Intertextuality of Myroslav Dochynets’s Novels

Abstract

The work of M. Dochynets is a significant phenomenon of modern Ukrainian literature and is the object of
analysis by critics and literary critics. Researchers in their studios give a general description
of the author’s artistic world, trace the origins of his work, announce the release of novels etc.
Scholars turn to the regularity of functioning of traditional plots, images and motifs of legendary,
mythological and literary origin, as well as to the genre features of the artist’s novels. They point
to the affinity of his prose with certain samples of world and Ukrainian literature, the similarity
of the artistic model of a comprehensively developed protagonist capable of surviving in extreme
conditions, to the literary psychological types traced in the works of foreign and Ukrainian
writers.

One of the most expressive features of modern literature is its intertextuality. The novels of
the modern Ukrainian writer are characterized by numerous intertextual constructions. M. Dochynets
uses theological, mythological, literary, folklore, historical prototexts, refers to the works of famous
philosophers of the past, quotes the Bible. The writer’s heroes, living away from civilization, worldly
vanity, false values, the desire for fame and recognition, embody the ideal of «natural man» of
G. Skovoroda, according to which the longest path that a person can go is the path to himself. The
author uses the names of Odysseus, Don Quixote, which is one of the manifestations of intertextuality
and a tool for presenting «cultural heritage». The source of ideological and philosophical concepts of
M. Dochynets’ prose is the Bible, direct quotations from which are found in his works. Researchers
also pay attention to titles, subheadings, dedications, epigraphs, prefaces, notes, internal titles,
epilogues, commentaries on the work, etc. Epigraphs, with references to the original source are an
important element of the text, which help in the interpretation of the correct ideological and semantic,
problem and thematic, figurative levels of the text, create an emotional mood. The writer selects
several epigraphs for each novel, which are revealed throughout the work and are accurate quotations
from the Bible, from the works of philosophers, famous writers, from the speeches of famous figures,
as well as proverbs and fragments from other sources.
The prologue and epilogue, which perform a meaningful function, as well as prefaces in
which the author provides information about the protagonist, conditions and circumstances under
which the action takes place, the idea of the work, argumentation of writing, are a peculiar frame
of M. Dochynets’ novels. Prefaces create an appropriate background for the unfolding of the story.
Reflections on the fate of the hero, his rich inner world, the philosophical maxims of the heroes
themselves, the statements of the heroes in the narrator’s interpretation are given in the afterwords.