Although the topic of this article is primarily related to anthropology and, in particular, to anthropogenesis, art and its manifestations are still an extremely important part human society throughout its history. Art is an integral part of the human mind, and in primitive times it was it that formed what can be called the information space of those distant times. That's why I want to talk about the chronology ancient works art discovered on at the moment archaeologists.
Pebbles from Makapansgat.
This archaeological find is among the oldest known evidence of “inappropriate actions.” It is natural that our ancestors were concerned only with purely utilitarian things, issues related to survival. The activities that we now call art do not help in survival. However, in the Makapansgat Cave in what is now South Africa, an amazing pebble was discovered - a red, round pebble with natural holes that looked like a face. The pebbles were found among the remains of so-called Australopithecus africanus, which lived in South Africa between 3.5 and 2.5 million years ago. Australopithecines are the ancestors of humans so distant that they are united with us only by a common family - they and we are hominids (apes). Australopithecines were not even fully upright, not to mention intelligent, although they used the most primitive tools.
Australopithecus africanus. Reconstruction was carried out by Roman Evseev (1)
Scientists who examined the Makapansgata cave and, in particular, this funny stone, found that the rock from which it consists is not characteristic of that area, and was transported by ancient hominids to their site no less than 30 kilometers away.
Makapansgata Cave (2)
Although that pebble weighing about 250 grams cannot be called a work of art of the ancients, but in view of the fact that they moved it over such a significant distance, and its only natural feature is its resemblance to a face, we can conclude that this is what attracted our ancient ancestors. Despite the natural origin of the pebble, the representative of the ancient hominids treated it unnaturally and performed an inappropriate action with it, especially considering the fact that African australopithecus did not have bags and, especially, clothes with pockets in which all sorts of trinkets could be carried. Such a find shows that Australopithecines had some kind of artistic vision, the emergence of imagination and abstract thinking. Appearance in hominids artistic perception, of course, is associated with the development of the brain and visual system. As noted by anthropologist and candidate of biological sciences Stanislav Drobyshevsky, in his work on brain development primitive people: “The occipital lobe is primarily responsible for vision. Obviously, it was the evolution of the occipital lobe (of course, together with the frontal lobe) that made the development of visual images possible.”(3)
Head stones.
During excavations of various sites of ancient people, archaeologists discovered many stone artifacts resembling human heads or faces. The most famous are the stones from Olduvai (Tanzania, about 1.8 million years ago) and Pampau (Germany, about 400 thousand years ago). Of course, such finds could be considered simple pebbles that took this form by chance, but the abundance of artifacts of the same type near ancient sites allows one to judge that they were not accidental. Most likely, our ancestors saw in them the same thing as we do, so they were collected and, possibly, made. In addition, about 400 thousand years ago, literally manufactured monuments of symbolic thinking began to appear - various bones with notches applied to them in the form of parallel lines, and some kind of schematic ornament, sometimes reminiscent of human figures. All these finds, including the oldest from Tanzania, already date back to the time of the appearance of the first people, namely Homo habilis. Around the same time (about 1.9 million years ago), people began to use fire for cooking. It should be noted that there are so many finds from Olduvai and they were of such importance for science that an entire cultural layer was named after this place. The Olduvai culture is the most primitive stone-working culture and dates from 2.7 to 1 million years ago.
Stone heads from various places and times.
Bone with notches Paleolithic Venus.
In a later period (about 200 thousand years) the so-called Paleolithic Venus- the first man-made works of artistic activity, representing anthropomorphic stone figurines. These figurines depict women, hence the name “Venus”. The first figurine, Venus from Berekhat Rama (Dimensions: 3.5 by 2.5 by 2.1 cm) 150 - 280 thousand. The second - Venus from Tan-Tan (Dimensions: 5.8 by 2.6 by 1.2 cm .) has not yet been thoroughly analyzed, and giving its age would be risky. Although some incisions are clearly visible on both figurines, giving them a characteristic shape, their man-made origin is questioned by some archaeologists.
Venus of Berekhat Rama and Venus of Tan-Tan.
The first manifestations of art.
Subsequently, starting from about 85 thousand years ago, art began to firmly enter the life of ancient people (4). All kinds of jewelry in the form of beads made from shells, bones and teeth are found everywhere. These finds are mainly concentrated in South, North and East Africa, the birthplace of modern people, in particular, in Taforalt in Morocco and Blombos Cave in South Africa. It was then that the first burials of people with signs of ritual behavior were discovered - individual graves with certain symbolic things in them, for example, horns and jaws of animals in the hands of the dead from the burials of Qafzeh 11 and Skhul 5 (Israel, 90 thousand years ago). However, this is not a confirmed fact - there is no certainty that the dead were buried in this way, and not that these objects got there by accident, or that this was simply an error during excavations and further interpretation. In the same places, the first burial of two people in one grave, similar in antiquity, was discovered - a mother and child.
The first archaeological finds of ocher (a natural dye found in the form of stones of varying densities) in ancient caves date back to approximately 78 thousand years ago. And although, subsequently, ocher was widely used to make paint, there is no evidence that it was used for the same purposes even then. Ocher could also be used to tan hides, and applied to the skin to protect against insects. But there are finds of pieces of ocher with primitive patterns applied to it. However, wooden sticks with traces of powdered ocher are also found; apparently they were used to paint something. For it is difficult to imagine any other use for them.
