Stanislav Rosovetskyi's contribution to the study of the language of Taras Shevchenko

Abstract

The article attempts to outline the contribution of Stanislav Rosovetsky to the study of the language of Taras Shevchenko – a talented scholar, a versatile philologist, a professor at Taras Shevchenko National University of Kyiv, and the author of more than two hundred literary, folkloristic, and linguistic studies on the works of Taras Shevchenko, more than a hundred of which are included in the Shevchenko Encyclopedia. The focus is placed on the linguopoetic, stylistic, and linguofolkloristic issues in his works, as well as on questions concerning the history of the Ukrainian literary language. Comprehensive studies by the scientist on lexicology, phraseology, and syntax are examined. The analyzed stylistic device – the apostrophe (rhetorical figure), a form of address from a particular subject to the object of speech (Fate, Muse, Glory, etc.) – used by Rosovetsky (in collaboration) in the poetic texts of "Kobzar" is characterized. Emphasis is placed on the precision of Rosovetsky's linguo-poetic observations regarding Shevchenko's choice in creating a reinterpretation of the fragment from "The Tale of Igor's Campaign": the poem "From Dawn to Dusk." It is noted that Shevchenko distinctly approximated the text to the Ukrainian folkloric samples of the 19th century, particularly in the linguistic aspect, by replacing plural forms with singular ones when creating characteristic oral-poetic synecdoches. Rosovetskyi's approach to studying the secrets of Taras Shevchenko's linguistic mastery from the perspective of deviations from the discourse established for a particular genre is highlighted. The importance of Rosovetskyi's psychological justification of the high frequency of the word "khata" (house) in Taras Shevchenko's poetic contexts is emphasized. Rosovetskyi's interpretation of Shevchenko's self-repetitions or authorial reminiscences, which correspond to structurally folkloric formulas, is outlined. The validity of the scientist's conclusions regarding the poet's transformations of authentic folkloric formulas is underscored, as well as Rosovetskyi's particular attention to dumas in this aspect. The scientist's observations on Taras Shevchenko's fundamental stance as a language creator regarding the choices for the further development of the Ukrainian literary language are highlighted. An attempt by Rosovetskyi to conceptualize V. Peretz's figure in terms of his contribution to the development of a scientific model of Shevchenko's studies is noted. The article pays special attention to the academic's personal contribution in this field, as well as to the significance of his role in training a cohort of future Shevchenko's scholars at the Seminary.