Educational periodicals in the “court pedagogy” of Mikhail Muravyov and Vasily Zhukovsky. Article Three

The article analyzes Vasily Zhukovsky’s magazine Muraveynik (Anthill) and proves that it combines features of both an educational and a “circle” magazine. The starting point for Muraveynik was the educational context. But, unlike Sobiratel ’, Muraveynik had its educational nature smoothed and supplemented with “circle” features. The concept of the magazine implied cooperation between adult, eminent teachers of literature (Zhukovsky, who actually took over the duties of the editor-inchief of Muraveynik, and Pletnev, who became his assistant) and their very young students. The status of Muraveynik as a “circle” magazine was emphasized by its subtitle. Traditionally, researchers see this subtitle as a reference to the Arzamas circle. However, Muraveynik took the ideal of moral brotherhood from the Arzamas heritage, rather than game. In this sense, the conceptions of Muraveynik were closer to the “serious” circles originating in boarding schools, which also strongly influenced Zhukovsky: the Assembly of Noble Pupils of University Boarding School, the Friendly Literary Society. The Moscow Noble Boarding School strongly encouraged students’ literary creative works, their compositions and translations were constantly published in the school’s editions. In fact, when conceiving Muraveynik, Zhukovsky turned to this experience. He hoped to form around the magazine a friendly community uniting teachers and students in the field of literature. These hopes were not realized. Too young an age, a specific social affiliation and life priorities associated with it, and, finally, personal inclinations and abilities did not allow Zhukovsky’s students to respond to his life-building message. The students perceived Muraveynik more as part of the school routine than as an exciting intellectual adventure. Most of the “children’s” texts published in Muraveynik were not related to free creativity, but to the educational process and were often exercises performed as homework or class assignments. But in his own materials Zhukovsky actively tried to involve the “circle” context and even the life-building context. In this, he follows Mikhail Muravyov, who used the same strategy in Obitatel’ predmestiya (Suburban Dweller). As part of this “circle” strategy, Zhukovsky filled his texts in Muraveynik with motifs and allusions that build up two leading themes - idyllic and chivalrous. They were connected to each other in the life-building ideal of the chivalrous idyll. The author declares no conflicts of interests.

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