scholarly journals Dostoevsky, Siberia, and the Russian Person in Donna Tartt’s Novel The Goldfinch

2020 ◽  
Vol 8 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Olga Turysheva
Keyword(s):  
Literary Tradition ◽  
Russian Literature ◽  
Considerable Importance ◽  
Close Connection ◽  
Creative Work ◽  
The Novel ◽  
Main Character ◽  
The Road ◽  
Russian Literary ◽  
American Author

This article considers the Russian motifs present in the narrative of The Goldfinch (2014), a novel by the American author Donna Tartt. These include the depiction of the main character’s Russian friend, allusions to the creative work of Dostoevsky, the interpretation of his novel The Idiot made by the characters, and a detail testifying to the Siberian descent of the second main character. The author makes an attempt to analyse previously unstudied motifs connecting the story of the character with the Russian context. More particularly, she substantiates the importance of Boris Pavlikovsky’s Siberian roots. The author concludes that Tartt portrays the Russian person not only as a complex of stereotypes found in culture but in close connection with the Russian literary tradition. The article combines immanent analysis of text with hermeneutic, mythopoetical, intermedial, and intertextual methods. The author concludes that by referring to the Siberian descent of the second main character, Tartt introduces the Siberian myth into the receptive context of her novel formed on the basis of the whole corpus of Russian literature. It is a myth of Siberia as a space of liminal death and Christological initiation (acc. to V. I. Tyupa). It is proved that relying on this mythologeme makes it possible for the reader to decode the underlying semantics of the novel. It relates to the idea of the resurrection of the character facing the tragedy of death. The plot of The Goldfinch is interpreted as a plot of returning to life through the experience of staying in the land of the dead, crime, and dying. Additionally, the author analyses the function of motifs connected with Dostoevsky’s novel The Idiot. It is not only present as an allusion in Tartt’s work but as an object of the characters’ reflection. For Theo Decker, this reflection results in the acceptance of Dostoevsky’s idea of the resurrection of a great sinner. It is demonstrated that relying on his perception of Dostoevsky’s works, the character realises the circular plot of accepting life and redemption. This interpretation makes it possible to reconstruct the evangelical subtext of the novel. The novel’s ekphrastic aspect also proves it by means of the character’s reflection on The Goldfinch, a painting by Carel Fabritius. Apart from the liminal chronotope, the author analyses other chronotopes of the character that are also of considerable importance: the Christmas chronotope and the road chronotope. The poetological peculiarities revealed prove that Tartt’s works belong to the genre tradition of Bildungsroman (initiation novel). This is illustrated by other images of Dostoevsky’s works, including the ones Tartt used in her first novel The Secret History (1992).

scholarly journals The peculiarities of Zabolotsky’s poetic discourse

2018 ◽  
Vol 55 ◽  
pp. 04015
Author(s):  
Anna Butova ◽  
Angelina Dubskikh ◽  
Ekaterina Lomakina
Keyword(s):  
Scientific Literature ◽  
Literary Tradition ◽  
Russian Literature ◽  
Creative Work ◽  
Specific Nature ◽  
Objective Reality ◽  
Xxth Century ◽  
Poetic Discourse ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
Russian Literary

Although N. Zabolotsky’s creative work constantly attracted researchers, there are still problems that have not been reflected in the scientific literature. This article aims to define the features of Nikolai Zabolotsky’s poetic discourse in the Russian literary tradition. To achieve the aim, the authors deal with a wide range of challenges: the study of Zabolotsky’s worldviews in the context of the general mentality of the epoch; identifying the specific nature of figurative and semantic interactions in the poetic language and the objective reality in Zabolotsky’s and the Symbolists’ poetry; establishing the features in the poetic re-creation of artistic existence. Zabolotsky’s poetic heritage, considered from historical, literary and discoursive approaches is the material of the research. The material of this article can be used in teaching Russian literature of the XXth century and also promote the discovery of new facets in studies on poetics and culturology.

