Myth and Mythological Discourse in Literary Studies

ABSTRACT

The purpose of this study was to develop an understanding of the historical retrospective of the concept of myth and the process of semantic transformation of this term in historical retrospect, as well as to study the features of the combination of different mythological and neo-mythological layers in modern literature. The article investigated myth and mythological discourse in literary studies, formed the basic definitions of myth at different historical stages of social development, studied the foundations of neo-myth and its artistic realization in the literary plane. On the basis of modern Kazakh prose, the plot, composition, motif, and imagery schemes built on the use of mythological and neo-mythological discourses were considered. Emphasis was placed on possible mythological sources and the question of what myth can give to literature was discussed.

KEYWORDS:
Cultural stratum; Knowledge of the world; Kazakhstani prose; Transformation of the concept; Historical period

RESUMO

O objetivo deste estudo foi desenvolver uma compreensão da retrospectiva histórica do conceito de mito e do processo de transformação semântica deste termo na retrospectiva histórica, bem como estudar as características da combinação de diferentes camadas mitológicas e neomitológicas na literatura moderna. O artigo investigou o mito e o discurso mitológico nos estudos literários, constituiu as definições básicas do mito em diferentes estágios históricos do desenvolvimento social, estudou os fundamentos do neomito e sua realização artística no plano literário. Com base na prosa cazaque moderna, foram considerados o enredo, a composição, o motivo e os esquemas imagéticos construídos com base no uso de discursos mitológicos e neomitológicos. A ênfase foi colocada em possíveis fontes mitológicas e a questão do que o mito pode oferecer à literatura foi discutida.

PALAVRAS-CHAVE:
Estrato cultural; Conhecimento do mundo; Prosa do Cazaquistão; Transformação do conceito; Período histórico

Introduction

The study of mythological discourse as an integral unit of artistic modelling is a topical area of contemporary poetics. The existing disagreements in the definition of myth are related to the complexity and universality of this category. In literary studies, as in any other field, different definitions of myth are given, but there is no unambiguous definition of the term: it denotes either illusion, lie, fiction, convention, product of imagination, or any cultural tradition is associated with it.

Modern mythology, which synthesises myths, rituals, folklore, religious, historical motifs, and images in its system, has become an important phenomenon in literature because it represents a neo-myth with no clear distinction between the everyday and the mystical, metaphorical and concrete sensibility (Bazaluk, 2019). The study of the features of myth in literature is relevant because mythology has been the core of the spiritual culture of humanity and society since ancient times. In particular, myth represented the unity of ideas about society and nature, religion, and art (Sartbekova; Ryskulova; Orozbaeva, 2021). The nature of Kazakh mythology has not been sufficiently studied in contemporary discourse, as the phenomenon of some of the plots, images and motifs used in Kazakh folklore remains undescribed. The need to examine the relationship between archaic myths and neo-mythological strata in a literary context stem from the construction of links between different cultures. This study is relevant from a national and ethno-cultural perspective.

Kazakh mythology, according to Z. Altayev and Z. Imanbayeva (2021), is based on ancient materials, among which monuments of Orkhon-Yenisei inscriptions, samples of folklore (tales, heroic bylina, proverbs and sayings, poetic texts of zhyrau-akyns). The authors note that traditional Kazakh culture is based on a reflection of nomadic life and the coexistence of man and nature. The main socio-cultural norm of the Kazakhs is the preservation of spiritual traditions and connection with the land. An important characteristic of socio-cultural life was the sacralisation of actions through rituals, as well as endowing various things with symbolic meaning (Brych, 2022).

The process of the formation of the Kazakh “national historical myth,” according to Abil Yerkin (2021), is caused in part by the claims of some states to the political heritage of Kazakhstan. The article by E.T. Zhanysbekova (2020) deals with ancient mythological and biblical neo-mythological plots used in the modern Kazakh literary tradition. The author points out that the early 20th century saw a renewal of the motivational, imaginative, and compositional structure of the works, thanks to an increased interest in the study of archaic and classical myths.

According to Arvydas Grisinas (2022), neo-myth refers to patterns of social and media interaction in contemporary digitalisation. The author examines the conditions for the emergence of new patterns of world cognition, examining their structural characteristics, forms, and diversity in the contemporary socio-cultural stage. Nádia McGhee (2021) looks at the ancient Greek literary period and the most striking mythological stories and images. Literary scholars Hikmat Dahal and Balaram Bhatta (2021) study the impact of folk tales, which are the sources of contemporary neo-mythological stories, on the younger generation.

