Геттисбергская битва в американском историческом романе 30-х и 70-х годов

Abstract

The article deals with the first representation of the Civil War in the US historical novel of the 20-es and the 30-es –the years which marked the rebirth of the genre in the American literature of the 20th century. “Marching On” by J. Boyd and “ Long Remember “ by M. Cantor represent the Civil War in the tradition of the social realistic novel of the 20-s and the literature of the “lost generation”, their novels are social and pacifist and don’t discuss slavery as the main reason of the war. After World War II US historical novel becomes more philosophical in its treatment of history, and the outstanding historical novel devoted to the Civil War- “The Killer-Angels” by M. Shaara (1974) demonstrates this thesis perfectly. The author doesn’t engage in judging the historical rightfulness of any side of the conflict, he reveals the inhuman character of the battle which in itself is a crime against humanity. American history is characterized by consensus, not by conflict, and American historical novel of the 20th century devoted to the Civil war is a vivid proof of this statement. Hence, the concept of “the Other” is reinterpreted in the US historical novel. It loses all its alien qualities and approaches “Me”. Both the novels dealt with in the article are devoted to Gettisberg battle.