Exoticism and reality: comprehension of the Kalmyk topos in the Russian literature

The article deals with the problem of exoticism in the aspect of the real/unreal opposition based on the material of “the Kalmyk” text. There is revealed the inner meaning of the transformation of concrete social realities of a foreign life into an artistic image. The author substantiates the conclusion that the artistic development of exoticism in the Russian literature followed the path of their consistent inclusion in the artistic system of realism.