Dostoevsky And The Image Of Frost In Russian Literature

Abstract

The article is dedicated to the study of the image of Frost (in Russian – Moroz) in the works of Dostoevsky and other writers of his time. Relating to the supreme gods of the pagan Slavic pantheon, Frost (hypostasis of Veles) occupies an important place in the pagan worldview, preserved in oral folk art. The attention to the folk mythology that arose in the 18th century and intensified during the time of Dostoevsky, expressed in folklore, attracted the attention of writers and philologists, whose works inevitably reflected the opposition of pagan mythology and the Christian worldview. Some writers, like Nekrasov and Ostrovsky, were captivated by the revival of the artistic possibilities of pagan mythology, while others, like Pushkin, Gogol, Dostoevsky, preferred Orthodox criticism of paganism which was being revived in the artistic work. The image of Frost was very popular in the course of this literary dispute. Confronting in particular Nekrasov with his poem "Frost, Red Nose" and Ostrovsky with his "spring tale" "The Snow Maiden", Dostoevsky opposes the revival of paganism in Russian literature and reminds the already raging, erring and losing the Orthodox faith Russian consciousness that there is a true God in the world, Christ, and frost is only one of the natural forces subordinate to Christ and called to awaken shame in society (the writer was aware of the root kinship of this word with “stud”, “stuzha” (“cold”), as Gogol had previously realized and emphasized such kinship in “The Overcoat”).