Shell beads from Blombos Cave 
Ocher with ornament
Modern use of red ocher by Namibian girls
Neanderthal jewelry.
It should be noted that the bulk of the finds of that time relate to Africa. Neanderthals who lived in Europe and Asia had practically no signs of artistic activity, although they also made scratches on bones and stones (4). In a later period, Neanderthals also began to make beads from drilled teeth, but this was a very rare phenomenon, and it dates back to about 30 thousand years ago, i.e. already during the period when they coexisted with the Cro-Magnons for quite a long time.
Neanderthal beads Of interest is the “mask” from La Roche-Cotard (France). It is a piece of stone with a natural hole and a fragment of animal bone planted in it. In principle, this design may resemble a human face, but it is important to note that we are now judging from the point of view modern man, but it is completely unclear what the Neanderthals saw in this. Perhaps this find has nothing to do with artistic activity at all. Although it is hard to believe that this artifact appeared by chance as a result of some other action, since the bone inserted into the hole is fixed there with small stones.
"Mask" from La Roche-Cotard. In the left “socket” the same fixing stones are visible
But, despite the “neglect” of art, the Neanderthals developed their minds to a primitive understanding of ritualism and certain spiritual manifestations. Thus, at sites in the mountains of Switzerland and Yugoslavia, monuments called the “cult of bear skulls” were discovered - caches with skulls of cave bears. Meanwhile, Neanderthals still practiced burying their dead, although no utensils or burials of multiple people were found in their graves. The oldest burial discovered at Sima de los Huesos in Atapuerca (Spain) about 325 years ago (5). It was simply a deep shaft where corpses were thrown. This burial is called “hygienic” - presumably the shaft was used to remove corpses from the home, because animal corpses were also dumped there. However, characteristically, only the bones of predatory animals were found in the mine and not a single one of a herbivore. This hints that those who lived there associated themselves with predators. Neanderthals, in the period from 68-78 thousand years ago. they literally dug graves for each deceased (exclusively single ones) and sometimes even placed on them certain “monuments” in the form of stone slabs of uncharacteristic shapes or noticeable objects. But we cannot say that these were precisely monuments in our understanding. With the same success, these could just be marks about the location of the grave, so as not to accidentally dig it up in the future. By the way, they were buried in some kind of cemetery - a specially designated place, at a distance from the parking lot.
The origin of ancient painting.
The most famous monuments The artistic activity of ancient people is undoubtedly rock paintings. Of course, they look the most vivid and memorable, but at the same time, the oldest drawing from the Apollo 11 site in Namibia, in principle, is not that old. This small limestone slab with an image of some kind of animal, probably a predator, was originally dated to approximately 26-28 thousand years ago, but subsequent, more careful analysis showed that its age is 59 thousand years ago.
The oldest drawing from the Apollo 11 site in Namibia
Of course, looking at this drawing it is difficult to understand what exactly it depicts, but one cannot help but note the relatively good quality drawing - the artist clearly tried to maintain proportions and reflect the anatomical details of the depicted animal. Theoretically, the presence of some kind of painting in earlier periods cannot be ruled out, because ocher, the main dye of the ancients, was found at sites many tens of thousands of years earlier. But here material evidence this has not survived, or they have not yet been found.
Virtually all cave paintings were created by sapiens; the oldest, of course, are in Africa. In Europe, they begin to be found approximately 40 thousand years ago, from the moment of the migration of the first sapiens. The Neanderthals who lived there previously had no artistic inclinations. Recently found ancient drawing Neanderthals in caves in Spain near Malaga, dating back to 43 thousand years ago. This is according to New Scientist magazine (6), and it is important to note that this is not an official scientific article, so the age data is not official.
Drawing from a cave in Malaga
The article says it depicts seals. However, looking at this extremely primitive drawing, it is difficult to understand what it is, although some resemblance to seals is still visible. But the aforementioned Drobyshevsky, in his commentary article, doubts the involvement of Neanderthals in the drawing. He recalls that the first sapiens appeared in Europe around 42 thousand years ago. and they could well have been in Spain. In addition, sapiens, unlike Neanderthals, loved the sea and seafood. Neanderthals practically did not use such food. (7)
From about 30 thousand years ago Cave paintings are beginning to become almost commonplace for ancient people. Now we can observe a huge variety of such monuments of varying quality. It is noteworthy that sometimes we see very good works of art, which now could be called paintings, such as images of animals from the Chauvet Cave, (France, about 30 thousand years ago) where the use of composition and perspective is clearly visible. Or color paintings from Font-de-Gaume (France, about 17 thousand years ago), in which the unique style used by the artist is visible. At the same time, there are also much more “simple” drawings that a teenager or even a child could easily draw now, as in Kapova Cave (Bashkiria, 36 thousand years ago).
Chauvet Cave
Cave of Font-de-Gaume
Kapova Cave
In the motives of the ancient rock art There is also an interesting trend. Thus, in Europe, images of animals predominate. Whereas in Africa, images of humans and geometric shapes. At the same time, the main motif of the images are hunting scenes. There are also prints of human hands everywhere. There is also a ceremonial meaning in handprints, although perhaps this is only the simplest way to depict some relatively complex texture.
