Theme and idea
The first thing that needs to be mentioned when preparing an analysis of Derzhavin’s “Monument” is the theme of the work. It consists in glorifying poetic creativity, as well as affirming the high purpose of the poet. The author likens the poems and odes that he wrote during his life to a wonderful monument. G. R. Derzhavin is the founder of autobiographical creativity in all Russian literature. He chose glory and greatness as the main theme of his works.
The theme of Derzhavin’s “Monument” - the immortality of poetry - is illuminated not only in this poem, but also in many other works of the poet. In them he reflects on the role of art in society. Derzhavin also writes about the poet’s right to popular love and respect. The main idea of the poem is that art and literature contribute to education and the spread of beauty in society. They also have the ability to correct vicious morals.
“Monument” of Derzhavin: history of creation
Derzhavin wrote his poem in 1795. It refers to the mature stage of the court poet’s work. At this stage, he was already summing up his life and work, comprehending the path he had traveled, trying to understand his place in literature, as well as the history of society. The work “Monument” was created by the poet based on Horace’s ode; it is its free interpretation. The main characters of Derzhavin’s “Monument” are the Muse and the lyrical hero. The poem is autobiographical. The image of the poet is not detached from everyday life, he is one with it.
History of writing
The poem “Monument” was written by Derzhavin in 1795, when 52-year-old Gavriil Romanovich served as president of the Commerce Collegium in St. Petersburg. He devoted a lot of effort to his work in a responsible position, but never forgot about the poetry he loved so much.
The work belongs to the mature stage of the poet’s work, when he began to take stock of not only his literary path, but also his entire life. Rethinking the experience gained, Gabriel Romanovich tried to determine his place in life, in society, in literature.
During his reflections, the court poet drew attention to Horace’s ode, which inspired him to write the poem “Monument,” which, in fact, became a free interpretation of the work of the same name by the ancient Roman poet. In his “Monument,” Horace shared the idea of the greatness of a true artist-creator. The theme of the immortality of the poet and his literary works was so close to Derzhavin that he became one of the first Russian authors who began to glorify his own talent and poetic glory.
Contents by stanza
The poet's poem consists of four stanzas. Let us continue the analysis of Derzhavin’s “Monument” by analyzing its content. The first stanza contains a direct description of the monument. The poet emphasizes its strength using a hyperbole comparison: “Metals are harder... higher than the pyramids.” This monument is not subject to the passage of time. And just from this description, an attentive reader can conclude that in reality the Derzhavin monument is intangible.
In the second stanza, the author asserts his own immortality and emphasizes that his poetry is nothing more than a national treasure. And in the third stanza the reader learns about how great the poet’s glory will be in the future. The fourth describes the reasons for this fame: “I dared to speak the truth with a smile in a funny Russian style.” The poet also turns to his Muse. The final lines of Derzhavin’s poem “Monument” express the poet’s independence from the opinions of others. That is why his work deserves true immortality. In his poem, the poet shows the lyrical hero as a proud, strong and wise man. In his work, Derzhavin foresees that many of his works will live even after his death.
“Monument” (Derzhavin): analysis of the poem
The first publication of the poem “Monument” (1795) by Derzhavin was published under the title “To the Muse. Imitation of Horace." The author thereby pointed to the Latin poet as a kind of source of his own poetic understanding of one of the eternal problems of literature: what remains in the memory of descendants after a poet or writer passes away? More broadly, this can be considered as a problem of death and immortality, overcoming the mortality of all living things with the help of creativity and preserving in the memory of descendants the soul of the poet, embodied in his works.
