Kings and kingdoms of the earth are the joy of genre affiliation. To help a schoolchild

The work that we will consider has a longer and more meaningful title: “Ode on the day of the accession to the All-Russian Throne of Her Majesty Empress Elizabeth Petrovna 1747.” It was written in honor of the most important holiday for the entire country. In this article we will look at what I wanted to say in my own - “Ode on the Day of Ascension”. A summary and analysis of this work will help us understand the scientist’s message. So let's get started.

Lomonosov, “Ode on the Day of Ascension.” Summary

In his work, the author glorifies the greatness of Russia, the riches of its lands and seas, happy villages, strong cities, and harvests. Then he moves on to the image of Elizabeth. Lomonosov describes her as beautiful, kind, generous, calm, having ended the war on Russian soil. He says that science is developing in peaceful Russia, and good times have come. All this is described using various metaphors and others with which Lomonosov’s ode “On the Day of Ascension” is full.

In the last part he returns to the “source of mercy” - Elizabeth. Lomonosov calls her the angel of peaceful years. He says that the Almighty protects and blesses her.

Analysis of M. V. Lomonosov’s ode on the day of the accession of Empress Elisaveta Petrovna

As readers have probably noticed, the author praises the empress for peacetime. However, it was not like that. This was the only way he tried to convey to the empress his opinion that Russia had enough of fighting, a lot of blood had been shed, it was time to enjoy peace.

Why is he writing about this? At that time, the question arose about whether Russia would participate in the war along with the countries that fought against France and Prussia. The author, like many others, is against this. He wants Russia to develop. Therefore, it can be said that his laudatory ode is political in nature, his own program for peace.

Nevertheless, the empress had merit. She began to conduct peace negotiations with Sweden. Lomonosov did not forget to note this moment in his song of praise (“Ode on the Day of Ascension”). The summary shows us how a scientist and writer praises Elizabeth for the development of science. This is due to the fact that in 1747 the Empress increased the amount of funds for the needs of the Academy. After this act, his famous ode was written by the scientist.

Techniques used in the work

The main literary device used in the ode is metaphor. Thanks to her, Lomonosov manages to beautifully exalt his country, its ruler, and call for peace and development. He calls peacetime beloved silence, war - fiery sounds.

Comparisons are also found in the work: “the soul of her marshmallow is quieter,” “the vision is more beautiful than paradise.”

Thanks to personification, Lomonosov animates various phenomena: “be silent... sounds”, “whirlwinds, do not dare to roar”, “Mars was afraid”, “Neptune was imagining”.

Why did the author choose such a genre as ode for his work?

Lomonosov was a true patriot of his country. He praised her in every possible way, rooted for her with all his soul. Many of his works were written in the genre of ode. This is due to the fact that this genre allowed him to glorify everything that seemed significant to him. After all, “ode” is translated from Greek as “song”. This genre helped Lomonosov use a majestic style and artistic techniques. Thanks to him, he was able to convey his view of the development of Russia. At the same time, he maintained the classicistic rigor of the language in his “Ode on the Day of Ascension.” The summary shows us how important the author was able to touch upon in his ode. Another genre would hardly have given him the opportunity to so eloquently convey his ideas and views to the ruler.

Conclusion

We have examined one of the best literary works written by M.V. Lomonosov - “Ode on the day of Elizabeth Petrovna’s accession to the throne.” The summary showed what topics the author touched upon, how he conveyed them, and what significance they had. We learned that Lomonosov was a patriot. He wanted the ruler Elizabeth to continue the work of her father: to engage in education and science.

We learned that the scientist and writer was against war and the shedding of blood. With the written ode, he managed to convey his views on the desired future of Russia to the empress herself. Thus, he wrote this work not just in honor of the annual celebration of the empress’s accession to the throne. To them, Lomonosov conveyed to the ruler his vision of the country's development.

Analysis of the ode by M.V. Lomonosov "On the day of the accession to the All-Russian throne of Her Majesty the Empress Elisaveta Petrovna, 1747."

One of Lomonosov’s most famous odes is “On the day of the accession to the All-Russian throne of Her Majesty the Empress Elizaveta Petrovna, 1747.” This ode amazes with the scale of its images, majestic writing style, rich and “lush” poetic language of the author, Church Slavonicisms, rhetorical figures, colorful metaphors and hyperboles. And at the same time, Lomonosov, throughout the entire ode, managed to maintain the classic rigor of construction: consistent iambic tetrameter, ten-line stanza and a single rhyme scheme (ababvvgddg).

Let us begin a detailed analysis of this ode from the first stanza.

Kings and kingdoms of the earth are a delight

Beloved silence,

The bliss of the villages, the city fence,

How useful and beautiful you are!

The flowers around you are full of flowers

And the fields in the fields turn yellow;

The ships are full of treasures

They dare to follow you into the sea;

You sprinkle with a generous hand

Your wealth on earth.

