Dlaczego nie antyutopia? : "Kyś" Tatiany Tołstoj a "literatura środka"

Abstract

The article consists of two parts. The first one concerns mutual relations between the highbrow (or mass) literature (culture) and popular one, justifying an introduction of the notion of the “middle literature” by S. Czuprynin. In this context Kyś, a novel by Tatiana Tołstoj many investigators consider an anti‑utopia is analysed. Such a classification justifies the legitimacy of perceiving the work as belonging to the middle literature. Next, the author quotes the opinions of the advocates of such a classification of Kyś, as well as voices of researchers such as M. Lipowiecki and O. Kabanowa questioning it. Tołstoj’s novel includes a series of solutions proving the accuracy of reading it according to a tradition of anti‑utopia, that is a dreamlike and limited setting, introduction of a closed space (the castle owned by the main character’s father in law), basing the authority on fear, passive and slow government of the society, the motive of rebellion, or far‑reaching hierarchy of the society. These and several other factors allow for treating Tołstoj’s novel as an anti‑utopia — a genre perceived by a group of researchers (N. Iwanowa) as the reflection of the so called “ultra fiction”, classified within the scope of the middle literature.