Особенности русской сказочной драматургии первой половины XIX в.: к постановке проблемы

Abstract

The paper deals with the issue of forming of fairy tales artistic model in Russian drama. Currently, one considers dramatic fairy tale mainly in a general context of development of the author's literary fairy tale, although it has its own specifics. The study reviews some questions on the style and genesis of the Russian literary fairy tale for children in relation to the development of author's literary fairy tale as such. The author analyzes the influence of poetics of romanticism on the specifics of dramatic fairy tale, as well as the features of dramatic works by V. F. Odoevsky, who significantly influenced children's literature. His play “The Tsar-Maiden,” intended for children, is considered in comparison with a play by E.-T.-A. Hoffmann “Princess Blandina,” with similarities found in the system of characters, motif of matchmaking and some plot features associated with this motif. The fairy-tale play for adults “Segeliel or Don Quixote of the 19th century” analyzes the motifs of personified confrontation of good and evil and the interpenetration of magic and the ordinary, which was characteristic of romanticism in general and embodied both in other works of Odoyevsky and in later, mainly children's fairy-tale drama. The author suggests the possibility of influence of Odoevsky's plays on the development of children's drama. In both plays, we see the conventionality of artistic reality, resonating with humorous or ironic author's intonation. The paper also addresses I. A. Krylov's magical comic opera “Ilya Bogatyr,” revealing many characteristic features of Odoevsky's plays. At the same time, a distinction is made between Krylov's work and romantic direction, since the tradition of classicism is more clearly manifested in it. One may consider a reduction in pathos owing to humorous playing of heroic and mystical motifs as a feature of the comic opera. The analysis of these works allows us to formulate some characteristics of artistic model of the fairy-tale play, including conventionality of a fictional world, unexpected turns, personification of good and evil, unsteadiness of boundaries between the miracle and the ordinary, as well as humor and irony.