Human Science
Gorky called literature the science of man, it is also considered an educator and a textbook of life. It is not necessary to prove the evidence of such an estimate. At the same time, many consider reading only as a way to have fun, to fill their leisure time. Of course, the entertaining function is one of the main ones in any art, but Gorky called literature a science. And science is a tool of knowledge. Literature too. It forms our perception of the world, attitude towards it, awareness of it, behavior in it. The ability to implement these functions makes a literary work relevant.
Relevance is not an optional feature, but a mandatory property. Without it, the text is only a text, and it cannot be called artistic. Then there will be fiction. But how should we understand the meaning of the word "relevance" in relation to literature? It's not a fancy dress, a breaking news story, a business plan, or a specific solution to a specific problem. How can one explain the relevance of Homer's poems, written long before our era? Or Aitmatov's Blocks, written only thirty years ago, but in a country and about a country that no longer exists? Answerobvious - this is the acuteness and universal humanity of the problems raised, the author's reflections on eternal questions, foreseeing the future and warning against the present.
Let's move from theoretical considerations to practical material. Let's try to understand what relevance is, using the example of the work "The Scaffold".
In order not to climb the chopping block
What problems of the modern world have escalated to the extreme? Cruelty, violence, drug addiction, natural disasters. Aitmatov wrote about all this. How to deal with it, he also said. The writer sees a direct relationship between social, social life and the life of nature, and the decomposition of the first two leads to the death of the latter, and hence to the self-destruction of the human race. There are more and more hunters in life - for marijuana, for money, career, fame, power. For human lives.
We considered the concern for the improvement of human existence as the basis of our activity, and the concept of humanity was associated only with a person. This led to the assertion of the idea of human dominance over nature, and it revolted with downpours and droughts, floods and earthquakes, crop failures and fires. Modern society is experiencing a real epidemic and more than one. An epidemic of drug addiction, the victims of which are young people. An epidemic of lack of spirituality that has engulfed the entire society.
An epidemic of global environmental disasters. In this context, it is easy to understand what the relevance of the history of human relationships is.with the world set forth in the novel. Which road to choose, where and how to go? The main characters of Chingiz Aitmatov's novel are looking for answers to all these questions.
In "The Scaffold" the problem of drug addiction, alcoholism is raised not just in itself, the writer is primarily concerned about the inner, spiritual state of a person, the problem of the future young generation, its moral foundation. The destruction of the animals of the Moyunkum savanna is a warning: at the same time, the process of destruction of the natural principle in man himself is taking place. And maybe it's his turn.
The author connects the problem of good and evil with the main question of our time about whether life will survive on Earth. Will humanity survive, as it will be in the conditions of the technocratic XXI century? Pain for a person, the topicality of everything that Aitmatov writes about - this is what the relevance of "Plakha" is. When the unity is broken, when the connection between nature and man is broken, they become enemies and enter into a disastrous confrontation for them. Violation of harmony leads to tragedy, leads the human race to the chopping block! When the balance is broken, sacrifices are needed to restore it. And the best sons of mankind go to the chopping block, as it was already two thousand years ago, on Golgotha. For when criminals rise to the block, this is atonement, not a victim.
The temporal and the eternal in literature
Said is enough to make sure: from whatever angle you consider this work, there is no doubt about its relevance. But in any creation there are specific echoes of time that are important only for the writer's contemporaries. AT"Plahe" is the image of a communist. In the "Divine Comedy" - images of politicians and priests with their struggle for power. In "Hamlet" - questions of the inheritance of royal power, etc. So, sitting down to write, before proceeding with the analysis, you should clearly find out what is the relevance of the chosen topic, whether it can lead to a conclusion that is important for us today. What this conclusion can be, again, let's look at the example of Aitmatov's novel.
Reflecting on the meaning of human existence on Earth, the Kyrgyz writer brings the reader to understand: this meaning is in self-improvement, in following the ideals of goodness, because the path to rebirth lies through a return to eternal truths, to the fundamentals.
