Magical objects and their place in Mikhail Elizarov’s prose

Abstract

Drawing on V. Podoroga’s ‘studies towards a theory of aura,’ the article considers the concept of a magical object and the place of magical objects in the artistic world of the contemporary Russian writer M. Elizarov. Magical objects populating Elizarov’s prose are examined from the viewpoint of their essential characteristics, genesis, and function. The author notes that nearly all magical objects in Elizarov’s books possess qualities that keep humans at a distance and weaken their ties with humans before any of them discovers the object’s magical nature. Elizarov’s magical objects are typified by impracticality, compromised integrity, specific localization, and other characteristics. In his study of objects such as books by a Soviet writer Gromov (The Librarian [Bibliotekar]), a filmstrip (Cartoons [Multiki]), a cassette tape (Dzon), and others, the author discovers that objects are used in Elizarov’s books as artefacts or even participants of rituals, effectively providing tools for a fundamental alteration of a single individual’s reality and, acting together, of reality in its entirety.