The ode is dedicated to the glorification of Empress Elizabeth Petrovna, but even before her appearance in the ode, the poet manages to express his main and cherished idea: peace, not war, contributes to the prosperity of the country. The ode begins with an introduction containing praise for this silence, that is, peaceful times that contribute to the prosperity of the state and the well-being of the people. Lomonosov paints a vast picture, as if he is observing all this from above. Everything that the author describes (villages, cities, earing grain fields, ships plowing the seas) is surrounded and protected by “beloved silence”; peace and tranquility reigns in Russia. Both in this stanza and in others, sound writing helps to create an image of silence: the author often uses words with the sounds sh, sh, s, k, t, p, x (ti w ina, blessed st in, P e st ray T, To la With s, With O To rovi sch, With s P le w b, etc.).

Great light of the world,

Shining from the eternal heights

On beads, gold and purple,

For all the earthly beauties,

He lifts his gaze to all countries,

But he doesn’t find anything more beautiful in the world

Elizabeth and you.

Besides that, you are above everything;

The soul of her zephyr is quieter,

And the vision is more beautiful than heaven.

In the second stanza, Lomonosov already introduces the image of Elizabeth herself, to whom this ode is dedicated. Drawing her portrait, he uses colorful comparisons (“the soul of her zephyr is quieter, and her vision is more beautiful than paradise”). And here you can also observe a very interesting author’s move in the author’s expression of his position. Beginning his ode with praise for silence, Lomonosov does not at all try to belittle the dignity of the empress, on the contrary, he glorifies her beauty and greatness, but at the same time he does not deviate from his initial thoughts (“you are above all else besides that”).

When she took the throne,

As the Most High gave her a crown,

Brought you back to Russia

Put an end to the war;

She kissed you when she received you:

I'm full of those victories, she said,

For whom blood flows.

I enjoy Russian happiness,

I don't change their calmness

The whole west and east.

In the third stanza, Lomonosov, to make the ode more solemn, calls the people of Russia “Russians.” He also uses words here such as “whom”, “current”, “calmness”, “having received”, “completely”, “enjoy”, which also give the sound of the lines solemnity, regularity, “pomp”. The sound design here is completely different than in the first stanza: not dull sounds are used, but voiced ones, and thereby a rhythm of solemnity is created ( To O gd a, t R O n, V e n e ts, V O yn e, etc.). Lomonosov in his ode reflects historical events, but he does not describe them completely, but only mentions them, weaving them into the ode itself. This stanza contains the following line: “she put an end to the war,” which says that, having ascended the throne, Elizabeth began peace negotiations with Sweden.

Befitting the divine lips,

Monarch, this gentle voice:

O how worthily exalted

This day and that blessed hour,

When from a joyful change

The Petrovs raised the walls

Splash and click to the stars!

When you carried the cross with your hand

And she took her to the throne with her

Your kindness is a beautiful face!

In the fourth stanza, Lomonosov again, with the help of rich metaphors and epithets, draws the image of the empress (“to the divine lips”, “the beautiful face of your kindness”). At the same time, he calls her “monarch,” and this word brings a new note of sound to the melodic and harmonious image of Elizabeth. Here we also find another “speaking” line: “when you carried the cross with your hand.” It says that, having appeared at the barracks of the Preobrazhensky Regiment, Elizabeth swore in the grenadiers. And already in this stanza Lomonosov mentions the father of the current empress, Peter I, who was his idol and whom the poet greatly revered (“when the Petrovs raised the walls out of joyful change”). And to show the emotionality of this stanza, its sublime and joyful mood, Lomonosov turns to exclamatory sentences for help.

So that the word can be equal to them,

Our strength is small;

But we can't help ourselves

From singing your praises.

Your generosity is encouraging

Our spirit is driven to run,

Like a swimmer's show-off, the wind is capable

The waves break through the ravines;

He leaves the shore with joy;

The food flies between the depths of the water.

In the fifth stanza, the poet continues to extol and praise Elisaveta Petrovna and writes that “we cannot resist singing your praises” and that the empress is for the people like the wind for a swimmer: she inspires and helps them. And when writing this stanza, Lomonosov again uses high-style words (“onym”, “generosity”, “wind”, “through”, “yars”, “breg”, “subsoil”).

Be silent, fiery sounds,

And stop shaking the light;

Here in the world to expand science

Elizabeth did so.

You impudent whirlwinds, don’t dare

Roar, but meekly divulge

Our times are wonderful.

Listen in silence, universe:

Behold, the lyre is delighted

The names are great to say.

The sixth stanza is very emotional and tense in its sound. Lomonosov refers to abstract phenomena, such as sounds (“be silent, fiery sounds”), wind (“you impudent whirlwinds, do not dare to roar”) and even the universe (“listen in silence, universe”). He orders them to be silent and listen to Elizabeth, who deigned “to expand science here in the world.” You can understand why this stanza is one of the most emotional in the ode. Lomonosov writes here that the Empress commands science and education in Russia, but Lomonosov himself was one of the prominent and significant scientists of that time and this topic was more than close to him.

Terrible with wonderful deeds, Mars was afraid in the bloody fields,

The creator of the world from time immemorial His sword in Peter’s hands was in vain,

Decided with his destinies And with trembling Neptune imagined,

Glorify yourself in our days; Looking at the Russian flag.

He sent a Man to Russia, The walls were suddenly fortified

What has been unheard of since ages. And surrounded by buildings,

Through all the obstacles he raised the Doubtful Neva advert:

The head crowned with victories, “Or have I now forgotten

Russia, trampled upon by rudeness, and bowed from that path,

He raised him to the skies. Which I flowed before?"

