The history of literary topic: the old believers’ tradition

Literary topic, one of the most significant elements of medieval poetics, is the most important characteristic of the literature of Ancient Rus’. The article deals with the problems of the study of literary topic through the texts of the Old Believer literature, in particular, the writings of the Vyg literary school. The work examines some hagiographic formulas (strong adamant, unshakable pillar) and traditional motifs of monastic vita (birth of a hero from pious parents, secret departure from home, initial refusal to take the tonsure because of the young age, etc.). The material for the study comprised Simeon Denisov’s The Russian Vineyard and The Story of the Fathers and Sufferers of Solovki, as well as The Life of Cornelius of the Vyg, The Life of Cyril Sunaretsky, The Vyg Life of Epiphanius the Monk and other works of the Old Believers. The study showed that in their hagiographic work the Vyg scribes relied on the system of traditional vita themes, developing it in accordance with new literary tasks.