Specifities of the Oedipus myth representation in western 20th century literature - the fate motif transformation

The article highlights the issue of the Oedipus myth perception in the 20th century Western literature. The paper wasintended to study modernist and postmodernist literary adaptation of the fate motif,which is one of the crucial elements for this myth. Such plays as „The Infernal Machine” by Jean Cocteau, „Oedipus” by Andre Gide (including his novel „Theseus”), „Greek” by Stephen Berkoffwere used as a material for the research. Furthermore, the analysis of postmodernist novels written by Louis Aragon („La Mise а mort”), Milan Kundera („The Unbearable Lightness of Being”), HenryBauchau („Oedipus on the Road”) provided input to this study. The comparative method allows us to identify the specific nature of modern and contemporary artists' understanding of the ancient mythological plot that was influenced by both the time of creation and aestheticprinciples of the authors. Research results. The comparative analysis of the texts revealed that there were two major ways of the fate motif interpretation - 1) the relatively new insight on the fate as a hostile force and a meaningless game of gods; 2) the classical Sophocles perspective on the destined sufferings as the hero's way towards self-knowledge after finding the truth about his origin and crimes. The motif comprehension also had an impact on describing the character - Oedipus is either passive or fighting the obstacles for the better life. In addition, the Oedipus destiny is perceived in terms of contemporary socio-political, cultural, and philosophical tendencies. Conclusion. The 20th century works of literature based on the ancient Greek Oedipus myth combineinnovations and old traditions, canonical and personal views on it. This situation updated the myth plot and reception.