FEAST AS THE CORE OF LIFE IN THE OLD RUSSIAN LITERATURE

In this article feast is considered as one of the major images in the Old Russian literature. Over recent years, the interest in studying native Russian culture and literature has deepened, but the research of Old Russian texts has not been given due attention yet. In Russian tradition a feast is a ritual that long remained unaltered as suggested by literary texts. In the article the attempt is made to trace the origins, meaning and developments of feast, furthermore the main components of feast as a ritual are identified and described.