Филологический класс (Mar 2022)
“Under the Hill” by Aubrey Beardsley and “South Wind” by Norman Douglas: to the Problem of Reception
Abstract
The article examines the reception of the unfinished work “Under the Hill” by Aubrey Beardsley and the author’s illustrations of it in the novel “South Wind” by Norman Douglas. The analysis employs intermedial and intertextual, as well as historico-poetological research methods. Douglas’ novel “The South Wind” has not been studied before in the aspect of historico-literary problem of reception. As a result of the analysis, the author comes to the conclusion that Douglas’ reception of Beardsley’s novel “Under the Hill”, especially the image of the main character Denis Phipps, stems from a similar attempt to free the characters from the conventions of their time. The works bring together the traditions of the novel genre, aestheticism, hedonism and irony. In Beardsley’s novel “Under the Hill”, the image of Tannhauser is created through the description of his external aestheticized appearance. In Douglas’ novel “South Wind”, Denis is presented as a character thinking, asking questions, and captured by pantheistic and Christian ideas. In Beardsley’s novel, the entire action takes place in a cave under the Hill of Venus. For Douglas, the episode with the cave is a step in the development of the protagonist. The path of Tannhauser’s life and his love adventures are defined by the subtitle to the novel, pretexts and legend. Denis goes along the path of disappointment in the ideas of poetic creativity, aestheticism, and love; he does not realize the desire to become an artist in the spirit of early German Romanticism. After the third visit to the cavetavern, the character renounces bacchanalia and dionysianism and finds severity and intellectual fullness, which Douglas interprets in an ironic light. The name of Denis, as a reflection of the name of Dionysus, speaks of the character being opposed to the cult of the ancient Greek god, whose symbols were wandering and phallic cults. The uncertainty of the character provides a possibility for his development and change. Denis stops being a poet, does not become an artist or a follower of Bacchanalian cults. His character is solved in a realistic way. The cave of Mercury, associated with the development of Denis, is replaced by a tavern, the bacchanalian meaning of which is interpreted ironically.
Keywords
