Brifley is my native land. Dmitry Likhachev - native land. Cultural monuments are national property

Today we will get acquainted with the chapters from Likhachev’s book “Native Land”. In the course of joint reasoning, let us answer the question: how are a person and the land on which he lives connected? We will also consider a new literary genre - the genre of journalism.

Why is this genre interesting? Why has it become so popular in recent decades?

Motherland, Fatherland, native land, filial fidelity... These, I hope, are sacred concepts for each of us, not only today and not only the current generation are connected with the Motherland, Motherland is a timeless concept, it unites us all into a great, powerful family.

We have a thousand years of history behind us, the Motherland is our grandfathers and great-grandfathers, it’s all of us now living, adults and children, the Motherland is also a special corner, that cherished, native land where we were born. Russian nature, Russian history, Russian art, the Russian word connect the past and the present, without which a living connection between generations and times is impossible. The chapters of the book D, S are imbued with sincerity, love for the native land, its past, present and future, for people. Likhachev "Native Land".

— At home, you read the introductory article of the textbook, what does it say?

The scientist tells how his fate unfolded, shares the experience of his life, his thoughts. This is an autobiographical story, a memoir.

Likhachev is the author of numerous studies on ancient Russian literature, one of the outstanding scientists of our time, literary critic, public figure, expert on the Russian word. He has done a lot to preserve and develop the culture of our country.

The scientist’s personality is multifaceted: before Likhachev, ancient Russian literary monuments were studied primarily as historical sources. He showed that the literature of Ancient Rus' is a special artistic world, Old Russian literature D, S. Likhachev considers it as an integral part of our culture. In the scientist’s books and articles, the distant past comes to life and real historical events are captured.
Likhachev was born on November 28, 1906 in St. Petersburg in the family of an engineer, died on September 30, 1999. Almost the same age as the century, he was and remains a symbol
intelligence, spirituality of Russia, he is often called a man of the era, a man of legend.

D.S. Likhachev is a man whose name is known on all continents, an outstanding expert on not only domestic but also world culture, elected an honorary member of many foreign academies, the author of 500 scientific and about 600 journalistic works. 2006 was declared by the President of the Russian Federation Putin as the Year of Likhachev.

Likhachev - a man whose name went beyond the boundaries of planet Earth: July 13, 1984
year, the name “Likhachev” was assigned to a minor planet of the Solar System NQ 2877 and included in the International Planetary Catalog.

— Let’s return to Likhachev’s article. What distracted the scientist from pursuing academic science?

— What are spiritual values, as stated in the author’s introductory speech?

This is a kind of spiritual capital of humanity, accumulated over millennia,
which not only does not depreciate, but, as a rule, increases. We are talking primarily about moral and aesthetic values. They are rightfully considered the highest, because they largely determine human behavior.

For moral values, the main question is the relationship between good and evil, the nature of happiness and justice, love and hate, the meaning of life.

Spiritual values ​​are good customs, traditions, ideas about the good and the beautiful, as well as language, literary works that raise a person above the ordinary and show him the ideal.

— What do you think about the meaning of the title of the book “Native Land”?

Let us pay attention to how the scientist explains the meaning of the word “earth”. We read: “The word “earth” in Russian has many meanings. This is the soil, and the country, and the people (in the latter sense, the Russian land is spoken of in “The Tale of Igor’s Campaign”), and the entire globe. In the title of my book, the word “earth” can be understood in all these senses.”

—What can a person do for his land?

We read: “The earth creates man. Without her he is nothing. But man also creates the earth. Its preservation, peace on earth, and the increase in its wealth depend on man.”

The book “Native Land” is compiled in the form of letters about good things and is addressed to the younger generation.

— Tell me, what questions and topics for conversation with young people seem to be the most important to the scientist? Why are his observations interesting?
Student answers:
- What is a sense of life? What brings people together?
- How to be cheerful, but not funny?
- Should I be offended?
- True and false honor.
- A person must be intelligent.
— About bad and good influences.
- The art of making mistakes.
- How to say? How to perform? How to write?
- Love to read! Learn to learn!
- Travel!
— Learn to understand art.
— About Russian nature and landscape painting, the nature of other countries.
— Gardens and parks. Monuments of art.
— About memory and monuments of the past.
- Know how to notice the beauty of our cities and villages.