In the seventh stanza, Lomonosov already fully introduces the image of Peter into the ode and continues to reveal it in the eighth stanza. He writes about the emperor and calls him “Man,” but he uses this word with a capital letter, thereby showing his respect for Peter I. And in order for this image, so revered by the poet, to be worthy of a great emperor, to be bright and colorful and sublime, Lomonosov turns to ancient classical mythology. In his lines, Peter is higher than Mars and Neptune themselves (“In the bloody fields, Mars was afraid, his sword in Peter’s hands was in vain, and Neptune seemed to tremble, looking at the Russian flag”). Lomonosov praises Peter for his military successes, for the creation of the navy, as well as for the construction of St. Petersburg, and here he uses an interesting move: he writes about this as if on behalf of the Neva (“Or have I now forgotten myself and bowed down from the path that I previously did I flow?") and thus uses personification here. The paths of these two stanzas are distinguished by their festive, jubilant character. And greatness here is also given by such words as “creator”, “from time immemorial”, “obstacles”, “crowned”, “trampled”, “fortified”, “surrounded”, “doubtful”, “this”.

Then the sciences are divine

Through mountains, rivers and seas

They extended their hands to Russia,

To this monarch saying:

"We are ready with utmost care

Submit in the Russian gender new

Fruits of the purest mind."

The monarch calls them to himself,

Russia is already waiting

It is useful to see their work.

In the ninth stanza, the poet writes about what is closest to him - about the sciences. Here he uses personification: the sciences turn to the monarch: “With extreme care we are ready to present the fruits of the new purest mind to the Russian race.” He also creates here the image of Russia, which is looking forward to “it will be useful to see their works.” For a more sublime image of the sciences, Lomonosov calls them “divine”; he also uses here words such as “this”, “thoroughness”, “new”, “useful”.

But ah, cruel fate! In so much righteous sadness

A worthy husband of immortality, their path was doubtful;

The cause of our bliss, And only the marching desires,

To the unbearable sorrow of our souls Look at the coffin and at the deeds.

The envious one is rejected by fate, But meek Catherine,

He plunged us into deep tears! There is only one joy in Petra,

Having filled our ears with sobs, He accepts them with a generous hand.

The leaders of Parnassus groaned, Oh, if only her life would last,

And the muses saw off with a cry Long ago Sequana would have been ashamed

Into the heavenly door, the bright spirit With his art before the Neva!

In the tenth and eleventh stanzas, Lomonosov writes about one of the saddest events of his time - the death of Peter I. He speaks of the emperor with great respect and in the most flattering terms (“a worthy husband of immortality, the cause of our bliss”). Drawing the grief that Peter's death brought to everyone, Lomonosov writes that even the muses on Parnassus groaned. Aren’t these lines proof that Peter was one of the poet’s favorite rulers, whom he revered very much? In the eleventh stanza, Lomonosov continues to grieve for the emperor, but here there is no such sadness as in the previous one. It also talks about Catherine I, the wife of Peter. And Lomonosov writes about its merits. And here he mentions Sequana, a famous Parisian university of that time, and regrets that Catherine was unable to complete her undertakings, otherwise St. Petersburg could have surpassed Paris. In these two stanzas there are exclamatory sentences, and it is they that carry the greatest emotional load. And for greater “pomp” and solemnity, words such as “fate”, “fate”, “groaned”, “heaven”, “blessed”, “little”, “doubtful”, “only” are used here.

Which lordship surrounds is worthy of great praise,

Is Parnassus in great sorrow? When the number of your victories

Oh, if in agreement there is a rattle, a warrior can compare the battles

Pleasant strings, sweetest voice! And he lives in the field all his life;

All the hills are covered with faces; But the warriors are subject to him,

Cries are heard in the valleys: His praises are always involved,

Great Peter's daughter And noise in the shelves from all sides

The father's generosity exceeds, the sounding glory drowns out,

The muses' contentment aggravates And the thunder of trumpets disturbs her

And fortunately he opens the door. The lamentable groan of the vanquished.

In the twelfth and thirteenth stanzas, Lomonosov no longer sadly remembers Peter, he writes about the one whom the great emperor left behind - about his daughter Elizabeth. He shows her as a great blessing for Russia, as a continuator of Peter’s reforms and initiatives, places great hopes on her and extols her above Peter himself (“the great Peter’s daughter exceeds her father’s generosity”). To make the stanzas more sonorous, the words “tolkoy”, “sweetest”, “daughter”, “opens”, “sounding” are used here.

This is your only glory, So much of the earth's space

Monarch, belongs, When the Almighty ordered

Your vast power is your happy subject,

Oh how he thanks you! Then I opened the treasures,

Look at the high mountains that India boasts of;

Look into your wide fields, But Russia demands that

Where is the Volga, Dnieper, where the Ob flows; By the art of approved hands.

The wealth hidden in them will cleanse the vein of gold;

Science will be frank, and the stones will feel the power

What blooms with your generosity. Sciences restored by you.