The purpose of this research was to study mythopoetic consciousness at different historical stages of society development (from the type of archaic cognition of the world to social patterns of interaction reflected in the creativity), to form an idea of neo-myth and the influence of archaic cultural layers on modern literary tradition, including the Kazakh literary tradition. The subject of the work is mythological and neo-mythological discourse, Kazakh folklore, and modern prose, considered in terms of the presence of different myths (cultural, social, archaic) in literature.

Materials and Methods

The theoretical basis for this work was the works of contemporary Kazakh, Chinese, and British scholars, who consider issues related to mythological and neo-mythological cultural traditions, national and ethno-cultural features of mythological discourse, the structure of mythological knowledge of the world, genealogy of myths, mythological narratives, symbolisation, archetypisation and mythopoetisation. Through such studies, associative links were formed between the different structural elements of mythological cognition.

This study also focuses on the main mythological images used in the Kazakh folklore, as well as on the features of mythological and neo-mythological images, motifs and plots on the example of modern Kazakh prose: Twin Constellations by Khasen Adibaev (2004), Cursed Dreams by Aslan Zhaksylykov (2005), Novel of Altay by Akim Altay (2001), Last Duty by Abdy Nurpeisov (2021).

Qualitative and comparative analysis was used in comparing the results of our own research with other theoretical works. When investigating the historical stages of mythological development, these periods in mythological discourse were also compared. The focus was also placed on the differences between archaic mythology and neo-mythologism, seen in a literary context. On the example of modern Kazakh prose, the ways of introducing myth into different works and with different artistic purposes were shown. The analytical-synthetic method was used to form a correlation between different theoretical concepts existing in the field of modern research, while studying the structure of mythological knowledge in historical retrospect. The ideas and concepts of Kazakh, Chinese, British scientists were used to form an idea of the characteristics of mythological discourse.

Diachronic analysis has been used to reflect mythological discourse in different historical periods, as well as changes in the interpretation of the term in the socio-cultural plane. The synchronic analysis was aimed at investigating the modern mythological discourse, the transformations associated with the semantics of the term, the introduction of the neo-myth in the Kazakh literature of the period of independence. The notion of multiplicity of works constructed with the help of archaic images and plots from mythology, as well as socio-cultural codes, scientific and philosophical theories, fixed in human consciousness at the level of myth, was considered. The structural analysis in this paper was applied to consider certain structural elements of the work that reflect the Kazakh mythopoetic tradition or create modern neo-mythos. The components of composition, motif structure and imagery system that were in contact with the theme of the research were considered. The method of structural analysis was used to establish the relationship between archaic and modern myths, as well as to study the multidimensional nature of the selected literary works.

Thus, in this study the above-mentioned methods were applied in a complex in order to show a complete picture of the structure of mythological and mythopoetic knowledge, to present the main options of combining different cultural traditions within the boundaries of one literary work, to compile the main characteristics of mythological knowledge based on socio-cultural and historical processes, to explain the nature of myth and conditionality of its transformation in diachrony and synchronicity. The use of structural, diachronic, and synchronic methods became necessary to describe the characteristics of myth in a specific context, while analytical-synthetic and qualitative-comparative methods were applied to analyse the main theoretical parameters of myth identified at this stage of literary studies development.

Results

Mythology is one of the oldest representations of spiritual culture; myth is the primary type of consciousness, a narrative form representing nature and culture in a spiritualised and impersonal form, a type of cultural consciousness. Every nation, at a certain stage of its historical development, had mythological representations. In myth, the boundaries between the environment and the individual, thought, will and idea are blurred. Among the key features of myths are the following (Uskembaeva; Zhanysbekova; Saparbaeva, 2016):

• myths are identified with real life stories, so the reader believes them to be true;

• myths are often associated with gods or supernatural forces;

• myths explain various phenomena in the world, but there is no scientific evidence for such mythological phenomena;

• any myth has an educational value.

The Formation of Myth Within Mythological Discourse

The main idea of archaic mythology is the ordering of the world in order to prevent chaos in the cosmos. Cosmogonic myths focus on the nature of the gods, the creation, the origin of the world and the genesis of all beginnings, the nature of the interaction between the universe and man, and the description of the spatial and temporal parameters of the universe. Creationist myths tell of the origin of the universe, its physical and material dimensions, and elements (Van Rooyen, 2020).

