BAROQUE REPRESENTATION OF PRINCE OLEKSANDR IN “THE LAMENT FOR THE OSTROH PRINCES’ HOUSE” BY DAMIAN NALYVAIKO

Abstract

The article offers a comprehensive analysis of baroque elements in Damian Nalyvaiko’s «The Lament for the Ostroh Princes’ House», one of the most distinctive texts of the Ostroh literary circle at the turn of the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries. The study outlines the author’s figure – an eminent personality alongside Herasym Smotrytskyi – while also tracing the origins of his biography and activities. Particular attention is paid to the background of the Nalyvaiko brothers, Demian’s role as abbot of St. Nicholas Church in Ostroh, his participation in the Brest Council, and his association with the political uprisings of his brother Severyn Nalyvaiko. The polemical context is emphasized, especially the use of the term «nalyvaiky» as a synonym for the Orthodox, as well as the years 1602–1605, when Demian directed the printing house of the Dermanskyi Monastery. The likely occasion for the composition of the Lament was the funeral of Prince Oleksandr Ostrozkyi on February 2, 1604. The work unfolds as a polyphonic discourse: while the deceased himself serves as the main narrator, the prologue resonates with the voice of a personified Ukraine. This passage marks the first explicit appearance in Ukrainian literature of the image of Mother Ukraine lamenting her children. Further sections are addressed to the late prince’s wife, children, and friends, combining appeals for faithful service to the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth with exhortations to preserve the Orthodox faith, which would ensure the restoration of family honor and the continuity of the name (the «idea of eternal return»). The study demonstrates that the text is dominated by a baroque conception of worldly vanity and the inevitability of death, interpreted as the natural order of existence. A recurring symbolic motif is the candle, representing the fragility and transience of human life. The climactic section is marked by dramatic expressiveness and mystification: words about the death of his wife are placed into the mouth of Prince Janusz, although historically he remained unmarried and childless. This artistic device exemplifies the baroque dynamics of the text and its orientation toward emotional impact on the recipient.