The Impact of Writers with Bmental Thinking on Readers’ Positive Interpretation of Other Cultures (Evidence from Russian and Kazakh Literature of the XX Century)

Abstract

Literature always was a reflection of stereotyped and private visions of the world, including perception of other cultures. With proper reading it is possible to distinguish authors whose oeuvre and world perception equally connects two cultural layers and objectively reveal the image of other nation. The analysis of these poets’ works require the use of the term "bimentality", which has already found application in articles on cultural studies, political science and teaching methods. The purpose of this article is to define the term "bimentality" in literary criticism by employing the material of Kazakh and Russian poets and writers’ oeuvre, including emigre writers’ works, to reveal prerequisites for the development of bimental consciousness and particular artistic styles that affect readers' positive interpretation of other cultures. The investigation identifies appropriate aspects of studying, such as specific artistic features, interethnic communication, visions of Europe and Asia and ways of using this method of reading The use of comparative analysis and context-hermeneutical method provides an opportunity to interpret works in light of literary, cultural, sociological and ethnographic questions that make the research applicable to interdisciplinary studies. Our results show that the development of bimental consciousness is caused by a country's social and political conditions; history of international relations; biographical factors and children's perception formation that influence the degree of ethnic identity, artistic style and vision of spatial and temporal boundaries. Poets and writers with bimental thinking can be intermediators between different mental realms and thus promoting the development of intercultural understanding. Keywords: Bimentality; Bimental thinking; Eurasianism; National identity; Russian literature