Reception of Religious Themes in Nikolai Leskov's Works at the Turn of the 20th Century

The article aims to consider tendencies predominating in literary criticism at the turn of the 20th century in its reception of religious issues in Nikolai Leskov's works, to identify the peculiarities of their understanding by representatives of diverse groups and trends, to examine their influence on changes in Leskov's literary reputation. The role of the spiritual atmosphere of the Silver Age in changing attitudes towards Leskov's legacy is mentioned, as well as the consequences of the duality of his reception formed at that time. The research materials consists of various works of literary criticism (articles, notes, reviews) written and published in Russia between 1895 and 1917. They are studied using the methods of the thematic, discourse and comparative analysis of the text. The research demonstrated that the comprehension of Leskov's legacy, which began at the end of the writer's life, took place in the critical period of the coexistence of realism and symbolism in literature, and sociological and modernist trends in criticism. Leskov's literary works attracted mainly critics of the sociological trend, who emphasized the writer's evolution from a photographic depiction of Russian Orthodox clergymen's everyday life to the finding of peace, rational and moral understanding of religiosity akin to Protestantism and Leo Tolstoy's teaching. The approach of the less numerous modernist critics was different as they appreciated Leskov's depiction of the mystical depths of Orthodoxy, his penetration into the secrets of the popular faith and ability to juxtapose them with the mundane life. They evaluated the late works of the writer as less interesting, excessively rationalistic and moralising. Thus, the analysis of literary reviews of the turn of the 20th century allows making a conclusion about a strong influence of the artistic principles of the two main literary movements of the epoch, and critics' desire to incorporate Leskov into the modern context, thereby updating his legacy. Such a possibility is, in particular, the result of Leskov's ideological evolution and of the peculiarity of his manner of writing, with its elusive author's position, which still makes it feasible to formulate contradictory assessments of his works and personal religiosity, varying between a ‘heretic' and ‘profoundly Orthodox'. In addition, the author observed the fundamental importance of the category of literary reputation and noted the fact of transition from assessing the personality and socio-political stance of the author to evaluating his artistic output. It was also due to the beginning of the ‘linguistic turn' of the literary critics of the time, which resulted in the reception of Leskov's works becoming more complex and multifaceted. The contradictory assessment of his works and, in particular, their religious component, still continue to shape the position of many contemporary researchers.

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