THE PROBLEM OF DUALISM DISPLAY OF THE DIVINE NATURE IN THE NOVEL BY G.K. CHESTERTON “THE MAN WHO WAS THURSDAY”

Abstract

The article is dedicated to a problem of displaying the divine nature in the image of one of the main characters of the novel by G.K. Chesterton “The Man who was Thursday” named Sunday. This image is a grotesque personification of the image of the Creator of the World, while simultaneously performing the functions of two important plot-forming characters who defended opposite moral principles. As a result, the image of the Creator of the World acquires a duality, which is not only paradoxical for the Christian orientation of the writer’s work. Chesterton also allows his interpretation of this image as close to the gnostic concept of God. Applying the historical and biographical method, based on the analysis of the text of the novel and “Autobiography” of G.K. Chesterton, the author of the article concludes that this image of the Creator is an artistic generalization of the writer’s personal spiritual experience and not only does not bear any signs of a gnostic idea of the divine nature, but also serves the artistic task of theodicy. The study helps to understand the author’s intent of the novel “The Man who was Thursday” and specify the system of religious-philosophical ideas of G.K. Chesterton’s early novel period of his creativity.