Russian philology
the first half of the 18th century were able to lay foundation for the more poignant, topical
work of the late 18th century.
Satirist Antiokh Dmitrievich Kantemir, 17081744, was one of the earliest Russian writers not
only to praise the ideals of Peter I's reforms but the ideals of the growing Enlightenment
movement in Europe. Kantemir's works regularly expressed his admiration for Peter, most
notably in his epic dedicated to the emperor entitled Petrida. More often, however, Kantemir
indirectly praised Peter's influence through his satiric criticism of Russia's "superficiality and
obscurantism," which he saw as manifestations of the backwardness Peter attempted to
correct through his reforms. Kantemir honored this tradition of reform not only through his
support for Peter, but by initiating a decade-long debate on the proper syllabic versification
using the Russian language.
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