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When and Where? Time and Space in Boris Akunin's Azazel' and Turetskii

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When and Where? Time and Space in Boris Akunin's Azazel' and Turetskii When and Where? Time and Space in Boris Akunin’s Azazel’ and Turetskii gambit by Dennis Joseph Kilfoy A thesis presented to the University of Waterloo in fulfillment of the thesis requirement for the degree of Master of Arts in Russian Waterloo, Ontario, Canada 2007 ©Dennis Kilfoy 2007 Author’s Declaration I hereby declare that I am the sole author of this thesis. This is a true copy of the thesis, including any required final revisions, as accepted by my examiners. I understand that my thesis may be made electronically available to the public. Dennis Kilfoy August, 2007 ii Abstract Boris Akunin’s historical detective novels have sold more than eight million copies in Russia, and have been translated into nearly a dozen languages. Boris Akunin is the pen name of literary critic and translator Grigory Chkhartishvili. Born in 1956 in the republic of Georgia, he published his first detective stories in 1998. His first series of novels, beginning with Azazel’ and followed by Turetskii gambit, feature a dashing young police inspector, Erast Fandorin. Fandorin’s adventures take place in the Russian Empire of the late nineteenth century, and he regularly finds himself at the center of key historic events. The first book takes place over one summer, May to September 1876, as the intrepid Fandorin, on his first case, unveils an international organization of conspirators—Azazel’—bent on changing the course of world events. The second takes place two years later from July 1877 to March 1878 during Russia’s war with the Ottoman Empire. The young detective again clashes with Azazel’, as he unravels a Turkish agent’s intricate plan to weaken and destroy the Russian state. Both adventures have proven wildly popular and entertaining, while maintaining a certain literary value. The exploration of time and space in Russian literature was once a popular subject of discourse, but since the 1970s it has been somewhat ignored, rarely applied to contemporary works, and even less to works of popular culture. Akunin’s treatment of time and space, however, especially given the historical setting of his works, is unique. Azazel’, for example, maintains a lightning pace with a tight chronology and a rapidly changing series of locales. Turetskii gambit presents a more laconic pace, and, though set in the vast Caucasus region, seems more claustrophobic as it methodically works towards its conclusion. Both works employ a seemingly impersonal narrator, who, nonetheless, speaks in a distinctly 19th century iii tone, and both works cast their adventures within the framework of actual historical events and locations. This thesis analyzes core theories in literary time and space, applying them then to Akunin’s historical detective literature. iv Acknowledgments Thanks to all my friends and colleagues who showed so much support and interest, including, but not exclusively: Amy Safarik Florian Eck Matthew Tite Roman Jagiellowicz Justine Gill Regan Treewater Nino Amiranashvili Natalia Klein Mark Wilkinson Evgeniia Shuta Jeanette Rohr Janet Janzen Nothing is particularly possible without good friends… or particularly worthwhile. --Dennis Kilfoy August 13, 2007 v Dedication To Mom, Dad, and Every Teacher I ever had. --Dennis Kilfoy with special mention to: Dr. J. Stuart Durrant Dr. Ireneusz Szarycz Dr. Rimma Volynska Dr. Frederick White Dr. Vinko Grubisic and Dr. Robert Karpiak Dr. Zinaida Gimpelevich Dr. Mark Cumming vi Table of Contents Author’s Declaration....................................................................................................................... ii Abstract..........................................................................................................................................iii Acknowledgments........................................................................................................................... v Dedication...................................................................................................................................... vi Table of Contents.......................................................................................................................... vii Introduction..................................................................................................................................... 1 I. Purpose .................................................................................................................................... 1 II. Boris Akunin .......................................................................................................................... 1 III. Theories of Literary Time and Space.................................................................................... 8 IV. Conclusion .......................................................................................................................... 25 Chapter 1: Time in Azazel’ ........................................................................................................... 26 I. Narration and Time................................................................................................................ 26 II. Reader and Time .................................................................................................................. 30 III. The Characters and Their Presented World........................................................................ 37 IV. Conclusion .......................................................................................................................... 44 Chapter 2: Space in Azazel’ .......................................................................................................... 46 I. Narration and Space............................................................................................................... 46 II. Reader and Space ................................................................................................................. 55 III. The Characters and Their Presented World........................................................................ 60 IV. Conclusion .......................................................................................................................... 65 Chapter 3: Time in Turetskii gambit............................................................................................. 67 I. Narration and Time................................................................................................................ 67 II. Reader and Time .................................................................................................................. 71 III. Characters and Their Presented World ............................................................................... 79 VI. Conclusion .......................................................................................................................... 85 Chapter 4: Space in Turetskii gambit............................................................................................ 86 I. Narration and Space............................................................................................................... 86 II. Reader and Space ................................................................................................................. 92 III. Characters and Their Presented World ............................................................................... 96 IV. Conclusion ........................................................................................................................ 105 Conclusion .................................................................................................................................. 106 Bibliography ............................................................................................................................... 110 vii Introduction I. Purpose In his conclusion to the anthology Phenomenology: The Philosophy of Edmund Husserl, Joseph Kockelmans explains that a defining characteristic of philosophy, including phenomenology, is “radical and presuppositionless” comprehension.1 Time and space may not seem radical at first, but they permeate and form the basis of every single piece of literature, as they do existence in general. They are so basic, so fundamental that they often fall beneath the reader’s attention, and sometimes, perhaps, even the author’s. The distinction between a fictional representation of a place and the actual place itself, for example, might seem obvious, and some might argue that it goes without saying. The answer to this objection is yes, it is obvious, but to leave that distinction unsaid is to ignore a defining feature of art with particular relevance to authors of historical fiction. Thus, following Kockelmans’ thought, my proposed analysis of time and space will point out just how remarkable the things we already know are. The purpose of this introductory chapter is to reveal the complexities of a supposedly simple, mundane, and consequently neglected, topic. The thesis that follows will more specifically demonstrate its relevance in respect to Boris Akunin’s first two novels. II. Boris Akunin Boris Akunin is the pen name of literary critic and translator Grigory Chkhartishvili. Born in 1956 in the republic of Georgia, he published his first detective novels in 1998. His first series of novels begins with Azazel’ (Azazel’, 1998), followed by Turetskii gambit (The Turkish Gambit, 2000), and features a dashing young police inspector, Erast Fandorin. Fandorin’s 1 Joseph J. Kockelmans.
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