The problem of language identity in Volodymyr Vynnychenko’s novel I want! in contemporary sociocultural context

2020 ◽  
Vol 2019 (2 (11)) ◽  
pp. 211-227
Author(s):  
Ekaterina V. Baydalova ◽  
Keyword(s):  
National Identity ◽  
Russian Literature ◽  
The Novel ◽  
Sociocultural Context ◽  
Main Character ◽  
Life Goal ◽  
Language Identity ◽  
National Question ◽  
In The Beginning ◽  
Ukrainian Society

The novel by Volodymyr Vynnychenko I want! (1915) was, on one hand, his literary answer to the discussion on the national question in Ukrainian society, and, on the other, it was his reaction to the accusations of him being a renegade resulting from his shift towards Russian literature. In 1907-1908, after the publication of his dramas and novels which were impregnated with the idea of “being honest with oneself” (it implied that all thoughts, feelings, and acts were to be in harmony), his works could be more easily published in Russian than in Ukrainian. This situation was taken by his compatriots as a betrayal against his native language and the national cause. In the novel I want! the problem of language identity is directly linked with national identity. In the beginning of the novel the main character, poet Andrey Halepa, despite being ethnic Ukrainian, spoke, thought, and wrote poems in Russian, and consequently his personality was ruined and his actions lacked motivation. It seems that after his unsuccessful suicide attempt and under the influence of a “conscious” Ukrainian, Halepa got in touch with his national identity and developed a life goal (the “revival” of the Ukrainian nation and the building of a free-labour enterprise). However, in the novel, national identity turns out to be incomplete without language identity. Halepa spoke Ukrainian with mistakes, had difficulty choosing suitable words, and discovered with surprise the meaning of some Ukrainian words from his former Russian friends. The open finale emphasises the irony of the discourse around a fast national “revival” without struggle and effort, and which only required someone’s will.

scholarly journals BIG AND SMALL WORLDS OF CHILDREN CHARACTERS IN ‘A LITTLE PRINCESS’ BY F. H. BURNETT

2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (3) ◽  
pp. 70-78
Author(s):  
Varvara A. Byachkova ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Charles Dickens ◽  
Fairy Tale ◽  
Literary Tradition ◽  
Small World ◽  
Protective Mechanism ◽  
The Novel ◽  
Main Character ◽  
Small Worlds ◽  
The World ◽  
Space Organization

The article raises the topic of space organization in writings by Frances Hodgson Burnett. The object of analysis is the novel A Little Princess. The novel, addressed primarily to children and teenagers, has many similarities with David Copperfield and the works of Charles Dickens in general. The writer largely follows the literary tradition created by Dickens. The space of the main character is divided into three levels: the Big world (states and borders), the Small world (home, school, city) and the World of imagination. The first two worlds give the reader a realistic picture of Edwardian England, the colonial Empire, through the eyes of a child reveal the themes of unprotected childhood, which the writer develops following the literary tradition of the 19th century. The Big and Small worlds also perform an educational function, being a source of experience and impressions for the main character. In the novel, the aesthetic of realism is combined with folklore and fairy-tale elements: the heroine does not completely transform the surrounding space, but she manages to change it partially and also to preserve her own personality and dignity while experiencing the Dickensian drama of child disenfranchisement, despair and loneliness. The World of imagination allows the reader to understand in full the character of Sarah Crewe, demonstrates the dynamics of her growing up, while for herself it is a powerful protective mechanism that enables her to pass all the tests of life and again become a happy child who can continue to grow up and develop.

Strategies for building a professional reputation of Russian emigres and self-educated writers

Neophilology ◽  
2020 ◽  
pp. 512-520
Author(s):  
Yuliya V. Kaminskaya ◽  
Oxana A. Tolstonozhenko
Keyword(s):  
Critical Reflection ◽  
Literary Tradition ◽  
Economic Benefits ◽  
Creative Work ◽  
Common Features ◽  
Cultural Conditions ◽  
The People ◽  
Professional Reputation ◽  
Russian Literary ◽  
Literary Process

We analyze the ways of constructing a writer's reputation in exceptional cultural conditions related to displacement of entire generations of authors to the literary process periphery and their lack of a “right to creative work”. We compare the experience of two conditionally distinguished large and heterogeneous groups – writers from the people who tried to declare themselves at the beginning of the 20th century as an independent current, and representatives of the Russian literary emigration. In addition to a number of common features (falling into the “blind zone” of generally recognized literature, internal isolation, leading to the fact that the majority of readers belong to the same environment as writer, the lack of economic benefits from publishing works), self-educated writers and emigres resorted to similar strategies for building a reputation. We find that representatives of both groups formulated a noble mission uniting them, aimed at serving na-tional literature, turned to the experience and poetics of predecessor writers to construct their own literary tradition, legitimizing their special creative path, and tried to structure their sub-field by creating associations and circles , as well as critical reflection of the current literary process.

