Background. The modernist-temporal semantics of the cultural epoch of the first third of the XX century was reflected in many ways in the works of Valerian Pidmohylnyi, whose works the researchers rightfully considered one of the biggest achievements of Ukrainian literature of this period. The novel «A Little Touch of Drama» poses many questions that require thoughtful scientific consideration of literary critics. Among them, there is a question of defining the spatial categories of topos, loci, chronotope of the city, the realities of the day, the details of the real world, which outline the characters.
 The purpose of the article to investigate the peculiarities of such structurally significant elements of the plot-compositional level of V. Pidmohylnyi's novel «A Little Touch of Drama» as spatial categories of topos, loci, chronotope of the city, realities of the day, detailing of the real world, including household details, interior semantics, clothes, decorations, food, time and sound markers, etc.
 Methods: holistic-systemic, analytical reading of an artistic text.
 Results. The article focuses on the image of Kyiv, the city where the characters live – the main topos of the novel, which includes various social loci, the everyday items. Private locations (closed space of the house, the room) form the external and communicative space of the characters – Marta Vysotska, Yurii Slavenko, Iren Markevych, etc., who are inscribed in the specific interiors of rooms where cyclic time prevails. The question of the semantics of the interior is raised (the basic interior of Marta's room is shown briefly while the high semiotic status of the Markevychs' apartment is depicted in much richer details). The motif of marking Irene with things in her room is repeated in different plot situations. Household details, in particular household items of the Markevychi’s, are an essential part of their measured arranged existence.
 Household items add to the psychological features of the characters, as evidenced in particular by the author's attitude to detailing the clothes of the characters and – much less – their food. In the text of the novel, only a few features mark the clothes of the characters, but they are enough to reveal the characters. Detailing of women's jewelry and perfumes by Marta Vysotska and Iren Markevych is also embodied, which determines the social, age, material, psychological features of their characters. The question of the food code in «A Little Touch of Drama» is raised, however in comparison with the conceptual field of household items, outfits of the characters, it is rather limited; it would seem that the informative attention is focused on intellectual, philosophical, psychological, love collisions; and yet the motive of food shows the author's attitude to the characters, their inner state, mental disorders and is often switched to the subtext.
 The temporal parameters of the text of «A Little Touch of Drama» are definite: the events take place within two and a half months, which is psychologically motivated. Both the beginning and the end of the plot action are clearly defined; not only the days of the months, the time of day but also the specific years are mentioned in the text, which brings together the plot lines, defines the time-space, which make a visible and causal link between the stories of the characters. Sound markers (knock on the door, the auditory sensation of footsteps perform specific emotional, expressive, and semantic functions.
 Discussion. Analysis of such significant elements on the level of plot and composition of V. Pidmohylnyi's novel «A Little Touch of Drama» as the chronotope of the city, the chronotope of the room, familiar and alien space, topos and loci, realities of the day, detailing and psychological peculiarities of the interior, character's clothes, food, time, sound markers, etc., express the ideological and aesthetic dimension and the author's position in the text. The research makes it possible to clarify the socio-cultural meaning of the work, the life strategy of the characters, the peculiarities of the author's understanding of the essence of the world through the material code.
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May 18, 2022
Yu Zhong + 2
Open Access