A distinctive feature of the hudlite, which brings this line of art with cinema and theater, is a specific reproduction of processes taking place over time. The representative of these is the life of a person, as well as all the experiences that are characteristic of a person. In the artistic space there is a place for the thoughts of man and his intentions. Khudlit is dedicated to human life, including events occurring at the behest of the hero and third-party characters. No less attention is paid to intentions.
Since ancient times
About the artistic space and time, about the connection between the place and the meaning of the work, they thought even in ancient times. It is known, in particular, that Aristotle thought about how to more accurately, more accurately relate these categories. Over time, ideas about them expanded, prominent figures in cultural studies, philosophy, and literature more than once dealt with this issue. In particular, a great contribution was made by Likhachev. No less significant are the works of Bakhtin, who also considered the indicated categories, trying to expand and deepen the idea of them. Due to the works of these authors today, time, spatial characteristics are perceived as key categories in the field of literary criticism. Any artistic product always includes a reflection of the real flow of time and a person's idea of real space. Inside the creation, a complex system of relations of designated categories is formed.
Artistic time and space are integral parts of the character of the image as a whole. Thanks to these categories, a holistic perception of the reality described in the work is possible. In addition, using the capabilities of these categories, the author receives tools for organizing the composition of creation. Both time and place are symbols. The key signs associated with space are a house associated with some enclosed territory, open space, understood as something open, and expressing the border of doors, windows, sills. For modern works, the inclusion in the work as symbols of various ports (sea, air, land) is characteristic. They symbolize a meeting that reverses the plot.
About features
To better understand the nuances of the artistic space in literature, it is worth turning to the classical works of the most famous authors. Critics traditionally talk about the possibility of forming volumetric and point-like art. The artistic space described in Dostoevsky’s novels is very clear. It is most like a stage area. In his creations, time is a category that is swiftly rushing forward. For comparison, if we turn to the works of Chekhov, we can see that in them the time actually froze.
Ukhtomsky, analyzing the artistic space in literature, the passage of time in various well-known works, formulated a new term - “chronotope”. It consists of two Greek words for place, time. By this term, it was decided to designate a space-time system. Bakhtin later published a work that saw the light under the name "Forms of time and chronotope." Here, attention is concentrated on the chronotope in relation to a variety of works. The scientist analyzed the work of his contemporaries, extant novels from earlier times, including works created in the ancient period. I was able to clearly demonstrate: the chronotope from case to case, from author to author varies greatly. Although, if desired, certain similarities between the creations of different authors of the same era can be revealed, more often the only determining factor is the author’s idea.
Chronotope: about the term
Bakhtin, studying artistic time and space in literature, came to the conclusion that it is impossible to separate these two categories. They are characterized by unity, synthesis. A chronotope was called a mutual important relationship connecting the relationship of place, time. This applies only to relationships developed within the framework of the artistic production. Bakhtin suggested understanding the chronotope as a typical quality, a property characteristic of a particular work. This category is proposed to be regarded as important, fundamentally significant for the plot. The spatial structure is formed by the oppositions of the upper and lower, earth and sky, the kingdom of people and the underground. No less important are the opposites of open and enclosed space, as well as left and right. The temporal structure is determined by the opposites of light and darkness, different seasons, periods of the day.
Analyzing the artistic time and space in literature, Bakhtin formulated the functionality inherent in the chronotope. It is determined that this category is needed in order to formulate the place of the work relative to what is happening in the real world. The chronotope helps organize the space within the creation. Through this category, the author introduces the viewer into the work. Using the chronotope, you can correlate place, time, even if they differ and in real time do not correspond to each other. The same tool is used to formulate an associative chain in the reader's mind. This chain acts as the basis for the connection of creation and ideas about the real world. The latter is significantly expanded through the use of the category of chronotope.
Time, the space of artistic culture are possible concretized, but can also be abstract. If the temporary category is abstract, then the spatial one automatically becomes the same. This reciprocal relationship works in the opposite direction.
