В XVIII century, Russian literature underwent a remarkable transformation under the influence of social, political, and cultural reforms initiated by Peter the Great and continued by Catherine the Great. The period witnessed the emergence of several major literary figures who laid the foundation of modern Russian literature by introducing new literary genres, promoting secular education, and developing the Russian literary language. Their works reflected the ideals of Classicism, the Enlightenment, and gradually, Sentimentalism. One of the earliest and most influential figures was Antioch Kantemir (1708–1744). He is regarded as the founder of Russian satire. His satires criticized ignorance, corruption, superstition, and the backwardness of Russian society. Inspired by European Enlightenment thinkers, Kantemir emphasized reason, education, and moral reform. His works played an important role in introducing Western literary ideas into Russian culture. Vasily Trediakovsky (1703–1769) was another pioneering literary figure. He made significant contributions to the development of Russian poetry and literary theory. Trediakovsky introduced systematic rules of versification and advocated the adaptation of European poetic forms to the Russian language. His scholarly works on