African cave paintings of hunting
Cueva de las Manos, Cave of Hands. Argentina, around 9000 BC
Of particular interest are those drawings that, oddly enough, were not intended for general attention. A lot of them were also found. Such drawings are made in deep and narrow crevices inside a cave, where sometimes a person can hardly fit.
Archaeologists Dirk Hoffman and Alistair Pike. On the left is assistant Gustavo Sanz Palomera.
Photo: Department of Education, Culture and Sports, Government of Cantabria, Spain.
The photo above shows researchers at the Arso Bi cave in Cantabria, Spain (8), studying one of these paintings. The photo clearly shows that the design on the vault would now be difficult to even photograph. It is completely unclear for what purpose such paintings were made. Perhaps they have to do with some kind of initiation rituals or something like that. Or it was really done “for oneself”, let’s say, as personal diaries are kept now.
Rock art existed actively for a very long time, until approximately the Bronze Age, and in some places until our era. However, even now, rock paintings are used in shamanic practices by various tribes of Indians and Africans.
Ships in the Laja Alta cave, Spain (estimated around 6000 BC)
Rock paintings from the Tassilien-Adjer plateau, Algeria. Dated to approximately 200-700 AD. These drawings belong to the "Camel Period" according to the periodization of rock art in Africa.
Man-lion and ancient sculptures.
But we must not forget about the development of sculpture, which was given very little space in this article. In general, its development progressed in a similar way, although it was associated with certain difficulties in processing hard materials, especially stone. Ancient sculptures, as well as drawings, were mainly carved images of animals, often made from mammoth tusks. Special attention It is worth paying attention to the figurine called “Lion Man” (9).
The Lion-man (German Löwenmensch, English Lion-man) is a figurine carved from mammoth tusk, found in the Swabian Alb near the city of Ulm, Germany. The age of the figurine is approximately 40 thousand years. The interesting thing about it is that it is the oldest discovered zoomorphic image. The 29.6 cm tall figurine is a cross between a man and a lion - an almost human body with a pronounced lion's head. Initially, researchers regarded the Lion Man as a man, but further research conducted by Elisabeth Schmid suggested that it was a woman. However, there is no objective data indicating the gender of the figure; all these assumptions are mainly of an ideological nature. As with the vast majority artwork ancient people, it is now impossible to establish its purpose, although it is easy to assume some kind of sacred meaning, a connection between man and nature, the mystical ideas of ancient people.
All these figures are united by one characteristic feature - pronounced genitals and breasts, as well as a large belly, possibly reflecting pregnancy; little attention is paid to the limbs and head, or they are absent altogether. Perhaps the most likely meaning of Venus is mystical - an amulet of fertility and fertility. Although, again, this is only an assumption, which may be contradicted by the fact that not absolutely all “Venuses” pay so much attention to feminine aspects.
It is also worth mentioning that during excavations in Hole Fels, next to the Swabian Venus, another interesting artifact was discovered - a bird bone with holes, most likely serving as a flute. The age of the flute is also about 35 thousand years. This is probably the most ancient musical instrument. However, this is a topic for a completely different story.
Swabian bone flute
In conclusion, it should be noted that, in principle, the title of this article is incorrect and is put here “for the sake of words.” Those monuments ancient culture, which were reviewed in this article, should not be called art. Art as such, in the form in which we understand it now. It would be correct to call it artistic activity. Now we can do no more than speculate about what they are, and most importantly, why they were made. Of course, they are the object of some kind of information plan, information exchange, development of perception and society. But if we talk about ancient monuments, then we do not have any confirmed data about what exactly it was. At the same time, many discoveries made quite a long time ago have not received confirmation. And others, after a detailed study, find themselves in a completely different place than previously thought. Often just plain garbage.
Most likely, the origins of that art, which is akin to what we understand, should be sought around the period of the Pre-Pottery Neolithic (about 12,000 years BC) and a little earlier, during the transition from hunting and gathering to a productive economy and settled life.
Despite the fact that we do not have a clear idea of the development of the imagination and culture of our distant ancestors, as well as the mind in general, even the existing picture is extremely interesting and vivid. Three million years ago, a humanoid creature found a small red stone with a face and carried it in his hand for thirty kilometers because it interested him.
And three million years later, we bring funny pebbles home from our walks. We also create amazing works of a wide variety of art, fly into space and develop artificial intelligence, actively seek ways to combat old age, and create amazingly destructive weapons.
Special thanks to Elena Marchukova for her help.
Materials:
1. http://other-worlds.ucoz.ru/
2. http://whc.unesco.org/en/list/915
3. General trends in the evolution of the human brain. Anthropogenez.ru (online resource) http://anthropogenez.ru/zveno-single/156/
Updated: September 22, 2018 by: Roman Boldyrev
Bazarova Yana
Ancient measures in works of art. Historical background. Ancient measures in proverbs and sayings.
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Ministry of Education and Science of the Republic of Belarus
Ivolginsky district
Municipal educational institution Suzhinskaya secondary school
Scientific and practical conference for primary school students
"First Steps"
Ancient measures in fiction.
