The Concept of Shakespeare’s Works in the Critical Literary Studies by Yu. N. Govorukha-Otrok

The authors analyze the Shakespeare studies by Yu. N. Govorukha-Otrok (1850–1896), an underrated literary and theater critic of the late 19th century. The article examines the principles of Govorukha-Otrok’s approach to Shakespeare’s legacy, defines the ideological principles of his criticism, highlights the main theses of his assessment of Shakespeare in the context of European and world literature, and recognizes his interpretation of Hamlet as a tragedy of the Christian era. Govorukha-Otrok characterized Shakespeare as a representative of the noble European culture inspired by Catholicism; he saw the consequences of this culture’s decline in modern times. The critic claimed that Shakespeare invented a new, Christian type of tragedy: the invincible fate is replaced by a conflict between skepticism and faith, which makes the hero, previously dependent on circumstances, independent and active. An important characteristic of Shakespeare’s work for the critic was the high Christian pessimism that provokes an endless search for the ideal, the type of pessimism opposed to Byron’s pessimism of despair and Chekhov’s everyday pessimism. For Govorukha-Otrok, Hamlet is the most striking example of Christian tragedy: the critic evaluates the key role of the appearance of the ghost, examines Hamlet as an active and conscientious character, a true philosopher who sincerely loves Ophelia and sends her to a monastery in all earnest because of his concern for her. Govorukha-Otrok’s interpretation presents an original view of Shakespeare’s work from the standpoint of Christian criticism.