Who Discovered the Unknown Land? (The Double Motivation Device in the Works of F. K. Sologub and V. V. Nabokov)

Abstract

The subject of the study in this article is the Sologubov pretexts of V. V. Nabokov's stories "Terra Incognita" and "In Memory of L. I. Shigaev". The paper establishes the genetic connection of these works with the stories "Summoning the Beast" and "Connecting souls" by F. K. Sologub. The work is based on comparative analysis, which helps to identify the commonality of the plots and techniques of the writers, to establish the features of the worldview that lead to a similar choice. The area of Nabokov's artistic attention, like Sologub, is a state of delirium, which motivates the bifurcation of space. An indication of the Sologubov intertext in Nabokov is the image of small domestic evil spirits, textually close to the descriptions of the predecessor. The article proves that the borrowing of plots is due to the aesthetic community of artists: the desire to recreate the twofold world by combining the objective plan with the image of an alternative – subjective or metaphysical – dimension. Ontological instability is recreated by writers using the technique of double motivation. The article examines the attempts of both authors to transform the technique found in prose for drama. Sologub implements them in the unfinished adaptation for the scene of the story "Summoning the Beast" and in the play "The Little Demon". Nabokov seeks to convey the point of view of the hero in the plays "Death", "Event", "The Invention of the Waltz". It is noted that in the field of drama, common attitudes find a dissimilar implementation at the level of techniques.