Of Beauties and Circles: The Function of Myth in Petru&shachek;evskaja's Svoj krug
Kristin
Peterson
Ljudmila Petru&shachek;evskaja's Svoj krug offers a
unique example of the interaction between mythical and plot texts
(using Lotman's terms). The linear unfolding of the narrator's story
of illness is starkly contrasted with the cyclical nature of the rest
of the plot, exemplified in the story's beginning and end, which are
isochronal in their evocation of the clever (umnaja
)
narrator. The structure of the narrative of Svoj krug
points to a mystical submersion into cyclical time.
In Svoj krug a Christian myth (Heaven and Hell) is
supplemented by the pagan Nordic myth of the Valkyrie as deliverers of
fallen soldiers. Whereas the Biblical myth appears in the story as an
embedded narrative, the other is only alluded to with such devices as
descriptions of various characters and rituals. My paper traces both
Christian myths and pagan myths dealing with transition and loss, in
Petru&shachek;evskaja's text, in order to illustrate how myth
functions in this story. Also important to Petru&shachek;evskaja is
the correlation of spatial images in Svoj krug to the
geographical lay-out of Moscow, the setting of this story. In her
story, Moscow is implicitly connected to Hell through the notion of
the structure of circles. This paper shows the relevance of Dante's
Inferno (nine circles of hell and the various sinners present) to
Petru&shachek;evskaja's representation of Moscow and her inhabitants
in Svoj krug. My analysis of the use and function of
myth in Petru&shachek;evskaja's work provides a new interpretation of
Svoj krug.