The separation of myth and logos was accompanied by an understanding of sacredness and narrative fiction in myth, as well as the prevalence of orderly thinking in logos. The dual nature of myth was manifested in the fact that this kind of narrative was closely linked to rituals. The sacred function of myth is conditioned by magical meanings that reside in a system of ritual-symbolic relations represented by practices; actions aimed at contact with the supernatural with the pragmatic goal of changing the material world under the influence of spiritual principles (Van Rooyen, 2020).

Myth in literature is a work of fiction that is a detailed description, repetition or transition of an oral pictorial and poetic tradition that emerged in a particular society at a certain period of historical development. Mythology influences literature through fairy tales, heroic epics, visual arts, folk beliefs, and rituals. For example, the literature of the Middle Ages was influenced by paganism and Christian mythology: The Divine Comedy by Dante Alighieri (2013) is characterised by a combination of non-Christian and Christian myths. During this period, man’s relationship with God was defined as the highest value. The Renaissance was marked by a reorientation of the world view: nature and man were considered the main values. Nature became the main object of artistic, aesthetic, and cognitive interest. Therefore, we can talk about strengthening the influence of mythology in the Renaissance, for example, in the work The nymph of Fiesole by Giovanni Boccaccio (1960). The ongoing interaction between literature and myth is realized directly and indirectly in the form of representation of myth in literature through the visual arts, traditions, folk festivals, religious mystery, and in recent centuries through scientific concepts of mythology, aesthetic and philosophical teachings and folklore. This interaction is particularly active in the field of folklore, from which we can conclude that folklore has a great influence on the process of interaction between literature and myth.

The relationship between myth and fiction can be viewed from two perspectives, namely evolutionary and typological. From the evolutionary point of view, myth is a particular form of consciousness that predates the emergence of written literature. From the typological point of view, mythology and written literature are compared as two fundamentally different ways of seeing and describing the world, which exist simultaneously, interact and, to varying degrees, manifest themselves in certain eras. Mythological consciousness and the texts it created are characterised above all by vagueness, uniformity, isomorphism and homomorphism of the messages conveyed. In terms of non-mythological consciousness, the modern myth presents a version, an isomorph of an already known story, character, or text. Within classical philosophy and psychoanalysis, myth is seen as a symbolic system based on the archetypes of consciousness; phenomenology and structuralism define myth as a text associated with a wide intertextual field, as the broadest precedent text; as a system that exists, along with other meta-languages related to natural language (Ioffe, Dennis. 2021).

Myth as an anthropological category is considered in a socio-cultural context. It should be noted that the phenomenon of mythological consciousness is based on worldview and social behaviour. The cognition of mythological representations is directly related to the comprehension of human existence in the world of culture. The concept of “myth” actively enters modern socio-cultural life, penetrating the spheres of governance, political propaganda, brand promotion, and manipulation of human consciousness (Uskembaeva; Zhanysbekova; Orazbaeva; Saparbaeva, 2016).

At the beginning of the twentieth century, cultural history considered myth to be part of archaic cultures, i.e., the nature of myth was studied exclusively at the stages of evolutionary development of different peoples. With the emergence of scientific cognition, myth began to be seen as a universal phenomenon, prompted by the Romantic interest in the subject (Sieradzki; Mikkola. 2022). The study of the unconscious realm showed the possibility of myth’s presence in actual reality. Myth then came to be seen as a form of social reality. The structural interpretation of myth has shown that the difference between the thinking of primitive and modern man is not so great. Studies of myth as a phenomenon of actual social life began in the twentieth century in the context of interest in various forms of social consciousness and, above all, in political ideology. The theory of social myths was first formulated, which envisaged the ability of myth to control and construct social reality (Figure 1).

Figure 1
Transforming the concept of myth

Myth and the Modern Literary Tradition

Mythological discourse in contemporary literary studies is represented by a symbiosis of archaic forms of religious spirituality, folklore, philosophy, and theology. Myths functioned as the primary model of any ideology or culture, including religion and philosophy, becoming an autonomous part of culture with a high level of symbolic objectification, which is revealed in terms of spiritual activity (Chung, 1997). In terms of semiotics, myth is a codification of meanings of a secondary type. The “absent” author in myth is a projection of the “unconscious” beginning of magical myth. The “nameless collectivity of narrative creationism” becomes a characteristic principle of mythmaking. The descriptor or “author of the myth” acts as a re-translator of something “alien.” The mythic heritage of world literature became the basis for further neo-mythologism with the creation of a myth narrative used to enrich the cultural tradition (Pohranychna, 2023). This understanding of myth was a prerequisite for the development of neo-mythologism in the twentieth century. The distance between archaic and modern myth has shrunk, new stories from everyday life have been introduced into literary works, artistically interpreted according to the schemes of mythological thinking (Uskembaeva; Zhanysbekova; Orazbaeva; Saparbaeva, 2016).

