Abstract
Ivan Franko in his article «Ivan Levytsky’s Jubilee» highlights the role of visuality in the creative work of the writer, but he denies the ideological loading of the writer’s creative work: «Mr. Levytsky … was an artist, a creator of living types, but nothing else (372) ». The сhallenger states: «Don’t ask them (the characters – Ya.M.) what they want, what is their ideological base, why the author showed them, and what the author wanted to say or prove using these characters? Nothing at all (375)». Purpose. To prove the availability of an ideological loading of visual images created by Ivan Nechui-Levytsky considering as an example his novel «The Hanger-On» («Prychepa») and to determine the interaction between the visual and verbal components. Results. Nechui-Levytsky in his «The Hanger-On» depicts two antipolar married couples: a Ukrainian girl, Hanna, who originated from the family of a priest, and Mr. Jaś Seredyňski, who originated from a Ukrainian-Polish generation, and a couple of Mr. Yakym Lemishkivsky, a Ukrainian midcult, and his Polish wife Zośia. The writer creates the sociotypes visually by depicting the typical features of each social group and nation. For instance, he makes a focus on the grey eyes as a sign of the appearance of a Polish person, or on the white hands as a sign of belonging to the nobility. Nechui-Levytsky underlines the differences between the ideals of beauty in the aesthetical imaginations of the sociotypes. The perceptions of Jaš and Hannia of the Princess is different: the Pole wonders at her gait, while the Ukrainian woman considers the Princess old and not good-looking. Zośia’s behavior makes Jaś lovesick, while that makes Father Khvedor laugh. The difference between the sociotypes gets deeper by contradicting man and nature: Jaś notes that Hannia, unlike Zośia, «does not match» the luxuriant chambers. Nechui-Levytsky when describing his characters referred to «mixed» sociotypes makes a focus on the dominating features. In Jaś Seredyňski’s portrait these are Polish features, but depicting Yakym after the graduation from his gymnasium those are splendid features of lords and masters. For example, the writer depicts his characters, who changed under the influence of time or circumstances, making a stress on the difference between them. For example, Jaś after getting rich starts to look like a haughty lord, while Hannia turns into a quiet mistress of the household. The difference between the characters is shown more evidently through their perceрtions of the same landscape: Hannia sees a marvelous garden, but for Jaś that looks like magnificent showrooms The writer contradicts the landscape view of Nesteryn Ravine to superb private quarters. Descriptions of interiors are reflections of nature: the wall-papers are as if pelted with flowers; hence, the human factor seems to be some secondary reproducing thing; while, on the other hand, Hannia, unlike the noble Polish persons Jaś and Zośia, feels as if joining the nature. Nature supports the Ukrainian characters: during rough time Hannia recalls Necteryn Ravine, while Jakym Lemishka does his father’s estate. Before her death Hannia sees a dream returning her to the walk in the beginning of the novel: the trees and ravines turn into carpets and wall-papers, the land does into a golden swamp, the water starts to be a looking-glass. Nechui-Levytsky reproduces visually the symbols of the nobility’s life, the essence of which is opposition to nature itself. The portraits in the said dream are realistic: the look of Jaś begins to be like that of a beast, while Hannia looks ill. The writer uses visual anticipations – the image of water. At first, when Jaś is still hesitating, he imagines Hannia on a thin ice. Then Hannia feels being in a water whirl. Though these anticipations were expressed by different characters, they seem to be a logical continuation of one the other. Originality. Analysis of the novel «The Hanger-On» mismatches Ivan Franko’s idea of the unavailability of ideological loading of visual components in the creative work of Ivan Nechui-Levytsky. Conclusion. Ivan Nechui-Levytsky, by using portraits, landscapes, interiors and describing dreams and visual anticipations, makes a stress on the difference between nations and social groups, hints at a development of the plot, focuses on the internal conditions of a character, creates the image of Ukraine and the Ukrainians (as that of a certain territory and nation). The visual component helps the author to demonstrate the idea of the novel, and therefore, it also includes the verbal component – the text. The reason for using the visual component in «The Hanger-On» novel is the idea of the novel.
