AESOPIAN TRADITIONS IN UKRAINIAN LITERATURE OF THE FIRST HALF OF THE 19TH CENTURY

This article analyses the classical examples of fable writing by P. Hulak-Artemovsky, Ye. Hrebinka, L. Borovykovsky, and L. Hlibov within the context of the fable epic of antiquity and the early Ukrainian Enlightenment, particularly in relation to the works of H. Skovoroda. The study examines how writers of the first half of the 19th century adhered to the classical Aesopian canon while also demonstrating distinct and original characteristics in their short narrative genres. It is noted that the formative sources of modern Ukrainian literature – including oral folk traditions, the fable epic of antiquity, and the philosophically reflective works of H. Skovoroda on human nature – shaped its didactic and satirical content. Skovoroda’s Enlightenment ideas, such as the concept of "congenial labour," heartfelt love, and the detrimental nature of envy and the pursuit of wealth, align closely with the Stoic ideals of the ancient fabulists Aesop and Phaedrus. These ideals were expressed through a Stoic understanding of fate, a high regard for individual freedom, and an emphasis on self-restraint. The study compares the plots of Aesop’s fable The Bees, the Drones, and the Wasp and Phaedrus’s The Bees and the Drones Before the Wasp’s Court, tracing their reinterpretation in H. Skovoroda’s fable The Bee and the Hornet in light of the idea of "congenial labour." The article demonstrates how the Ukrainian Enlightenment fabulists implemented the ideas of ancient authors concerning wisdom and folly, adapted the didactic recommendations of the Roman poet Horace regarding literary creativity, and incorporated aspirations for individual freedom, particularly in the context of the potential abolition of serfdom. The study further explores the nature of humour in the works of Ukrainian Enlightenment writers, which, while not directly challenging the social foundations of life, nevertheless targeted parasitism, despotism, and the cruelty of the ruling class. The development of Phaedrus’s plot from The Mountain in Labour is traced in Ye. Hrebinka’s fable Mohylyni Rodyny (The Mohylynia Families). The fable writing of L. Hlibov, often referred to as the "Ukrainian Aesop," is analysed in terms of its creative assimilation of Aesopian narratives. Additionally, the article examines the significance of the concept of "Aesopian language" as a protective ideological tool against Russian censorship in 19th-century Ukrainian literature.