«Kobzar» Tarasa Shevchenka - tse ne lyshe zbirka virshiv ta poem, a y svoyeridnyy kul?turnyy kod ta istorychnyy symvol Ukrayiny, shcho vidobrazhaye yiyi narodnu dushu, prahnennya svobody ta nezalezhnosti. U tsiy peredmovi vazhlyvo vidznachyty, shcho Shevchenko, yak velykyy poet i hromads?kyy diyach, stvoryv unikal?nu literaturnu spadshchynu, yaka stala holosom ukrayins?koho narodu u borot?bi z istorychnymy trudnoshchamy ta utyskamy. Yoho tvorchist? poyednuye natsional?nu ideyu z hlybokoyu lyuds?koyu spivchuttyam, a mova i styl? - tse zrazky vysokoyi khudozhn?oyi maysternosti, shcho zberihayut? svoyu aktual?nist? i s?ohodni, nadykhayuchy novi pokolinnya shanuval?nykiv ukrayins?koyi kul?tury. Vidomyy amerykans?kyy istoryk Richarda Henri Pauell pysav: "Shevchenko - tse symvol ukrayins?koyi nezalezhnosti i kul?tury, yoho poeziya ye holosom prahnennya do svobody ta hidnosti". Tsi slova pidkreslyuyut? znachushchist? Shevchenka u svitoviy kul?turi ta yoho vplyv na ukrayins?ku identychnist?.