ARTISTIC FEATURES OF THE CONCEPT OF REALITY AND HUMANITY IN THE POETIC DISCOURSE OF MYKOLA MYKOLAYENKO

Abstract

This article examines the artistic features of the concept of reality and humanity in the works of Mykola Mykolayenko, the oldest poet of the Dnipro region. His poetic discourse not only reflects his worldview but also presents the Word as the highest sacred value, a means of artistic comprehension of reality, and a powerful weapon of expression. The fundamental principles of his concept of the world and humanity acquire new connotations, gain deeper meaning, and serve as essential vehicles of emotional and imaginative world expression. They introduce new ideological and aesthetic explorations while reproducing the artistic features of profound mental and national world perception.Special attention is given to the formation of the social-national myth of Ukraine in Mykolayenko’s six-volume work Vishcha Zorya (The Prophetic Star), as well as in the poetry collections Na Krayu Bezodni (At the Edge of the Abyss) and Grozova Svitany (Stormy Dawns). The artistic concept of the world in his poetry reflects a subjective worldview, an in-depth understanding of universal realities, and a comprehensive vision of the surrounding world. Mykolayenko’s poetic discourse is largely filled with national symbols, associated with historical, political, and social aspects, personal experiences, a deep love for the nature of his homeland, and permeated with biblical tonality and existential reflections on life and death, love and hate, the high and the low, the spiritual and the earthly.In the poetic discourse of Vishcha Zorya, the themes of beauty, joy, and the youth of existence are emphasized. In the author’s concept, these existential states emerge as a social myth. The national myth in Mykolayenko’s poetry is outlined through symbolic imagery–Ukraine, the Ukrainian Word, the Ukrainian Language–alongside political slogans, classical mythological references, metaphoric solar symbolism, and the lyrical hero’s worldview. These and other poetic expressions form the core of his poetic style. However, the national myth in his works is inseparably connected with the social myth, leading to the assertion that Mykolayenko presents an authorial concept of the social-national myth.The study identifies the mythosophical concept of reality in Mykolayenko’s work, which he constructs through macro- and micro-imagery systems, employing a unique arsenal of artistic and expressive means. The poetic techniques used in shaping the image of the lyrical hero, who serves as a voice for the poet’s own ideas, are also analyzed.