairy tale
Vladimir Fedorovich Odoevsky, realizing the important role literature plays in people's lives, sought through his works written for children to develop the best character traits of young readers. The "Town in a Snuff Box" is fully responsible for this task.
The genre of a cognitive fairy tale as well as possible develops the curiosity of a child, makes it possible to acquire new knowledge for him. For example, Misha, traveling around the city, learns some of the laws of fine art and perspectives. He understands how the box works, where music is born.
In addition, throughout the work, the author points out the important qualities of Misha’s character. The boy is persistent, inquisitive, obedient, polite. Odoevsky appreciates this in a child. The author also draws attention to the fact that everything in life is interconnected. Only with well-coordinated work and full mutual understanding can certain success be achieved in life.
Contemporary Edition
Perhaps, none of Odoevsky’s fairy tales had such a large number of publications as “The Town in the Snuffbox”.
Cartoon, filmstrips based on fairy tales, illustrated editions of the book are still very popular among children today. That is why the fairy tale is placed in many literary collections, it is published as a separate book.
Some authors of modern textbooks on literature have included the tale of V. F. Odoevsky "The Town in the Snuffbox" in the list of works intended for compulsory study in the lessons at school. When working together on a fairy tale, children learn about the world around them, learn to understand the beauty of their native language, and express their attitude to what they have read.