Private Chronotopes
Bakhtin, who was engaged in the analysis of the phenomenon of the artistic space of the work, identified several private chronotopes. For example, paired with a road image. His main motive is an unpredictable meeting. If such a motive is observed in the text of a work, this usually becomes the moment the action begins. Such a chronotope is designated as an open location. But a non-random meeting occurs if a temporary-spatial connection is observed in the context of a private salon. By its nature, such a zone is closed (similar to the previously mentioned house).
A rather characteristic literary image is the castle. True, it is found mostly in foreign books. Classical Russian works do not have such an object. A similar chronotope in Bakhtin’s description is a symbol indicating that history, the past of the genus, dominate within the framework of the events of the work. This chronotope is a space with strict borders, frames, walls. Another private chronotope is the threshold. He talks about the crisis, indicates a tipping point, is not accompanied by a biography, is reflecting a certain moment.
Sometimes the space and time of a work of art can be characterized by a rather curious chronotope - a provincial village. This image characterizes the time, not filled with events, limited location. A chronotope is associated with the concept of self-sufficiency. The object drawn in the work lives its own life, not related to external objects. Although the current time is not sacred, it is characterized by pronounced cyclicality.
Chronotopes: large and not only
By analyzing the features of the artistic space, one can see the dominance of the inversion law. In this case, they talk about an idyllic chronotope. This is a fairly large mutual relationship between time and location. Sometimes it is called folklore.
An analysis of contemporary works reveals certain trends characteristic of the authorship of our contemporaries. Classical are the desire for symbolism, as well as a tendency to mythologize. Typical signs are defined doubling, communication to memories. It is noticeable that more and more authors create artistic works in which time is one of the heroes of what is happening, and for some it is the main character. Modern creations are characterized by increased relevance of installation. At the same time, the location is perceived by the authors as the most important world coordinates. Without which it is impossible to build your work.
Relevance: why is communication so important?
It is impossible to create a work so that it is in a vacuum both in locations and in time reference. Any creation is always an object that has some temporal features and signs of a certain spatial position. At the same time, it is necessary to realize, analyzing a specific slander, what are the features of artistic time and space, how they differ from simple abstraction. It is important to consider that these categories are not physical. However, many authors rightly point out: even physicists today cannot unambiguously and clearly focus on what time and place are. For art, these categories act as an exceptionally specific phenomenon, a coordinate system. For the first time, Lessing spoke of the importance of these phenomena for art as a sphere. Over the next couple of centuries, a lot of theorists have appeared who have carefully proved that time, location for the hoodlie is not just an important component, but in many cases determines the whole creation.
The author chooses the forms of art space for a reason. They represent one of the most important aspects of the formation of the atmosphere of the work, the disclosure of the plot. This is especially evident when analyzing, for example, Crime and Punishment. The space in which the heroes are forced to dwell amazes the reader with its narrowness. All the streets described in the work are narrow, all the rooms are very small. The main character lives in a room that is more like a coffin than a human dwelling. All these features and locations were not chosen by the author by chance. The creative person is interested in those who find themselves in a deadlock in their lives. The author uses all means available to him in order to emphasize again and again how hopeless the described situation is. In conclusion, when the hero finally gains faith, feels love, attention to this is further emphasized by the disclosure of the space in which events unfold.
Times and manners
In different eras, the types of art space had different meanings. Every new era is characterized by its unique features of the interconnection of location and time. For the next period of development of art, its nuances of coordinate systems are characteristic. There are some general laws of development that allow us to evaluate in which direction art is moving. Until the 18th century, aesthetics in principle denied the author the right to intervene in the structure of creation in the category of time. The author had no right to start with the death of the character, gradually spinning events in the opposite direction and returning to his birth. At that time, the narrative was bound to be real. It was strictly forbidden to disrupt the course of action of one character by the inclusion of blocks dedicated to another hero. This became the reason for incompatibilities in time - this feature is quite typical of old books.
