Perception of the Genre of John Milton’s “Paradise Lost” in Russia in the 19th — Early 20th Centuries

The article attempts to systematize the ideas about the genre of John Milton’s “Paradise Lost” in Russia in the 19th — early 20th centuries. An analysis of the work’s genre designations in books and periodicals is conducted, and categorizing features of the genre that corresponded to the perception of the epic in the period under consideration are noted. It is established that the genre nominations of “Paradise Lost” contained in Russian criticism, journalism and literary studies of the 19th — early 20th centuries, as well as in numerous translated works that appeared in Russian, can be perceived within the framework of three thematic areas. The first direction includes works in which the genre of “Paradise Lost” is designated as “epic poem,” “poem,” “epos,” or “epopee.” Comparisons of Milton’s work with both Homer’s epic and with variants of the genre from the Middle Ages and the New Age (Dante’s “Divine Comedy,” T. Tasso’s “Jerusalem Delivered,” F. G. Klopstock’s “Messiah”) are characteristic; the relevance of “Paradise Lost” to the author’s time, conditioned by the reflection of his religious and socio-political views, is noted. The genre-forming feature is the “high/majestic” category. The second direction is made up of publications that emphasize the sacred nature of the work, its biblical plot and images. The genre of “Paradise Lost” is designated here as a “divine poem,” “Christian poem,” “religious poem,” “poem on a biblical theme,” “great poem about paradise” or “religious epic,” which constitutes evidence of the perception of the work through its Christian imagery. The third direction includes studies whose authors single out the dramatic component as genre-forming. In such cases, the poem is called “a work in epic form,” “whose plan has a dramatic foundation, rather than an epic one” (K. P. Zelenetsky), or a lyrical drama (Alexey N. Veselovsky).