Modern myth does not deform the original cultural meanings but is seen as a source of cultural meaning-making. Since contemporary art is syncretic (different artistic techniques, genres, styles), it shows the complexity of the world, the cosmos, nature, and man. Mythological discourse emphasises the link between myth and mass consciousness, and the influence of mass communication on individuals and society (Skliarenko; Akimova; Svyrydenko, 2019). Today, there is a convergence between myth and scientific knowledge. Thus, the term “neo-myth” is used as a reflection of scientific theories, philosophical concepts, and cultural and historical phenomena. The continuous interaction between literature and myth is ensured through the incorporation of myth into literature. Mythological motifs have markedly influenced the genesis of many literary subjects, such as the “intellectual” magical tradition or the mystical tradition in Europe (Berens, 2009). The use of archaic myths serves as a way to deepen psychologism in works, and mythopoetic models are used as tools to structure narratives (Ioffe, 2021).

Thus, mythological discourse includes an understanding of myth as ancient notions of life, myth-making and mythological cosmogenesis, a historically determined type of consciousness. The concept of “neo-myth” is used to reflect the connection of archaic myth with modern historical and cultural tradition through the introduction of religious motifs, philosophical and scientific concepts, and allusions to folklore images into literary texts (Howarth; Norval; Stavrakakis, 2000).

Images of Kazakh Mythology

Mythological characters were introduced into Kazakh literature through epics, fairy tales and legends. The need to explain the origin and the structure of the world led to the creation of mythology. A special place in Kazakh cultural life belonged to historical and mythological works: The Book of Korkut Ata (1994), Er Tostik, Zhaiyk and Edil (2017) ¹ which presented the customs and traditions of the people. In Kazakh mythology, characters fall into two main categories:

• ancestor or fairy-tale characters - forces that are guardians of spiritual traditions;

• characters that do evil to someone (devils, witches, sorcerers, dragons, giants, monsters).

The main groups of mythical creatures include:

• totemic (kök börı);

• shamanic (samūryq, baqsy);

• demonological (albasty, jalmauyz, mystan perı, şaitan);

• chthonic (däu, Şoiynqūlaq).

The heroic characters are represented by the following characters: tausoğar, költausar, saqqūlaq, jelaiaq, eptı. A distinction also made between creatures of pre-Islamic period (albasty, mystan kempır, jalmauyz kempır, küldırgış, aidahar) and creatures of Islamic period (jyñ, perı, qydyraulie). Some mythological images are found not only in Kazakh mythology, but also in the myths of other Central Asian peoples. For example, qonaiaq (demonic creature) in Kazakh mythology resembles a davalpa from Arab-Persian folklore. The image of the nymph Peri is found in Iranian and Turkic mythology.²

Peri refers to representatives of a special people, divided into Muslim and Kapanir, and there are also water fairies - Su Peri. Mystan kempır - witch, which is found in Kazakh folklore (fairy tales “Er Töstık,” “Altyn saqa,” “Mystan kempır,” “Kün astyndağy Künekei qyz,” “Ai astyndağy Aibarşa sūlu”).³ Albasty is an evil demon, functioning in the form of an unattractive woman, whose encounter becomes a direct threat to the person. Obr is an image of an evil disembodied spirit in the form of fire, jeztyrnaq - a beautiful girl with gold paraphernalia (purse with gold coins, silver ribbon as jewellery). Aidahar - the dragon, found in Kazakh legends, appears as a large serpent. The image is shaped by the Arab-Persian epic tradition. In mythology, the Aidahar is considered to embody the zoomorphic nature of the three worlds (serpent, underground and water). Ancient Kazakh tradition regarded the serpent positively as the guardian of the home; the image was reinterpreted negatively after Islam.

