Title of the article:

SEMANTIC SYNCRETISM IN A FIGURATIVE STRUCTURE OF ALEXANDER BELYAKOV’S LYRIC POETRY

Author(s):

Aleksey S. Bokarev

Information about the author/authors

Aleksey S. Bokarev — PhD in Philology, Associate Professor at the Department of Russian Literature, K. D. Ushinsky Yaroslavl State Pedagogical University, Respublikanskaya St., 108/1, 150000 Yaroslavl, Russia. ORCID ID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8771-6065. E-mail: asbokarev@mail.ru

Section

Philological sciences

Year

2021

Volume

Vol. 61

Pages

pp. 268–279

Received

June 18, 2020

Date of publication

September 28, 2021

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.37816/2073-9567-2021-61-268-279

Index UDK

821.161.1.0

Index BBK

83.3(2Рос=Рус)6

Abstract

Figurative syncretism that goes back to the linguistic archaism is construed as a complex notion of several semantic symptoms in a single word when the speech context does not eliminate the vagueness but rather generates it instead. Principles of signifying syncretic figurativeness in lyric poetry of the modern poet Alexander Belyakov are the subject matter of the research. The paper considers a package of themes and motifs represented by such figurativeness. Analysis shows that the sense content of syncretism in the author’s works is exclusively situational, i.e., it depends on the context; thus the link between a linguistic phenomenon or a technique (polysemy, homonymy, paronymic attraction, transformation of parts of speech) and the semantics is unstable and is formed anew at each stage of the poet’s creative endeavors. In the earlier verses, it is associated with ideas of instability and unnaturalness of the world order. In later and mature texts, its significance is determined by the book’s main theme, be it the universal disappearance and dispersion of everything (as in “The Traceless Marches”), protracted nightmare of a dreamer (as in “The Carbon-dioxide Dreams”), or creative efforts of a poet likened to a secret agent`s mission (as in “Rotation of Secret Expeditions,” and “Sumerian Spy”). That being said, A. Belyakov’s poetry can hardly be perceived as a full-scale “reincarnation” of linguistic archaism, since actually we are confronted merely with its imitation by means supplied by an essentially new, latest epoch. However, if the ancient syncretism was a premise of the knowledge and differentiation of phenomena, its modern counterpart — neo-syncretism — casts doubt on their knowledge and testifies to the total revision of the world undertaken by poetic consciousness.

Keywords

A. Belyakov, historical poetics, archaic word, semantic syncretism, syncretic figurativeness. 

References

1 Amelin G. G., Morderer V. Ia. Miry i stolknoveniia Osipa Mandel'shtama [Worlds and collisions of Osip Mandelstam]. Moscow, Iazyki russkoi kul'tury Publ., 2000. 320 p. (In Russian)

2 Bakhtin M. M. Problemy poetiki Dostoevskogo [Problems of Dostoevsky's poetics]. In: Bakhtin M. M. Sobranie sochinenii: v 7 t. [Collected works: in 7 vols.]. Moscow, Russkie slovari: Iazyki slavianskoi kul'tury: Iazyki slavianskikh kul'tur Publ., 1997–2012, vol. 6, pp. 6–300. (In Russian)

3 Bakhtin M. M. Tvorchestvo Fransua Rable i narodnaia kul'tura srednevekov'ia i Renessansa [The work of Francois Rabelais and the folk culture of the Middle Ages and the Renaissance]. In: Bakhtin M. M. Sobranie sochinenii: v 7 t. [Collected works: in 7 vols.]. Moscow, Russkie slovari: Iazyki slavianskoi kul'tury: Iazyki slavianskikh kul'tur Publ., 1997–2012, vol. 4 (2), pp. 7–508. (In Russian)

4 Beliakov A. Besslednye marshi: Stikhotvoreniia 2001–2005 godov [Traceless marches: Poems of 2001–2005]. Moscow, ARGO-RISK Publ.; Tver': KOLONNA Publications Publ., 2006. 80 p. (In Russian)

5 Beliakov A. Zimov'e [Winter house]. Iaroslavl', 1995. 72 p. Available at: http://levin.rinet.ru/FRIENDS/BELYAKOV/Zimovie.html#a (accessed 05 June 2020). (In Russian)

