Volume 12 - Issue 68
/ August 2023
195
http:// www.amazoniainvestiga.info ISSN 2322- 6307
DOI: https://doi.org/10.34069/AI/2023.68.08.18
How to Cite:
Dudareva, M.A., Nikitina, V.V., Cherkashina, E.L., & Aripova, D.A. (2023). Using the folklore and poetry by Sergei Yesenin in
Russian as a foreign language lessons: an online class. Amazonia Investiga, 12(68), 195-198.
https://doi.org/10.34069/AI/2023.68.08.18
Using the folklore and poetry by Sergei Yesenin in Russian as a foreign
language lessons: an online class
Использование фольклора и поэзии Сергея Есенина на уроках русского языка как
иностранного: онлайн-класс
Received: July 19, 2023 Accepted: August 23, 2023
Written by:
Marianna A. Dudareva1
https://orcid.org/0000-0002- 4950-2322
Vlada V. Nikitina2
https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0780-3140
Elena L. Cherkashina3
https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1613-0147
Darya A. Aripova4
https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4515-4834
Abstract
Object of the article: Russian as a foreign
language classes. Subject of the article: the
method of creating an artificial language
environment in classes with students from Asia
and Africa who study Russian as a foreign
language. Material of the article: an online
experiment on the use of materials of Russian
folklore and the artistic heritage of the poet of the
early XX century Sergei Esenin in classes with
foreign students. The purpose of the article is to
identify the national axiology in Russian poetry.
The purpose of the article is to show the features
of the online lesson of Russian as a foreign
language. Methodology: holistic hermeneutic
analysis of the song on the poet's verses "Above
the window the moon" with the involvement of
biographical commentary and historical-literary
context. The results of the study consist in the
development of a methodology for analyzing the
text with foreign students, aimed at a holistic
perception and understanding of the poetic text.
1
Candidate of Philology, Doctor of Culturology, Professor of the Department of General and Slavic Philology of the Kosygin
University; Associate Professor of the Departament of Russian literature Lobachevsky State University of Nizhny Novgorod; Head
of the Literary Studies and Intercultural Communication Department Magazine “Nevecherniy Svet” (St. Petersburg); Russian
Federation. WoS Researcher ID: 5362-0507
2
Candidate of Philology Senior lecturer Russian Language Department No. 2, the Russian Language and General Education Faculty,
Peoples' Friendship University of Russia (RUDN University), 6 Miklukho-Maklaya st., Moscow, 117198, Russian Federation.
WoS Researcher ID: 2717-9400
3
Ph.D. of Philological Science, аssociate professor Department of Russian as a Foreign Language and General Theoretical Subjects,
Russian State Agrarian University – Moscow Agricultural Academy named after K.A. Timiryazev. Moscow, Russian Federation.
WoS Researcher ID: 8029-1380
4
Irkutsk National Research Technical University, Irkutsk, Russian Federation. WoS Researcher ID: 9624-3336
196
www.amazoniainvestiga.info ISSN 2322- 6307
Keywords: foreign language, national
worldview, Russian traditional culture, folklore,
Sergei Yesenin's work, media environment.
Introduction
Every country and its people have their own
national worldview, which can be described and
understood through cultural a priori, codes, and
archetypes. The development of the theory of
national worldviews in Russian science was
carried out by the philologist and culturologist
G.D. Gachev, who in monographs described the
national existence of Russia through a system of
dendronyms, paying great attention to the
semantics of birch, oak, and fir (pine) in Russian
linguoculture (Gachev, 1995). Such
culturological constants allow a deep immersion
into the national peculiarity of the country, which
is a productive factor for studying the Russian
language as a non-native language. So, Martin
Heidegger's idea that language, primarily the
language of literature and poetry, is the home of
being (Heidegger, 1991) is also relevant. In
Russian as a foreign language lessons, it is
necessary to refer to classic literature, the works
of A.S. Pushkin, L.N. Tolstoy, F.M. Dostoevsky,
S.A. Yesenin, A.A. Blok, and others
(Belozubova, 2015). However, as a rule, if the
names of 19th century writers are known even to
foreign students, teachers actively refer to them
(Petrova, 2021), while 20th century authors are
poorly known or have never heard of them,
while, for example, the works of Sergei Yesenin
are closely related to the traditions of Russian
folklore, which can be productive in Russian
language lessons for foreigners. The legacy of
Russian folklore is also actively used by
methodologists in classes with foreign students
(Petrova, 2020).
Materials and methods
The founders of the methodology of teaching
RAF remind us that there is nothing more
important than live communication in lessons,
which would be aimed at creating a detailed
monological or dialogical statement, the ability
to express one's opinion and justify it, which is
always determined by the metatask, namely the
desire to create a strong, stable ego-identity
(Astakhova, & Reshetov, 1998). However, the
digital reality in which all layers of society exist
today, and which affects all types of modern art
and science (Dudareva, 2022), sometimes
dictates its own rules.
