RUSSIAN NATIONAL TYPE IN ALEXANDER TVARDOVSKY’S WORKS

Abstract

Ethnicity-specific features of mentality, axiological hierarchy, and language cultures are all the focal objects of the humanities. The notions of a national type, a character, and a hero are integral components of the ethnic aspect found in the culture. The studies of Russian literature give access to a source of «Russianness». Russian writers traditionally consider persistent traits of national consciousness and behavior as well as changes caused by historical and social factors. The article analyzes Alexander Tvardovsky’s oeuvre in relation to creating the national types, the images of Russian people who display traditional behavior patterns, as well as reflection of the consciousness archetypes and the notions of the ethnic ideal. Tvardovsky was distinguished by his analytical mentality and the willingness to give a profound socio-cultural characterization of his contemporaries and events, which he witnessed. The pivotal events like the October Revolution of 1917 and the Second World War changed the country and wielded influence on human identity, primarily on his inner qualities and self-esteem. Tvardovsky’s works centered on Russians and their adaptation to new social conditions amid the hardships of wartime. The article highlights special traits of the image of Vasily Tyorkin, a Russian man from the grassroots fighting on the frontline. It was this image that showed typical national features embodied in their ideal representation. In addition, the article examines images of Russian people, whom Tvardovsky described in the short story «The Stove-Setters». In the linguistic view, the author’s notion of ethnic ideal is expressed in the organization of the conceptual sphere that revolves around the axiologically charged concept lexemes defining the values of human existence. While the military themes in «Vasily Tyorkin» envision the concepts like duty, patience, energy, merriness, the conditions of peaceful life bring up the concepts of mastership, talent, culture. Tvardovksy’s works take on special significance in the epoch of globalization and global cultural uniformity which put the Russians in a situation where they face the importance of adapting to the contemporary social conditions and simultaneously preserving their ethnic identity.