THE EXISTENTIAL ASPECTS OF LONELINESS IN D. OWENS’ NOVEL «WHERE THE CRAWDADS SING»

Abstract

The article is devoted to the consideration of one of the interpretive versions of the phenomenon of loneliness in literature. The novel of the modern American writer Delia Owens (1949) «Where the Crawdads Sing» (2018) was chosen as the object of research. The existential aspects of loneliness in this text were marked as the subject. The relevance of studying existential states through the methodological prism of anthropology is emphasised. The loneliness is considered as an existential phenomenon, a feeling, state, as well as a process and relation. Interpretations of the phenomenon of loneliness in the literary context are proposed. The purpose of the article is to outline the existential state of loneliness in Delia Owens’ novel as a consequence of trauma, state of consciousness, and lifestyle. «Where the Crawdads Sing» is defined as an example of an eco-narrative novel with autobiographical motifs. In addition, the analysed text is a clear example of genre polymorphism, as it combines features of a detective novel, psychological novel, coming-of-age novel, and an econovel. The outlined genre feature is marked by thematic diversity, as the novel raises issues of otherness, human-nature interaction, family relations, gender and racial conflicts. The novel outlines the life events and emotional states of the main character – Kaya, whose image becomes the center of the personosphere. The formation of Kaya as a person, through the prism of her psychological traumas, constitutes the plot basis of the text and at the same time interprets individual biographical episodes of D. Owens. The thematic multi-vector nature of the novel «Where the Crawdads Sing» is implemented using the technique of retrospection chosen by the author. The «Swamp Girl» appears as a telling image of the Other in contemporary literature, as she is marginalised throughout her life. The state of loneliness of the main character is considered in dynamics, starting from Katya’s childhood, when her mother left her. This event is considered as a catalyst for her traumas and existential states.