Culture of the New Time: Problems of Periodization, Characteristics, Distinctive Features

Human culture is comparable, perhaps, with a boundless gray ocean. In its depths lie innumerable treasures of thought, unique masterpieces of music and painting, architecture and cinematography, the achievements of science and technology, great geographical discoveries and many other things that determined our spiritual appearance for today. Mankind has known in its time many civilizations that left a significant imprint on the fate of descendants or who have sunk into oblivion without a trace. Each time put forward their heroes, their spiritual leaders and had their own unique characteristics.

In place of the gloomy Middle Ages comes an interesting era, which is usually called the New Time. And the culture of modern times has become a defining moment in the history of our ancestors and in many ways predetermined the modern alignment of events.

Periodization problems

The very notion of "new time" is rather conditional and vague. After all, it includes not only a certain time frame, but also a fundamentally new level of thinking, a new view of the world, the expansion of the cultural, intellectual space. The culture of modern times is based on the ideals of the Renaissance humanists. It is they who have the idea to divide human history into the ancient, middle and new periods. As a starting point for the basis of periodization, they took the principle of innovation in the cultural sphere, and not only in the socio-economic. This approach was explained quite simply: after the revelry of the Inquisition, the persecution of science, the Church's dominance in all spheres of public and private life, the Renaissance, with its progressive views and the first sprouts of democracy, the ideal of a harmonious person, a surge in scientific and technical thought, the discovery and development of new lands, People as a breath of fresh life-giving air. And the culture of modern times fully corresponds to this ideology. But not all the countries that existed at that time were at the same level of cultural and economic development, not all peoples were equally civilized. And in Western Europe itself , along with the affirmation of humanism and enlightenment, the Reformation, at times it was thrown back for decades into the past by the fires of the Inquisition, the show courts of witches, etc. Serfdom flourished in Russia . Notre Dame Cathedral in France, like the immortal novel of Hugo, became one of the symbols, very revealing, of this time, reflecting, on the one hand, the high achievements, the flight of creative thought and the spirit of man, and on the other - his fear of the incomprehensible, unknown and Slavish features of the soul. Nevertheless, the era of modern times proved: it is with its approach that Europe becomes not only a political but also a spiritual center of the world and spreads its intellectual, political and technical influence to other countries and peoples. European civilization becomes the most developed and strong at that time.

In scientific circles there is no common opinion on the issue of periodization.

• Some historians propose for the beginning of the era to accept the English revolution of 1640, when the people and the bourgeoisie under Cromwell's leadership infringed not only on power, but also on the life of the monarch, having executed King Charles Stewart.
• In the opinion of others, the era and culture of modern times are more in line with such a starting point as the Reformation of 1517 and Luther's activities.
• The third group of scientists, as leaders, refers to the date of the discovery of America, the capture by the Ottomans of the Byzantine capital of Constantinople, the French Revolution in 1789.
• The end of modern times and the advent of the Newest History, Western historians call the end of the First World War, and in Soviet science the Seventeenth year and the Bolshevik insurrection were considered.

New time - a new culture

The grandeur of the era of modern times was fully reflected in his artistic culture. In addition to political redistribution of the world, wars and revolutions, the artistic culture of the new era embraced new trends that came to European consciousness with a close acquaintance with the life of the African continent and India, with its peculiar philosophy, America's discovery and way of life, culture, mythology, the art of its indigenous Peoples, close contact with the East and the Muslim religion.

Art in the New Times is not perceived as entertainment, rest from the works of the righteous (mental and physical), but as the most important form of creative activity. A tense search in this area led to the creation of such styles and trends in world art as the magnificent Baroque with its externals and stylized antiquity, strict classicism with its inherent glorification of reason and prudence, sentimentalism glorifying the superiority of the heart, feelings over rationalism, realism with Close attention to the human soul, its searches and throwings, falls and take-offs, and, finally, the so-called decadent currents.

The very character of the era, dynamic and dramatic, gave birth to this variety of styles and trends that not only succeeded each other, but co-existed and even fought both within the creativity of one Master and within the framework of entire art schools. The main thing is that in the center of everything there was a Person, Personality. Through him, as a prism, the study of Time and its mapping in architecture, sculpture, painting, etc. were conducted. And all the cultural and artistic trends of the era reflected the struggle of people for social justice and spirituality, their dignified existence in a free society.