In world culture, the eighteenth century was marked by the Age of Enlightenment, which left its deep imprint on history. It was at this time that the direction of Baroque ended its existence, giving way to Rococo. In Europe, a kind of conflict begins between the poorly educated, but thanks to books active population and educated power.
Born in England thanks to the development of the intellectual movement, the basic ideas of the philosophy of education gradually began to spread to Germany, France, Russia and other European countries.
Enlightenment from France — Diderot, Rousseau, D'Alembert, Helvetius, Voltaire, who called themselves “rulers of doom” were especially influential. They believed that an atheistic, rational way of thinking and knowledge was able to undermine the outdated order, change its moral and ethical foundations, and this would accelerate the course of the historical process and future social transformations.
The art of the Enlightenment, which promotes the greatness of Reason, Freedom and Happiness, tried to actually reflect these ideas. That is why literature puts in the first place such characters who are the embodiment of an inquiring mind, a sense of justice, are able to resist ignorance.
The literary Rococo offers the reader colorfully described landscapes, a pun, ironic speech, seasoned with hints, frivolities and omissions. This style is especially noticeable in Voltaire, Montesquieu, Lesange.
The era of enlightenment in Russia began with Peter the Great. Towards the end of his reign, thanks to reforms, the Russians confidently moved towards “Europeanization”, who were involved in the culture of the West. The development of science and education was progressing at a very fast pace.
The era of enlightenment in Russia brought with it magazines, newspapers, portraiture.
By the 18th century, Russian society, which was considered to be more or less educated, consisted only of representatives of the Moscow and St. Petersburg nobility, as well as of very small intellectuals of different ranks.
For Europe, the standard was the French Enlightenment. Therefore, the era of enlightenment in Russia made it possible to expand cultural ties with France, especially after the second half of the eighteenth century. The nobles were given the opportunity to familiarize themselves with art and literature during their overseas travels, and a decent command of the language of Didro and Voltaire made it easy for them to study the works of these enlighteners. Educated Russian society was read out by such works as The Orleans Virgin, The Nun, The Lame Demon, Indiscreet Treasures, Persian Letters, and many other masterpieces of the enlightenment trend, which described the fleeting holiday ruled by Venus and Bacchus. .
However, the Enlightenment era in Russia was much different from the European version, and its seeds, "sprouted" on domestic soil, gave a slightly different result than in the West.
Russia during the time of Peter the Great , and later under the reign of Catherine the Great, was very different from Voltaire France. The brilliant empire, behind the facade of which was a vast country with a population that did not raise its head from hard peasant labor, did not have a third estate, which, as in the West, would present its demands to the tsar.
The Age of Enlightenment in Russia was supported by nobles and autocracy, who used the new Western-cultural trends to maintain the existing serfdom.
And although after the death of Peter, his reformism was continued by Catherine ll, who dreams of becoming an "enlightened queen," the real Russian enlighteners were Dashkova, Golitsyn, Sumarokov, Novikov, Fonvizin and others who tried to modernize Russian reality.