pod red. E.V. Anichkova, Istoriya russkoy literatury. Tom 1,2, 1908
History of Russian literature. Volume 1.2
Edited by E.V. Anichkov, History of Russian Literature. Volumes 1 and 2, Moscow, 1908. This richly illustrated encyclopedic edition was published under the editorship of E.V. Anichkov, A.K. Borozdin, and D.N. Ovsyaniko-Kulikovsky. The first volume is dedicated to folk literature, with its foundation being folklore. “Folk literature is one of the finest ornaments of Slavic literature, and this ornament is their most characteristic feature. In the West, folk literature disappeared long ago, breathing its last breath into the poetry of the Middle Ages. In contrast, here it partly even develops further…”. The themes of the volume include Slavic folk poetry and beliefs, poetry of spells and incantations, Christian legends in popular transmission, fairy tales, epic narratives, spiritual verses, and historical songs. The second volume presents the history of Russian literature from ancient times to the 19th century. The authors provide detailed accounts of all significant monuments of Old Russian and medieval literature, including “The Teachings of Vladimir Monomakh,” “The Lay of Igor’s Campaign,” hagiographies, Afanasy Nikitin’s “Journey Beyond Three Seas,” and the “Domostroy.” It also covers literature from the times of Peter and Catherine the Great, with separate chapters devoted to M.V. Lomonosov, A.I. Sumarokov, N.I. Novikov, D.I. Fonvizin, G.R. Derzhavin, and A.N. Radishchev.