The existence of three worlds: The Upper World (the Sky), the Middle World (the Earth) and the Lower World (the Underworld), and the notions of a world tree are reflected in fairy tales. Myths about the origin of celestial luminaries are associated with Temir Kazyk (Polar Star), Aspan Kaiygy (Big Dipper). The sacral characters in Turkic mythology are Tengri (sky god), Ұmai - (goddess of fertility), Frangasyan - Afrasiab (leader of the Turkic tribes), The land of Өtүken (a mountain cave) is considered sacred. Kazakh mythology uses the image of Alash as the progenitor of the Kazakh people as well as the founder of statehood. Due to the nomadic way of life, there was a cult of the master, who safeguards and multiplies the herds: Shopan ata (sheep master), Oysylkara (camel master), Shekshek ata (owner of the goats). The traits of the people’s courage and bravery are embodied in the following images: Erhiy mergen - Argymmergen (ancient archer), Argy-mergen (the original shooter), Cur-mergen (sunshine arrow).⁴

Introducing Myths into Contemporary Literature

Contemporary Kazakh prose actively embodies symbolic-mythological and folkloric-totemic contexts together with real and socio-historical ones, weaving fantastic or fantastical-allegorical plots. The inclusion of mythological imagery allows for multidimensional and multi-dimensional works, the construction of original compositional schemes and intertextual links between ancient and contemporary cultural layers (Dizayi, 2022).

The neo-myth includes not only the mythical layer, but also the religious, philosophical, scientific, folklore layer, which are present in the texts at the level of direct quotations, embodiment of certain images and motifs, allusions, or reminiscences. Thus, they can be expressed explicitly and implicitly. In the novel-myth Novel of Altay by Akim Altay (2001) is based on a tragic love story within the framework of the Kazakh folk-mythological tradition. In the centre of the narrative is the girl Bulabike, bear Aikönir and hunter Ұlar, who both fight for her heart. This non-standard for a modern work plot connects this literary text with the mythoprecedent (Altay, 2001).

Past stories, Kazakh fairy tales, legends and parables served as the basis for the creation of the work. By introducing images and motifs from folklore sources, the images are perceived as multidimensional, integral, and aesthetically complete. The image of Byulabike is as close to nature as possible, she acts as a part of microcosm. Thus, the author supports the mythopoetic architectonics of the work. The folkloric narrative is supported by the protagonist’s passive contemplative stance, which is revealed in the parallelism in the depiction of natural phenomena comparable to the mood of the character. The author introduces the image of the white maral, to which Bulabike was sincerely attached. The central idea of the novel-myth is supplemented by the motifs of cyclical time, repetition, the relationship between man and nature (Altybaeva, 2018).

The motif of the demonic and pernicious evil, which has its roots in national folklore, is also often incorporated into the classical and modern literary tradition. In Cursed dreams by A. Zhaksylykov (2005), this motif is realized at the level of mythical and fantastic imagery: The mythical mutant rats, half-human half-beasts, and other unclean forces. The mythical Kok-Oguz monster becomes a symbolic allegorical image in the novel Last Duty. Abdy Nurpeisov (2021), embodying the end of the world, the death of man. The personified evil finds its reflection in the modern human curd. Jadiger’s dream becomes a mythologem, intertwining the fantastic and real layers of the work of fiction.

The parabolic novel Twin Constellations by Khasen Adibaev (2004) is a multidimensional whole with a wide intertextual field, whose plans are united by the idea of universality. In this work, the biblical plane is juxtaposed with moral and philosophical categories, and the historical and mythological plane with national symbolism. The combination of Christian and ancient Egyptian motifs (belief in Amon Ra), as well as the combination of Muslim and Buddhist philosophy, form a religious-symbolic plane of representation. In terms of history and mythology the idea of sacredness of the Kazakh land, its creative energy and power is revealed. The national background of the novel is also accompanied by zoomorphic images, which acquire symbolic meaning: a horse is a faithful friend endowed with magical powers. The mythical figure of Peri-khanum is also introduced into the plot plane. The story uses images of the rulers of Egypt: Ehnaton, Tutankhomon, Cleopatra and Nefertiti. The stylisation of the ancient Greek mythological plot is associated with direct references to the legend of the Argonauts. Odysseus, the blue-haired sirens, the Hellenes, the brave Argonauts, and Homer appear in the work. The juxtaposition of different cultural layers, which are neo-myths, becomes possible thanks to the technique of mosaic installation, through which the motifs of the abyss (collapse, nothingness, abyss), repetition (of thoughts, fates, ideas), pain, labyrinth, return are realized. Literary intertexts in this work are represented by allusions to The Portrait of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde (2008), which is manifested in the psychological nuances of the relationship between the creator and the work he created.