— About the art of words and philology.
— As you can see, each chapter deserves attention and thoughtful reading, serves as a reason for conversation and reflection about problems that are significant and important to each of us.

I think these chapters can also be called parting words for teenagers starting to live.

The word “literary scholars” (let’s clarify the lexical meaning of words, targeted homework).

Spiritual parting words - words, wishes for those setting off on a journey, as well as general teaching and advice for the future. Spirituality is a property of the soul consisting
in the predominance of spiritual, moral interests over material ones.

And here we involuntarily remember the lesson, parting words of one of the first writers of Rus', which we read at the beginning of the school year. Remember!
— “Teaching” by Vladimir Monomakh (1053-1125).

- When did he write his teaching? (As he put it, “on a long journey, sitting on a sleigh,” that is, at the end of his life, being wise with great political and life experience.)

— What kind of person was Vladimir Monomakh?

(This is a sincere, noble, “humanely minded person, always thinking about the good of his state.” He calls for goodness, mercy, enlightenment. “The Teaching” of Vladimir Monomakh has long been a favorite reading in Rus'.)

— Is it possible to call the book “Native Land” close to “Teaching”?

(The author of this book, like the prince of Ancient Rus', is an elderly, wise, authoritative person. The advice that can be obtained by reading this book concerns almost all aspects of life. This is a collection of wisdom, the speech of a benevolent teacher, whose pedagogical tact and ability to speak with students is one of his main talents.)

— What are the similarities between Vladimir Monomakh’s “Instruction” and Dmitry Likhachev’s appeal to young people?

(Kind, smart instructions, advice, unobtrusive teachings.)
- I’ll add. It is interesting that both in Vladimir Monomakh’s “Teaching” and in Likhachev’s reflections, the complex topic of a person’s moral choice takes the form of a simple, confidential conversation about how to find harmony with the world around us.

In the book “Native Land,” the scientist generously shares with young readers his thoughts on what seems important to him: the meaning of life, friendship, culture.

Now let’s get acquainted with Likhachev’s judgments expressed in individual chapters of his book, included in the textbook (accent reading): “Youth is all life”, “Art opens up a big world for us”, “Learning to speak and write”
sat."

- “Youth is all life.” What are the main provisions of the article?. (The scientist recalls that as a schoolboy it seemed to him: “... when I grow up, everything will be different. I will live among some other people, in a different environment... But in reality it turned out differently...)

- How did it turn out? What did the scientist want to say, what to warn about?

- “My reputation as a comrade, a person, a worker remained with me, passed into that other world that I had dreamed of since childhood, and if it changed, it did not start anew at all...”

— What examples does the author give to confirm this?

- Remembers his parents. “I remember that my mother’s best friends until the end of her long life were her school friends, and when they left for the “other world,” there was no replacement for them. It’s the same with my father—his friends were friends of his youth.”

— Why didn’t Likhachev’s parents find replacements for their friends who had passed away?

“As an adult, it was difficult to make friends. It is in youth that a person’s character is formed, and the circle of his best friends is formed - the closest, the most necessary.”

The formation of character occurs gradually; tastes and views are determined during the period of study at school and university. And in this case, it is important to choose a circle of friends.

— How do you understand the saying: “Take care of your honor from a young age”? (Let us also remember the wise
sayings: “What tender childhood is taught, even decrepit old age cannot abandon”, “What goes around comes around”
A completely unusual chapter: “Don’t be funny.” 8 it says “about the form of our behavior, about what should become our habit and what should also become our internal content.”

— Let’s try to figure out what is important to know and do in order not to be funny.
(To be able to maintain dignity, not to impose one’s sorrows on others, to be friendly, to be able to listen, to be able to remain silent, to be able to joke, but at the right time; not to be intrusive even with one’s friendly feelings, not to be tormented by one’s physical disabilities; to respect others, to be truthful; not to be funny in the way he dresses.) This, it turns out, is a great and real art that helps to live in society.