From the fourteenth stanza the ode enters its main part. And the fourteenth stanza is inextricably linked in meaning with the fifteenth. Here Lomonosov immediately moves completely to the image of the one to whom this ode is dedicated - to the image of Elizabeth. He paints a picture of a rich, vast and prosperous country that thanks the empress for her wise and fair rule (“This glory belongs to you alone, monarch, oh how your vast power thanks you!”). In order to strengthen this image of the greatness and power of the monarchine-educator, Lomonosov uses words such as “this”, “extensive”, “look”, “these”, “so much”, “citizenship”, “restored”.

Although the everlasting snows are unknown to many mortals

The northern country is covered, nature works wonders,

Where the wings of frozen boreal trees Where the density of the animals is cramped

Your banners flutter; There are deep forests

But God is between the icy mountains, where in the luxury of cool shadows

Great for its miracles: On the flock of galloping trees

There Lena, a pure rapid, did not disperse the catchers;

Like the Nile, the people will be given water by the Hunter where he did not aim his bow;

And Bregi finally loses, The farmer knocks with an ax

Comparing the width of the sea. Didn't frighten the singing birds.

In the fifteenth and sixteenth stanzas, Lomonosov continues to paint the image of Russia, making it more and more broad. He writes about the snow with which “the northern country is covered”, about the “icy mountains” among which the Lena flows, which the poet likens to the Nile - one of the deepest and richest rivers in the world. He also mentions the dense, dense Russian forests, where no human has yet set foot. This whole picture of Russia is so broad and majestic that it is even difficult for the human imagination to imagine it. To create this majestic image, Lomonosov uses colorful epithets ("everlasting snow", "northern country", "frozen wings", "icy mountains", "pure rapids", "deep forests", "cool shadows", "leaping fir trees") .

Wide open field

Where should the muses stretch their path!

To your magnanimous will

What can we repay for this?

We will glorify your gift to heaven

And we will put up a sign of your generosity,

Where the sun rises and where is Cupid

Spinning in the green banks,

Wanting to come back again

To your power from Manzhur.

In the seventeenth stanza, Lomonosov glorifies Elizabeth, and he expresses this not only on his own behalf, but also on behalf of the entire people and the entire country (“we will glorify your gift to heaven”). He paints an image of Cupid, who wants to return from the Manzhur Empire to Russia, and thereby emphasizes the scale and greatness of our country.

Behold the gloomy eternity, where the darkness of the islands is sown,

Hope opens to us! The river is like the ocean;

Where there are no rules, no law, Heavenly blue blankets,

Wisdom there builds the temple; The peacock is put to shame by the corvid.

Ignorance pales before her. There are clouds of different birds flying there,

There the wet path of the fleet turns white, Which exceeds the motley

And the sea strives to yield: The clothes of tender spring;

Russian Columbus through the waters, feeding in fragrant groves

Hastens to unknown nations and floating in pleasant streams,

Proclaim your bounties. They don't know harsh winters.

In the eighteenth and nineteenth stanzas, Lomonosov writes about the achievements of Russia, namely about the “Russian Columbus” - Vitus Bering, who was a famous Russian navigator and explorer. Lomonosov, speaking about Bering, creates a general picture of foreign countries and uses rich epithets for this ("heavenly blue", "gentle spring", "in fragrant groves", "in pleasant streams", "the severity of winter").

And behold, Minerva strikes

To the top of Rifeyski with a copy;

Silver and gold are running out

In all your inheritance.

Pluto is restless in the crevices,

What the Russians are putting into their hands

His metal is precious from the mountains,

Which nature hid there;

From the brilliance of the daylight

He turns away his gaze gloomily.

In the twentieth stanza, Lomonosov writes about Russia's mining successes in the Urals ("Rifean peaks"). And in this stanza he uses the images of the gods of ancient mythology: Minerva and Pluto. And in order to fully show how important this is for Russia, the poet uses such high-style words as “se”, “verkhi”, “copy”, “serebro”, “zlato”, “rossam”, “dragoy” ", "nature", "disgustes".

O you who await

Fatherland from its depths

And he wants to see them,

Which ones are calling from foreign countries,

Oh, your days are blessed!

Be of good cheer now

It’s your kindness to show

What can Platonov's own

And the quick-witted Newtons

Russian land gives birth.

The twenty-first stanza is one of the most famous stanzas not only of this ode, but of Lomonosov’s entire literary work. It contains a call to the younger generations: to show “that the Russian land can give birth to its own Platos and quick-minded Newtons.” For greater emotionality, Lomonosov uses a rhetorical exclamation, as well as words such as “encouraged”, “care” and uses the names of famous scientists (Plato, Newton).

Sciences nourish youths,

Joy is served to the old,

In a happy life they decorate,

In case of an accident they take care of it;

There's joy in troubles at home

And long journeys are not a hindrance.

Science is used everywhere

Among the nations and in the desert,

In the noise of the city and alone,

Sweet in peace and in work.

In the twenty-third stanza, Lomonosov writes about the benefits of science and it should be noted that for this stanza Lomonosov translated into verse an excerpt from Cicero’s speech in defense of the poet Archius. This stanza contains many epithets (“in a happy life”, “in an accident”, “in domestic difficulties”, “in distant travels”, “in the noise of the city”). These epithets are not as colorful as in the previous stanzas, but they depict the everyday life of people and this only increases the importance of the sciences.

To you, O source of mercy,

O angel of our peaceful years!

