MYKOLA LYSENKO: RECONSTRUCTING PHYSICAL HEALTH THROUGH NARRATIVE SOURCES

Abstract

The article is devoted to reconstructing Mykola Lysenko’s physical health on the basis of narrative sources from the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, above all, ego-documents – correspondence, memoirs, and recollections of the composer himself and of those around him. Health is considered not only a medical or biological category but also a component of everyday experience, closely connected to professional activity, family circumstances, psychological strain, and the sociocultural context of the imperial era. The article analyzes Lysenko’s major illnesses as well as therapeutic practices typical of the period: spa treatment, climate-related travel, and restrictions on physical activity. Particular attention is given to the family dimension of health – the illnesses of children and close relatives, epidemics, the psychological impact of losing his wife, and the mechanisms of emotional coping with traumatic events through creative work. It is shown that the illnesses and deaths of members of the intellectual milieu were perceived as a collective experience of the community and were reflected in private discourse. The conclusion emphasizes the heuristic potential of ego-documents for studying the history of everyday life and the private dimension of the lives of figures in Ukrainian culture