Concept of “tea” in Russian culture

Abstract

The paper is devoted to the study of the literary functions of the concept of “tea” in Russian culture and the history of the formation of the conceptual framework associated with it and the representations demonstrating this concept. The paper considers the introduction of the concept of “tea” into Russian culture; reveals related meanings that have origins in both eastern (Chinese) and European culture. The material for generalization is the texts of Russian classical literature of the 19th century, reflecting different versions of the studied concept – the works of N. Karamzin, A. Pushkin, N. Gogol, A. Ostrovsky, L. Tolstoy, A. Chekhov and other authors. The main types of representations of the concept of “tea"” are revealed: tea as an “element of life”, “part of a meal”, “medicine and a source of strength”, “part of an alcoholic culture”, “"attribute of a calm life”, “attribute of secular reception”, “attribute of friendship”, “method of communication”, “means of stimulating reflection”, “method of intellectual rest”, “means of the dialogue of cultures”, etc., as well as some plot-driven and style functions of the concept. The repeated use of the concept of “tea” in the works of writers of the 19th century suggests that it is one of the significant symbols of Russian literature, which is reflected in the realistic (E. Antashkevich, E. Baryakin) and postmodern (V. Sorokin) texts of the past.