Comparative History of National Literature as a Theoretical and Methodological Problem in Postcolonial Discourse
Year: 2026
Type: article
Abstract: The article examines theoretical and methodological issues in comparative studies of national literature within the postcolonial discourse. Drawing on the ideas and observations of O. Biletsky, I. Franko, S. Yefremov and D. Chyzhevsky, the article concludes that Ukrainian culture forms part of the wider European world, and that its development, along with the cultural development of other European nations, has followed common patterns. However, this occurred not because of constant European influences on Ukrainian culture, but because Ukraine, as part of the European continent, is undergoing the same internal processes as Europe. It has been established that, for the creation of a modern comparative history of any national literature (in particular Ukrainian literature), the methodology of J. Karasek and D. Chyzhevsky is not entirely optimal, since national literature, in this approach, is considered not only in parallel with analogous Slavic literatures, but also with distant literatures. Nowadays, as postcolonial theory becomes the primary interpretative strategy in studies of Ukrainian literature, the creation of comparative histories of national literatures takes on particular significance; the emergence of postcolonial studies worldwide dates back to the mid-20th century, when the colonies of Western European countries gained independence, and their literatures attracted the interest of critics and readers alike due to the hybrid nature of their aesthetic forms and the significance of the cultural and political issues they raised. Postcolonial studies help us to understand how national literatures reinterpret their role following independence and how they re-examine colonial narratives and their place in the global context. This concerns issues of representation, identity, historical memory, the decolonisation of national culture and the creation of new nationally oriented canons. The paradigm of postcolonial studies touches upon the problematic fields of nation and nationalism, Orientalism, self-representation, the search for cultural identity, historical memory, ambivalence and the multicultural personality — these issues are taken into account today in the creation of a comparative history of national literature. It is significant that it is predominantly postcolonial states that are engaged in the creation of comparative histories. In this study, postcolonial literature is defined as a movement that emerged in the second half of the 20th century and focuses on the cultural and social consequences of the colonial period; a means of giving a voice to those who were oppressed and humiliated during the colonial period; and a reminder that these consequences continue to influence the modern world. Postcolonial literature in general, and Ukrainian literature in particular, has largely explored themes of identity, nationalism, imperialism, war, and cultural and social adaptation over the past decade. This focus on issues of identity and nationality, coupled with the use of different languages and national cultures — reflecting the cultural diversity and complexity of the modern world — are the distinctive features of Ukrainian literature that make it unique.
Author: G. M. Syvachenko
Institution: Shevchenko Institute of Literature
Language: English
Subfield: Literature and Literary Theory
Field: Arts and Humanities
Domain: Social Sciences
Open Access status: diamond
OpenAlex ID: W7225241007
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