Abstract
The article is devoted to the analysis of Alasdair Gray’s debut novel Lanark (1981) in the context of the world science fiction genre canon. The novel is marked by complex intertextual links, which go beyond quotations and imagery as the writer creatively employs established genre models. Lanark’s fantastic books aim at criticizing consumerism and capitalist totalitarianism. For this reason, they present a number of references to both Aldous Huxley’s Brave New World and George Orwell’s 1984. The novel also contains utopian elements. However, socialist ideals still remain an unattainable dream referable to the alternative past or hypothetical future. In addition, Lanark shows features intrinsic to the science fiction menippea of the Gulliver’s Travels type. These features demonstrate extraordinary liberty of plot, combination of profound symbolism and slum naturalism, protagonist’s eccentric behavior with his subsequent overthrowing, widespread use of inserted genres, three-planned construction (Earth, Olympus, nether-world) coupled with plot testing of the idea of union between power and science. In addition, Gray’s novel puts together science fiction, historical facts and memoirs, just as Vonnegut’s novelistic experiments do. This allows us to speak about Lanark as a genre hybrid of science fiction and autobiography.
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