The Almighty is your helper,

Who dares with his pride,

Seeing our peace,

To rebel against you with war;

The creator will save you

In all ways I am without stumbling

And your life is blessed

It will be compared with the number of your bounties.

In the last, twenty-fourth stanza, Lomonosov again turns to Elizabeth, calling her “the angel of our peaceful years.” He again mentions the time of peace, which he sees as the cause of the empress, and the generosity and love of the empress herself for the people.

“Our literature begins with Lomonosov... he was its father, its Peter the Great,” defined V.G. Belinsky, the place and significance of the work of the outstanding Russian educator, scientist, naturalist Mikhail Vasilyevich Lomonosov in the history of Russian literature. He became not only a reformer of Russian versification, but also the author of wonderful poetic creations that formed a special page of Russian poetry.

Perhaps now we are not very interested in those statesmen to whom Lomonosov’s poems are addressed, and for some the name of Elizaveta Petrovna, to whom his ode, written in 1747, is dedicated, is completely unfamiliar. But the thoughts and feelings of a great man, citizen and patriot, a tireless explorer and discoverer of the unknown in the natural world, are something that has not lost its value to this day and will probably remain so forever.

What does Lomonosov write about in his ode, titled, as was customary in poetry of the 18th century, very ornately: “Ode on the day of the accession to the All-Russian throne of Her Majesty the Empress Elizabeth Petrovna, November 25, 1747”?

The composition of the ode, in accordance with the requirements of classicism, is distinguished by its logical harmony. Each of the main topics receives its own justification and detailed development, each new thought logically follows from the previous one.

Like any solemn ode, in accordance with the rules of classicism, this poem begins with a majestic glorification of the world:

Kings and kingdoms of the earth are a delight,

Beloved silence,

The bliss of the villages, the city fence,

How useful and beautiful you are!

A natural continuation of this majestic picture is the praise of Elizabeth, who ensured the prosperity of the country primarily by bringing peace to it - after all, during her reign the wars that Russia had been waging for a long time actually stopped:

When she took the throne,

How the Supreme One gave her a crown,

Brought you back to Russia

Put an end to the war.

Sent a Man to Russia

What has been unheard of since ages.

Through all the obstacles he ascended

The head, crowned with victories,

I will trample Russia under barbarism,

Raised with me to the skies,

Lomonosov, like Pushkin later, considered Peter I a great reformer, an enlightened monarch and a brilliant military leader - a true national hero. Talking about him, the poet resorts to personifications associated with images of ancient mythology. For example, Mars and Neptune serve as symbols of the concepts of war and the elements of the sea. This imagery, along with the widespread use of Slavicisms, rhetorical questions, exclamations and appeals, creates a particularly solemn “high” style of the ode, corresponding to the subject of its depiction. This is very clearly visible in the description of Peter 1, his military victories that strengthened the power of Russia:

In the bloody fields Mars was afraid,

Petrov’s sword is in vain in his hands,

And with trepidation Neptune seemed to wonder.

Looking at the Russian flag.

For Lomonosov, as for Pushkin, Peter I is also the great builder of the northern capital, which opened up new paths of development for Russia:

The walls are suddenly fortified

And surrounded by buildings,

Doubtful Neva advertisement:

“Or am I now forgotten?

And I bowed down from that path,

Which I flowed before?”

It is quite logical after this description that the idea develops that under Peter 1

...divine sciences Through mountains, rivers and seas,

They extended their hands to Russia...

Concluding the story about Peter 1 with a description of his tragic death, Lomonosov moves on to the next part of the poem: he again turns to modernity and expresses the hope that Elizabeth will follow the example of her father and begin to patronize the sciences, promote the strengthening and prosperity of Russia. He wants to see Elizabeth as an enlightened queen who cares about the good of the fatherland, and further in his ode he presents her with a kind of “action program” that should ensure the further development of the country.

Calling on Elizabeth to be the patroness of education, sciences and crafts, Lomonosov shows that the country where she reigns is amazingly beautiful and has inexhaustible natural resources:

Look at the mountains above,

Look into your wide fields,

Where is the Volga, Dnieper, where the Ob flows;

Wealth is hidden in them,

Science will be frank,

What blooms with your generosity.

Let us turn to the analysis of one of Lomonosov’s best odes, “On the day of the accession to the All-Russian throne of Her Majesty the Empress Elizaveta Petrovna, 1747.” The term “ode” (from the Greek “ωδή, which means song) became established in Russian poetry, thanks to Trediakovsky, who, in turn, borrowed it from Boileau’s treatise. In the article “Discourse on Ode,” Trediakovsky described this genre as follows: “In ode material that is always and certainly described is noble, important, rarely tender and pleasant, in very poetic and magnificent speeches." Despite the hostility towards his literary opponent, Trediakovsky gave a definition of the genre, essentially based on Lomonosov's poetic experiments. This is exactly what Lomonosov's ode is. She addressed thematically to “noble and important matter”: peace and tranquility in the country, the wise rule of an enlightened monarch, the development of domestic sciences and education, the development of new lands and the prudent use of wealth in old lands.

