Moscow in Novellas and Short Stories by S. V. Engelgardt

The article considers the concept of “Moscow text” on the material of fiction works by S. V. Engelhardt. The analysis of the novellas and short stories of the writer allows to determine the place that they occupy among other “Moscow texts” of Russian classical literature written in the 18th–19th centuries. The work of Engelhardt is considered within the framework of women’s prose of the 19th century, in accordance with the tasks that her representatives set themselves. As a result of the study, the author of the article comes to the conclusion that the image of Moscow in the works of the writer is of decisive importance and receives different interpretations. Moscow in the work of Engelhardt is presented in three main spatial and temporal plans: as a secular city (party receptions, balls, receptions), as an Orthodox city (churches, monasteries) and as a city-symbol of Russia (Time of Troubles, the reign of Catherine II, the Patriotic War of 1812). The motifs of gossip, rumors and money are connected with secular Moscow, the motifs of sin, repentance, prayer, pilgrimage are connected with Orthodox Moscow, the motif of the struggle for power and war are connected with Moscow as a symbol of Russia. Motifs of mystery, mysticism, and legends are associated with the image of Moscow, which help to present the city in an unrealistic, distorted perspective.