In the context of the transitional nature of the
culture of the 21st century, globalization, and the
digital turn in the modern humanitarian space,
the discipline of "Russian as a Foreign
Language" is also undergoing changes that
concern both philosophers and cultural scholars
(Dudareva, 2022). Its methodology is changing
first and foremost, with the communicative
method being considered the main method today.
However, with the development of the media
environment, which involves both the language
speaker and the recipient to varying degrees,
teachers are forced to master its resources and
select the best patriotic and culturally oriented
material for lessons with foreign students, in
order to continue to strive for the student's
holistic immersion in the Russian national world.
Often, it is necessary to create an artificial
linguistic environment for this, which is
especially relevant for online classes. In this
context, it is axiologically significant to appeal to
the heritage of Russian folklore, since in Russia
literature is closely related to oral folk art. Let us
turn in this context to the work of Sergei Yesenin,
who loved and studied Russian folklore.
Of course, the teacher himself must choose the
text for hermeneutic analysis for a foreign
student who is not yet familiar with the poet's
work. To achieve the goal and objectives, the
methodologist must use the following general
scientific methods: analysis and systematic
selection, systematization, and generalization of
material. The article reproduces a holistic
hermeneutic analysis of the song on the poet's
verses "Above the window the moon" with the
involvement of biographical commentary and
historical-literary context.
Results
In online teaching RAF, especially outside of the
language environment, it is particularly
important to immerse oneself in Russian reality,
which can be achieved by using authentic
culturally charged song material rich in historical
Dudareva, M.A., Nikitina, V.V., Cherkashina, E.L., Aripova, D.A. / Volume 12 - Issue 68: 195-198 / August, 2023
Volume 12 - Issue 68
/ August 2023
197
http:// www.amazoniainvestiga.info ISSN 2322- 6307
realities (collection of articles, Sushko et al.,
2017), while activating verbal and non-verbal
means during the lesson. Of course, working with
authentic material at the initial stage of learning
(A1-A2) always presents a number of
difficulties, but as modern experts rightly point
out, "poor language proficiency, which
significantly complicates work with authentic
songs, does not make it less necessary and
therefore should not be a reason to refuse their
use in the beginner audience" (Gridneva,
Vladimirova, 2020, p. 63).
Over the past ten years of its development, the
concept of culturological or cultural texts has
been introduced into the methodology of
teaching Russian as a foreign language.
Referring to these texts assumes familiarity with
the historical and cultural realities of the country,
its basic national constants, or, to use the
language of culturologist and philologist
G.D. Gachev, cultural a priori, given to each
people (Gachev, 2008, p. 42). This must be taken
into account by the teacher who is constantly
looking for new methods and never stops
experimenting in order to establish the process of
intercultural communication. In Russian
language classes, students are introduced to
another way of seeing the world axiologically
and ontologically, taking a journey to another
country and its culture. A Russian language class
is always a crossroads of cultures (Abazova,
2012, p. 100).
An example of one of the online experiments
could be a lesson on "Speaking and Singing in
Russian: The Creativity of Sergei Yesenin." The
teacher's task is to interest students in the
personality of the Russian poet, his poems about
the homeland, mother, and Russian nature. In the
poetry of this author, the theme of the homeland
is of paramount importance, and the concept of
"homeland" is expressed primarily through
ethnoconstants, namely the archetype of the tree,
the image-symbol of the Russian field.
Phytonyms and dendronyms "birch", "poplar",
"willow", which serve as a symbol of Russia in
the poetry of the early 20th century author, are
especially relevant for linguocultural analysis.
Russia is a country with a special landscape,
natural space, which determines the perception of
the world as a whole and the perception of
language in particular since language is a home
for being, according to the ideas of famous
philosophers and cultural scientists (this theory
of the interconnection of landscape and image of
life is from the European school).
At the beginning of the lesson, the teacher should
introduce the students to the portrait of Sergei
Yesenin, drawing attention to the Slavic
appearance of the poet: curly golden hair, blue
eyes, which, it should be noted, will be an
anthropological feature of the lyrical hero and his
poetry. When we watch a collage video of the
poet's poems (the poem "The Moon Above the
Window" is played; performed by Yan Frenkel,
a fragment taken from the film "The Crown of
the Russian Empire") and see young Yesenin
holding a balalaika, we draw attention to this and
ask questions to the student audience. What
musical instruments are there in their country?
Do students play musical instruments? "All the
subtleties and all the depth of problems of
interlingual and intercultural communication
become particularly clear, and sometimes simply
realized, when comparing foreign languages with
native ones, foreign culture with one's own,
familiar one” (Ter-Minasova, 2008, p. 48). At
this moment of intercultural dialogue, the focus
is also on patriotic education, which is
impossible without knowledge of the basics of
both one's own native culture and foreign
cultures. Despite its short form, the poem is
complex in terms of ontological and axiological
perception, so it is necessary to listen to the song
based on Esenin's lyrics once again. A successful
choice would be a choir or folk ensemble
performing the song. For Russian oral and
musical culture, choral culture is important, as
singing is often accompanied by dances, which
have a ritual and ceremonial character (such a
performance was demonstrated by the Kuban
Philharmonic Choir named after
G.F. Ponomarenko).