Lomonosov developed in practice and approved for decades to come the formal characteristics of the genre, or, in other words, its poetics. In the ode we encounter large-scale images; a majestic style that raises the described pictures above the everyday; “lush” poetic language, rich in Church Slavonicisms, rhetorical figures, colorful metaphors and hyperboles. And at the same time - the classicist rigor of construction, the “harmony of verse”: consistent iambic tetrameter, ten-line stanza, unbreakable flexible rhyme scheme ababvvgddg.

Let's start analyzing the text from the first stanza:

The joy of kings and kingdoms of the earth, Beloved silence, The bliss of villages, the fence of cities, Since you are useful and beautiful! Around you the flowers are colorful and the fields in the fields are turning yellow; Ships full of treasures dare to follow you into the sea; With your generous hand You scatter Your wealth across the earth.

As if from a bird's eye view, the poet surveys villages, cities, eared grain fields, ships plowing the seas. They are all covered and protected by “blessed silence” - there is peace and quiet in Russia. The ode is dedicated to the glorification of Empress Elizabeth Petrovna, but even before her appearance in the ode, the poet manages to express his main and cherished idea: peace, not war, contributes to the prosperity of the country. The Empress, who enters the ode in the next stanza, turns out to be, according to artistic logic, derived from this all-encompassing peaceful silence (“The soul of her zephyr is quieter”). A very interesting move! On the one hand, the poet maintains the parameters of the laudatory genre (“nothing in the world can be more beautiful than Elizabeth”). But on the other hand, from the first lines of the work he firmly outlined his author’s position. And then the poet’s lyrical voice, and not a projection onto the image of the empress, will more and more clearly lead the development of the narrative. The dominant role of the lyrical hero in the ode is an undoubted artistic achievement of Lomonosov in this traditional classic genre.

Lomonosov strives to adhere to the compositional norms of the genre, that is, the principle of constructing an odic poem. The introductory part states the subject of the chanting and the main idea of the work (though, as we have seen, the poet swapped them). This is the thesis. The main part substantiates and proves the stated thesis about the greatness and power of the glorified subject. And finally, the conclusion (or ending) gives a look into the future, into the further prosperity and power of the glorified phenomena. The norms of classicism are rationalistic, therefore one compositional part of the work strictly and consistently follows the prescribed other.

The introductory part, or, as it is also called, the exposition, occupies twelve stanzas in this Lomonosov ode. The poet glorifies Elizabeth against the background of her predecessors on the throne, strictly following one after another. In the royal portrait gallery, the father of the current ruler, Peter I, is especially highlighted. This is the idol of the poet. It is clear to the reader from the detailed and highly pathetic characterization of Peter that it was from him that his daughter took over the baton of great deeds.

From the fourteenth stanza the ode enters its main part. The idea expands, and its artistic implementation suddenly begins to exhibit new, unconventional features. The lyrical pathos moves from the dynasty of rulers to the majestic image of the Fatherland, to its inexhaustible natural resources, enormous spiritual and creative possibilities:

This glory belongs to You alone, Monarch, Your vast power, Oh, how it thanks You! Look at the high mountains, Look at your wide fields, Where the Volga, the Dnieper, where the Ob flows; The wealth in them is hidden, Science will reveal, That blooms with Your generosity.

This is where there is scope for the inspiration of the lyrical hero! The virtues of “beautiful Elizabeth” are gradually fading into the background. The poet's thoughts are now occupied with something else. The very thematic direction of the ode changes. And the author himself is now not just a copyist. He is a patriotic scientist who draws readers' attention to pressing problems for Russia. The development of science will help to master the riches of the North, the Siberian taiga and the Far East. Russian sailors, with the help of cartographers, discover new lands, paving the way to “unknown peoples”:

There the wet path of the fleet turns white, And the sea strives to give way: Russian Columbus through the waters Hastens to unknown nations to proclaim Your bounties.

Pluto himself, the mythical owner of underground wealth, is forced to give in to the mineral developers of the Northern and Ural (Rifean) mountains. Let us remember, by the way, that Lomonosov perfectly studied the mining business:

And behold, Minerva strikes the top of Rifeyski with a spear. Silver and gold flow through all your inheritance. Pluto is restless in the crevices, That Ross is given into his hands Dragging his metal from the mountains, Which nature hid there; From the brilliance of the daylight He turns away his gloomy gaze.

And yet, the main thing that will bring Russia into the ranks of world powers is, according to the poet, new generations of people: educated, enlightened Russian youths devoted to science:

O you, whom the Fatherland expects from its depths, And desires to see such, Whom it calls from foreign countries, Oh, your days are blessed! Dare, now encouraged, to show with your zeal that the Russian land can give birth to its own Platos And quick-witted Newtons. Sciences nourish young men, serve joy to the old, decorate them in a happy life, protect them in an unfortunate event; There is joy in difficulties at home And in distant travels there is no hindrance, Sciences are used everywhere: Among peoples and in the desert, In the city garden and alone, In sweet peace and in work.

The topic of the decisive role of science and education in the development of the country was stated, as we remember, by Cantemir. Trediakovsky served science with his creativity and his whole life. And now Lomonosov perpetuates this theme, puts it on a poetic pedestal. Exactly so, because the two stanzas just quoted are the culmination of the ode, its highest lyrical peak, the pinnacle of emotional animation.