Do you agree that in order not to be funny, you need not only the ability to behave, but also intelligence?

— Let’s read again Likhachev’s statements: “Intelligence is not only in knowledge, but in the ability to understand another. It manifests itself in a thousand and a thousand little things: in the ability to argue respectfully, in the ability to quietly (precisely imperceptibly) help another, to take care of nature, even in the habit of behaving modestly at the table, not littering around oneself - not littering with cigarette butts or swearing, bad ideas (this also rubbish, and whatnot!).”

Let's summarize:
— What did you think about, what became important to you after reading the chapters of the book “Native Land”?

“Avatars”, “Watches”, detective series - it is from here that young people often draw those “values” that determine their spiritual world. "Clip"
the culture is so ingrained in the minds of teenagers that they not only cannot read a classic novel, they cannot even watch the film adaptation of this very novel to the end. The slowness of artistic narration, characteristic of the best examples of both literary and cinematic art, is alien to the infant generation, brought up on the endless flickering of plans.
Can Likhachev’s letters to young people be called a guide to life? Are his observations interesting? What have we learned from the scientist?
— The book reflects the life experience and worldview of the scientist; you need in life
be generous, bring goodness and joy to people; Likhachev teaches to love life, enjoy music, art, the beauty of the world, advises to look closely at yourself, at the people around you, and think about the meaning of life.

— We found answers to the questions: how not to be funny? How to live long and
happy life? D.S. Likhachev also speaks of a careful attitude towards the Russian
in a word, teaches to be interested in the past, to love it. He talks about love “for your land, for your Earth.”

— The relevance of the book lies in the fact that it makes you think about very important questions: it is not too late to correct yourself, to save the earth for our descendants, and for this we need to learn everything good.

— You’re right, guys, I’ll share with you another thought that I liked.
Likhachev about the living connection between times and generations, a unique answer to the question: is it worth re-reading books, looking at relics darkened by time? Does it make sense to preserve log cabins with carved frames and embroidered homespun towels?

In the book “Native Land,” Likhachev raises the question of the historical and cultural continuity of generations. He believes that culture can overcome
time, connecting the past, present and future.

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The professor and academician talks about culture, patriotism, respect for elders, describes the culture of Ancient Rus', the political and cultural life of Veliky Novgorod in the 13th-14th centuries.

A word to the young

Professor, academician Dmitry Sergeevich Likhachev talks about patriotism and vocation, intelligence and culture, reading and memory. The author believes that every person should have a great personal goal and be passionate about their profession. The work we do should bring joy, be a calling.

Patriotism brings true happiness to a person. Love for your people begins with studying their past. The author loves Ancient Rus' and admires its writing and art. Studying ancient Russian history can spiritually enrich us and suggest a lot of new things.

The author talks about intelligence, which is manifested in respect for parents, in the ability to quietly help one’s neighbor, in a person’s everyday behavior. Intelligence is also expressed in a person’s ability not to be funny and to behave with dignity.

Intelligence is the ability to understand, to perceive, it is an attitude towards the world and towards people.

A person's behavior corresponds to his goal. If the goal is great and wise, then the means by which it is achieved are also worthy.

A person acquires his character and best friends in his youth. It is childhood friends who make adult life easier for us.

The author considers the language of the people to be the greatest value. Russian language is one of the richest in the world. A sign of a cultured person is not only the ability to write well in their native language, but also knowledge of classical literature.

The author encourages us to elevate each other, awakening the best traits in those around them and not noticing the shortcomings. This is especially true for older people, for whom attention helps brighten up their last years. Old people remember the past better, but memory is about overcoming time and death. The memory of the old helps to better understand the new. The present arose from history.

Notes about Russian

The author notes that the most “Russian traits” of character are pity and friendliness. The concept of will for Russians is reflected in wide spaces, and melancholy is associated with cramped spaces. Russian courage is daring, broad, daring courage.

Since the 12th century, human culture has been opposed to nature. According to , the “natural man” is close to nature and therefore uneducated. He also thought the same, contrasting the peasantry with the intelligentsia.

Ignorance or half-knowledge is almost a disease.