scholarly journals The vampires of A. V. Ivanov in light of the gothic tradition of Russian Literature

Litera ◽  
2021 ◽  
pp. 98-107
Author(s):  
Daria Leonidovna Kulikova
Keyword(s):  
Literary Tradition ◽  
Russian Literature ◽  
The Novel ◽  
Present Stage ◽  
Historical Experience ◽  
Horror Genre ◽  
Political Implications ◽  
The Family ◽  
Horror Literature ◽  
Literary Evolution

The object of this research is the novel “Food Block” by A. V. Ivanov and the realization of aesthetics of the horror genre therein. The goal is to establish correlation between the gothic tradition of Russian literature and modern horror literature based on the works of the indicated authors. The article examines the influence of the gothic romantic tradition upon composition and imaginary system of A. K. Tolstoy’s novella. The material of A. V. Ivanov’s novel indicates resorting to the literary tradition on the level of composition and individual images; while overall, the historical experience accumulated by the genre over the decades and significant impact of cinematography manifested on the level of cinematographic techniques. The conclusion is made that in the novel by A. V. Ivanov, the mystical attributes of vampirism, which coincide with the pioneer symbolism, have political implications, which contradicts the horror traditions in gothics. Novellas “The Vampire” and" The Family of the Vourdalak” are the result of accumulation of gothic motifs, such as family curse, mystical house, dream, and portrait that came alive. Comparison of the techniques of creating horror literature allows tracing the paths of literary evolution, and formulating conclusions on modernization of the genre at the present stage. The novelty of this research is define by insufficient research of the topic of typological and genetic links between gothic and modern horror, namely in the works of A. V. Ivanov.

scholarly journals Czy tylko socrealistyczna powieść-agitka? Próba re-lektury Matki Maksyma Gorkiego

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Joanna Dobrowolska
Keyword(s):  
Russian Literature ◽  
Social Realism ◽  
Early 20Th Century ◽  
The Novel ◽  
Artistic Value ◽  
New Man ◽  
Russian Literary ◽  
Maxim Gorky ◽  
New Religion ◽  
Ideological Context

My paper is a proposal for a non-standard reading of Mother by Maxim Gorky, often perceived as a piece of propaganda with low artistic value, a novel overfilling with ideology, subjugated to the doctrine of social realism. I would like to step beyond these stereotypes and show some contexts that have hardly been identified in the Polish reception of Russian literature from the early 20th century. I distinguish three main issues in the content of the novel: the image of the mother (novel about a mother), socialism as the “new religion” and the utopia of the “new man”. I see the current of Marxism called God-Building as a very important ideological context. I refer to research by Polish and Russian literary scholars and to my own findings.

scholarly journals I. Turgenev’s novel “Rudin” in Chinese literary studies

2019 ◽  
Vol 24 (3) ◽  
pp. 433-443
Author(s):  
Siwen Guo
Keyword(s):  
Literary Criticism ◽  
Chinese Literature ◽  
Great Influence ◽  
Russian Literature ◽  
The Novel ◽  
Ivan Sergeevich Turgenev ◽  
Future Studies ◽  
Russian Literary ◽  
Similar Images ◽  
New Generation

The work of I. Turgenev was translated into Chinese in the first half of the twentieth century and later spread widely in China, having a great influence on the new generation of Chinese writers. At the same time, more and more literary critics began to study the works of Turgenev. Extensive research and analysis, as well as the study of works from different angles, contributed to a better understanding of Turgenev and Russian literature by Chinese readers. The article discusses the publications of Chinese litterateurs and critics from the second half of the 20th to beginning of the 21st century, the work of Ivan Sergeevich Turgenev, notes the enduring interest of the Chinese audience to the work of Russian prose writer, in particular, to the novel “Rudin”. Special attention is paid to the prose writer's “path” to the novel; it is proved that the high interest of scientists to Dmitry Rudin, the protagonist of this novel, caused by Chinese specifics and the relevance of many problems associated with this image. The article explains the evolution of the attitude of the Chinese to Rudin: from agreement with Russian researchers considering him as a superfl person to disagreement with them. At the same time, Rudin is compared with typically similar images in Chinese literature. An analysis of Turgenev's works by Chinese literary critics will provide detailed information for future studies in international literary circles, and can also lay the foundation for finding differences between Chinese and Russian literary criticism.

