The Welsh world in J. Wain's novel 'A Winter in the Hills'

Z.R. Zinnatullina*, A.A. Khaibullina**

Kazan Federal University, Kazan, 420008 Russia

E-mail: *zin-zulya@mail.ru, **angelina.khaibullina@mail.ru

Received November 21, 2017

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Abstract

This paper examines the image of the Welsh world in John Wain's novel “A Winter in the Hills” (1970). John Barrington Wain is a British writer, one of the founders of the “angry young  men” movement. The development of relations between the Englishman Roger Furnivall (“foe”) and the Welsh (“friend”) is in the center of the plot. Roger arrives to the province to study the language and behaves quite detached and arrogant. Taking a sabbatical in North Wales to learn the language, Roger expects a long and dreary winter of linguistic study, but instead quickly finds himself drawn into the drama of local affairs. The relationship between Roger and the locals is changing gradually. The characters move from the original model of “colonizer – native” towards the full acceptance and understanding of each other. An important part of the novel is a created by the writer's image of the Welsh world. Basically, it is filled with a positive connotation and represents a patriarchal society. The main components of this image in the novel are language, retrospect, and appeal to the cultural traditions of Welsh. The writer draws a parallel between the heroes of the work and the outstanding historical personalities of Wales. The features of Welsh national character are also revealed through the main characters of the novel.

Keywords: English literature, John Wayne, Wales, national character, interethnic interaction

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For citation: Zinnatullina Z.R., Khaibullina A.A. The Welsh world in J. Wain's novel “A Winter in the Hills”. Uchenye Zapiski Kazanskogo Universiteta. Seriya Gumanitarnye Nauki, 2018, vol. 160, no. 1, pp. 175–186. (In Russian)


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