After the publication of the book “Duhless. The Tale of a Fake Man ”and its film adaptation, many began to wonder:“ What is duhless? ” This is a complex word, and not only in translation, it has a deep philosophical content, so its meaning must be understood.
Earlier in the Russian language this term was not used, but thanks to Sergey Minaev he firmly entered our vocabulary. The concept of “duhless” and its meaning will be discussed in the article.
What is duhless: definition of a concept
The word itself consists of two parts “spirit” and “loess”, the first part of the word is spirit, spirituality, soulfulness, and the second is a borrowed English word that means “without”. So how do you understand what “duhless" is? Translated into our language, this word is interpreted as spirituality. It has become very popular among young people and is often used in the media, Internet slang, and cinema.
The synonyms of the concept are the words: lowland, rampant consumption, moral emptiness, soullessness, a general decline in morals. It is these qualities that are now very inherent in society. That is, there has been a reassessment of values that are also actively promoted.
According to the plot of the book by Sergey Minaev, two films were made.
But in order to finally understand the philosophical meaning of the concept of “duhless”, it is necessary to plunge into the world of the novel. So, what is duhless and its essence through the eyes of the author?
The plot of a literary work
The protagonist heads the marketing department in the Moscow branch of a large company. He makes good money, lives in an expensive apartment, drives a luxury car. He is successful: his life was a success. The young man burns his life in nightclubs and at social events and is increasingly immersed in alcohol and drug intoxication. But for some reason, every day he is becoming more and more bored, the reality surrounding him becomes disgusting, and the idea of finding new entertainment comes to his mind. Perhaps he is thus trying to find a way to break out of this vicious circle. After all, he can feel calm and peaceful only when he is next to his girlfriend.
According to the plot of the novel, the main character is substituted by anti-drug officers, having thrown up cocaine, he learns what a friend’s betrayal and fraud is, he sees how low a person can fall for money and thirst for profit. The guy even manages to ruin the relationship with his girlfriend, because he constantly breaks his anger on her. It becomes difficult for him to communicate with others.
And one fine morning the hero realizes that everything that surrounds him is empty, like a white sheet. Everything in his life is not serious. A young man takes an electric train and travels in an unknown direction, the hero comes out on an unfamiliar station, wanders through foreign lands, finds a clearing, sits on a fallen tree and begins to reflect on life ...
He was lost both in the world and in life, wanders without a goal, imperceptibly finds himself on a huge railway bridge. The hero goes to its middle and his thoughts lead to thoughts about death and about childhood, in which he would like to return. And only the best moments come to mind ...
Name history
The novel, according to the author, is autobiographical, but Minaev does not tell what exactly prompted him to write the book. The use of the English language in the title of the chapters and the work itself is explained by the creator as a desire to show his style and education.
A critic and Russian literary critic Nikolai Alexandrov in one of his notes wrote that “duhless” is a strange hybrid that causes association with the word topless. According to him, the nature of the book corresponds to this type of exposure completely.
The main themes of the novel
The main theme that is touched upon in the novel is to ridicule the cult of careerism and money in modern society. These concepts and success, according to the author, are completely different concepts. Of course, striving for success is necessary, but it’s absolutely not worth extolling a career and making it the meaning of your whole life.
Perhaps that is why the writer believes that the main character wastes his life, burns it. He is trying to break out of this circle, but the attempts are in vain, as the young man is afraid to take responsibility and commit acts that are not dictated by his society. The character looks overly capricious and empty man. The author believes that only love can save him. At the end of the novel, the hero is at the crossroads of life, but this is not the end of the road, this is just an excuse to rethink what is happening.
One of the brightest storylines in the novel is the theme of spirituality. The action takes place in St. Petersburg and Moscow, but there is no difference between the capital's clubs and any others. But there is a problem of branding, which has taken on enormous proportions throughout the world, the heroes are also often expressed obscenities, absolutely no shy. In addition, the novel is full of English words, they are "talked" by the heroes of the novel, because foreign expressions are "symbols of prestige."
The writer portrays the managers of large corporations as stupid and small people. He believes that such individuals are confidently moving towards dullness, because corporate thought erases the personality, it destroys it as an individual, eradicates subjective thinking. The author is sure that the heroes are victims of large companies and the media, they live in a world of myths and prevailing stereotypes.
The creator of the novel compares his characters with the characters in the works of the Russian classics Hero of Our Time, Woe from Wit, Eugene Onegin. In his opinion, nothing has changed. Take, for example, Pechorin, dress him in a modern "outfit", put him at the table in the office of any company, and instead of sending the ball to a night club - all the same.
That is, the lack of spirituality, which is reflected in the novel, is actually the inner world of modern "successful" heroes. So that's what duhless is.
The values of modern yuppie, according to the novel
The novel revealed the character of a modern successful young man and society as a whole. The moral and spiritual guidelines of the Russian public have undergone changes. The book clearly articulates the values of modern yuppie (a successful young man with an excellent higher education). He lives and works in a big city, seeks to make a career and achieve a position in society.
It should be noted that in our country such a layer of society has really formed. They work in firms, adopt manners and style of behavior, speech features of Western (mostly American) young successful people, “imprisoned” for career and money.
The values of Russian yuppies are:
- financial solvency (apartment, expensive car, branded clothing);
- constant parties in prestigious and pathos nightclubs;
- superficial love and friendship;
- maximum profit with minimum labor costs;
- skeptical attitude to patriotism, family, honor, discipline, education and devotion.
Everything is called into question, all values are rejected, many moral principles are violated, that is what duhless means - a new worldview and a new lifestyle of modern yuppies.