Ktsoev, Oleg F. , Khetagurova, Kristina I.
Kavkaz Forum. 2024. Issue 19.

Abstract:
In this work, based on literary analysis, the so-called existential poetry of I.
V. Dzhanaev (Niger), which was widely disseminated in the 20-30-s of the XXth
century, is examined for the first time. The authors of the article present the poet
as one of the most prominent figures in Ossetian classics. The events that took
place in the first half of the 20th century left their mark on the worldview of I.
Dzhanaev, which was reflected in his poetry at different periods of his life. The
specificity of the poet’s artistic thinking lies in the combination of different «types
of artistic consciousness»: religious, mythopoetic, philosophical and, in particular,
existential. The poet’s works are closely connected with his personal destiny.
It can be argued that he is the direct progenitor of «confessional» poetry. And
«confessional» also means existential poetry with all its diversity of topics. Since
the main reason for the existence of existential parameters is a spiritual crisis,
these problems permeate a significant part of the literature of the XXth century. All
these themes seem to accompany the description of the heroes of F. Dostoevsky, F.
Kafka, A. Camus. They are also reflected in the poetry of B. Pasternak, F. Tyutchev,
E. Yevtushenko, etc. The work of I. Dzhanaev was no exception. The themes of
loneliness, alienation, the essence of being, doom, the struggle of contradictions,
the irreversibility of death, suffering and joy, and self-loathing run through the
author’s poetry like a thin thread. Another important theme described in Niger’s
poetry is the concept of freedom and responsibility. In the process of analysis, it
was revealed that the motif of sleep also plays an important role in the philosophy
of existentialism. Niger’s lyrical hero is seized by existential fear; he is frightened by
the inevitable victory of time over the category of space. The poet emphasizes the
temporariness of our existence and, in addition to the existential awe before the
titanic forces of nature, expresses the excessiveness in all human instincts.

Keywords: I.V. Dzhanaev, poetry, existentialism, theme of death, spiritual crisis.

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