Literature is rich in an abundance of poetic genres, the use of which helped the poet for various purposes. A very interesting message in the literature. This is a completely unique genre, which is an appeal, often to a specific person. Get acquainted with its features and features.
Definition
A message in literature is a special poetic genre built in the form of a letter or appeal to a person or group of people. Often it helped the poet express his thoughts or convey his attitude to both the addressee and historical phenomena.
History of the genre
The beginning of the genre of the message leads from antiquity; similar texts are found in Horace. It was in them that the ancient Roman author expressed his opinion about poetry. The most famous work is “The Epistle to the Pies,” also called the “Art of Poetry,” it describes the difficulties that await everyone who decides to connect their lives with literary work, and gives advice to beginning authors. This book did not claim to be strictly scientific, and the author himself was not highly rated, but her role in the development of literature was enormous: Horace managed to portray the poet’s inner world in it.
The traditions of ancient authors were continued by the creators of the era of classicism: Derzhavin and Sumarokov in Russia, Voltaire in France, Schiller and Goethe in Germany.
The second heyday of the message genre in literature is the time of Pushkin. The great poet often turned to such texts in order to express his thoughts and views. Using the achievements of the 18th century sentimentalists, such as Zhukovsky and Batyushkov, the great poet introduced innovative features into the message. His works are known:
- “Message to the Censor”;
- "Kuchelbecker";
- "To Natalia";
- “To another poet”;
- To comrades.
In Pushkin’s lyrics one can find traits indicating that the poet continued to use genre features inherent in Zhukovsky, Batyushkov, Karamzin in his letters.
In the 19th century, interest in the genre waned, and it lost its unique features, no more different from any other lyric poem. The messages were addressed by Fet and Tyutchev, but they were already quite freely using their poetics and it is difficult to find characteristic features in their poetic texts.
The specifics of the genre
The message in the literature, examples of which will be given below, has several features that make it possible to distinguish it from among other genres. These are the following features:
- They contain an appeal to a specific addressee, both to a person and to an inanimate object (for example, “To my inkwell”, “To the sea” by Pushkin);
- Deeply sparkling and soulful, they often express thoughts that torment the poet.
- The early texts created by Karamzin and Derzhavin are distinguished by their high-flown obsolete vocabulary and are often difficult for modern people to understand. Pushkin successfully departed from this feature of the genre, his messages are surprisingly lyrical and at the same time simple and accessible.
Such is the genre specificity of the message. Examples of works in the literature are given below.
Authors using the genre
Here are some examples of the use of this literary lyrical appeal by prominent Russian poets. There are many texts of this kind in the lyrics of Zhukovsky, often not only colleagues in the poetic workshop, but also people in power often became the addressees. So, after the birth of the heir, the future Alexander the Second, the poet addressed a solemn message to his mother. The rejection of an ode in favor of a more personal genre testified that for Zhukovsky the birth of a child, even the heir to the royal throne, is primarily a family matter, not a state one. The most famous works are:
- “Emperor Alexander”;
- “To Voeikov”;
- "To Batyushkov."
Batyushkov’s messages are very lyrical, in which the theme of the poet’s civil freedom is intertwined with a friendly one. Examples from the lyrics are as follows:
- “Message to My Poems”;
- "Dashkov";
- Gnedich.
Especially vividly blossomed the genre in the lyrics of Pushkin.
Pushkin's Messages
What is the message in the literature and the definition of the genre, we have already discussed above. Now we give examples of texts from the poetry of A.S. Pushkin, who was fond of similar verses during his studies at the Lyceum. The poet had many friends, some of them themselves were talented poets, others in the future became fighters for the freedom of the people and went to Senate Square. Pushkin forever kept the memory of each of them in his youthful friendly messages. Examples of such texts are several letters to Chaadayev, messages to Zhukovsky, Pushchin, Delvig, Yazykov. Pushkin writes his lyrical addresses not only to his contemporaries, but also to the creators of past eras, so many people know the message to Ovid. There are in his work and letters of thanks to “teachers” - Zhukovsky and Batyushkov.
Gradually, the poet departs from appeals to specific people, texts become an expression of his political views, without losing any genre specificity.
Messages in literature is an ancient genre that has passed a difficult path. Being widely popular in the times of antiquity, classicism and poetry of the 18th century, it gradually loses its significance and is rarely used by modern authors.