The Categories of Author – Text – Reader in the Novel “Librarian”
by Michael Elizarov

The article deals with the categories of Author – Text – Reader in
the novel «Librarian» by Michael Elizarov. Consideration of this novel as well
“The Slynx” by Tatyana Tolstaya shows general trends of modern narratives
such as the placement of these categories in the eschatological context of postmodern
culture, the debunking of the bibliophilic cultural myth, desacralization
of literature, leveling the quality of reading, the transformation of the latter into
the reader’s consumption of “literary product”). The author focuses on the meta-literature “discussion” of these categories in
the novel by Elizarov.
An important point is that the some of literary concepts and conventions are
parodied and reduced to absurdity such as the ratio of content and expression,
the question of the integrity of the piece; the concept of the Author’s Death,
etc.). So, the category of the Text at first is represented by the writer as not depending
on the dead author Gromov (in according with ideas of Alexander
Potebnja or Roland Bart). The meanings produced by books by Gromov are not
connected with the text of his works. But at the same time the reader’s perception
appears secondary “due to the object of perception” (Alexander
Skaftymov). The expression of the author’s will in the novel is expressed
through the “pathos” which is a single emotional setting of each Gromov’s book
(Books of Power, Memory, Meaning, etc.), which can influence readers through
various readings.
The article states the specificity of understanding in “Gromov’s Universe”
the Composition of the Piece, which consist of not only constructive parts but
also includes just technical elements (font, layout, editors’ names, insert with
typos),
The structure of this “universal” is examined as social pyramid, status of
readers and libraries, authorities, etc. structures.
Also the article reveals the contrast between the external “official world”
(police, government, public organizations, etc.) and the “world of the initiates”
(readers), as well as methods of creating groups of characters belonging to different
worlds. Another important point of this research is analysis of connections
with ancient folklore and literary tradition (the image of Alex Votintseva is
matched with the image of ancient Russian scribes, and the Chronicles of
Gromov’s world and “Chronicle of the House the elderly” are compared with
Old Russian Chronicles). It should be mentioned some observations concerning
the intertextual relations of the novel and its mythopoetic context. The article
discusses the issue of the mode of artistry in the final of the novel, analyzes the
combination of the functions of the Reader and the Author in the main character.