The specificity of bestiarian narrative in M. A. Bulgakov's story “Heart of a Dog”

Abstract

This article deals with the investigation of bestiarian (animalistic) narrative in M. A. Bulgakov's story “Heart of a Dog” and the explanation of the writer's purpose defining an originality of the narrative organization of the story. It is shown, that specificity of bestiarian narrative in “Heart of a Dog” is defined by convergence аnd combination of the points of view primary and secondary narrators, broadening of the outlook of the hero-animal (right down to sphere of the all-knowing storyteller). In the story “hominization” of the bestiarian character, mobility of the narrating subject, its fluctuation between omniscient and unreliable narrators аrе observed.

The analysis of the narrative organization allows the author to conclude that in “Heart of a Dog” the nonclassical type of narrative is presented. Though the sequence of events in “Heart of a Dog” basically coincides with sequence of relation (linear construction) and basic subject of speaking is the omniscient storyteller, the narration is by no means objective, and the writer's position is far from being unequivocal. Bulgakov's narrative is characterized by plurality of narrative instances, game with different narrative plans, destruction of their hierarchy, indistinction of the subjects of narration, using of the unreliable storyteller, various variants of the correlation of time of event and telling time, increase of reader's activity.

The narrative strategy of the writer is aimed at creating of a volume, multidimensional, “elusive” image of the reality. The author's consciousness is expressed in subject and not subject forms. So-called “blinking” of narrator, impossibility of its clear definition, narrative polyphony are connected with one of the major problems of this story – the problem of personal identity –  and at the same time reflect plurality of approaches to truth, illegitimacy of single-value estimations and interpretations of vital phenomena.