Domestic and Existential in Stories of Vasily Shukshin and Boris Yekimov

Abstract

The shared worldview of the so-called “village” writers often obscures the questions regarding their differing evaluations of social reality, interpretations of historical changes, and understandings of humanity’s place in the world. In this context, the task of comparative analysis of their similar artistic solutions appears both relevant and novel. This article examines the case of different scales of a seemingly analogous plot situation. The stories analyzed are Vasily Shukshin’s “The Boots” and Boris Yekimov’s “A Pair of Autumn Shoes”. It is demonstrated that the protagonists of Shukshin and Yekimov manifest themselves within narratives of varying existential intensity, addressing distinct challenges. Despite the apparent similarity in plots, their narrative differences are evident. Shukshin’s characters understand how life should be, yet often deviate from their ideals, fearing kindness; thus, in the writer’s world, the existential is frequently devalued. Vasily Shukshin, who captures the disintegration of the existential within the hero’s inner world, illustrates in “The Boots” that overcoming the mundane is an act of heroism and a personal triumph. Conversely, Boris Yekimov places fundamentally different emphases: within a superficially similar situation, he addresses a transpersonal challenge. The essence of the plot realized in “A Pair of Autumn Shoes” serves to remind readers of spiritual and communal values that may be lost amid everyday concerns.