In the first stanza, the lyrical hero of Derzhavin’s poem admits that it is something like summing up, reflecting on the life path traveled, so the thought of a “monument” (what will remain after you) is quite natural for him. And he claims that he has “erected” a monument to himself, defining it as “wonderful, eternal.” These epithets are very ambiguous, because not every “miracle” is ultimately able to survive time and become part of the universe, gaining “eternity”, therefore, from the very beginning of the poem there is a feeling of solemnity, elation, and it is even more intensified by those comparisons with with the help of which the author asserts “eternity”, the indestructibility of the monument he created: “It is harder than metals and higher than the pyramids.” These and other images of the first stanza confirm the greatness of the “poetic monument” created by the poet.
Further, the lyrical hero of the analyzed poem explains that poetry can overcome “decay” (the image of death), because it is the embodiment of all the best that is in the human soul; perhaps, the very existence of a person is justified precisely by what is in him this “big part of me” - here the physical and spiritual principles seem to be combined, and the dominance of the spiritual in preserving everything that a person wants and can leave to his descendants is obvious. It is noteworthy that the lyrical hero connects his “glory” with his people, without which, obviously, his poetry itself would not exist: “And my glory will increase, without fading, as long as the Slavic race is honored by the universe.” In this form, Derzhavin affirms the inextricable unity of the poet and the people, the unity of their destinies.
The third stanza gives a quick sketch of the country, in the vast expanses of which “countless” peoples live, in which a poetic “monument”, the poet’s work, will be in demand. But the lyrical hero considers his main achievement to be that “from obscurity I... became famous.” Remembering the fate of Derzhavin, we must agree that such an “ascension” cannot but cause legitimate pride, especially since it did not happen on its own, but was the result of hard and honest work, high moral qualities, and defending one’s understanding of good and evil in very difficult conditions.
The fourth stanza of Derzhavin’s poem “Monument” is devoted to an explanation of what exactly the lyrical hero takes credit for. Here are the “virtues of Felitsa,” which he “was the first... to dare to talk about in a funny Russian style,” here is the “heartfelt simplicity” with which he “talks about God,” but the most important thing is the final line of the stanza. “And to speak the truth to kings with a smile,” this is what Derzhavin’s lyrical hero (or is it the author himself?) sees his main merit, this is what was most important for him. As we remember, Derzhavin himself rarely talked to the tsars “with a smile,” but the fact that he always tried to be honest in expressing his thoughts and feelings is undeniable. One can probably say that for Derzhavin the requirement of absolute truthfulness was the main one he made of poetry and poets, and the “truth” should have been spoken openly to everyone, because it, the truth, is the same for all of God’s creatures (“To Rulers and Judges” ), regardless of who they are on earth.
The last stanza is an appeal to the Muse, to poetry, which, according to the author, should first of all think not about how the results of her work will be perceived, but about the “dawn of immortality”, about creativity itself, because it is not subject to human judgment, she lives in the world of “eternity”... “Be proud of your just merit, And whoever despises you, despise those yourself,” - this is what, in Derzhavin’s opinion, the relationship between poetry and contemporaries should be, because only the author creates himself in his works, creates your own “monument” that can survive centuries.
Concluding the analysis of the poem “Monument” by Derzhavin, we note that in his interpretation of Horace’s ode, Gabriel Romanovich is original; he affirms his own understanding of the role and place of the poet and poetry in the life of society, assessing his own creativity from the standpoint of enlightenment, which goes back to universal moral values.
Source: Gladyshev V.V. Brief reference book on literature. — M.: FLINTA, 2014
“Monument” by Derzhavin: artistic means
In his poem, the poet openly addresses the readers. After all, only by serving the truth, a writer and artist acquires the right to originality and independence. The main idea that a student can mention in the analysis of Derzhavin’s “Monument” is this: the value of creativity lies in its sincerity. Sincerity is one of the main features of Derzhavin’s poetry.
The originality of the work is conveyed by the poet as follows:
- The size of Derzhavin’s “Monument” is iambic hexameter. With its help, the poet conveys a leisurely escape from the hustle and bustle.
- The sublime structure of his thoughts corresponds to the simplicity of the style, achieved through the use of pompous expressions and fairly economical literary means of expression. The poem uses cross rhyme. The genre of Derzhavin’s “Monument” is ode.