Suzhinskaya secondary school of Ivolginsky district
Home address: With. Nurseleniya, 14 a
Phone: 89503825382
Supervisor: Tugutova Tuyana Leonidovna
Phone:89140526432
With. Suzha
2014
1. Introduction…………………………………………………………………………………...3 - 4
2. Main part. Ancient measures in works of art…4-9
2. 1. Ancient measures. Historical background…………………………...4
2.2. Ancient measures of length…………………………………4 -8
3. Conclusion………………………………………………………………………………9
3.1. Questionnaire “Do you know ancient measures?” for primary school students………………………………………………………8
3.2. Conclusions and results obtained…………………………………...8-9
4. List of sources and literature used………………….....10
5. Applications.
- Introduction
A thousand years ago, the Russian people had not only their own system of measures, but also state control over the measures. By the end of the 18th century, this system had become the only national system of measures in the world.
When I was little and couldn’t read, the fairy tales and stories that I listened to from my mother and grandmother were always understandable. The time has come, I became a reader, and then it appeared huge amount various questions.
Problem of my research work:
Not all the words I came across in the texts were familiar. Most- These are ancient measurements of length, weight, volume. As it turned out later, understanding these measures causes difficulties for many children. IN modern language we hardly use them. Only when reading works of fiction do we come across these concepts. But, nevertheless, we must know the meanings of the measures. After all, this is our story. I was interested in this topic, and I decided to seriously study the units of measurement of length, weight, volume, as well as monetary units, based on works of different genres. It’s not for nothing that the Russian saying folk proverb: “You can’t weave a bast without measure.”
In my opinion, the relevance The chosen topic is that it is still possible to learn about ancient measures only from specialized literature or from old people. This is very inconvenient, because quite often these measuring units are found at Russian language olympiads, where it is necessary to reveal the meaning of a given word; at mathematics competitions, difficulties arise when solving problems with such measurements. In addition, there is no single textbook or manual where ancient measures would be collected. Therefore, I decided to compile and print an illustrated dictionary of these words. This dictionary contains material that covers the meaning of the most commonly used units of measurement, as well as excerpts from works of fiction that I have read.
Target:
Explore the meaning and use of ancient units of length in works of art.
Tasks:
- Study and analyze ancient units of measurement in various sources;
- To trace how these dimensions or the words denoting them have been preserved in modern Russian;
- Systematize the information received;
- Compile a dictionary of ancient length measures.
I was prompted to do research work on the chosen topic by my acquaintance with proverbs, sayings, fairy tales, and original texts, which we work with in class, as well as outside of class.
The meaning of proverbs and sayings, texts in which these measures are found, remained unclear. I believe that ignorance of them would be a manifestation disrespectful attitude to the history of your country.
In our research work we turn to the following sources: explanatory dictionary of the Russian language, reference book on mathematics, encyclopedic dictionary in mathematics, phrasebook Russian language, works studied according to the program.
2. Main part. Ancient measures in works of art.
2. 1. Ancient measures. Historical information.
Most of the old measures have been forgotten and fallen out of use, but many of them are in literary works and historical monuments. The Mers lived, sometimes grew old and died, sometimes were reborn to a new life. The history of measures is part of the history of mankind.
In Rus', improvised household utensils were used as a unit of volume measurement. Basic Russian measures of volume of liquids -bucket, bottle, mug, cup, scale, barrel.
The Russian people used such weight measures aspood, half a pood, spool, steelyard, kad.
There were monetary measures in use:altyn, hryvnia, penny, half, nickel, half.
2.2. Ancient length measures.
Arshin - arshin measure came into use as a result of the development of trade with eastern peoples(from Persian arsh – elbow). It is equal to 71 cm 12 mm . He came to Rus' together with merchants from distant countries. Eastern merchants, measuring fabrics, did without any meters: they stretched the fabric over own hand, to the shoulder. That's what it was called measure by arshins.
Although the measure was very convenient, it had a significant drawback: unfortunately, everyone’s hands are different. The cunning merchants quickly realized that they needed to look for clerks with shorter arms: the same piece, but more arshins. But one day this came to an end. Selling “at your own yard” was strictly prohibited by the authorities. Only government-issued arshins were allowed to be consumed.
State arshin - a ruler, the length of someone’s hand, was made in Moscow, then copies were made from it and sent to all parts of Russia. To prevent the wooden arshin from being shortened, its ends were bound with iron and marked with a seal.
Tens of years are no longer measured in arshins, but this word has not been forgotten. We still find this measure of length in proverbs and sayings.
For example:
He sees three arshins into the ground! – about an attentive, perspicacious person from whom nothing can be hidden.
He measures to his own yardstick. Each merchant has his own arshin measures - about a person who judges everything one-sidedly, based on his own interests.
Arshin for a caftan, and two for patches.
Write about other people's sins arshin , and about our own - in lowercase letters.
Sits and walks as if arshin swallowed - about an unnaturally straightforward person.
On an arshin beard, but smart enough -about an adult but stupid person.
You write in arshin letters - very large.