Human culture has softened the harshness of the Russian landscape, and nature has smoothed out all the imbalances caused by man.

Russian landscape painting is mainly devoted to the seasons, natural phenomena and man in nature. The nature of each country was shaped by the culture of the people living in it, and in gardens and parks nature is “humanized” and akin to art.

There are two types of attitude towards the past: as a spectacle, and as a monument of the past. The author is a supporter of the second kind of relationship. Culture is the same park where ennobled nature is fused with art. All the charm of Russian nature was revealed to us by Pushkin, whom Dostoevsky considered the ideal of the Russian man.

Culture must be measured by the national ideal created by the people, which leads away from spiritual stinginess, narrowness and philistinism, from vindictiveness and nationalism. This ideal also existed in Ancient Rus'.

Ecology of culture

The author considers urban planning based on the study of the history of urban development to be the ecology of culture. As an example, he considers the construction of ancient Russian cities, in particular Veliky Novgorod. During its construction, attention was paid to the views from the houses. The layout of Novgorod created a feeling of spaciousness.

Monuments of the past are important for the ecology of culture, because if nature can heal the wounds inflicted by man or the elements, then the loss of monuments - ancient buildings, monuments, manuscripts, frescoes - is irreparable.

If a person is indifferent to the historical monuments of his country, he is, as a rule, indifferent to his country.

Unfortunately, their storage system in Russia is poorly organized. Many manuscripts and frescoes were lost or destroyed by inept restoration, but many were preserved and even published in the Library of World Literature.

The author is pleased that ancient Russian culture has begun to come into fashion, but is saddened by the largely ugly forms that this phenomenon takes. However, he hopes that people will see the beauty that lies in the culture of Ancient Rus'.

Novgorod the Great

Veliky Novgorod, a huge city at that time, was a port of four seas and was an independent republic. It was ruled by the feudal aristocracy and merchants, and the people could freely express their opinions at the Novgorod veche.

Novgorod stood on the trade route from Scandinavia to Byzantium, so famous architects, icon painters, and translators flocked to it, who shaped Novgorod art. Birch bark documents from the 13th-14th centuries found by scientists. Ekov indicate that almost all Novgorodians were literate.

Novgorod art, brought up in an atmosphere of free competition with European art schools, is one of the most nationally Russian and one of the most original.

Urban planning discipline was also strong in Novgorod - all the buildings in the city center did not exceed the height of Hagia Sophia. The city's amenities surpassed those of many European capitals, and numerous churches were built with great skill.

There was no Renaissance in Ancient Rus', so the heyday of Novgorod art occurred in the 14th century - the time of the Pre-Renaissance. This era enriched the painting and literature of Rus'.

Having joined Muscovite Russia, Novgorod retained its culture. Although it lost its independence, the Moscow princes always treated Novgorod with respect and took advantage of its cultural wealth. From that moment on, Novgorod culture acquired national features and global significance.

Old Russian literature and modernity

The author recalls besieged Leningrad. During the blockade, he, in collaboration with archaeologist M. A. Tikhanova, wrote the brochure “Defense of Ancient Russian Cities” to remind people of the history of sieges of cities of Ancient Rus'. The author noted that the war brings into use forgotten ancient Russian words and concepts - ditches, ramparts, hollows, people's militia.

In Leningrad, as in the besieged cities of Ancient Rus', female labor was used. Women built fortifications, nursed the wounded and mourned the dead. Both in ancient Russian and modern literature there are many women's lament poems.

Russian women's crying is an extraordinary phenomenon. They are not only an expression of feelings - they are an understanding of what has happened.

The author addresses the topic of cultural history, which not only records changes, but also discovers new things in the old and accumulates cultural values. Studying and appreciating the culture of the past allows people to build on their cultural heritage.

World culture expanded unevenly, it met misunderstanding and hostility and lost many valuable monuments. Until the 20th century, the literature of Ancient Rus' was not recognized on a global scale. It is still not appreciated, because it contains neither , nor . Old Russian literature is closely connected with history, folklore, and ritual poetry, but this does not make it any less valuable.

