Bibliophilism of the Nobility as an Element of the Cultural Environment of the Central Chernozem Region in the First Half of the 19th Century

Introduction. The article examines the issue of the development of book collecting as a special feature that is formed in the provincial Russian reader in the first half of the XIX century. An important part of the formation of reading culture in the provincial environment was the gradual transition from traditional values to new behavioral and spiritual practices. Materials and methods. An important part of the formation of the reading culture in the provincial environment was the gradual transition from traditional values to new behavioral and spiritual practices. Historical experience shows that in Russia, as in European countries, reading is an attribute of the life of modernized groups of the population. The dominant social structures in established societies, based on ingrained patterns of behavior, were closely associated with oral communication. And only in modernized communities does the need for the printed word appear as a universal source of information transmission. Results. Drawn into the processes of social and economic modernization ofRussia in the XVIII century, the nobility intensively assimilated European culture, including its information transmitter – the works of foreign writers. As a result, by the end of the century, reading becomes an important component of the lifestyle of the upper class. At the same time, the development of foreign literature contributed to the transfer of Western socio-economic and cultural ideas to the Russian soil, catalyzed theprocess of intellectual "Europeanization" of the upper class. Conclusion. The prevalence of Frenchlanguage literature during this period was characteristic of the majority of the nobility and testified to the active involvement of the upper class in the process of "gallomania". The high level of education of the owners allowed them to have rich collections of literature in foreign languages, expanding the horizons of bibliophiles. The main role here was played by the works of French enlighteners, who formed the freethinking views of landowners, educating the ideas of freedom and equality.