A.S. Pushkin "The Tale of Tsar Saltan, of his glorious son and mighty hero Prince Guidon Saltanovich and Fr. beautiful princess Swans" -
Meanwhile how far away he is
It beats long and hard,
The time of birth is coming;
God gave them a son arshin.
On the back with two humps
Yes, with arshin ears.
F.I. Tyutchev -
You can't understand Russia with your mind,
Arshin cannot be measured.
To the poor animals;
There's less left underneath them arshin land wide...
Versta - Russian travel measure. Initially, the distance from one turn of the plow to another during plowing. Verst length 1060 m.
Kolomenskaya verst – “Big” is a humorous name for a very tall person. It dates back to the times of Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich, who reigned from 1645 to 1676
Boundary mile existed in Rus' until the 18th century. To determine the distance between settlements and for land surveying (from the word boundary - the border of land holdings in the form of a narrow strip). The length of such a mile 1000 fathoms, or 2.13 km.
This measure is often found in works of different genres.
Moscow is a mile away far away, but close to my heart- this is how Russian people characterized their attitude towards the capital.
Love is not measured by miles. A hundred miles is not a detour for a young man - distance cannot be an obstacle to love.From word to deed - whole verst.
Verstoy closer - a nickel cheaper. A mile away if you fall behind, you'll catch up by ten- even a small lag is very difficult to overcome.
You can see him a mile away - a well-known person.
To lie - seven miles to the sky and all through the forest.
Seven miles away They were looking for a mosquito, but the mosquito was on their nose.
From thought to thought five thousand verst
Hunter seven miles away goes to sip jelly
.
Stretch a mile , don't be simple.
Epics "Volga Svyatoslavovich" -
Here Volga turned into a bay aurochs with golden horns and ran towards the Indian kingdom: he made the first jump - for a mile away left, and disappeared with the second one from view.
Russian fairy tale "Fight on Kalinov Bridge» -
A six-headed snake rides out from Miracle Yudo,
how it breathes on all sides -
by three miles I burned everything with fire.
A.S. Pushkin “Winter Road” -
No fire, no black house
Wilderness and snow meet me.
Only miles striped
Come across one.
N.A. Nekrasov “General Toptygin” -
And the horses are even more afraid -
We didn't take a break!
Verst fifteen at full speed
Poor guys got away!
P.P. Ershov “The Little Humpbacked Horse” -
The little hunchback flies like the wind,
And almost on the first evening
Verst waved away a hundred thousand,
And I didn’t rest anywhere.
Vershok - an ancient Russian measure of length equal to the width of two fingers (index and middle).
Vershok equaled1/16 arshin, 1/4 quarter. In modern terms - 4.44cm . The name "Vershok" comes from the word "top".
In the literature we often encounter this measure.
For example:
Two inches from the pot, and already a pointer - a young man who has no life experience, but arrogantly lecturing to everyone.
She has Saturday through Friday for two an inch came out - about a sloppy woman whose undershirt is longer than her skirt.
P.P. Ershov “The Little Humpbacked Horse” -
At the end of three days,
I will give you two horses -
Yes, the same as today
There was no trace of it,
Moreover, I have the face of a horse, only three tall inch
On the back with two humps and arshin ears
Fathom (from squat – to reach something, to reach) dates back to the 11th century.
In everyday life there were different fathoms - flywheel and oblique. So,
Flywheel – the distance between the arms outstretched in both directions along the ends of the outstretched middle fingers; 1 fly fathom – 1m 76 cm.
Oblique – from the heel of the right foot to the tips of the fingers of the left hand extended upward, i.e. near 248 cm.
Sometimes they say about a person:“There is a slant in the shoulders fathom ".
Here are examples of the use of this measure in works:
You are an inch away from the truth (from service), and it is within an inch away from you. fathom.
N.A. Nekrasov “Grandfather Mazai and the Hares” -
Every minute the water was rising
To the poor animals;
There is less than an arshin of land left under them in width,
less fathoms in length.
The epic "Alyosha Popovich and Tugarin" -
I saw Tugarin Zmeevich.
Is he, Tugarin, three tall? fathom.
There is a red-hot arrow between the eyes.
Span (or span) - ancient measure length equal to approximately a quarter of an arshin, that is, a fourth of 71.1 cm. Simple calculations show that in a span there were about 18 centimeters.
The Old Russian “span” goes back to the common Slavic verb “five” - to stretch. Therefore, the following expressions occur:
Don't give up an inch - not to give even the smallest amount.
Seven spans in the forehead - about a very smart person.
Elbow – the distance in a straight line from the elbow to the end of the extended middle finger.
The cubit was widely used in trade as a particularly convenient measure. In the retail trade of canvas, cloth, and linen, the cubit was the main measure. No wonder they said:"He's as big as a fingernail, and his beard is as big as elbow ".
3. Conclusion.
- Questionnaire “Do you know the ancient measures?
23 students took part in the survey junior classes. The purpose of this work was to determine the level of awareness of the children on this issue, as well as to identify interest in the topic. The results of the work done are presented in the table, from which it can be seen that my peers do not know ancient measuring units well, so I would like to help them. I think that if you convince the guys that the importance of this topic is enormous and that it is interesting to work on it, then the next survey will show a different result.
