“Apocalyptic” Ekphrasis (I. Bunin – A. Grin – B. Yulsky)

Abstract

Purpose. The article is devoted to the story “Kaigorodov’s Line” by B. М. Yulsky, a writer of the Far Eastern emigration. The relevance of the work is determined by the increased interest in the work of Russian writers, who created their works outside of their homeland, but, nevertheless, reflected the traditions of Russian literature, as well as absorbed the culture of the environment. The purpose of the article is to consider the features of ekphrasis in Yulsky’s story “Kaigorodov’s Line”, to identify its functions.Results. The methodological basis of the article is determined by the unity of the historical-literary, comparative and structural approaches. The article analyzes the intertextual typological echoes with I. Bunin and A. Grin’s stories. In the texts of the writers of the first half of the 20th century, the plot is centered on an artist who has come through the trials of life and who is craving to create a masterpiece. The ekphrasis in Yulsky’s story has a plot-forming function. It is noted that the text contains two ekphrasises: first, the artist draws a picture in his imagination, and the second one is his creation, as a reflection of the soul, tormented by his difficult fate.Conclusion. It is concluded that the ekphrasis in Yulsky’s work is not only a separate description of the image in the text. The picture turns the course of events and defines the character’s fate. The ekphrasis in the story “Kaigorodov’s Line” is associated with the motive of madness and death.