Celebration of the centenary of T.G. Shevchenko as viewed by the “Novoye Vremya” newspaper

Abstract

The main task of the article is to collect and systematize texts in the “Novoye Vremya” newspaper dedicated to the celebration of the centenary of Taras Shevchenko. From the end of January to March 1914, about 40 materials of various genres were published (notes, reports, articles, essay, feuilleton, report on the meeting of the State Duma, caricature, polemical reprints from other periodicals). It has been found that the genre boundaries of these materials are largely blurred. Thus, many information messages contain categorical value judgments. Particular attention is paid to the analytical speeches by V. Rozanov, N. Kuzmin, M. Ivanov, V. Zhuk, M. Menshikov, as well as the anonymous article “Shevchenko’s Anniversary and the Jesuits”. It can be argued that the round date was the reason for the intensification of the political struggle. Interethnic conflicts came to the fore, and actual literary problems did not receive proper coverage. Some inconsistency has been discovered. On the one hand, the Ukrainian poet was placed on a par with the leading Russian authors, on the other hand, his importance was emphasized precisely as an ideological leader, and not as an artist. Despite the fact that the newspaper’s position is generally predictable, it was possible to reveal unexpected overtones.