- Conclusions and results obtained.
In my work I:
- I found works where these measures are mentioned and cited excerpts from them;
- showed the basic relationships between ancient and modern measures;
- I found illustrations that reveal this topic in the most accessible and understandable way.
As a result, I came to the following conclusions:
- materials collected in this dictionary, will help children work on works of different genres for a more complete understanding of their content;
- I think it would be right if in each grade, starting from the first, similar working dictionaries would be kept, where I would enter the measures found in the text, as well as excerpts from the work itself.
I want mine research work attracted the attention of many inquisitive schoolchildren, and became a necessary kind assistant for students in preparing for competitions, for Olympiads, and in working on projects. And those who show increased interest in mathematics, to literary reading, can find a lot of interesting and educational material here. This work brought me great pleasure.
List of sources and literature used:
- A.I. Molotkov. Phraseological dictionary of the Russian language. M.: “Russian language”, 1986. 543 pp.
- V. I. Dal. Dictionary Russian language. M.: Astrel, 2001
- E.A. Bystrova. Educational phraseological dictionary of the Russian language. M.: "AST-LTD", 1997. 304 pp.
- I. Depman. Measures and the metric system. - M.: Education, 1953
- Ozhegov S.I., Shvedova N.Yu. Explanatory dictionary of the Russian language. M. Azbukovnik, 1997
- A short encyclopedic reference book on mathematics. – M., 2003
- Proverbs. Sayings. Riddles. – M. Sovremennik, 1986
"The Little Man" is a literary character typical of the era of realism. Such a hero in works of art could be a minor official, a tradesman, or even a poor nobleman. As a rule, its main feature is low social status. This image is found in the works of both domestic and foreign authors. Subject little man occupies a special position in Russian literature. After all, this image received especially vivid expression in the works of such writers as Pushkin, Dostoevsky, Gogol.
The great Russian poet and writer showed readers a soul pure and unspoiled by wealth. Main character one of the works included in the cycle “Belkin’s Tale”, knows how to rejoice, sympathize and suffer. However, the life of Pushkin’s character is initially not easy.
It begins with the words that everyone curses stationmasters. famous story, without an analysis of which it is impossible to consider the topic “The Little Man in Russian Literature.” Pushkin portrayed a calm and happy character in his work. Samson Vyrin remained a good-natured and good-natured man, despite many years of hard service. And only separation from his daughter deprived him peace of mind. Samson can survive a difficult life and thankless work, but exist without the only thing in the world loved one he is unable to. The stationmaster dies of melancholy and loneliness. The theme of the little man in Russian literature is multifaceted. The hero of the story “The Station Agent,” perhaps like no other, is capable of arousing compassion in the reader.
Akaki Akakievich
A less attractive character is the hero of the story “The Overcoat”. Gogol's character - collective image. There are many like Bashmachkin. They are everywhere, but people do not notice them, because they do not know how to appreciate the immortal soul in a person. The theme of the little man in Russian literature is discussed year after year at school lessons literature. Indeed, thanks to a careful reading of the story “The Overcoat,” the young reader can take a different look at the people who surround him. The development of the theme of the little man in Russian literature began precisely with this semi-fairy-tale work. Not in vain great classic Dostoevsky once said famous phrase: “We all left the Overcoat.”
Until the middle of the 20th century, the image of a little man was used by Russian and foreign writers. It is found not only in the works of Dostoevsky, but also in the books of Gerhart Hauptmann and Thomas Mann.
Maxim Maksimovich
The little man in Lermontov's works is extraordinary personality suffering from inactivity. The image of Maxim Maksimovich is first encountered in the story “Bela”. Thanks to Lermontov, the theme of the little man in Russian literature began to serve literary device for a critical depiction of such vices social society, like genuflection, careerism.
Maxim Maksimovich is a nobleman. However, he belongs to an impoverished family and does not have influential connections. And therefore, despite his age, he still holds the rank of staff captain. However, Lermontov portrayed the little man as not insulted and humiliated. His hero knows what honor is. Maxim Maksimovich is a decent person and an old campaigner. In many ways, he resembles Pushkin from the story “The Captain's Daughter”.
Marmeladov
The little man is pitiful and insignificant. Marmeladov realizes his uselessness and uselessness. Telling Raskolnikov the story of his moral fall, he is hardly able to arouse sympathy. He states: “Poverty is not a vice. Poverty is a vice." And these words seem to justify Marmeladov’s weakness and powerlessness.
In the novel “Crime and Punishment,” the theme of the little man in Russian literature receives special development. An essay based on Dostoevsky's work is a standard assignment in a literature lesson. But, regardless of what name this written task has, it is impossible to complete it without first writing a description of Marmeladov and his daughter. At the same time, it should be understood that Sonya, although she is also a typical little person, is significantly different from the other “humiliated and insulted.” She is unable to change anything in her life. However, this fragile girl has enormous spiritual wealth and inner beauty. Sonya is the personification of purity and mercy.
