THE IMAGE OF THE DOVE AS A NATURAL SYMBOL IN RUSSIAN AND CHINESE POETRY OF THE EARLY 20TH CENTURY

Abstract

The article examines the artistic semantics of the image of the dove in Russian and Chinese poetry of the early twentieth century. It focuses on the range of symbolic meanings associated with this ornithological image and its functioning within different cultural and literary contexts. The analysis draws on poetic texts by Chinese authors of the first half of the twentieth century and by Russian poets of the same period. Using comparative-typological and historical-literary approaches, the study identifies how the image of the dove operates within the poetic discourse of the two traditions. In Chinese poetry, the dove is most often associated with harmony, peace, and love, and appears primarily as part of the poetic representation of the natural world. In Russian poetry, by contrast, the image acquires a more layered symbolic meaning shaped largely by the Christian cultural tradition, incorporating motifs of spiritual purity, religious inspiration, and hope. Taken together, these observations suggest that the image of the dove functions as an important element of the ecological-aesthetic perception of nature in both Russian and Chinese poetic consciousness, while also serving as a significant component of the symbolic representation of natural imagery in literature.