THE MYTHOLOGICAL SPACE OF GOOD AND EVIL IN “THE YELLOW PRINCE” BY VASYL BARKA

Abstract

To analyze the representation of the Holodomor in Vasyl Barka’s novel “The Yellow Prince”, it is beneficial to draw upon the concepts of artistic universes and mythological studies. In particular, Franz Boas’s notion of mythological universes as source material for the creation of new universes can provide valuable insights. Based on this concept, the apocalyptic motifs of the novel “The Yellow Prince” might be considered a unique author’s attempt to interpret the traumatic experience of the Holodomor. In this case, the biblical eschatology serves as the key to understanding the entire scale of the tragedy and the essence of the crime against the Ukrainian people.
 After analyzing the structure of the novel, drawing parallels with biblical motifs and codes, and noting the most prominent biblical allusions, it becomes evident that the writer constructs his own apocalyptic model of the world, which shows no specific Comings of the Antichrist and Christ as they both are presented collectively. The writer’s dichotomy between the ‘sacred’ and the ‘profane’ contrasts the harmonious, traditional Ukrainian village with the godless Bolshevik regime. The first mode, embodied by the Katrannyk family, functions around the church as a sacred center and a treasury of Christian values. Therefore the process of collectivization and the destruction of the temple disrupts its organic existence, leading to death. Those who strive to preserve their right for the sacred must be prepared to fight, even at the cost of their lives.
 Both the church Chalice-Grail and the martyred peasants represent the collective Christ. The source of evil, in its turn, lies within the hierarchical system of the Bolshevik forces of evil. This system ranges from the symbolic image of the Yellow Prince as a collective Antichrist to radical evil embodied by demonized and dehumanized representatives of the Soviet government and banal evil manifesting itself in unconscious peasants who, due to a lack of understanding, also become accomplices in the crimes. Thus, the evil appears in the novel as a series of negative and demonic images embodied in characters, symbols, and details existing at various hierarchical levels. All these elements serve as a comprehensive representation of the profane.