A Confessional Monologue in “The Brothers Karamazov” by F. M. Dostoevsky and “Imaginary Values” by N. V. Narokov

Abstract

The article explores a confessional monologue as a form of ideological expression of the main characters in the novels “The Brothers Karamazov” by Dostoevsky and “Imaginary Values” by Narokov. In the course of comparative analysis, the distinctive features of this form are established, the criteria are formulated to differentiate the confessional self-expression from other psychological methods used to depict the characters, the types of confidants are identified. As a result of the undertaken research, the existing academic ideas about the literary succession of Narokov in relation to the work of Dostoevsky are clarified; the statement about the innovation of the emigre writer in the development of a confessional monologue in creating the images of the Chekists is substantiated; the ways to further study the forms of confession in the work of Narokov, who is a prominent representative of the second wave of Russian emigration, are outlined.