6 Beliakov A. Rotatsiia sekretnykh ekspeditsii [Secret expedition rotation]. Moscow, Novoe literaturnoe obozrenie Publ., 2015. 240 p. (In Russian)

7 Beliakov A. Uglekislye sny [Carbon-dioxide dreams]. Moscow, Novoe izdatel'stvo Publ., 2010. 132 p. (In Russian)

8 Beliakov A. Shpion shumerskii [Sumerian Spy]. Moscow, Voimega Publ., 2017. 144 p. (In Russian)

9 Beliakov A. Era aera [Era of air]. Moscow, “Carte Blanche”, 1998. 76 p. Available at: http://levin.rinet.ru/FRIENDS/BELYAKOV/Era_Aera.html (accessed 05 June 2020). (In Russian)

10 Broitman S. N. Dva stikhotvoreniia K. Sluchevskogo. (Obraznye iazyki pozdneklassicheskoi poezii) [Two poems by K. Sluchevsky. (Figurative languages of late classical poetry) ]. In: Broitman S. N. Poetika russkoi klassicheskoi i neklassicheskoi liriki [Poetics of Russian classical and non-classical lyrics]. Moscow, Izdatel'stvo RGGU Publ., 2008, pp. 129–137. (In Russian)

11 Broitman S. N. Istoricheskaia poetika [Historical poetics]. In: Teoriia literatury: v 2 t. [Literature Theory: in 2 vols.]. Moscow, Izdatel'skii tsentr “Akademiia” Publ., 2004. Vol. 2. 368 p. (In Russian)

12 Broitman S. N. Poetika knigi Borisa Pasternaka “Sestra moia — zhizn'” [The poetics of Boris Pasternak’s book “My sister is life”]. Moscow, Progress-Traditsiia Publ., 2007. 608 p. (In Russian)

13 Broitman S. N. Russkaia lirika XIX – nachala XX veka v svete istoricheskoi poetiki. (Sub"ektno-obraznaia struktura) [Russian lyrics of the 19th – early 20th centuries in the light of historical poetics. (Subject and image structure) ]. Moscow, Izdatel'stvo RGGU Publ., 1997. 307 p. (In Russian)

14 Vengranovich M. A. Semanticheskii sinkretizm fol'klornogo slova [Semantic syncretism of the folklore word]. Vektor nauki TGU, 2012, no 4 (22), pp. 233–236. (In Russian)

15 Davydov D. Poeziia stseplenii (o knige Aleksandra Beliakova “Uglekislye sny”) [Poetry of couplings (about the book “Carbon dioxide Dreams” by Alexander Belyakov) ]. Knizhnoe obozrenie, 2011, no 5 (March 7–14). Available at: http://newkamera.de/ostihah/davidov_o_beljakove.html (accessed 05 June 2020). (In Russian)

16 Ermolin E. Aleksandr Beliakov. Kniga stikhotvorenii [Alexander Belyakov. Book of poems]. Znamia, 2002, no 1. Available at: https://magazines.gorky.media/znamia/2002/1/aleksandr-belyakov-kniga-stihotvorenij.html (accessed 05 June 2020). (In Russian)

17 Zubova L. V. Aleksandr Levin: grammaticheskii teatr [Alexander Levin: grammar theater]. In: Zubova L. V. Iazyki sovremennoi poezii [The languages of modern poetry]. Moscow, Novoe literaturnoe obozrenie Publ., 2010, pp. 267–314. (In Russian)

18 Zubova L. V. Poeziia Mariny Tsvetaevoi: Lingvisticheskii aspect [Poetry of Marina Tsvetaeva: Linguistic aspect]. Leningrad, Izdatel'stvo LGU Publ., 1989. 264 p. (In Russian)

19 Zubova L. V. Sovremennaia russkaia poeziia v kontekste istorii iazyka [Contemporary Russian poetry in the context of the history of language]. Moscow, Novoe literaturnoe obozrenie Publ., 2000. 432 p. (In Russian)

20 Kozlov V. Predely absurda u Aleksandra Beliakova [The limits of absurdity in Alexander Belyakov’s lyric poetry]. Prosōdia, 2016, no 5, pp. 69–72. (In Russian)

