«THE RUSSIAN ARTIST DESCRIBES THE RUSSIAN CHARACTER»: I. BUNIN AND I. SHMELEV ON THE MYSTERY OF THE RUSSIAN SOUL

Abstract

Aim is a comparative analysis of the understanding of the Russian soul phenomenon in the works of I. Bunin and I. Shmelev. Methodology. A special attention has been paid to the image of the people and peasants’ elements by contrasting two artists’ approaches, including the dark sides of the national character, solving faith issues, daily life reflection, the class relationship of the peasant and the master. The comparative and typological methods have been applied toward the analysis of the literary works. Results. The comparative analysis of the works unpacked the nature of the Russian soul comprehension by I. Bunin and I. Shmelev. Research implications. The present article contributes to the study of the literary works of the first wave iconic emigrants.

Keywords

• I. Bunin
• I. Shmelev
• Russian soul
• national character
• inconsistency
• variety