Variations on Russian motifs in Slovak prose of the 21st century

Abstract

The historical and cultural ties between Slovakia and Russia have a long tradition. They manifested themselves and continue to appear both directly, in the form of various kinds of contacts, and indirectly, in different versions of their artistic understanding. Russian motifs and characters found in the Slovak prose of recent years, perform certain creative tasks that the author sets for himself. In the realistic literature of the 21^st century, the Russian characters represent individual, historically and psychologically determined types that include both politicians and ordinary people. The time of narration usually refers to the past, that is, to the period of socialism. Particularly, they dwell upon the topic of the Gulag, the August events of 1968 in Czechoslovakia and reproduce pictures of the subsequent years of “normalization”. Examples of such a reflection of Russian motifs and figures are the works of S. Rakus, P. Rankov, J. Banaš. The use of Russian realities and themes in the literature of postmodernism gives other possibilities for its embodiment. The authors prefer a predominantly metaphorical, allegorical form. This is illustrated by the books of P. Vilikovsky, M. Hvoretsky, D. Majling. They contain allusions to Russian images and realities, conditioned by the intertextuality inherent to postmodernism, and use techniques of pastiche, palimpsest, grotesque, and absurdity.

For citation
Shirokova L. F. Variations on Russian motifs in Slovak prose of the 21^st century // Slavic Almanac. 2020. Issues 1–2. P. 434–445. DOI: 10.31168/2073-5731.2020.1-2.4.02