"Poor People"
In this novel also we're talking about about "little people". Devushkin and Varvara Alekseevna are heroes whom Dostoevsky created with an eye on Gogol’s “The Overcoat”. However, the image and theme of the little man in Russian literature began precisely with the works of Pushkin. And they have a lot in common with Dostoevsky’s novels. The story of the stationmaster is told by himself. The “little people” in Dostoevsky’s novels are also prone to confession. They not only realize their insignificance, but also strive to comprehend its cause and act as philosophers. It is enough just to remember Devushkin’s lengthy messages and Marmeladov’s long monologue.
Tushin
The system of images in the novel “War and Peace” is extremely complex. Tolstoy's characters are heroes from the highest aristocratic circle. There is little insignificant and pathetic in them. But why is the great epic novel remembered when the theme of the little man is discussed in Russian literature? An essay-reasoning is a task in which it is worth giving a description of such a hero as from the novel “War and Peace”. At first glance, he is funny and clumsy. However, this impression is deceptive. In battle, Tushin shows his masculinity and fearlessness.
In Tolstoy's enormous work, this hero is given only a few pages. However, the theme of the little man in Russian literature of the 19th century is impossible without considering the image of Tushin. The characteristics of this character are very important for understanding the views of the author himself.
Little people in Leskov's works
The theme of the little man in Russian literature of the 18th and 19th centuries is explored to the maximum. Leskov also did not ignore her in his work. However, his heroes differ significantly from the image of the little man that can be seen in the stories of Pushkin and the novels of Dostoevsky. Ivan Flyagin is a hero in appearance and soul. But this hero can be classified as “little people.” First of all, because he faces many trials, but he does not complain about fate and does not cry.
The image of a little man in Chekhov's stories
A similar hero is often found on the pages of this writer’s works. The image of a little man is depicted especially vividly in satirical stories. The petty official is a typical hero of Chekhov's works. In the story “The Death of an Official” there is an image of a little man. Chervyakov is driven by an inexplicable fear of his boss. Unlike the heroes of the story “The Overcoat,” the character from Chekhov’s story does not suffer from oppression and bullying from his colleagues and boss. Chervyakov is killed by fear of higher ranks and eternal admiration for his superiors.
"The Victory's Celebration"
Chekhov continued the theme of admiration for superiors in this story. However, the little people in “The Triumph of the Victor” are depicted in a much more satirical light. The father, in order to obtain a good position for his son, humiliates himself with ingratiation and rude flattery.
But it is not only the people who express them who are guilty of low thoughts and unworthy behavior. All this is the result of the orders prevailing in the social and political system. Chervyakov would not have asked for forgiveness so zealously if he had not known about the possible consequences of his mistake.
In the works of Maxim Gorky
The play “At the Lower Depths” tells the story of the inhabitants of the shelter. Each of the characters in this work is a little person, deprived of the most necessary things for life. normal life. He is unable to change anything. The only thing he has the right to is to believe in the fables of the wanderer Luke. Sympathy and warmth are what the heroes of the play “At the Bottom” need. The author calls on readers to be compassionate. And in this his views coincide with the point of view of Dostoevsky.
Zheltkov
« Garnet bracelet" - a story about great love little person. Zheltkov once falls in love with a married woman, and he remains faithful to this feeling until last minutes of your life. There is an abyss between them. And the hero of the work “Garnet Bracelet” does not hope for a reciprocal feeling.
Zheltkov has characteristic features a small person not only because he occupies a low social position. He, like Bashmachkin, and stationmaster, is left alone with his pain. Zheltkov’s feelings serve as the basis for jokes and ironic sketches of Prince Shein. Other heroes are able to assess the depth of the “little man’s” suffering only after his death.
Karandyshev
The image of a little man has common features with similar heroes in the works of Dostoevsky and Chekhov. However, the humiliated Karandyshev in the play “Dowry” evokes neither pity nor sympathy. He strives with all his might to get into a society in which he is not welcome. And for the insults that he has endured for many years, he is ready to take revenge.
Katerina Kabanova also belongs to the category of little people. But these heroines are complete individuals, and therefore do not know how to adapt and dodge. Death for them becomes the only way out of the situation in which they find themselves due to the inertia of the social system.
The image of the little man in literature developed in the nineteenth century. However, in modern literature he gave way to other heroes. As you know, many foreign authors were influenced by Russian literature. Proof of this is the works of XX writers, in which there are often characters reminiscent of Chekhov’s and Gogol’s heroes. An example is Thomas Mann's Little Mister Friedemann. The hero of this short story lives his short life unnoticed and dies the same way, from the indifference and cruelty of those around him.
Traditionally in literary criticism it is customary to distinguish the following functions of things in literary text: cultural, characterological, plot-compositional. The thing may be a sign of the depicted era and environment. The culturological function of things is especially clear in travel novels, where different worlds are presented in a synchronous cross-section: national, class, geographical, etc. The culturological function of things in historical novel- a genre that was formed in the era of romanticism and strives to visually represent historical time and local color in its descriptions.
Things often become signs, symbols of a person’s experiences. Things also perform a symbolic function in everyday works. Gogol colorfully depicts the life of the Cossacks in “Evenings on a Farm near Dikanka.”
An item can serve as a sign of wealth or poverty. According to a tradition originating in the Russian epic, where heroes competed with each other in wealth, striking with an abundance of decorations, precious metals and the stones become this undeniable symbol.
