METATEXT IN THE STORY “WIDERFAHRNIS” (“SUDDEN INCIDENT”) BY BODO KIRCHHOFF

Abstract

The topic of the research is the metatext in the story “Widerfahrnis” (“Sudden Incident”) by a prominent representative of the school of postmodernism in modern German literature Bodo Kirchhoff. It is believed that postmodernism in literature is a supranational phenomenon, but it cannot be denied that each national literature draws its experience from the work of its predecessors, thus acquiring its own unique flavor. Kirchhoff’s work, in particular his story “Sudden Incident”, is a general cultural phenomenon, but at the same time a national-cultural phenomenon. The researcher reveals the content of the work, which reflects problems of modern Germany, and the style of the text, which in many aspects goes back to the previous national literary practice. The contemporary author, recognized by professional critics and the readership, reveals the rich potential of metatextuality in his works, creating a text as a multi-level phenomenon, where the author’s subjective picture of the world enters into a complex interaction with fictional subjects of the narrative. With the help of metatextual markers of various levels (from introductory words, grammatical constructions that carry a meaningful load, to precedent words, images, situations), the narrative itself is structured, the author’s vision of the problems of the novella is realized, and the subjects of the narrative are formed. Thus, the author considers metatextuality in the work of B. Kirchhoff as a textual actualization of the reflection of the subject of the statement regarding its object and figurative manifestation.