scholarly journals Nostalgia as a cultural marker in Thomas Pynchon's Gravity's rainbow

2018 ◽  
Vol 36 (26) ◽  
Author(s):  
Stipe Grgas
Keyword(s):  
American Culture ◽  
The Novel ◽  
Main Character ◽  
The Road ◽  
Gravity’S Rainbow ◽  
Gravity's Rainbow ◽  
Cultural Implications ◽  
The Us

The author concentrates on the thematic of nostalgia in Thomas Pynchon's most famous novel which, in his view, undoubtedly enplaces Gravity's Rainbow into the very center of American culture. The author analyses, with particular care, the analepsis within the novel in which Pynchon describes the Puritan origins of American civilisation which function not only as the primary backdrop for delineating the main character but encompass the dynamics of a historical dilema which profoundly influenced the later development of the US. The author shows how the nostalgia for the road not taken by the American polity permeates Pynchon's novel but also how the dystopian outcome of utopian beginnings has broader cultural implications.

Razin’s motif of the Princess’s drowning in the literature about the Russian Civil war (“Princess” by Andrey Sobol and “Povolniki” by Alexander Yakovlev)

2021 ◽  
pp. 97-109
Author(s):  
Olga A. Simonova ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Civil War ◽  
Death Penalty ◽  
Russian Literature ◽  
The Novel ◽  
Main Character ◽  
Russian Civil War ◽  
Literary Works ◽  
Participation Of Women ◽  
Traditional Roles

The motif of the Persian Princess’s drowning was central to the plot connected with the figure of the famous Cossack ataman Stepan Razin. The motif became popular in Russian literature. The most famous was a song based on the words of Dmitry Sadovnikov, “Iz-za ostrova na strezhen…” (“Round the island to the midstream...” (Stenka Razin Song)), which served as the basis for the subsequent perception of the motif. The story of A. Sobol, “Princess” (1924), and the novel of A. Yakovlev, “Povolniki” (1922), embody the text of Sadovnikov’s song. The character and action of the “ataman” were close to the Razin’s ones. However, the reasons that caused the action and the image of the Princess were different. The heroine turns from a faceless and nameless figure into a full-fledged character, actively acting (A. Sobol “Princess”) or playing a key role in changing the fate of the main character (A. Yakovlev “Povolniki”). Sobol’s “princess” Natasha Toropova only pretends to be submissive to the “ataman” who loves her: in fact, she has her own ideas and views and became a Chekist in order to implement them. Silly but pretty Ninochka from “Povolniki” brings the hero to the embezzlement, resulting in the death penalty for both of them. Thus, the traditional roles in Razin’s story are interpreted in a new way. The initiative of the heroine is directly due to the participation of women in the Civil war: during this period, the “princess” acquires subjectivity in literary works.

L’or, les esclaves, les femmes et les paladins dans l’Histoire de Kazan

2015 ◽  
Vol 42 (1) ◽  
pp. 49-63
Author(s):  
Pierre Gonneau
Keyword(s):  
Literary Tradition ◽  
Russian Literature ◽  
Historical Romance ◽  
Russian Literary

“War and Chivalry in the Land of the Tatars: Gold, Slaves, Women and Warriors in the Kazanskaia istoriia”. Kazanskaia istoria (circa 1564–1565?) is a first try at a historical romance in the Russian literary tradition. Inspired by the conquest of Kazan by Russian troops (1552), it enriches the factual narrative with literary themes such as the fabulous and dangerous wealth of the Tatar world: gold, silk, slaves and women. It also expresses a chivalry code and a sense of honor transcending the divide between Christian Russians and Muslim Tatars. These themes will be extensively developed in later Russian literature.

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