“There is no Instinct Like that of the Heart” (Poetry as a Form of Inculturation)

Abstract

The article presents the results of the study of the correlation between poetry and the process of human inculturation which implies the learning of traditions, norms of behavior in a specific culture. The aim of the study is to identify the specific aspects of the process of representation of a certain cultural code by a poetic text, its acquisition of new properties and connotations, and then the transformation of the poetic text into a new cultural code. The study consisted of an oral and written inquest, holding of focus groups among different age groups in several regions of the Russian Federation. As a result, the authors conclude that mostly recollected poetic lines form a common cultural picture of the world; the poetic text is internalized by perceptive and is endowed with its cultural experience; quoting a poetic text in everyday speech allows a person to express themselves creatively through a word picture; the constant quoting of poetic texts influences the development of a modern culture.