- The solemn sound of the work is given by the vocabulary of high style (“brow”, “proud”, “dared”).
- G. R. Derzhavin gives a majestic image of poetic inspiration through the use of numerous epithets and metaphors. His muse crowns herself with the “dawn of immortality,” and her hand is “leisurely,” “at ease”—in other words, free.
Also, for the sake of completeness of the literary analysis, it is necessary to mention the main images in Derzhavin’s “Monument” - the Muse and the lyrical hero. In the work, the poet addresses his inspiration.
Artistic means of expression
The creation of G.R. Derzhavina contains stilted intonation, vocabulary and a majestic but unhurried rhythm. To achieve this effect, Gabriel Romanovich used different means of expression:
- Pompous expressions: “proud”, “dared”, “decay”, “brow”.
- Epithets: “fleeting”, “eternal”, “wonderful”.
- Metaphors: “dawn of immortality”, “time’s flight”.
- Hyperbole: “it is harder than metals and higher than the pyramids.”
- Inversions: “and who will despise you.”
- Personifications: “no flight will crush time,” “no thunder will break.”
What exactly is the merit described in the “Monument”?
So, we can conclude that the poet’s merits lie in his ability to tell the truth to rulers unbiasedly and with a smile. In order to understand the seriousness of all these merits of Derzhavin, it is necessary to trace the path of his ascent to the poetic Olympus. The poet was mistakenly recruited as a soldier, although he was a descendant of impoverished nobles. The son of a widow, Derzhavin was doomed to serve as a soldier for many years. There was no place for poetic art in it. However, even then Gavrila Romanovich was visited by poetic inspiration. He diligently continued to educate himself and also write poetry. By coincidence, he helped Catherine become empress. But this did not affect his financial situation - the poet barely made ends meet.
The work “Felitsa” was so unusual that for a long time the poet did not dare to publish it. The poet alternated his appeal to the ruler with a description of his own life. Contemporaries were also amazed by the description of base matters in the ode. That is why in his poem “Monument” Derzhavin points out his merit: he “proclaimed” the “virtues of Felitsa” - he managed to show the ruler as a living person, to describe her individual characteristics and character. This was a new word in Russian literature. This can also be discussed in the analysis of Derzhavin’s “Monument”. The author's poetic innovation consisted in the fact that he managed to write a new page in the history of literature with a “funny Russian style.”
Composition
The composition develops smoothly and clearly. It could be called linear, but there is no plot, so there are no clear points of action.
Overall, the poem feels like a statement of one’s thoughts—clear, consistent, and precise. Each stanza resembles a thesis and its disclosure. A very interesting and unusual solution!
In the first stanza, the author talks about the monument and hopes that the people will never forget his legacy.
There is also one interesting detail: the Alexandria Pillar is a monument to Alexander I. Pushkin writes that his “monument not made by hands” rose even higher.
The astute reader sees a veiled challenge to the authorities with which the great poet never had a good relationship. And the head of the monument is “rebellious,” which once again emphasizes the freedom-loving, sincerity of Pushkin’s creativity.
The second stanza expresses hope, even confidence, that the name of the genius will remain for centuries. Memory outlives its creator and will be preserved in immortal texts until “at least one person is alive.”
The third stanza is dedicated to fame, its rapid spread throughout the country, and then to the world.
The fourth talks about freedom. About the fact that the lyrical hero, even in such a “cruel age,” became her singer, calling to be merciful to the fallen. The topic of freedom in general was very painful for the persecuted poet.
Finally, the fifth stanza is a kind of appeal to the Muse. Here the author fully reveals his views on the divine nature of creativity.
Each stanza is a logical development and completion of one specific thought. In this aspect, the work comes as close as possible to an oratorical one; it is not without reason that it goes back to Horace’s Exegi monumentum.
