Polish Studies of Kyiv: works of International scientific conference, Kyiv, 23-25 of May, 2018. / chief editor R. Radyshevskyi. – vol. XXXV. – Kyiv: Talkom, 2019. – P. 466-474.

DOI: https://doi.org/10.17721/psk.2019.35.466-474

Kovalenko O.

GENRE SPECIFICS AND MOTIVES OF THE NOVEL „BIEGUNI” („FLIGHTS”) BY OLGA TOKARCZUK

Abstract. In this article was considered genre specifics and motives of the novel “Bieguni” (“Flights”) by polish writer Olga Tokarczuk. On the example of the novel was determined the main genre specifics of postmodern novel-travelogue, where was raised the main issues of present days – life and death, physical and spiritual, workaday and philosophical. “Bieguni” is the novel about modern people, which looking for their goal, situated in a constantly movement just not to come to the Antichrist`s hands. The airports and hotels aren`t only a shelter, it`s a real home, what underline motive of travel in the novel. Representing home in a different ways, the writer consider the human body as a shelter for two components – spiritual and material. The body that was created by God is physical “home” for self-awareness. Herewith the writer doesn`t reject physiological theory of body beginning and consider it as a product of completing, finishing and the signification of human`s death. Address to Biblical, religious, mythological, bibliographic and oniric motives again and again underline anti-utopy world with his own canons and decrees, what doesn`t submit to logical, grounded explanation, but have philosophical elucidation. “Bieguni” it`s a binding of stories, feelings and laws. The main characters of the composition are different aged, nationality and different time period people, but united by just one important thing – searching of sense of life, that is different for everyone of them. Variety of characters, story of everyone`s life, text`s fragmentation give to the reader experience of personal meeting with every literature character. The hidden drama, that attendanted in everyone of them create the aureole of mystique, mysteriousness and feeling of temporarily proximity, that`s the main feeling of traveler. The leitmotif of the novel unite fragments into the one full picture, where we can see the main thesis of the novel: “Movement is a life, life is a travel”, because at the travel we can see a human`s wish to find the salvation out of routine problems, social duties and conditionalities. Characteristic for the novel using of philosophical and Biblical motives and also application to the history and author`s experience are non-textual survey of art of Olga Tokarczuk and her own morally-pscychological skills.

Keywords: Olga Tokarczuk, travel, “bieguni”, novel-travelogue, movement, sense of life, postmodernism.

Information about author: Kovalenko Olha, student, department of Polish studies, Institute of philology, Taras Shevchenko National University of Kyiv.