The teacher then shows a photo sequence of
Russian trees - birch, poplar, and willow. The
teacher emphasizes to the students that every
country has its own characteristics of nature and
landscape, which is expressed, among other
things, in language, literature, and art. Fields,
steppes, and trees are symbols of the Russian
national image of the world. In this context, the
teacher asks about the landscape and climate of
the countries where the students in the online
experiment are located. As practice shows,
students can already talk about the climate and
nature of their country at the final stage of A1
learning (the oral part of the preparatory faculty
exam ends with a story on the topics "My
Family", "My Friend", "My City", "My
Country"). Analysis of this culturological text,
and poetry (song) in Russia, as a literary-centric
country, always translates cultural meanings, can
be offered to students both at the initial stage of
198
www.amazoniainvestiga.info ISSN 2322- 6307
studying Russian as a foreign language, and at
the advanced stage.
Conclusion
Oral folklore is the spiritual foundation for the
Russian people. Without folklore, it is impossible
to understand the aesthetic ideals of Russian
literature. Although it is not the easiest section to
study in Russian language classes for foreigners,
exposure to folk and song material develops the
inner world of modern young people, raises the
moral and ethical level, and allows for a smooth
and deep immersion in the national Russian
world. The use of the song with the lyrics of the
Russian poet Sergei Yesenin, "Moon Above the
Window," allows you to get acquainted with the
historical realities of Russian folk life. In this
case, folklore is perceived comprehensively,
philologically, and culturologically. Students
learn new words: "talyanka," which means
Russian accordion, "poplar," "lime,"
symbolizing national archetypal constants of the
Russian world, and "early morning," meaning
very early, semantically marked expression in
Russian national culture, since it is associated
with custom for a Russian person to get up early,
start the working day early (here you can recall a
number of proverbs on this topic). Such a lesson
allows, together with students, to form personal
ideas about the national culture of Russia, to gain
individual knowledge in the process of text
analysis, and not just information in finished
form. Students not only activate their speech
skills, but also expand their knowledge of
Russian artistic culture. Thus, there is a process
of co-creation between a teacher and a student, a
student and a student, during which we strive for
a detailed monologue/dialogical statement.
Bibliographic references
Abazova, L. M. (2012). Teaching foreign
students skills for working with texts of
cultural content in Russian language lessons.
Science and Modernity, 15(2), 100-109. (In
Russian)
Astakhova, E. A., Reshetov, A. G. (1998).
Improving the effectiveness of the process of
developing oral foreign language speech
based on improving the content of education.
Foreign languages for adults, No. 3, 2–9. (In
Russian)
Belozubova N. I. (2015). The topic on Cossacks
at lessons in Russian as a Foreign language:
methodological recommendations to study
«The Cossacks» novel written by Leo
Tolstoy. Bulletin of Amur State University.
Series: Humanities, 70, 108–111 (In Russian)
Dudareva, M. A. (2022). Digital turn in art and
the problem of entelechy of modern poetry.
Amazonia Investiga, 11(53), 348-352.
https://doi.org/10.34069/AI/2022.53.05.34
Gachev, G. D. (1995). National images of the
world. Cosmo-Psycho-Logos. Moscow:
Progress Culture. (In Russian)
Gachev, G. D. (2008). Mentalities of the peoples
of the world. Moscow: Algorithm; Eksmo,
544 p. (In Russian)
Gridneva, N. A., Vladimiriva S. M. (2020).
Using authentic song material at the initial
stage of teaching Russian as a foreign
language. Bulletin of the Samara State
Technical University, 2(46), 62–74. (In
Russian)
Heidegger, M. (1991). Language. St. Petersburg:
Leningrad Union of Scientists, 22 p.
http://lib.ru/HEIDEGGER/yazyk.txt (In
Russian)
Petrova, N. E. (2020). Familiarizing foreign
philology students with Russian literature
based on oral folk texts. Karelian Scientific
Journal, 9, No. 2 (31), 25-27. (In Russian)
Petrova, N. E. (2021). A. S. Pushkin's lyrics in
Russian language classes as a foreign
language. Azimuth of scientific research:
pedagogy and psychology, 10. No. 2(35),
218-220. (In Russian)
Sushko, A. V., Rychkov, A. V., &
Germizeeva, V. V. (2017). "Echo of the
Russian people": reflection of the history of
Russia of the XX century in poetic and song
creativity: Materials of the IV International
Youth Scientific and Practical Conference.
Omsk: Omsk State Technical University,
168 p. (In Russian)
Ter-Minasova, S. G. (2008). War and peace of
languages and cultures. M.: Word, 344 p.
(In Russian)