The author recalls the cycle of poems “On the Kulikovo Field”, after which he delves into the history of the great battle that liberated the Russians from the Mongol-Tatar yoke. This liberation led to the rise of ancient Russian culture. The author also notes the role of Kievan Rus in the development of Russian culture and unity. He believes that we should be grateful sons of the great mother - Ancient Rus'.

Dmitry Sergeevich Likhachev

Native Land

To our readers!

The author of the book brought to your attention, Dmitry Sergeevich Likhachev, is an outstanding Soviet scientist in the field of literary criticism, the history of Russian and world culture. He has written more than two dozen major books and hundreds of research articles. D. S. Likhachev is a full member of the Academy of Sciences of the Soviet Union, twice laureate of the USSR State Prize, honorary member of many foreign academies and universities.

Dmitry Sergeevich's erudition, his pedagogical talent and experience, the ability to speak about complex things simply, intelligibly and at the same time vividly and imaginatively - this is what distinguishes his works, makes them not just books, but a significant phenomenon in our entire cultural life. Considering the multi-valued issues of moral and aesthetic education as an integral part of communist education, D. S. Likhachev relies on the most important party documents calling for the greatest attention and responsibility to treat the cultural education of the Soviet people, and especially youth.

The propaganda activities of Dmitry Sergeevich, who constantly cares about the ideological and aesthetic education of our youth, and his persistent struggle for a careful attitude to the artistic heritage of the Russian people, are also widely known.

In his new book, Academician D. S. Likhachev emphasizes that the ability to comprehend the aesthetic and artistic perfection of timeless masterpieces of the cultural past is very important for the younger generation and contributes to the education in them of truly high civic positions of patriotism and internationalism.

Fate made me an expert in ancient Russian literature. However, what does “fate” mean? Fate was in me: in my inclinations and interests, in my choice of faculty at Leningrad University and in which of the professors I began to take classes with. I was interested in old manuscripts, I was interested in literature, I was attracted to Ancient Rus' and folk art. If we put all this together and multiply it with a certain perseverance and some stubbornness in conducting searches, then all this together opened the way for me to carefully study ancient Russian literature.

But the same fate, living within me, at the same time constantly distracted me from pursuing academic science. I am obviously a restless person by nature. Therefore, I often go beyond the boundaries of strict science, beyond what I am supposed to do in my “academic specialty.” I often appear in the general press and write in “non-academic” genres. I am sometimes worried about the fate of ancient manuscripts when they are abandoned and not studied, or about ancient monuments that are being destroyed, I am afraid of the fantasies of restorers who sometimes too boldly “restore” monuments to their own taste, I am worried about the fate of old Russian cities in the conditions of growing industry, I am interested in education patriotism in our youth and much, much more.

This book, now open to the reader, reflects many of my non-academic worries. I could call my book “a book of worries.” Here are many of my concerns, and concerns I would like to convey to my readers - to help foster in them active, creative - Soviet patriotism. Not patriotism that is satisfied with what has been achieved, but patriotism that strives for the best, striving to convey this best - both from the past and from the present - to future generations. In order not to make mistakes in the future, we must remember our mistakes in the past. We must love our past and be proud of it, but we must love the past for a reason, but the best in it - what we can really be proud of and what we need now and in the future.

Among lovers of antiquities, collectors and collectors are very common. Honor and praise to them. They saved a lot, which then ended up in state storage facilities and museums - donated, sold, bequeathed. Collectors collect things like this - rare ones for themselves, more often for their families, and even more often to bequeath to a museum - in their hometown, village, or even just at school (all good schools have museums - small, but very necessary!).

I have never been and never will be a collector. I want all values ​​to belong to everyone and serve everyone while remaining in their place. The whole earth owns and stores values, treasures of the past. This is a beautiful landscape, and beautiful cities, and the cities have their own art monuments, collected over many generations. And in the villages there are traditions of folk art and labor skills. Values ​​are not only material monuments, but also good customs, ideas about what is good and beautiful, traditions of hospitality, friendliness, and the ability to sense one’s own good in another. The values ​​are language and accumulated literary works. You can't list everything.

