Stambol Ihor

Book culture and library affairs in Lesia Ukrainka’s living and creative space

Section: Contexts of Lesya Ukrainka’s biographical world: A view from the 21st century

Abstract: The aim of the article is to find out the poet’s views on the book industry. The tasks are to analyze the poet’s legacy in relation to her reflections on the topic of bibliophilism, bibliography and library work, to find out the peculiarities of her views on the industry; determining exactly how the poet managed to join the development of book and library affairs. The research methodology is based on the principles of historicism, objectivity, as well as on general historical methods – chronological, retrospective, problem-thematic and statistical-analytical. The scientific novelty of the work lies in the review of bibliographic and library science aspects, which have been found in published works, epistolary of the poet, as well as in memories about her. The main views of Lesya Ukrainka on the value of different genres of books, printing and editorial aspects of book publishing are determined, as well as the attitude of the writer to libraries is determined. On the basis of epistolary books and archival documents, the history related to her active organizational work on the creation of the first Ukrainian national library in Kyiv is covered. Conclusions. Lesya Ukrainka’s views on the book industry reflect the significance of this information carrier in Ukrainian for the intelligentsia of the second half of the 19th and the beginning of the 20th centuries. At the same time, the poetess demonstrated her own, original view of book culture. She sought to publish good books, with thin sheets and a wide line spacing, to be better perceived by readers. To achieve these goals, she was willing to sacrifice fees. The book was the main means and measure of education for the poetess. Lesya Ukrainka was one of the most international Ukrainian readers at the time, as she was enrolled in libraries in at least five countries. Her experience and lack of documented problems with the Russian police contributed to the fact that the poetess became primarily responsible for the creation of a public library at Kyiv “Prosvita” in 1906. During the organization, Lesya Ukrainka was very active, which shows her admiration for the idea of the appearance of the Ukrainian national library.

Keywords: Lesya Ukrainka, bibliology, library, “Prosvita” society.

  Full-text PDF    https://doi.org/10.15407/ub.21.166     Citation

• Stambol Ihor (Borys Grinchenko Kyiv University (Kyiv, Ukraine), [email protected]) ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3099-3862

Cite:
Stambol Ihor (2021). Book culture and library affairs in Lesia Ukrainka’s living and creative space. Biographistica Ukrainica, (21) 166-180. (In Ukrainan). https://doi.org/10.15407/ub.21.166

References:

1. Hanusyn, O. (2014). Everyday life of the Ukrainian intelligentsia of Galicia in the second half of the XIX – early XX centuries in the light of sources and historiographical interpretations. Visnyk of the Lviv University. Series Bibliology, Library Studies and Information Technologies, 8, 220-230. [In Ukrainian].
2. Dyba, A. (2010) “Vse dlia inshykh i nichoho dlia sebe”: Svidchennia Antoniny Makarovoi pro Kosachiv-Drahomanovykh. In N. H. Stashenko (Comp.). Lesia Ukrainka i suchasnist (Vol. 6, pp. 344-377). Lutsk, Ukraine: Volyn. nats. un-t im. Lesi Ukrainky. [In Ukrainian].
3. Zakharova, I. V., and Sarbei, V. H. (1990). Pershyi ukrainskyi pidruchnyk iz starodavnoho skhodoznavstva. Ukrainskyi Istorychnyi Zhurnal, 2, 38-44. [In Ukrainian].
4. Zvidomlennia Tovarystva “Prosvita” u Kyievi, zasnovanoho v pamiat T. Shevchenka, za 1906 rik. (1907). Kyiv, Ukraine. [In Ukrainian].
5. Kosach-Kryvyniuk, O. (1970). Lesia Ukrainka: Khronolohiia zhyttia i tvorchosty. New York, NY. [In Ukrainian].
6. Maliuta, O. V. (2007). Kyivske tovarystvo “Prosvita” imeni Tarasa Shevchenka. In V. A. Smolii (Ed.). Entsyklopediia istorii Ukrainy (Vol. 4, pp. 251- 252). Kyiv, Ukraine: Nauk. dumka. [In Ukrainian].
7. Miroshnychenko, L. (2011). Lesia Ukrainka. Zhyttia i teksty. Kyiv, Ukraine: Smoloskyp. [In Ukrainian].
8. Moroz, M. (2010). Lesia Ukrainka i “Prosvita”. Ukraina: Kulturna Spadshchyna, Natsionalna Svidomist, Derzhavnist, 19, 522-525. [In Ukrainian].
9. Vakhnenko, N. M., and Zalepa, M. O. (Comps.). (2011). Ni! Ya zhyva, ya budu vichno zhyty…: Do 140-richchia vid dnia narodzh. Lesi Ukrainky. Kyiv, Ukraine. [In Ukrainian].
10. “Prosvitianky” z rodu Kosachiv (onlain-vystavka do 150-richchia vid dnia narodzhennia Lesi Ukrainky ta z nahody 115-richchia stvorennia Kyivskoi “Prosvity”). (2021, February 24). Derzhavnyi arkhiv Kyivskoi oblasti.
11. Kostenko, A. I. (Comp.). (1971). Spohady pro Lesiu Ukrainku. Kyiv, Ukraine: Dnipro. [In Ukrainian].
12. Stambol, I. (2021). Mykhailo Komarov. Kharkiv, Ukraine: Folio. [In Ukrainian].
13. Ukrainka, Lesia. (2021). Povne akademichne zibrannia tvoriv (Vol. 7. Literaturno-krytychni i publitsystychni statti; V. Aheieva, Ed.). Lutsk, Ukraine: Volyn. nats. un-t im. Lesi Ukrainky. [In Ukrainian].
14. Ukrainka, Lesia. (2021). Povne akademichne zibrannia tvoriv (Vol. 8. Pereklady: poeziia, proza, drama, publitsystyka ta inshe; M. Strikha, Ed.). Lutsk, Ukraine: Volyn. nats. un-t im. Lesi Ukrainky. [In Ukrainian].
15. Ukrainka, Lesia. (2021). Povne akademichne zibrannia tvoriv (Vol. 10. “Starodavnia istoriia skhidnikh narodiv”. Konspekty. Vypysky z knyh. Notatky ta inshe; Yu. Hromyk, Ed.). Lutsk, Ukraine: Volyn. nats. un-t im. Lesi Ukrainky. [In Ukrainian].
16. Ukrainka, Lesia. (2021). Povne akademichne zibrannia tvoriv (Vol. 11. Lysty (1876-1896); S. Kocherha, Ed.). Lutsk, Ukraine: Volyn. nats. un-t im. Lesi Ukrainky. [In Ukrainian].
17. Ukrainka, Lesia. (2021). Povne akademichne zibrannia tvoriv (Vol. 12. Lysty (1897-1901); O. Poliukhovych, Ed.). Lutsk, Ukraine: Volyn. nats. un-t im. Lesi Ukrainky. [In Ukrainian].
18. Ukrainka, Lesia. (2021). Povne akademichne zibrannia tvoriv (Vol. 13. Lysty (1902-1906); Yu. Hromyk, Ed.). Lutsk, Ukraine: Volyn. nats. un-t im. Lesi Ukrainky. [In Ukrainian].
19. Ukrainka, Lesia. (2021). Povne akademichne zibrannia tvoriv (Vol. 14. Lysty (1907-1913); S. Romanov, Ed.). Lutsk, Ukraine: Volyn. nats. un-t im. Lesi Ukrainky. [In Ukrainian].