THE ARTISTIC SEMANTICS OF A BORDER IN MODERN UKRAINIAN NOVELS: THE GENDER ASPECT

Abstract

Introduction. Despite an active development of gender studies in modern humanitarian science many aspects of artistic and cultural gender representation need a complex scientific investigation. The artistic models marked by gender mentality save their actuality in modern Ukrainian novels. The space images belong to the most representative manifestations of gender mentality in artistic structure of modern novel. Purpose. The purpose of article is to investigate the artistic meanings of the space constant of border in modern Ukrainian novels from the point of view of gender representation. Originality. The artistic space in its gender measures became the object of scientific attention in the works by Vira Aheieva, Tamara Hundorova, Sofiia Filonenko, Nataliia Lebedyntseva, Oleksandra Klepykova and others. But this theoretical problem was investigated only as a part of the other scientific questions and related to some personalities of Ukrainian authors. So the gender aspects of artistic space models of modern national novels need a complex scientific investigation considering an actual social and cultural context. The semantics of the image of border as it was noted is one of the important parts of this problem. Results. The general meaning of a border as universal mental image of human consciousness supposes the division of the world into «our» and «foreign». In context of postcolonial culture this dichotomy acquires specific sense: self-identification of postcolonial subject is realized as negation of «another» (the most often – of the metropolis and its cultural manifestations). This peculiarity is typical for modern Ukrainian novels. The meaning of the artistic constant of border displays its correlation with masculine and feminine writing. In first case this space image embodies the overcoming of some landmarks which are the stages of masculine formation. The interpretation of this plot model depends of anti-colonial and post-colonial discourses which in different way characterize the historical experience and use for this different artistic means. First of them is focused on selfidentification by destruction of cultural narrative of metropolis («Elemental» by Vasyl Shkliar). The second displays readiness for the dialogue with the representatives of other cultures on the equal bases (the novels by Maks Kidruk and Yevhen Polozhii). In feminine writing the image of border gets the meaning of dismemberment of alive body. This motive correlates with the greatest problem of feminine post-colonial literature: violence towards the woman-representative of colonial nation from the colonizers and from the patriarchal family system. So the artistic constant of border becomes the sign of double marginalization of woman in colonial culture («Sweet Darusia» by Mariia Matios). Conclusion. The artistic semantics of a border in modern Ukrainian novels manifests its gender character and in many cases correlates with the genre specificity of prose. Interpretation of a border as one of the most important elements of a plot models of initiation is the characteristic of masculine writing, first of all adventure literature. The constant of border’s overcoming gets the special meanings in context of anti-colonial and post-colonial discourses. In feminine writing the image of border becomes the form of expression of unique experience of a woman in colonial culture. In this case the space image gets the character of symbol of violence towards the woman’s body which is associated with the native land. Both masculine and feminine literature represent a border as fundamental opposition of «our» and «foreign» space which allows to form national and personal identity through some acting, physical or spiritual experience.