What is our Earth? This is a treasury of extraordinarily diverse and extraordinarily fragile creations of human hands and the human brain, rushing through outer space at an incredible, unimaginable speed. I called my book "Native Land". The word "earth" in Russian has many meanings. This is the soil, and the country, and the people (in the latter sense, the Russian land is spoken of in “The Tale of Igor’s Campaign”), and the entire globe.

In the title of my book, the word "earth" can be understood in all these senses.

The earth creates man. Without her he is nothing. But man also creates the earth. Its preservation, peace on earth, and the increase in its wealth depend on man. It is up to the individual to create conditions under which the values ​​of culture will be preserved, grown and multiplied, when all people will be intellectually rich and intellectually healthy.

This is the idea behind all sections of my book. I write about many things in different ways, in different genres, in different manners, even at different reading levels. But everything I write about, I strive to connect with the single idea of ​​love for my land, for my land, for my Earth...

Appreciating the beauty of the past, we must be smart. We must understand that in admiring the amazing beauty of architecture in India, one does not have to be a Mohammedan, just as one does not have to be a Buddhist to appreciate the beauty of the temples of ancient Cambodia or Nepal. Are there people today who believe in ancient gods and goddesses? - No. But are there people who would deny the beauty of the Venus de Milo? But this is a goddess! Sometimes it even seems to me that we, people of the New Age, value ancient beauty more than the ancient Greeks and Romans themselves. It was too familiar to them.

Is this why we, Soviet people, began to perceive so keenly the beauty of ancient Russian architecture, ancient Russian literature and ancient Russian music, which are one of the highest peaks of human culture. Only now are we beginning to realize this, and even then not fully.

Dmitry Sergeevich Likhachev

Native Land

To our readers!

The author of the book brought to your attention, Dmitry Sergeevich Likhachev, is an outstanding Soviet scientist in the field of literary criticism, the history of Russian and world culture. He has written more than two dozen major books and hundreds of research articles. D. S. Likhachev is a full member of the Academy of Sciences of the Soviet Union, twice laureate of the USSR State Prize, honorary member of many foreign academies and universities.

Dmitry Sergeevich's erudition, his pedagogical talent and experience, the ability to speak about complex things simply, intelligibly and at the same time vividly and imaginatively - this is what distinguishes his works, makes them not just books, but a significant phenomenon in our entire cultural life. Considering the multi-valued issues of moral and aesthetic education as an integral part of communist education, D. S. Likhachev relies on the most important party documents calling for the greatest attention and responsibility to treat the cultural education of the Soviet people, and especially youth.

The propaganda activities of Dmitry Sergeevich, who constantly cares about the ideological and aesthetic education of our youth, and his persistent struggle for a careful attitude to the artistic heritage of the Russian people, are also widely known.

In his new book, Academician D. S. Likhachev emphasizes that the ability to comprehend the aesthetic and artistic perfection of timeless masterpieces of the cultural past is very important for the younger generation and contributes to the education in them of truly high civic positions of patriotism and internationalism.

Fate made me an expert in ancient Russian literature. However, what does “fate” mean? Fate was in me: in my inclinations and interests, in my choice of faculty at Leningrad University and in which of the professors I began to take classes with. I was interested in old manuscripts, I was interested in literature, I was attracted to Ancient Rus' and folk art. If we put all this together and multiply it with a certain perseverance and some stubbornness in conducting searches, then all this together opened the way for me to carefully study ancient Russian literature.

But the same fate, living within me, at the same time constantly distracted me from pursuing academic science. I am obviously a restless person by nature. Therefore, I often go beyond the boundaries of strict science, beyond what I am supposed to do in my “academic specialty.” I often appear in the general press and write in “non-academic” genres. I am sometimes worried about the fate of ancient manuscripts when they are abandoned and not studied, or about ancient monuments that are being destroyed, I am afraid of the fantasies of restorers who sometimes too boldly “restore” monuments to their own taste, I am worried about the fate of old Russian cities in the conditions of growing industry, I am interested in education patriotism in our youth and much, much more.

