Acknowledgements: The work was completed with the support of the Russian Science Foundation, project no. 19-18-00186 «‘Culture of the Spirit’ vs ‘Culture of the Mind’: Intellectuals and Power in Britain and Russia in the Era of Change (17th — 18th Centuries)”

Abstract:

The literary topoi and allusions to the victim and sacrifice in the biblical and historical context at the same time played a great role for Andrey Kurbsky as a traditionalist and innovator writer in the embodiment of the complex author’s intention of the History of the Grand Prince of Moscow (the second half of the 16th century). The article notes that the writer distinguishes, as opposites, the axiology of sacrificial feat for power doer and persecuted heroes. The article reveals the diverse reception of the author’s interpretation by readers and scribes of History. Kurbsky’s contemporaries and readers of the late 17th — early 18th century had different attitudes toward Kurbsky’s definition of the personality of Ivan the Terrible who makes unrighteous victims and the characterization of people affected by him as new martyrs. The rich handwritten tradition of History, including as part of the Kurbsky Collections, contributed to the emergence of new reader’s interpretations based on literary topoi and allusions used by Kurbsky. The intellectuals of the ‘transitional’ period A.S. Matveev, Evfimy Chudovsky, A.I. Lyzlov, V.V. Golitsyn and others were involved in this process. Textological and typological comparisons of certain monuments and Kurbsky’s History contributed to a deeper understanding of the literary context of the time when the prince’s writings spread. The study also helped to determine which Kurbsky’s ideas about the victim and sacrifice remained relevant for members of different class groups, and which were leveled out and outdated in the text interpretation process.

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