«ARCADIA» BY Ph. SIDNEY IN THE FOCUS OF THE HISTORICAL AND LITERARY CONTEXT AND THE AUTHOR’S WORLDVIEW
Authors: Бовкунова О. 
Published: February 2025

Background. In the process of research, three sets of problems were identified, which, in our opinion, reflect the connection of the text with the culture of the epoch and which are the most “problematic” and “incomprehensible” from a modern point of view: features of the novel “Arcadia”, which are advisable to study and link with the creative tendencies of the writer himself, general literary traditions (especially the traditions of the Renaissance); the specifics of Elizabethan times, as well as the worldview of Philip Sidney in the context of philosophical doctrines and cultural realities of Europe in the second half of the 16th century.
The purpose of the article is to solve two interrelated problems: analyze the features of Philip Sidney’s “Arcadia” and explain them through the prism of the peculiarities of the late Renaissance view of the world, consider some little-studied (especially in domestic science) features of that unique intellectual “climate”, “atmosphere” that are so difficult to define, but which form the basis of English and pan-European late Renaissance culture. The subject of this study is the problem of the inclusion of the text in the culture of the epoch.
Methods. The studios combine the principles of semiotic, historical-literary, comparative-historical and comparative-typological research methods.
Results and discussion. The review of Philip Sidney's novel "Arcadia" is carried out in a broad historical and cultural context - as a text inscribed in the general paradigm of Elizabethan culture. In this study, an attempt has been made to clarify and concretize the actual aesthetic aspect of the identified problems, which determines the central problem of the literary self-awareness of the era. “Arcadia” is presented in it as a phenomenon that reflects not so much general cultural as aesthetic guidelines and tastes of the Elizabethan era, embodying a peculiar synthesis of medieval and Renaissance traditions. The novel “Arcadia” by Ph. Sidney is examined in the context of the aesthetic ideas of Elizabethan culture (an emerging culture that did not create normative poetics, but strived for certainty and orderliness in its artistic views and passions); a specific understanding of the role of the author (poet) and the work, determined by the era, has been revealed; The ways and means of revealing in “Arcadia” the inner world of the “man of action”, who is the main object of Sidney’s attention, are investigated.
Concepts and prospects. Focusing on the lack of a unified understanding of the principles of artistic creativity, the tasks of the writer and the role of literature in Elizabethan society, we see that the desire to develop normative aesthetics is recognized by Elizabethan culture as a necessity. Speaking about the imperfections of individual genres, the Elizabethans persistently sought harmony in the artistic synthesis of seemingly incomparable traditions. For Sidney, as follows from “Defense of Poetry,” artistic synthesis turns out to be not only logical, but also the only possible solution that justifies the pursuit of literature. Thus, none of the traditions reflected in Arcadia can be considered insignificant. The choice of literary traditions was predetermined by Sidney's social circle, worldview and artistic interests. Considering the principles of artistic synthesis used in Arcadia, it should be noted that Sidney everywhere strives to prove the idea of ​​the Elizabethans that what makes a person a writer is the depiction of virtues and vices, and not strict adherence to the rules from treatises on the poetic art. The leitmotif running through the entire novel is the theme of an individual who alone dares to challenge fate and begin to remake the existing world order.