Chronotope and carnival in the novel of Per Lagerkvist "Barabba"

Subject of the article: analysis of the novel by Nobel laureate P. Lagerkvist "Barabbas" using the scientific ideas of M.M. Bakhtin. The object of the article: a study of the peculiarities of the chronotope in the reconstruction of the Gospel plot of the novel and the identification of the features of the carnival culture in the reconstruction of the central image of Barabbas. Purpose of the project: to show how the ideas of M.M. Bakhtin helps to penetrate deeper into the essence of the artist's intention and to reveal the deep, symbolic meanings of a literary work, which are not even always realized by the writer himself. Methodology of work: following Bakhtin, comparative historical and structuralist approaches are used, as well as mythological criticism, the Jungian archetypal trickster model. Results of the work: in the "biblical" novel, P. Lagerkvist uses a "confessional" chronotope, characteristic of most of his fantasies on biblical and evangelical subjects. The whole life of Barabbas, every episode of his biography is correlated by the hero and the author with the events on Calvary. Barabbas is a demonic, "dark" double of Christ, a trickster in all his bodily and moral manifestations. He has been looking for God all his life, but the miracles he witnessed do not convince him. The desire to gain faith and communion with Christians leads him in the end to death on the cross, which he escaped on Holy Friday. But his aspirations only harm Christians, and faith is never born in his soul. Scope of the results: the image created by Lagerkvist falls out of the historical context of the novel. Barabbas is not an atheist, he is an agnostic seeking faith and not finding it. This is the position of a man of the twentieth century, and even a fairly educated one. Lagerkvist, in his mythopoetic parable, solves the problems of a man of the twentieth century. and looking for answers to their own existential questions. In the words of Bakhtin: “The last word about the world has not been said. Everything is still ahead". This dialogue interested Hollywood, where the film adaptation of the novel of the same name was made. This work exposes mythological models, reveals the philosophical and ethical issues of the novel, helps to better comprehend the work of the largest Swedish writer P. Lagerkvist. Conclusion: scientific novelty lies in the study of the work of the Swedish writer P. Lagerkvist using Bakhtin and Jungian techniques, identifying the features of the trickster archetype in his novels. The writer often uses this archetypal model due to his deep penetration into the traditions of national folklore and literature and, at the same time, an excellent sense of modern trends, where the trickster archetype is becoming more and more in demand. The conclusions presented in the article speak of the author's modern reading of the Gospel story and the formulation of the moral problem of the impossibility of acquiring a modern person.