IMAGES-SYMBOLS IN V. MAINASHEV’S EPIC POEM “CHATKHAN”

Abstract

The article considers images-symbols that characterize an image of a hero in the Khakass epic poem by V. Mainashev, a lyric poet who subtly feels nature and the world around him. The study of symbols and symbolic images in the belles-lettres style reveals both the reflection of the traditional worldview of the people and the inner world of the poet. In the course of the study, it is found that images-symbols play an important role in the poem, both in the structure of the work and in the hero’s personal development. Thus, the plot contains a story about the appearance of a musical instrument – a chatkhan – which acts as a characterizing feature of the hero who is distinguished by the highest morality. In the build-up of the plot, there is the dominating symbolic image of a raven, which performs the function of a messenger of misfortune. The development of events is launched by the battle of the heroes, symbolized by the number seven – a stable folklore expression associated with multiple actions. The peak of the development of the action (culmination) actively involves images of earth and water symbolizing human life. The denouement of the poem is represented by the symbol of a road, path of the hero to his native lands.