But the poet seems to come to his senses, remembering that the ode is dedicated to an official event: the annually celebrated date of the empress’s accession to the throne. The final stanza again directly addresses Elizabeth. This stanza is obligatory, ceremonial and therefore, I think, not the most expressive. The poet effortlessly rhymes the boring word “without stumbling” with the epithet “blessed”:

To you, O Source of mercy, O Angel of our peaceful years! The Almighty is a helper to him who dares with his pride, seeing our peace, to rebel against you in war; The Creator will preserve you in all your paths without stumbling, and will compare your blessed life with the number of your bounties.

Clearly not the best stanza! Let's try to pose the question as follows: if the genre of the classicist ode is an expression of certain political and state views, then in Lomonosov's ode whose views are these to a greater extent, the empress or the poet himself? In answering this question, the third stanza is especially important. In it, Elizabeth is presented as a peacemaker who stopped all wars for the sake of peace and happiness of the Russians:

When She ascended the throne, As the Most High gave her a crown, She returned You to Russia, Put an end to the war; Having received you, she kissed you: “I am full of those victories,” she said, “For which blood flows.” I enjoy Ross's happiness, I do not exchange their peace for the whole West and East.

But in reality, Elizabeth was not a peacemaker at all! The warlike ruler conceived new and new campaigns on the borders of the Russian state. Military battles placed a heavy burden on the families of Russian working people. How little did the real Elizaveta Petrovna correspond to the ideal of the ruler of the country that is recreated in the work! And what a person one had to be not just brave, but daring, to praise the empress for a foreign policy opposite to the one she established in relation to military actions! With his ode, Lomonosov told Elizaveta Petrovna that Russia needs peace and does not need war. The pathos and style of the work are peacemaking, and not invitingly aggressive. The stanzas become beautiful and magnificent in terms of the abundance of expressive means when the poet addresses the theme of peace together with the sciences and demands that the “fiery”, that is, military, sounds fall silent:

Be silent, fiery sounds, And stop shaking the light: Here in the world, Elizabeth deigned to expand science. You impudent whirlwinds, do not dare to roar, but meekly divulge Our beautiful names. In silence, listen, universe: Behold, the delighted Lyra wants to say great names.

Lomonosov's metaphors are especially colorful. Metaphor (in Greek metaphora´ means transfer) is an artistic technique that combines different phenomena or objects into one image, transferring the properties of these different objects to each other. Because phenomena or objects are compared within the image, it receives additional emotional and semantic meanings, its boundaries are expanded, the image becomes three-dimensional, bright and original. Lomonosov loved metaphors precisely for their ability to connect disparate details into a coherent grandiose picture, to lead to the main idea of the work. “Metaphor,” he noted in his “Rhetoric” (1748), “ideas appear much more lively and more magnificent than simply.” Lomonosov's artistic thinking was essentially, as they would say now, synthesizing.

Here is one example of Lomonosov's metaphor. The fifth stanza from the ode “On the Day of Ascension...”:

So that the word can be equal to them, the abundance of our strength is small; But we cannot refrain From singing Your praises; Your generosity encourages Our spirit and directs us to run, Like a capable wind in a swimmer’s show-off, The waves break through the ravines, He leaves the shore with joy; The food flies between the depths of the water.

Most of the space in this stanza is occupied by a complex and florid metaphor. More often, metaphors are several words or one sentence long. Here you are amazed at the scale of the metaphorical image. To isolate it, you will have to think carefully about the text. Before us is an exquisite compliment to the Empress. The poet complains that he does not have sublime words equal to the virtues of Elizabeth, and nevertheless, he decides to sing these virtues. At the same time, he feels like an inexperienced swimmer who has dared to swim alone “through the raging waves” of the “pont” (that is, the Black Sea). The swimmer is guided and supported along the way by a “capable”, that is, tailwind. In a similar way, the poetic spirit of the author is ignited and guided by the remarkable deeds of Elizabeth, her “generosity.”

To convey the greatness and scope of thought to the ode, Lomonosov had to resort to difficult turns of phrase. In his "Rhetoric" he theoretically substantiated the legitimacy of the "decoration" of the poetic syllable. Each phrase, obeying the high odic style, should give rise to a feeling of pomp and splendor. And here, in his opinion, even inventions are commendable: for example, such “sentences in which the subject and predicate are combined in some strange, unusual or unnatural way, and thus constitute something important and pleasant.” G.A. Gukovsky figuratively and accurately spoke about this poet’s desire for both colorful splendor and harmonious harmony: “Lomonosov builds entire colossal verbal buildings, reminiscent of Rastrelli’s huge palaces; his periods, by their very volume, by their very rhythm, give the impression of a gigantic rise of thought and pathos. Groups of words and sentences symmetrically located in them seem to subordinate the immense elements of the present and future to human thought and the human plan.”

The splendor and splendor of the poetic style help Lomonosov to recreate the powerful energy and colorful clarity of the paintings described. For example, in an ode from 1742 there is a surprisingly vivid picture of a military battle, in the center of which is the personified image of Death. The contemplation of this image gives me goosebumps:

There the horses with stormy feet soar thick ashes to the sky, There Death between the Gothic regiments Runs, furious, from rank to rank, And the greedy jaw opens, And stretches out cold hands, Their proud spirit is snatched away.

