Information about the author:
Natalia V. Mikhalenko
Natalia V. Mikhalenko, PhD in Philology, Senior Researcher, А.M. Gorky Institute of World Literature of Russian Academy of Sciences, Povarskaya 25 а, 121069 Moscow, Russia.
ORCID ID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6200-6211
E-mail:
This study was carried out at IWL RAS with a grant from the Russian Science Foundation (project No. 22-18-00051), https://rscf.ru/project/22-18-00051/
Abstract:
Estate mythology in “Mystical Evenings. Notes of the society of lovers of autumn weather” by the memoirist, collector of rare books, participant of archaeological expeditions S.R. Mintslov is based on the writer’s deep knowledge of the way of landowner and peasant life of the 19th century, his immersion in the study of not only the history of this socio-cultural phenomenon, but also its literary reception. The plots of mystical stories cover various aspects of estate life. These are hunting legends, including happy escapes from danger, and cases at festivals and balls, and examples of friendly hospitality, and stories of mysterious ancient artifacts, and wedding legends. Old man, the memory of the past finds its rightful place here. Noble and peasant mythology are closely intertwined here, creating a kind of fusion that characterizes the feelings of a person living in nature and conditioned by its cycles.