Fighter for truth
And one more merit, which is described in the poem “Monument” by Derzhavin, is the ability to “speak the truth to kings with a smile.” Despite the fact that he reached high ranks (Derzhavin was a governor, senator, and personal secretary of Catherine II), he did not stay in any position for a long time.
Derzhavin fought against embezzlers, constantly showed himself as a champion of truth, and tried to achieve justice. And these are the characteristics of the poet from the lips of his contemporaries. Gavrila Romanovich reminded nobles and officials that, despite their position, their lot was exactly the same as that of mere mortals.
Difference between Derzhavin and Horace
Of course, it cannot be said that Derzhavin’s work was devoid of pathos. However, the poet had the right to use it. Gavrila Romanovich boldly changed the plan that was laid down in the poem by Horace. He put the truthfulness of his work in first place and only in second place what, in the opinion of the ancient Roman poet, should be the focus of attention - the perfection of the poem. And the difference in the life positions of poets of two different eras is expressed in their works. If Horace achieved fame only because he wrote a good poem, then Gavrila Romanovich became famous for the fact that in the “Monument” he openly speaks the truth to both the people and the tsar.
Criticism of the poem
Derzhavin composed his poem “Monument” to exalt and praise Russian literature. Unfortunately, critics completely misinterpreted this work, and a whole barrage of negativity fell upon Gavrila Romanovich.
He faced accusations of boastfulness and excessive pride. Derzhavin recommended to his fierce opponents not to pay attention to the solemn style, but to think about the meaning inherent in the work.
Formal style
The poem is written in the genre of ode, but to be more precise, it is a special type of it. The work corresponds to a high, solemn style. Written in iambic with pyrrhic, it takes on even greater majesty. The work is filled with solemn intonations and sophisticated vocabulary. Its rhythm is slow and majestic. The poet can achieve this effect by numerous homogeneous members of the sentence, the technique of syntactic parallelism, as well as a large number of exclamations and appeals. A high style is created with the help of vocabulary. G. R. Derzhavin uses a large number of epithets (“wonderful”, “fleeting”, “eternal”). There are also a lot of outdated words in the work - Slavicisms and archaisms (“erected”, “decay”, “despise the brow”).
Meaning in literature
We looked at the history of the creation of Derzhavin’s “Monument” and analyzed the works. In the final part, the student can talk about the role of the poem in Russian literature. In this work, Gavrila Romanovich continues the tradition of summing up life's results, which was laid down by Lomonosov. And at the same time, the poet managed to stay within the canons of such creations. This tradition was continued in the work of Pushkin, who also turned to the original source, but also relied on Derzhavin’s poem.
And even after A.S. Pushkin, many of the leading Russian poets continued to write poems in the “monument” genre. Among them, for example, is A. A. Fet. Each of the poets himself determines the meaning of poetry in the life of society, relying both on the literary tradition and on his own creative experience.
History of creation
The theme of A. S. Pushkin’s poem “Monument” goes back to Horace’s ode “To Melpomene”; it is from it that the epigraph placed by the poet before the text is taken. The first translation of Horace's ode into Russian belongs to M. V. Lomonosov, later G. R. Derzhavin presented his version. Each poet did not simply translate the ancient text, but tried to express how he understands and sees the role of the poet and the meaning of the poetic gift.
Pushkin also offers his own version of this interpretation. He wrote the poem “Monument” in 1836, a few months before his tragic death, being in the most difficult conditions: the poet’s works are prohibited and subject to strict censorship, the public expresses dissatisfaction with his work, ill-wishers spread rumors about the infidelity of his young wife. The poet is going through a deep crisis, and there is a need to draw some conclusions. He draws ideas from the texts of his predecessors, but at the same time creates an original work that expresses his personal poetic and philosophical reflections.
The original of the poem was found after Pushkin’s death, and it was first published with minor edits by V. A. Zhukovsky in 1841.