The characterological function of things is no less important. In the works of N.V. Gogol shows the “intimate connection of things” with their owners. No wonder Chichikov loved to look at the home of the next victim of his speculation. “He thought to find in it the properties of the owner himself, just as one can judge from a shell what kind of oyster or snail was sitting in it” (“ Dead Souls" -- vol. 2, ch. 3, early ed.) Costume and interior, personal belongings help determine not only the era and social status, but also the character, tastes, and habits of the character. It is difficult to imagine Gogol’s heroes without their uniform tailcoats, and Oblomov without his usual robe.
IN literary work the thing acts as an element of the conditional, art world. And in contrast to reality, the boundaries between things and humans, living and nonliving, here can be unsteady. However, the writers sensitively grasped another facet in the relationship between a person and a thing: material value the latter can overshadow a person; he is assessed by society by how expensive things he owns.
Things can line up in a sequential row. IN " Dead souls“, for example, every chair shouted: “And I, too, Sobakevich!” But one detail can characterize a character. For example, a jar with the inscription “laceberry”, prepared by the caring hands of Fenechka (“Fathers and Sons” by Turgenev). Interiors are often depicted according to a contrasting principle - let us recall the description of the rooms of two debtors of the moneylender Gobsek: the countess and the “fairy of purity” seamstress Fanny (“Gobsek” by O. Balzac). Against this background literary tradition The absence of things can also become significant (the so-called minus device): it emphasizes the complexity of the hero’s character.
One of the common functions of things in a literary work is plot-compositional. Let us recall the ominous role of the scarf in the tragedy “Othello” by W. Shakespeare, the necklace from Leskov’s story of the same name, and the “queen’s slippers” from “The Night Before Christmas” by N.V. Gogol.
In addition to the three main functions of things described above, there are also more specific (private) functions described by A.P. Chudakov. We tried to present them briefly:
1. Things often serve as an introduction to the atmosphere of the work.
2. Things become a source of impressions, experiences, thoughts, and correlate with personal experiences and memory.
3. The thing becomes the subject of reflection and evaluation
4. Things become indirect signs of the character's evolution.
5. The item is capable of conveying the psychological state of the character.
6. Things in many ways appeal to an understanding of the very personal completeness of the character.
7. Things can act as a leitmotif.
So the thing is work of art performs three functions: cultural, characterological, plot-compositional. However, these functions should not be considered exhaustive and the only possible ones.
1) In which works of Leskov is the writer’s historicism manifested?
Leskov in his works shows historical eras In Russia, kings change, but the morals of society and the attitude towards ordinary people do not change. The writer was worried about the Russian people and the unfair treatment towards them.
The idea of the tale "Lefty" show the talent of the Russian people, the originality of the masters who can solve any problem. The authorities praised everything foreign, without seeing the “pearls” under their noses. The author raises the topic of patriotism, faith, when ordinary people were the embodiment of hard work, skill and unrequited service to their Fatherland.
"Man on the Clock" - battalion commander Svinin is not tormented by remorse that a person who committed a feat is punished, and what is important to him is not only public opinion, which saves his face, but also the approval of others, he is pleased with himself, he has settled the matter. Postnikov’s feat becomes a duty, only because of the origin of a private .Hypocritically, the ruler turns the holy feeling of compassion, the salvation of life into the fact that holiness is characteristic only of God, and for common people it is only a duty. The behavior of the powerful of this world emphasizes the vices of the time when tyrants were in power, headless military men carried out commands, the rank and file were weak-willed slaves, and the entire society as a whole had no right to think, but only to observe life indifferently.
Theme of the story by N.S. Leskov "The Enchanted Wanderer"-this is self-knowledge person, life path is a search for an answer to main question about the meaning of life, why a person lives on Earth. The story shows the life search of Ivan Severyanovich Flyagin, having gone through the “seven circles of hell”, he becomes a righteous man, finding the meaning of being in serving the people. Having received freedom, the former serf does not know what to do with it for a long time , wandering around the world, he is looking for his place in life.
2) What historical time do the characters in the story “The Old Genius” live in?
The historical time of the story is the second half of the 19th century. The actions take place in post-reform Russia, in St. Petersburg. Russia is in a severe crisis, the abolition of serfdom, the economy was undermined by the Crimean War. The legacy of Nicholas 1, the economy is in decline, the country is a backward power, lack of reforms and prohibitions on progress.
3) What problems of society are addressed in the work.
Leskov touches on the problems of the callousness of officials who cause the old lady suffering. The author denounces the bureaucratic system, which relies on ranks and titles. Nobody wants to get involved with the rich and powerful, except for the “old genius”. Ivan Ivanovich solves the old lady’s problem, he returns her debt, but he does it at the call of the Russian soul, huge and omnipotent. The people themselves, the craftsmen of the Russian land, stand up for the elderly man, who make the impossible possible. Leskov condemns bribes, the old woman tried to “grease up” the officials, but the amount is insignificant for them, the problem of bribes has always been acute in Russia. The author also touches on the gullibility of the Russian people, out of the kindness of her heart, taking her word for it, the old woman lends an unbearable amount and this almost leads to tragedy. The author shows the problem of taking her word for it as a national trait.