This book, now open to the reader, reflects many of my non-academic worries. I could call my book “a book of worries.” Here are many of my concerns, and concerns I would like to convey to my readers - to help foster in them active, creative - Soviet patriotism. Not patriotism that is satisfied with what has been achieved, but patriotism that strives for the best, striving to convey this best - both from the past and from the present - to future generations. In order not to make mistakes in the future, we must remember our mistakes in the past. We must love our past and be proud of it, but we must love the past for a reason, but the best in it - what we can really be proud of and what we need now and in the future.

Among lovers of antiquities, collectors and collectors are very common. Honor and praise to them. They saved a lot, which then ended up in state storage facilities and museums - donated, sold, bequeathed. Collectors collect things like this - rare ones for themselves, more often for their families, and even more often to bequeath to a museum - in their hometown, village, or even just at school (all good schools have museums - small, but very necessary!).

I have never been and never will be a collector. I want all values ​​to belong to everyone and serve everyone while remaining in their place. The whole earth owns and stores values, treasures of the past. This is a beautiful landscape, and beautiful cities, and the cities have their own art monuments, collected over many generations. And in the villages there are traditions of folk art and labor skills. Values ​​are not only material monuments, but also good customs, ideas about what is good and beautiful, traditions of hospitality, friendliness, and the ability to sense one’s own good in another. The values ​​are language and accumulated literary works. You can't list everything.

What is our Earth? This is a treasury of extraordinarily diverse and extraordinarily fragile creations of human hands and the human brain, rushing through outer space at an incredible, unimaginable speed. I called my book "Native Land". The word "earth" in Russian has many meanings. This is the soil, and the country, and the people (in the latter sense, the Russian land is spoken of in “The Tale of Igor’s Campaign”), and the entire globe.

In the title of my book, the word "earth" can be understood in all these senses.

The earth creates man. Without her he is nothing. But man also creates the earth. Its preservation, peace on earth, and the increase in its wealth depend on man. It is up to the individual to create conditions under which the values ​​of culture will be preserved, grown and multiplied, when all people will be intellectually rich and intellectually healthy.

This is the idea behind all sections of my book. I write about many things in different ways, in different genres, in different manners, even at different reading levels. But everything I write about, I strive to connect with the single idea of ​​love for my land, for my land, for my Earth...

Appreciating the beauty of the past, we must be smart. We must understand that in admiring the amazing beauty of architecture in India, one does not have to be a Mohammedan, just as one does not have to be a Buddhist to appreciate the beauty of the temples of ancient Cambodia or Nepal. Are there people today who believe in ancient gods and goddesses? - No. But are there people who would deny the beauty of the Venus de Milo? But this is a goddess! Sometimes it even seems to me that we, people of the New Age, value ancient beauty more than the ancient Greeks and Romans themselves. It was too familiar to them.

Is this why we, Soviet people, began to perceive so keenly the beauty of ancient Russian architecture, ancient Russian literature and ancient Russian music, which are one of the highest peaks of human culture. Only now are we beginning to realize this, and even then not fully.

Of course, when developing your attitude and fighting for the preservation of monuments of artistic culture of the past, you must always remember that, as F. Engels wrote about the historical conditionality of the form and content of medieval art, “the worldview of the Middle Ages was predominantly theological... The Church gave religious sanctification to the secular political system , based on feudal principles... From here it naturally followed that church dogma was the starting point and basis of all thinking" (Marx K., Engels F. Sobr. soch., vol. 21, p. 495).

Appreciating the beautiful in the past, protecting it, we thereby seem to follow the behest of A.S. Pushkin: “Respect for the past is the feature that distinguishes education from savagery...”.

A word to the young

Your profession and your patriotism

It is very difficult to give parting words to young people. Much has already been said, and said very well. And yet, I will try to say what I consider the most important and what, as it seems to me, every person entering a great life must firmly understand.

Much of what a person achieves in life, what position he occupies in it, what he brings to others and receives for himself, depends on himself. Luck doesn't come by chance. It depends on what a person considers luck in life, how he evaluates himself, what position in life he has chosen, and, finally, what his goal in life is.