Poetic insertions from the spoken word are used (Altybaeva, 2018). Myth brings to the modern Kazakh literature in-depth ethnopsychology, rethinking of historical and cultural processes, and philosophical orientation. Apart from the ideological and thematic changes, mythologemes have also stimulated the development of modern Kazakh prose in terms of genre and style. New genre modifications based on folklore and mythopoetic traditions are being developed, neo-myths are being created, and the composition and images are becoming multi-layered.

Discussion

Mythological narratives are a type of intellectual activity that is a unique tool for analytically and synthetically comprehending the evolution of individuals or entire ethnic groups (peoples). Human nature is closely linked to the generation of ideas through narratives, that is, through conceptual closed scripts. By inheriting models of one’s culture that carry certain moral and ethical values, interpretation of cultural processes takes place. At the same time, any such interpretation has a metaphorical meaning, so it is close to a myth (Altybaeva, 2018). Kazakh mythology is based on religious, worldview, moral and ethical, philosophical manifestations of the Kazakh people, which is reflected in oral folklore.

The genealogy of myth is not only conceptual but also ritualistic in nature. The modern social order is based on concepts and systems with mythological roots and symbolic structure. Narrative schema creation arises under the influence of a mythological worldview (Munóz, 2013). Mythological patterns and archetypal symbols can be used to construct certain communication structures and influence culture and society as a whole.

Scholar Gregory Nixon (2010) believes that the emergence of myths is due to a human existential crisis (linked to the awareness of mortality), which could only be experienced by activating the sphere of symbolic consciousness. Mythological discourse initially included only the archaic view of the world, but in the twentieth century it expanded to include an understanding of the social role of myth. Today, the concept of neo-myth is used, which can include ancient myths, archetypes, philosophical or scientific concepts and religious symbols (Chung, 2003).

In an article, Atraba Gul Bayram (2022) considers symbols as a category of interdisciplinary knowledge used in different branches. The author points out the main feature that connects archaic myth with modern myth - the similarity of symbolic language. When analysing the concept of mythological understanding of nature, a symbolic principle based on philosophical and aesthetic content is applied. The symbolization of nature occurs through archetyping, combining rational and irrational meanings. In the study of Kazakh mythology, the importance of symbolic-allegorical and philosophical perception of the concept of interaction between nature and man was pointed out, and this has also had an impact on folk art. This artistic principle is also used in modern works to deepen psychologism.

The development of the theory of mythopoetic legitimation by Samuel Bennett (2022) is based on an understanding of mythopoesis as a form of legitimisation through history and the reconstruction of selected historical narratives. The author undertakes a critical analysis of myths and their transformations on the basis of entrenched opinions in society. The point is that contemporary myth is created from fragments of past life, which are used for a specific purpose.

The work of Sofia Bonding (2021) presents a new perspective on pre-Christian mythology and its impact on national societies in nineteenth-century Northern and Western Europe. The authors examine how mythic-symbolic resources are linked to notions of national identity. Contemporary Kazakh literature, developing in a neo-mythological vein, reflects images of national and world culture.

Breanna Martin (2021), based on the theory of adaptation (retelling of an old text with modern artistic principles and means) and the theory of cultural studies (study of the cultural dominance of a particular nation), considers the process of transmission of myths of ancient civilizations and empires to modern states (on the example of the United States). The Kazakh mythology has some points of contact with the mythologies of other Turkic and Iranian-speaking peoples. Most often it concerns plots, mythopoetics, images and motifs.

Kastyti Rudokas and Silvija Cizaite-Rudokiene (2022) focus on the phenomenon of myth, the ways of approaching which are language and narrative, manifesting at the level of mythical meanings in the temporal layers of discourse. Mythological discourse at the present stage of development manifests itself not only at the level of art, folklore, or cultural heritage, but is also a subject of research in economics, politics, and sociology.

Literary scholar N. Soderman (2022) sees myth as a means of statist or ethnic nationalist narrative. In Kazakh culture, myths retain national connotations, which is expressed in steppe mythopoetics, attention to folklore heritage, and emphasis on the traditions of the people. Literary scholars Jiajia Su and Haosheng Ye (2020) explore myth as the source of Chinese culture, examining the ‘embodied wisdom’ of Chinese traditional art through the visual threshold of Chinese myths. The author examines myth from the ontological point of view, conceptual metaphor, and spatial characteristics. Based on the theory of social construction, it is shown how the mythic beginning is modified by social, cultural and historical transformation within a certain time frame. Mythological discourse can be considered both synchronic and diachronic, i.e. both historical and contemporary.

