Article

Name: Kemerovo text at the crossroads of two utopias: The American dream and the communist international in the story by R. E. Kennell “Comrade One-Crutch.

Authors: Natalya V. Nalegach

Kemerovo State University, Kemerovo, Russian Federation

In the section Study of literature

Abstract:

The article is devoted to the consideration of one of the first artistic incarnations of the image of the city of Kemerovo in the story for children by a prominent representative of the AIС “Kuzbas” Ruth Epperson Kennell “Comrade One-Crutch” (1932). The main focus is on the myth-making strategy used to depict AIС “Kuzbas” and its “capital” Kemerovo. The study analyzes the character system and the antinomy of “us” versus “strangers,” exploring its resolution through the plot-driven theme of friendship between Volodya, a Russian street child, and David, an American boy. Also, attention is paid to symbolic images of Siberia and the Soviet Union as the “newest New World,” the factual basis associated with the real history of the formation and development of the city of Kemerovo (technical equipment of the Kemerovo mine, launch of the Coke and Chemical Plant, electrification of the village of Silino near Kemerovo, expansion of the AIС “Kuzbas” and development of the Kolchuginskoye deposit, and others). This analysis of the main plot situations reveals the author’s idea of building a new world, the characteristics of which are based on a combination of two utopias: the American dream, based on a broad understanding of Christianity, and the program of the Comintern. The genre of the story for children and the idea of international friendship emphasized by Ruth Kennel in the dedication to Alice Grover Whitbeck, updated as the address of the book “about the new Russia for American boys and girls,” are organically combined with the value-labeled orientation towards building a new world.

Keywords: AIС “Kuzbas”, Siberian text, children’s literature, new world, Ernita

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