«FAVORITE TRAM» IN SATIRICAL WORKS BY M. ZOSHCHENKO, I. ILF AND E. PETROV
- Authors: Pozdnyakov K.S.1
-
Affiliations:
- Samara State University of Social Sciences
- Issue: Vol 24, No 4 (2018)
- Pages: 126-131
- Section: Articles
- URL: https://journals.ssau.ru/hpp/article/view/6422
- DOI: https://doi.org/10.18287/2542-0445-2018-24-4-126-131
- ID: 6422
Cite item
Full Text
Abstract
The theme of the article is relevant, because at present there is a new understanding of the national literature of the 1920-ies-1930-ies: there are articles and monographs devoted to the works by V. Kataev, M. Zoshchenko, I. Ilf and E. Petrov and demonstrating a radically different approach to the texts by Soviet writers. The scientific novelty of the topic lies in the fact that the topos indicated in the title did not become the subject of consideration in literary articles and monographs before.
The purpose is: to restore the meanings generated by the studied topos. The objectives of the article are: a) to correlate the tram topos with the corresponding fragment of real space; b) to list the values and connotations associated with the tram topos; c) to formulate the functions of the characters in the context of the tram topos. The article uses the method of semiotic analysis of literary text. In addition to the texts by M. Zoshchenko, I. Ilf and E. Petrov, the fragments of the works by B. Pasternak, D. Kharms, M. Bulgakov, and folklore sources are analyzed. In theoretical terms, the article is based on the research by V. Propp, V. Prokofieva, A. Zholkovsky.
The following conclusions were made in the article: the topos of the tram creates the meanings of ceremonial and ritual character (this refers to initiation rites and funerals). Initiation is directly related to the communal/collective body, a part of which a soviet individual must become. Death appears to be a punishment prepared for the character who failed to pass a series of ritual tests.
Thus, the study of such topos, correlating with fragments of real space, seems promising for consideration of the Russian literature of the 1920-ies-1930-ies and its history. In this regard, the topos of the communal apartment and of the soviet bureaucratic institution are of interest, as they largely determined the genesis and development of the soviet mythology.
The purpose is: to restore the meanings generated by the studied topos. The objectives of the article are: a) to correlate the tram topos with the corresponding fragment of real space; b) to list the values and connotations associated with the tram topos; c) to formulate the functions of the characters in the context of the tram topos. The article uses the method of semiotic analysis of literary text. In addition to the texts by M. Zoshchenko, I. Ilf and E. Petrov, the fragments of the works by B. Pasternak, D. Kharms, M. Bulgakov, and folklore sources are analyzed. In theoretical terms, the article is based on the research by V. Propp, V. Prokofieva, A. Zholkovsky.
The following conclusions were made in the article: the topos of the tram creates the meanings of ceremonial and ritual character (this refers to initiation rites and funerals). Initiation is directly related to the communal/collective body, a part of which a soviet individual must become. Death appears to be a punishment prepared for the character who failed to pass a series of ritual tests.
Thus, the study of such topos, correlating with fragments of real space, seems promising for consideration of the Russian literature of the 1920-ies-1930-ies and its history. In this regard, the topos of the communal apartment and of the soviet bureaucratic institution are of interest, as they largely determined the genesis and development of the soviet mythology.
About the authors
K. S. Pozdnyakov
Samara State University of Social Sciences
Author for correspondence.
Email: morenov@ssau.ru
Candidate of Philological Sciences, assistant professor, Department of Journalism
References
Supplementary files