21 Kolesov V. V. Semanticheskii sinkretizm kak kategoriia iazyka [Semantic syncretism as a category of language]. In: Kolesov V. V. Slovo i delo: Iz istorii russkikh slov [Word and deed: From the history of Russian words]. St. Petersburg, Izdatel'stvo SPbGU Publ., 2004, pp. 44–56. (In Russian)

22 Kuchina T. Pravila raskadrovki snovidenii. O sbornike Aleksandra Beliakova “Uglekislye sny” [Rules for storyboarding dreams. About Alexander Belyakov’s book “Carbon-dioxide dreams”]. Mera, 2012, no 1 (3), pp. 195–198. (In Russian)

23 Kuchina T. G. “Vsia rech' ego chuzhoi propakhla rech'iu”: o mezh"iazykovoi interferentsii v stikhotvoreniiakh L'va Loseva [“His whole stranger’s speech smelt like a speech”: about interlanguage interference in Lev Losev’s poems]. In: Bytie v iazyke: sbornik nauchnykh trudov k 80-letiiu V. I. Zhel'visa [Being in the language: a collection of proceedings dedicated to the 80th anniversary of V. I. Zhelvis]. Iaroslavl', Izdatel'stvo IaGPU Publ., 2011, pp. 172–177. (In Russian)

24 Levin A. Gambit Beliakova [Belyakov’s gambit]. Znamia, 1996, no 2. Available at: https://magazines.gorky.media/znamia/1996/2/gambit-belyakova.html (accessed 05 June 2020). (In Russian)

25 Lipavskii L. Razgovory [Conversations]. In: Lipavskii L. Issledovanie uzhasa [Horror research]. Moscow, Izdatel'stvo “Ad Marginem” Publ., 2005, pp. 307–423. (In Russian)

26 Lipatov D. Osirotevshii shpion. O knige Aleksandra Beliakova “Shpion shumerskii” [Orphaned spy. About the book by Alexander Belyakov “Sumerian Spy”]. Volga, 2017, no 9. Available at: https://magazines.gorky.media/volga/2017/9/osirotevshij-shpion.html (accessed 05 June 2020). (In Russian)

27 Malkina V. Ia. Modal'nosti poetika [Poetics of modality]. In: Poetika: slovar' aktual'nykh terminov i poniatii [Poetics: a dictionary of relevant terms and concepts]. Moscow, Izdatel'stvo Kulaginoi Publ.; Intrada Publ., 2008, pp. 126–127. (In Russian)

28 Russko-nemetskii i nemetsko-russkii slovar': okolo 6000 slov v kazhdoi chasti slovaria [Russian-German and German-Russian dictionary: approx. 6,000 words in each part of the dictionary]. Moscow, OOO “Izdatel'stvo AST” Publ.; OOO “Izdatel'stvo Astrel'” Publ.; OOO “Tranzitkniga” Publ., 2004. 384 p. (In Russian)

29 Sokol'skii E. Prochitannye knigi [The books that are read]. In: Deti Ra, 2016, no 7 (141). Available at: https://magazines.gorky.media/ra/2016/7/prochitannye-knigi-65.html (accessed 05 June 2020). (In Russian)

30 Tuchkov V. Aleksandr Beliakov. “Era aera”. Stikhi [Aleksandr Beliakov. “Era of air”. Poems]. In: Old.russ.ru. Available at: http://old.russ.ru/journal/kniga/99-01-26/tuchk.htm (accessed 05 June 2020). (In Russian)

31 Fedorov A. I. Frazeologicheskii slovar' russkogo literaturnogo iazyka: ok. 13 000 frazeologicheskikh edinits [Phraseological dictionary of the Russian literary language: approx. 13,000 phraseological units]. Moscow, Astrel' Publ.; ACT Publ., 2008. 878, [2] p. (In Russian)

32 Shaitanov I. O. Delo vkusa: Kniga o sovremennoi poezii [A matter of taste: A book about modern poetry]. Moscow, Vremia Publ., 2007. 656 p. (In Russian)

33 Shtypel' A. Knizhnaia polka Arkadiia Shtypelia [Arkady Shtypel's bookshelf]. Novyi Mir, 2011, no 8. Available at: https://magazines.gorky.media/novyi_mi/2011/8/knizhnaya-polka-arkadiya-shtypelya-3.html (accessed 05 June 2020). (In Russian)

PDF-file

Download