An article by Sanjukta Chakrabor (2022) shows how mythology and science fiction are linked and how imagination can become reality. Myth combines the fictional and the real and is perceived as a true story, retold or improved upon. The main purpose of creating fantasy stories is fiction. Adina Botas (2020) points out the manifestations of different aspects of myth and mythology in the analysis of political discourse, namely the speeches of the presidents of the USA, France, and Romania. The author examines mythic word-making from the perspective of cognitive linguistics and focuses on conceptual schemas and shifts caused by the creation of the presidential myth. The study of the genealogy of myth has shown that, at the present stage, mythological discourse is constantly renewed and expanded, penetrating new spheres of life, including the political, forming the social patterns of interaction between man and society (Bazaluk, 2018).

The Kazakh scholar Serikbol Kondybai (2018) noted that myth is a set of ideas about the environment in which human society exists under certain temporal and spatial conditions. Myth, according to the author, is not an imaginary lie, an artificial world, but is based on the truth of real people, based on a historical, spiritual experience that is considered “true.” Myth is not historical evidence, but it can be considered a reference point for the translation of knowledge about a particular historical society (Chung, 1995). The author links the definition of myth to cultural and historical tradition. The emergence of myth in literature begins with the classical period in world literature and continues in contemporary postmodern literature, with a revival of mysticism oriented to a variety of images and artistic forms (Ryskulova; Satybaldieva; Sartbekova, 2022). Mythic cognition, which represents a deep and meaningful “layer” of human consciousness, combines mystery and sacredness. It is also used as an important artistic technique to depict the inner world of a complex human being. Contemporary Kazakhstani prose introduces archaic myths along with neo-myths, thus expanding the spatial and temporal scope of works.

Literary scholar Yoonhee Hong (2022) sees myth as a cultural resource, pointing out that mythological forms have become more diverse due to rapidly changing media trends. Such processes are nominated as “return to myth,” “neo-mythologism” and “mythologism.” The study of mythological discourse has shown that at the present stage myth is not only perceived as an ancient cultural stratum but is constantly renewed and enriched.

Thus, contemporary researchers consider a wide range of transformations in the understanding of the concept of “myth” as exemplified by cultural, historical, social, and literary traditions. The term “neo-myth” is also used in the arts to refer to philosophical, political, and social concepts as mythological codes or narratives. Research has also focused on the connections and interactions between archaic and contemporary myths.

Conclusions

The understanding of myth from its origins to the present day has undergone significant transformations, primarily in semantic terms: from a primary type of consciousness, with the help of which people tried to explain the origin of natural phenomena and the world in general, to designating part of ideology, culture, religion, science, or philosophy, which involves the symbolisation of certain knowledge from any sphere. At the present stage of development, myth is similar to narrative in that it carries certain historical, philosophical, ethno-cultural codes.

Modern literary studies note the universality of myth application in the structure of literary works, as it can manifest itself not only in plots and images, but is also reproduced at the level of maxims, allusions, and reminiscences. Kazakhstani prose of the period of independence combines different myths: from archaic (ancient Greek, ancient Roman, ancient Egyptian) to modern modifications - neo-myths that represent knowledge structures from different fields of science. A characteristic feature of mythological discourse in literature is the combination of myths (plots, images, motifs) from different cultures, literatures and religions, which is of great value for literature, as it expands the temporal and spatial scope of works, gives impetus to the development of new genre modifications, stylizations and plot devices and allows to make images more extensive and interesting for readers.

This paper presents a diachronic and synchronic analysis of mythological knowledge and worldviews at different historical stages of society development, examines the transformation process of the concept of “myth” in semantic terms (meaning has significantly expanded) and traces the processes associated with mythological and neo-mythological discourse in works on the example of Kazakhstani prose. Further directions in terms of myth research will include comparative analysis of unstudied or understudied cultures, the study of genre, imagery and plot transformations of archaic mythology, philosophical maxims, and scientific concepts within the literary traditions of different peoples, and the impact of colonisation and decolonisation on the basis of mythological knowledge formation.

