The problem of memory in the novel “Moon Tiger” by Penelope Lively
Abstract
The aim of the research is to identify the peculiarity of the structure in the novel “Moon Tiger” by the British writer Penelope Lively. The paper analyses the narrative features of the image of the protagonist. The heroine’s memories and reflection are a way of reconstructing memory, as well as a continuous process of self-recognition and realising her own individuality. The heroine possesses a strong and unique character, but at the same time, the author embodies the traits of a hero who absorbed the traumatic experience of the wars of the XX century in her image. The research makes a theoretical contribution to the study of modern English literature and the peculiarities of representation of the problem of memory. The scientific originality of the paper lies in examining narrative strategies in Penelope Lively’s novelistic works that are necessary for building a narrative in which a person’s thinking process is constructed in close relationship with memories. The paper analyses an atypical figure of a diegetic narrator characterised by internal focalisation. As a result of studying the narrative structure of the novel, it has been proved that the violation of the principles of the epic in the novel and the tendency to deconstruct the events of the past, but at the same time the rejection of the objectivity of the narrative and the desire for individualisation in the subjective text of the protagonist allow the novel to be attributed to postmodern literature, where the whole world is reflected in the history of one person.
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Author information
About this article
Publication history
- Received: May 17, 2023.
- Published: July 10, 2023.
Keywords
- П. Лайвли
- проблема памяти
- нарратив
- ретроспективная композиция
- диегетический нарратор
- P. Lively
- problem of memory
- narrative
- retrospective composition
- diegetic narrator
Copyright
© 2023 The Author(s)
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