Concept «own/alien» in publicism by Oleh Chornohuz

Abstract

The article on the material of O. Chornohuz collection “Children of the Colony” explores the journalistic context of the dichotomy “own/alien”, which is realized in the ethnic, social and mythological planes and is especially relevant in the conditions of the newest challenges that Ukraine is facing now. The research problem is expansion of the functioning of the “own/alien”ʼs opposition  from ethnical, national, religious sphere to the social. The aim of the study is — outline the ideological and aesthetic significance of the artistic “own/ alien” opposition in a journalistic text. In the results of the Study it is traced how the traditions of public understanding of the concept “own/ alien” with an individual author’s approach are combined in a specific journalistic text. Preference is given to the “alien” semantic field, represented by domestic and foreign politicians. Attention is focused on the ironic, satirical, sarcastic methods of imagery. The author interprets the binary opposition of “own/foreign” from the point of view of personal experience, which is gleaned from the memories of parents, fellow villagers, as well as from studies of domestic and foreign documents. The writer makes historical and political excursions using foreign sources, including Russian, which becomes the key to an objective assessment of social processes both in Ukraine and abroad during a long history. The originality of study connected with reconstruction of Author’s ideological and aesthetic concept, according to which the opposition “own/ alien” becomes a marker of difference on the mental, psychological, social levels. The practical significance of study deals with rearranged system of “own/ alien” differentiation proposed by Oleh Chornohuz, that can be successfully used as a mechanism for national identification, return to national sources, and consolidation on the basis of nationality in the context of the globalization challenges of modernity. It is concluded that the ironic passages by Chornohuz have a deep national basis, confirm the continuity of the tradition, they are enshrined in the experience of the people, their character and temperament.