Naslov
Major Pronin stories by L. Ovalov – The Beginning of a Mythological Hero

Autori
Pandžić, Maja

Vrsta, podvrsta i kategorija rada
Sažeci sa skupova, sažetak, znanstveni

Skup
POLYSLAV XXV

Mjesto i datum
Online, 10-12.09.2021

Vrsta sudjelovanja
Predavanje

Vrsta recenzije
Međunarodna recenzija

Ključne riječi
major Pronin, Soviet spy fiction, Soviet detective fiction, Soviet counterintelligence

Sažetak
During the previous century the image of Major Pronin transformed into Russian folklore ; he became a hero of many anecdotes and even parodies. In fact, his image became a part of everyday Russian life to such an extent it was hard even to imagine that this character was born of a writer’s fantasy, claims Arsenij Zamost’janov. Despite the great popularity of this Soviet detective, scientific journals show little interest in exploring the first stories of his creator, Lev Ovalov (Lev Sergeevich Shapovalov), who was even arrested on charges of revealing the secret methods of Russian intelligence in his texts. The aim of this paper is to address several aspects of Ovalov’s first stories featuring Major Pronin: the methods Pronin employs in investigating and chasing criminals, some of which are similar to those in the detective stories of Western authors such as Edgar Allan Poe and Arthur Conan Doyle, albeit shown here in a different light ; the presence of Soviet censorship and propaganda in depicting the relationships between characters, in their characterization, and in the world-building and chronotope ; to question the role of mild humour lurking in the background of the stories ; and to highlight the values of such literature.

Izvorni jezik
Engleski

Znanstvena područja
Filologija, Književnost

POVEZANOST RADA