A Rethinking of the Pan-Epic Value Category “Heroic Anger” in Russian Bylinas: The Knight’s “Fury / Resentment” as a Christian Concept

Abstract

Purpose. The article examines the concept of anger, which should be placed among the central concepts of the world’s folk epics. Results. According to axiological analysis, pre-Christian epic poetry renders anger as a certain “indicator” of heroic nature peculiar to this or that character: the epic hero is “obliged” to feel this emotion when public evaluation of his personal honor (the one made either by his relatives or his bride, lord, rival, etc.) does not meet his own idea of those honors which should be granted to him as a possessor of miraculous strength. Such an underestimation is treated by the character as a kind of disgrace, and, consequently, provokes his anger - a feeling that induces him to restore “justice” through violent means. Russian folk epics, however, should be considered as a principal exception from this rule: bylinas don’t render the “fury” - or the “resentment” - of the knight as his response to the underestimation of personal honor. In Russian heroic songs, the pagan understanding of anger mentioned above is replaced by a new treatment of this feeling: now, anger is conceived as a manifestation of “love-eagerness” focused on those external realities and objective categories, which presuppose their own “honor”. Also, bylinas are remarkably distinct from other folk epics by their two opposed types of heroic characters: here, we find both “pagan knights” (Volkh, Dunay, Vasiliy Buslaev, Ivan Godinovich, Sukhman) and “Christian knights” (Ilya, Dobrynya, Alesha, Mikula, etc.). If the former ones are angry because of their personal disgrace (and, as a rule, perish), the latter ones become angry when certain individuals, objects, and value categories (“God’s law”, “honorable icons”, widows, orphans, etc.) are insulted or devoid of their sacredness; in bylinas, these heroes are invariably rendered as victorious, though their feats - the ones caused by “fury” and “eagerness” - do not increase their own property honor. Conclusion. Among the world’s folk epics, only Russian bylinas render the hero’s anger as a Christian concept pre-supposing both righteous zeal and love.