Semantics and functional spectrum of ‘a man of no imporrtance’ as a literary type in Russian prose at the turn of 20th - 21st centuries

Statement of the problem. The image of ‘a man of no importance’ in Russian prose at the turn of the 20th and 21st centuries represents a complex and multifaceted literary type that continues to evolve in parallel with historical processes, sociocultural changes, and literary trends. The question of how the semantics and functional range of this image change in the works of contemporary authors remains underexplored and requires detailed analysis. The purpose of this article is to analyze the semantics and functional spectrum of the image of ‘a man of no importance’ in Russian prose of the late 20th and early 21st centuries. The article is focused on studying the evolution of this type within various literary paradigms and analyzing the sociocultural context that influenced its formation. Literature review. In the course of the research, we refer to scholarly works by Khomyakova O.R., Kriklivets E.V., Radosz J. Methodology. The research methodology includes the use of comparative-typological and cultural- historical methods for a comparative analysis of the ‘man-of-no-importance’ type and its functional range across different artistic paradigms. Research results. The research shows that in the realistic paradigm, ‘a man of no importance’ appears as a victim of social injustice and struggles to adapt to the changing reality, reflecting internal psychological traumas and experiences. In modernist discourse, characters become antiheroes or conformists within the ‘system’, often serving as caricatured and symbolic figures used to criticize social and political realities. In postmodernist aesthetics, the image of ‘a man of no importance’ acquires absurd traits and is marginalized, reflecting the loss of traditional values and satirical ridicule of the moral decay of the society.