2020 Issue №4

The article analyses the genre of the autobiographical novel by Vl. Maksimova in the context of the spiritual tradition and in connection with the typology of literary heroes. The study reveals closeness of the novel-confession “Farewell from Nowhere” to the semantic form of “confession-deed” (M. Bakhtin), embodied in the ancient Russian “Teachings” by Vladi­mir Monomakh. The type of hero-protagonist is determined by the spiritual movement he makes along the path of personal repentance and gaining inner freedom. The motive of farewell is combined in the novel with the form of con­fession and becomes an act on the part of the author. This characterizes the genre of the novel “Farewell from Nowhere” as connected with the national spiritual tradition and the organic inclusion of genre forms inherent in the novel of the twentieth century.

The article is devoted to comparative analysis of N. M. Kononov’s short story “Svetotomiy” and Plato’s dialogue “The feast”. The research aims at identifying intertextual links between these text while the analysis establishes the dialogic nature of the texts on a conceptual level and they are united by the motifs of Feast and Love. The feasting narrative in Plato’s dialogue is a celebration of the elite, described in the traditions of ethics and philosophy of antiquity. The characters of “The feast” are historical figures, their friendly conversation demonstrates the search for truth, love is understood as a desire for beauty and for eternity. The friendly feast in Kononov’s story is a feast of sinful flesh, “a feast during the plague”. The artistic images of the story are simulacra, attractive in appearance, but morally corrupted.

Having chosen the essay as the primary genre, S. Dovlatov, addresses the fate of the artist and sculptor M. Shemyakin. The article examines the central theme for the writer of the fate of a creative personality in the conditions of the totalitarian USSR regime in the era of stagnation and subsequent forced emi­gration. The humorous-ironic style is shown to have allowed the writer to raise the question of the fate of M. Shemyakin, I. Brodsky, his own fate and, in general, of the tragic fate of non-conformist writers in the USSR. The author reveals the shared dominant of the uncompromising service to the ideas of art, rather than the state. The pragmatics of the text is analyzed, which is achieved by S. Dovlatov through expressive, emotional-evaluative vocabulary and syn­tax.

The article, dedicated to the first novel of James Joyce, a famous Irish writer, shows the protagonist’s path to maturing considering the impact that home tutoring, educational institutions of various types as well as self-education had on him. In the schools under the tutelage of the Jesuit Order the values instilled by home education appear to conflict with those imposed by the British educational system. A study of the school system features shows that it is unable to lead Stephen to the creation of a full-fledged ideal which he could follow. At the same time the home loses its significance to him which leads to a complete change in ideological attitudes. An analysis of the hero’s inner world reveals that self-education does not only help Stephen to achieve success but also awakens the desire to remain an eternal student at the Uni­versity of Life.