“Poucheniie Ditiam” by Volodymyr Monomakh as a Manifesto of the High Middle Ages Literature of Kyivan Rus’

Abstract

The article’s author examines the peculiarities of “Poucheniie ditiam” [Instruction for [My] Children] by Grand Prince Volodymyr Monomakh written in the early twelfth century as the work that ushers in the era of High Middle literature of Kyivan Rus’. She emphasises “his very own picture” presented by Monomakh as the image of an ideal ruler, which was significantly different from the type of European monarch of that time. Monomakh depicted the idea of the authentic leader who met the challenges and demands of the Kyivan Rus’ state and the period of the High Middle Ages. Th e article’s author indicates the autobiographical protagonist of the work, constructed by Monomakh on the basis of his personal experience and life facts. Attention is paid to the text as the first example of memoir prose. Next, the author describes Monomakh’s interpretation of such categories as law, power, faith, and religion; then, she determines the Grand Prince’s understanding of Christian moral and ethical values. The author also raises the question of the dating of Volodymyr Monomakh’s “Poucheniie ditiam”. She substantiates the thesis that the text was created over many years, as evidenced by the evolution of Monomakh’s worldview. The analysed text consists of several parts, each written at a particular stage of the Grand Prince’s life, and the article presents an analysis of each part and the manifestation of the personality it contains. It also highlights such features of the work as humanism, appreciation of human nature, and human life as the greatest value.