On the Trail of World Literature - Winners and Losers

Abstract

The report focuses on trends in 21st-century literature and the ways in which canonical notions of what is high literature are changing, who is the author of the canon, whether there is a canon today and whose it is, what it means to be victorious or vanquished, can we announce we're talking about winners. Also, against the background of all the more severe requests of authors in world literature with a hybrid identity – the article rethinks the place of ideas such as multiculturalism and political correctness; whether they offer wider horizons or limit the dialogue, whether literary means also have literary value or are imposed only by extra-literary factors, etc. Today, key novels of 21st century literature ask questions such as what it means to live between cultures; who learns in the process of this cross-cultural communication – only the migrant writers or also the host culture, is communication effective with different backgrounds and cultures. Among other pressing questions is how effective is multiculturalism today? Who is the winner and who is the loser, who is dominated and who is dominant…