An analysis of the artistic space in old works shows that there were a lot of stories dedicated to the same hero. Some ended with his successful return from adventure, the next began with pictures of the suffering of loved ones due to the lack of a character. A typical example is Homer's Odyssey. In the 18th century, the situation changed dramatically. From this moment, the author has the opportunity to model the creation of his own free will. The requirement to become like the logic of life disappears. From this moment in the books you can see additional inserts, derogations and non-compliance with the sequence. Nowadays, the author has the right to form a composition, arranging individual elements as he sees fit. The artist has complete freedom.
Labels, understanding, terminology development
“He is on the verge of ...”… It is worth reading this wording, and it immediately becomes clear: the hero has something important, big, something that is likely to greatly change his life. The threshold is one of the previously mentioned chronotopes. According to some researchers of art space, this chronotope is the most common in culture. If the author includes it in his work, he thereby makes the meaning of the story much deeper. But let us turn to the chronotopes. It is traditionally accepted to perceive this category as universal. It is used to designate a model that includes temporal features and a location category. The author of the term, however, suggested understanding this phenomenon as a stable model, which is observed in different creations.
Chronotope is not the only format of the model. There are more general ones based on the characteristics of a certain culture. Such models are considered history related. They are replacing each other. The person is such that the obsolete model does not disappear, it still worries the reader, excites him - which means that it is the basis for the creation of a piece of art. Variations of patterns in different cultures are innumerable. Several are considered basic, and the simplest is a zero countdown of time and place. This is a fixed model. Both time and location for such a design are meaningless. There are no differences between different places, the same events always happen. This model is considered the most archaic, although it does not lose relevance in our time. It is the basis of ideas about the heavenly and underground kingdoms, often activated when trying to imagine what is happening after death. Such a model is used to formulate a “golden age”. She is very pronounced in the conclusion of the novel "The Master and Margarita."
All around
Often, Gogol's artistic space is built around a circular model. It is also called cyclic. This form is considered one of the most widespread. The nature cycles, constantly changing around us, act as an excellent external reinforcement of the structure. The key feature of such a model is the idea that sooner or later everything will return to its starting point, to a stable position. Time, place - all this is permissible in such a model, however, such categories are conditional, since the hero sooner or later comes to the starting point, no changes will happen.
Not only the artistic space of the “Inspector” and other works of Gogol is built on a cyclic model. There are older examples that are considered by critics to be particularly revealing. For example, an Odyssey written by Homer. The protagonist spends many years traveling and experiencing a huge number of incredible adventures. Returning to his native land, he meets his wife; she is still beautiful and loves him just as much as on the day of sailing. Some critics consider this an adventurous time that exists only around the main character. At the same time, the temporary category does not change anything neither in the heroes, nor in the connections between them.
It's curious
The art space constructed according to the cyclic representation is part of the archaic model. Projections of such a system are quite characteristic of the culture of our days. They can be seen in Yesenin's creations. This is especially noticeable in the works created by the great poet in his mature years. He turned to the theme of the cycle of life and turned it into a central one for his work. Even his most famous lines, written just before his death, are characterized by such a model and are a reference to biblical materials, also built on the idea of a circle.
But realism basically involves a linear model. At the same time, the space is as wide and open as possible. For such works, an excellent image is an arrow aimed exactly at the target. She released in the past, flies to the future. Such a model is the key to human consciousness of our time. It dominates most of the artworks created in the last few centuries. Classic examples are Tolstoy's texts. Every event within the framework of such a model becomes unique, occurs only once, since changes are characteristic of a person. The linear model is the forerunner of psychologism based on the idea of change not allowed in cyclic and zero systems. The linear model is combined with historicism as a creative principle. She suggests understanding a person as a product of some era, does not consider an abstract person outside of time.