And what wonderful horses with “stormy legs”! You can’t express yourself like that in ordinary speech, but you can in poetic speech. Moreover, the “stormy legs” of the horses, flying thick dust to the sky, is almost a cosmic image. Carried out along a very thin poetic blade. A little to the side, and everything will break into absurdity.

Half a century later, the innovative poet, founder of Russian romanticism V.A. Zhukovsky, describing a special state of mind inspired by the twilight descending in rural silence, will write: “The soul is full of cool silence.” He will amaze his contemporaries with an unprecedentedly bold combination of words. "Can silence be cool!" - strict critics will reproach the poet. But Lomonosov was the first in Russian poetry to resort to bold combinations of words and concepts in his metaphorical style!

“Our literature begins with Lomonosov... he was its father, its Peter the Great,” as defined by V.G. Belinsky, the place and significance of the work of the outstanding Russian educator, scientist, naturalist Mikhail Vasilyevich Lomonosov in the history of Russian literature. He became not only a reformer of Russian versification, but also the author of wonderful poetic creations that formed a special page of Russian poetry.

What does Lomonosov write about in his ode, called, as was customary in poetry of the 18th century, very ornately: “Ode on the day of the accession to the All-Russian throne of Her Majesty the Empress Elizabeth Petrovna, November 25, 1747”?

Like any solemn ode, in accordance with the rules of classicism, this poem begins with a majestic glorification of the world:

Kings and kingdoms of the earth are a delight,

Beloved silence,

The bliss of the villages, the city fence,

How useful and beautiful you are!

When she took the throne,

How the Supreme One gave her a crown,

Brought you back to Russia

Put an end to the war.

Sent a Man to Russia

What has been unheard of since ages.

Through all the obstacles he ascended

The head, crowned with victories,

I will trample Russia under barbarism,

He raised him to the skies.

Lomonosov, like Pushkin later, considered Peter I a great reformer, an enlightened monarch and a brilliant military leader - a true national hero. Talking about him, the poet resorts to personifications associated with images of ancient mythology. For example, Mars and Neptune serve as symbols of the concepts of war and the elements of the sea. This imagery, along with the widespread use of Slavicisms, rhetorical questions, exclamations and appeals, creates a particularly solemn “high” style of the ode, corresponding to the subject of its depiction. This is very clearly visible in the description of Peter I, his military victories that strengthened the power of Russia:

In the bloody fields Mars was afraid,

Petrov’s sword is in vain in his hands,

And with trembling Neptune imagined,

Looking at the Russian flag.

For Lomonosov, as for Pushkin, Peter I is also the great builder of the northern capital, which opened new paths of development for Russia:

The walls are suddenly fortified

And surrounded by buildings,

Doubtful Neva advertisement:

“Or am I now forgotten?

And I bowed down from that path,

Which I flowed before?”

It is quite logical after this description that the idea develops that under Peter I

...divine sciences

Through mountains, rivers and seas,

They extended their hands to Russia...

Concluding the story about Peter I with a description of his tragic death, Lomonosov moves on to the next part of the poem: he again turns to modernity and expresses the hope that Elizabeth will follow the example of her father and begin to patronize the sciences, promote the strengthening and prosperity of Russia. He wants to see Elizabeth as an enlightened queen who cares about the good of the fatherland, and further in his ode he presents her with a kind of “action program” that should ensure the further development of the country.

Calling on Elizabeth to be the patroness of education, sciences and crafts, Lomonosov shows that the country where she reigns is amazingly beautiful and has inexhaustible natural resources:

Look at the mountains above,

Look into your wide fields,

Where is the Volga, Dnieper, where the Ob flows;

Wealth is hidden in them,

Science will be frank,

What blooms with your generosity.

The further logic of the development of thought is quite obvious: unfolding before the reader’s eyes a grandiose landscape of a gigantic country, washed by seas and oceans, stretching from the distant North, through the mountains of the Urals (“the tops of Rifeyski”), the expanses of the Siberian taiga to the Far East and the Amur, which “is on the green banks is spinning,” the poet argues that such a country cannot be left in the darkness of ignorance. To develop its natural resources, educated people are required, and therefore he further calls:

Oh you who are waiting

Fatherland from its depths,

And he wants to see them,

What calls from foreign countries!

Be of good cheer, now you are encouraged,

Show with your speech,

What can Platonov's own

And the quick-witted Newtons

Russian land gives birth.

This logic of development of poetic thought allows the author to complete his ode not only with the traditional praise of Elizabeth, but also with a genuine hymn in honor of science:

Sciences nourish youths,

Joy is served to the old,

In a happy life they decorate,

Take care in case of an accident;

There's joy in troubles at home

And long journeys are not a hindrance.

Sciences are used everywhere -

Among the nations and in the desert,

In the noise of the city and alone,

Sweet in peace and in work.

These words about science are known to everyone, even to those who are not very familiar with the work of Lomonosov the poet. They reflect the position of modern society and man in the best possible way, and therefore can serve as a kind of emblem of our time, when science has received unprecedented development. We can say that the dream of the great scientist and poet has gone astray: Russia has proven that it is truly capable of giving the whole world “its own Platos and quick-witted Newtons.” And Moscow State University, which occupies one of the first places in the world, rightfully bears the name of Mikhail Vasilyevich Lomonosov.