Christian Imagery and Hymnography as the Sources of the 20th Century Ukrainian Poetry (Exemplified by the Works of Maksym Rylskyi and Ivan Franko)

Author

Prylepa Olesia

A Ph.D. in Art Studies, a research fellow at the Musicology and Ethnomusicology Department of M. Rylskyi Institute of Art Studies, Folkloristics and Ethnology of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine (Kyiv, Ukraine).

ORCID ID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8438-1589

Christian Imagery and Hymnography as the Sources of the 20th Century Ukrainian Poetry (Exemplified by the Works of Maksym Rylskyi and Ivan Franko)

Abstract

Some peculiarities of the connection between the poetry of Maksym Rylskyi and Ivan Franko and the traditional canonical liturgical culture, primarily Orthodox hymnography, are described in the article. It is proved that hymnography, as a bearer of Christian doctrine and theological imagery, has served as a powerful source of creative inspiration for the 20th-century poets, despite the ideological prohibitions.

The genres and forms of hymnography have been used as the models for creative expression within the boundaries of the canon. The poets have incorporated borrowings both in the form of concise lexical expressions – images and attributes of the Savior, the Most Holy Theotokos, the angelic world – as well as entire lines from traditional prayers that are well known in the Ukrainian liturgical tradition. Their creative reinterpretation within the framework of the author’s poetic vision has been carried out according to the foundations of the Christian worldview, while the forms of development aligned with the principles of evolution modeled after the canonical system of hymnography.

The following methods are used in the investigation: textual and source analysis to attribute and comprehend the place and significance of traditional Christian cultural artifacts in the poetry of M. Rylskyi and I. Franko; comparison to identify the principles of M. Rylskyi’s and I. Franko’s approaches to Christian primary sources, reflected in their poetic heritage.

Keywords

Maksym Rylskyi’s poetry, Ivan Franko’s poetry, Oleksii Dei, Christian spirituality, Orthodox hymnography, quotation, Church Slavonicisms.

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