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  Kazakh Fairy Tales. Almaty: Almaty Book Publishing House, 2017. Available at: https://grqaser.org/en/grqaser/603/kazakh-fairy-tales. Access on: 20 Sept. 2023.
• 2
  Where Did Zhalmauyz Kempir, Shaitans and Genies Come From in Kazakh Mythology? 2023. Available at: https://the-steppe.com/razvitie/otkuda-poyavilis-zhalmauyz-kempir-shaytany-i-dzhiny-v-kazahskoy-mifologii. Access on: 20 Sept. 2023.
• 3
  Kazakh Fairy Tales. Almaty: Almaty Book Publishing House, 2017. Available at: https://grqaser.org/en/grqaser/603/kazakh-fairy-tales. Access on: 20 Sept. 2023.
• 4
  Where Did Zhalmauyz Kempir, Shaitans and Genies Come From in Kazakh Mythology? 2023. Available at: https://the-steppe.com/razvitie/otkuda-poyavilis-zhalmauyz-kempir-shaytany-i-dzhiny-v-kazahskoy-mifologii. Access on: 20 Sept. 2023.

• Reviews

  Due to the commitment assumed by Bakhtiniana. Revista de Estudos do Discurso [Bakhtiniana. Journal of Discourse Studies] to Open Science, this journal only publishes reviews that have been authorized by all involved.

Research Data and Other Materials Availability

The contents underlying the research text are included in the manuscript.

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Review I

About the reviewer SCIMAGO INSTITUTIONS RANKINGS

Recommended for publication. The essay “Myth and Mythological Discourse in Literary Studies” follows, in its elaboration, some stages whose characteristics are reiterated, starting with the stage of the traditional meanings of the myth, the stage of comparison with contemporary neo-myths and its insertion in literary narratives. The most significant and original part of the essay is the description of these steps as they relate to Kazakhstan. Taking current Kazakh literature as an object of analysis (structural, historical, contrastive, etc.), the author shows how certain myths, mythologemes, neomyths, common even to other regions of Central Asia, and even from ancient Greece, penetrated it. This contingent of beliefs that can be seen as realities, as a manifestation of supernatural forces, as an explanation of natural phenomena, can have educational value, as an appeal to order over chaos, as an individual/society interaction, as a differentiation between ritual and narrative (sacredness and fiction), and the mediator between myth and literature would be folklore. The author describes some perspectives from which the myth has been seen at different times: psychoanalytic, phenomenological, structuralist, scientific, etc. and focuses on the current vision that would encompass social reality with all its components. It then goes on to describe figures and images from Kazakh mythology in different historical periods and their variable motifs coming from various influences. One of the final conclusions is that the myth schemes influence culture as a whole, having as one of the main axes the awareness of mortality. As for the bibliography, although it does not include Giambattista Vico (the patriarch of studies on myth) and E.M. Meletinsky, (the greatest comparatist of myths from various countries), it is updated and quite original. Positive opinion regarding the publication. ACCEPTED

• peer review recommendation: accept

History

• Peer review received
  01 Oct 2023

Review II

About the reviewer SCIMAGO INSTITUTIONS RANKINGS

I strongly recommend the publication of the article “Myth and Mythological Discourse in Literary Studies / Mito e discurso mitológico nos estudos literários.” The title of the article is quite appropriate in relation to the text presented. The objective of the work and the coherence of its development are explained in the text. It is worth mentioning that the author structures the work very well, clearly proposing an understanding of the research as a whole and in its parts (Abstract, Introduction, Materials and Methods, Results, Theory, Discussion, Conclusions, References). Regarding the proposed theory, the article brings a deep and relevant debate about myth and neomyth and mythopoetic consciousness. As if that were not enough, it introduces the topic of contemporary Kazakh literature, which, when developing in a neo-mythological vein, as the article explains, reflects images of national and world culture. There is also compliance in the writing with the proposed theory, demonstrating updated knowledge of a relevant and extremely significant bibliography, as it gives us access to a more distant and unusual culture in literary and theoretical studies carried out in Brazil. There is, without a doubt, a lot of originality in the reflection and a striking contribution to the field of knowledge. Finally, it is worth highlighting the full correctness and adequacy of the language. ACCEPTED

• peer review recommendation: accept

History

• Peer review received
  08 Oct 2023

Publication Dates

• Publication in this collection
  27 Nov 2023
• Date of issue
  2023

History

• Received
  20 Sept 2023
• Accepted
  02 Nov 2023