Matashina, I. S. DEFNING ATTRIBUTES OF FINLANDS IMAGE IN THE KJELL WESTÖ’S NOVEL “MIRAGE 38” // Proceedings of Petrozavodsk State University. 2018. No 4 (173). DOI: 10.15393/uchz.art.2018.145


Literary studies

DEFNING ATTRIBUTES OF FINLANDS IMAGE IN THE KJELL WESTÖ’S NOVEL “MIRAGE 38”

Matashina
I. S. 		Institute of Language, Literature and History of the Karelian Research Centre, Russian Academy of Science
Keywords:
Swedish literature of Finland
XX century
Finland
novels
Kjell Westö		 Summary: The issue’s aim is to reveal the features of the image of Finland on the material of the Kjell Westö’s novel “Mirage 38” which was not previously studied by Russian literature scholars. Writer is especially interested in the turning points that are important for the whole Finland. The historical realities in the novel “Mirage 38” are combined with a description of the atmosphere of the prewar period. In the article it is established that Westö’s image of Finland is based on the oppositions of “our” and “others”, actualized at several narrative levels. They are represented by ideological differences, embodied in the polyphony of the voices of active participant, by describing the language barrier between the Swedish and Finnish population of the country. The language barrier is expressed in the use of foreign words, which not only divide the characters themselves, but also creates a distance between them and the readers. The writer also draws a parallel between the events of 1938 and the time of the civil war, when Finnish society was divided into two groups. The image of the protagonist becomes the link connecting the “strangers” of citizens of one country.



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