Н. С. Лесков

The problem of the interaction of words and images in the works of N.S. Leskov is currently the least studied. The genre subtitle of the late story A Winter’s Day (1894) – “Landscape and genre” encourages us to consider the work in the aspect of the designated problem. O. V. Evdokimova (1980), B. S. Dykhanova (2013), O. V. Chervinskaya (2018), D. S. Rivanenkova (2021) analyze the features of the genre, taking into account the meanings of the subtitle.

The article is dedicated to the analysis of the category of spiritual and physical «risk» in the works of the Russian writers of different epochs – from the medieval «life» to the XIXth century novel. They are united by the analysis of the inner state and outward dangers awaiting the missionaries of the Christian faith among pagans.

The article attempts to study the methods of depicting saints in the texts by N. S. Leskov on the example of the images of saint bishops Philaret Drozdov and Philaret Amphiteatrov. The polarity of expressive means in the descriptions of the characters is emphasized as largely driven by the narrator’s pathos. The analysis is based not only on the material of the Trifles from the Life of Archbishops, but also of some other works.