(University of Oregon, 2013-10-10) Nekrasova, Alena; Hokanson, Katya
The Soviet Union had existed for 70 years and was labeled as the "evil empire". Its technological achievements and geographical discoveries are amazing. However, its dark aspects such as censorship, "purges", and freedom restrictions are shocking as well. The effects of its collapse in 1991 were felt throughout the world in many aspects of peoples' day-to-day lives. Nowadays, many average Russians feel tenderness and nostalgia for what they had back then.
This thesis addresses the perception of the Soviet past by two contemporary Russian writers, Elena Chizhova and Elena Katishonok. Despite the common tendency to idealize the Soviet epoch, the authors represent it as a period that is not worthy of nostalgia. The thesis explores the world picture created in both novels by means of the analysis of such themes as the space structure, death, and memory that recur and function on different levels of the target texts.