Many, many people think something like this: I am smart, I have such and such abilities, I will engage in such and such a profession, I will achieve a lot in life, I will become a person of “position.” No, this is far from enough! An accidental failure in entrance exams (let's say, really accidental, and not ostensibly accidental), an accidental mistake in one's abilities (boys often exaggerate them, girls too often underestimate themselves), "accidentally" influential enemies in life, etc. and etc. And then everything in life was lost. By old age, a person feels deep disappointment, resentment towards someone, or “so, in general.”

Dmitry Sergeevich Likhachev

Native Land

To our readers!

The author of the book brought to your attention, Dmitry Sergeevich Likhachev, is an outstanding Soviet scientist in the field of literary criticism, the history of Russian and world culture. He has written more than two dozen major books and hundreds of research articles. D. S. Likhachev is a full member of the Academy of Sciences of the Soviet Union, twice laureate of the USSR State Prize, honorary member of many foreign academies and universities.

Dmitry Sergeevich's erudition, his pedagogical talent and experience, the ability to speak about complex things simply, intelligibly and at the same time vividly and imaginatively - this is what distinguishes his works, makes them not just books, but a significant phenomenon in our entire cultural life. Considering the multi-valued issues of moral and aesthetic education as an integral part of communist education, D. S. Likhachev relies on the most important party documents calling for the greatest attention and responsibility to treat the cultural education of the Soviet people, and especially youth.

The propaganda activities of Dmitry Sergeevich, who constantly cares about the ideological and aesthetic education of our youth, and his persistent struggle for a careful attitude to the artistic heritage of the Russian people, are also widely known.

In his new book, Academician D. S. Likhachev emphasizes that the ability to comprehend the aesthetic and artistic perfection of timeless masterpieces of the cultural past is very important for the younger generation and contributes to the education in them of truly high civic positions of patriotism and internationalism.

Fate made me an expert in ancient Russian literature. However, what does “fate” mean? Fate was in me: in my inclinations and interests, in my choice of faculty at Leningrad University and in which of the professors I began to take classes with. I was interested in old manuscripts, I was interested in literature, I was attracted to Ancient Rus' and folk art. If we put all this together and multiply it with a certain perseverance and some stubbornness in conducting searches, then all this together opened the way for me to carefully study ancient Russian literature.

But the same fate, living within me, at the same time constantly distracted me from pursuing academic science. I am obviously a restless person by nature. Therefore, I often go beyond the boundaries of strict science, beyond what I am supposed to do in my “academic specialty.” I often appear in the general press and write in “non-academic” genres. I am sometimes worried about the fate of ancient manuscripts when they are abandoned and not studied, or about ancient monuments that are being destroyed, I am afraid of the fantasies of restorers who sometimes too boldly “restore” monuments to their own taste, I am worried about the fate of old Russian cities in the conditions of growing industry, I am interested in education patriotism in our youth and much, much more.

This book, now open to the reader, reflects many of my non-academic worries. I could call my book “a book of worries.” Here are many of my concerns, and concerns I would like to convey to my readers - to help foster in them active, creative - Soviet patriotism. Not patriotism that is satisfied with what has been achieved, but patriotism that strives for the best, striving to convey this best - both from the past and from the present - to future generations. In order not to make mistakes in the future, we must remember our mistakes in the past. We must love our past and be proud of it, but we must love the past for a reason, but the best in it - what we can really be proud of and what we need now and in the future.

Among lovers of antiquities, collectors and collectors are very common. Honor and praise to them. They saved a lot, which then ended up in state storage facilities and museums - donated, sold, bequeathed. Collectors collect things like this - rare ones for themselves, more often for their families, and even more often to bequeath to a museum - in their hometown, village, or even just at school (all good schools have museums - small, but very necessary!).

I have never been and never will be a collector. I want all values ​​to belong to everyone and serve everyone while remaining in their place. The whole earth owns and stores values, treasures of the past. This is a beautiful landscape, and beautiful cities, and the cities have their own art monuments, collected over many generations. And in the villages there are traditions of folk art and labor skills. Values ​​are not only material monuments, but also good customs, ideas about what is good and beautiful, traditions of hospitality, friendliness, and the ability to sense one’s own good in another. The values ​​are language and accumulated literary works. You can't list everything.