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Dinalieva A.M.

  


NARRATIVE PRESENTATION AND CONCEPTIONS OF CREATIVE INDIVIDUALITY IN KATHERINE MANSFIELD’S STORIES *

  


Аннотация:
The following article will concentrate on the exploration of different methods and strategies that Katherine Mansfield employed in her writings. It will depict the complexity of individuals portrayed in Mansfield’s fiction   

Ключевые слова:
individualism, modernism, plotlessness, Mansfieldian personage   


According to the discussions, Mansfield’s methods and techniques sprang from her inspiration by various literary movements and forms as well as her reaction to the conditions of contemporary society. In any case, the main interest of Mansfield’s development of a singular literary voice lies in the initiation of the construction of Mansfieldian personae designed to communicate the criticism of the era to an attentive reader. By insisting on constructing a well-crafted voice and inner characteristics that would reflect the outer presentation of individual characters Mansfield reacted to the general rejection of traditional and well-constructed forms of the previous century. Edward Wagenknecht remarks that instead of “forcing her fresh materials into alien molds” Mansfield decided to come up with “understanding of character, her fresh, unhackneyed presentation, her ability to observe and to chronicle an astonishing amount of astonishingly real detail which apparently nobody had observed for literary purposes before her” (Wagenknecht, p.275). First of all, Katherine Mansfield greatly valued the role of literature that aimed not to function just as “an aesthetic object, nor merely a didactic object, but in addition a creative object; that of subjecting its readers to a real and at the same time illuminating experience” (Wagenknecht, p.276). Therefore, the prime concern of Mansfield’s short stories is not only to offer a well-illustrated account of events but also to employ evocative language that hints, creates tension and leads the reader to a profound understanding of Mansfield’s view of social aspects. Accordingly, W. H. New points out that Mansfield’s language no longer functions as “a neutral carrier of determinate propositions but as a deliberate design and a conscious field of revelation (New, p.63). Through application of certain narrative techniques Mansfield succeeds in transgressing the traditional division between the text and its reader and leads them to engage in a constant play of suggesting and interpreting. Moreover, to individualize each of her characters Mansfield employs a wide range of lexical and grammatical devices that Lawrence Mitchell terms “modernist manifestations of a 'dramaturgy of voice'” (Mitchell, p.5). They include the elements of character’s idiolect as well as various grammatical tools just as exclamation and repetition used for emphasising, sights, silences, dots and dashes used to form omissions to be filled by the reader and different metaphors and symbols that contribute to the enigmatic nature of character’s perception of inner self. In addition, an important aspect that manipulates the characteristics of Mansfieldian voice is its musicality and performativity. W. H. New observes that Mansfield intended to achieve the effects of scenes “through the conscious choice of prose rhythm” (New, p.55). He supposes that to read Mansfield’s stories effectively, it is necessary to recognise the singular power of her word choice and “follow the effects of the structures of rhythm and arrangement” (New, p.18) that contribute to the animation of character’s inner voice and consciousness. Another feature of Mansfieldian narrative that contributes to the specific treatment of its characters is the plotlessness. Opposing the tradition of plot-based stories of the previous century, Mansfield turns her attention away from the surface and action. Claire Tomalin notices the influence of Impressionism on Mansfield’s stories in her claim that “there is no plot to speak of, but a series of impressionistic scenes, and a 'merging into things'…” (Tomalin, p.200). Therefore, when considering the events in Mansfield’s stories that are based on physical action and movement, nearly nothing substantial happens. As Samya Achiri remarks in her essay 'Transcendental Selves of Woman Characters in Katherine Mansfield’s “At the  Bay”', Mansfield chooses not to expose her characters physically but “concentrates on the workings of the mind. It is a criterion which makes the mind the site of action throughout the story” while employing the “inward vision, or vision within the mind… which reflect the predicaments of the soul” (Achiri, p.99). Thus, the most important events within Mansfield’s stories that contribute to an effective climax are situated and reflected through characters’ minds. As stated in the previous chapter, singular moments or 'glimpses' of being come from the Impressionistic observation of reality and in Literary Impressionism follow the function of revelation or epiphany. In Katherine Mansfield’s work these emphasise the moment of internal change and are an important element in exploration of the inner self. Following Edward Wagenknecht’s remark that Mansfield’s plotless stories are based on her own understanding of life, which is arranged into distinct impressions rather than specific plots (Wagenknecht, p.278), epiphanies become the main structuring principles in composition of both, direct and indirect narrative of Mansfield’s stories. 

  


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Номер журнала Вестник науки №6 (15) том 3

  


Ссылка для цитирования:

Dinalieva A.M. NARRATIVE PRESENTATION AND CONCEPTIONS OF CREATIVE INDIVIDUALITY IN KATHERINE MANSFIELD’S STORIES // Вестник науки №6 (15) том 3. С. 181 - 183. 2019 г. ISSN 2712-8849 // Электронный ресурс: https://www.вестник-науки.рф/article/1696 (дата обращения: 28.03.2024 г.)


Альтернативная ссылка латинскими символами: vestnik-nauki.com/article/1696



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