The role of the Christian tradition in the modern novel (on the example of "Toyota-Kresta" by M.A. Tarkovsky)

The article considers one of the ways of development of the genre of the classic novel on the example of «Toyota-Kresta» by M.A. Tarkovsky. It is proved that the specificity of the novel is determined by strict hierarchy of three planes: natural, literary, and religious. Christian axiology determines the presence of an «iddillic situation», the interaction of folklore and Orthodox Christian images, the literary context and stylistic originality.