Artistic Details in Stepan Kolesnyk’s Publicistic Works as a Means of Author’s Stylistic Expression

DOI: 10.17721/2522-1272.2023.84.3  

UDC 070:791.24Kolesnyk

Alla Kobynets’, Associated Professor, Educational and Scientific Institute of Journalism, Taras Shevchenko National University of Kyiv,
0000-0003-4210-7263

Vita Goian, D.Sci (Social Сommunications) Professor, Educational and Scientific Institute of Journalism, Taras Shevchenko National University of Kyiv,
0000-0002-1207-3800

ABSTRACT

The well-known Ukrainian journalist, publicist, and laureate of the Shevchenko Prize Stepan Kolesnyk wrote many works dedicated to creators whose fate was closely intertwined with the fate of his country, the land on which they grew up.

The author’s essays and non-fiction stories tell readers about unusual individuals, introduce a number of problems of the territories and inspire hope for common sense, endurance, and opti- mism in solving them. That is why S. Kolesnyk’s journalism has always attracted attention and interest, and morally helped people in frequent difficult life situations.

Each essay or short story, each article by the author is marked primarily by the depth of thoughts. The principal idea is the desire to truthfully reflect a complex and multifaceted life. Reflections or dialogues, situational factors, or short stories from the life expose different works, which, breaking into our reality, put down their strong roots. This impression is facilitated by S. Kole- snyk’s truly impeccable, polished language, which represents him as a master of verbal imagery, regardless of what or who the object of his creative research and expression is. The richness of the language helps readers to perceive the work, inseparable from the realities of life, in a more comprehensive manner. Which means that it is deep, sincere, and true. Undoubtedly, the creative handwriting of the journalist, which was formed over the years, is visible not only in images and style but also in the use of artistic details that emphasize or strengthen the social sound of the work. This is clearly demonstrated by his collections of essays, for which the author was award- ed the Taras Shevchenko National Prize in the field of public journalism.

This article has the following purpose: to investigate the use of artistic detail and its significance for the idea and text of the journalistic works of S. Kolesnyk. A number of Ukrainian domestic press researchers focused their research on the use of various tropes, including artistic detail to express the author’s creative style. Therefore, an important task arises: to investigate the journal- istic works of S. Kolesnyk, particularly his use of artistic details in revealing the heroes’ charac- ters and social phenomena with which their journeys are closely intertwined. They are essential not only for the study and research of journalistic works but also for the historical analysis of the described events, which are of a documentary nature. The article is dedicated to these issues.

A number of methods were used to research the material, among them the following methods are worth being distinguished: content analysis, which helped distinguish elements of descriptive- ness as an integral part of the textual material as a whole: comparison, which contributed to the selection of actual material (a selective analysis of works from the collection “Should we over- sow the liberty”), identification (in particular, for the analysis of the style of the documentary novel “Yukhrem” and a number of essays), and generalization, that was useful for the formula- tion of conclusions. Among the means of expression, Stepan Kolesnyk as a publicist widely uses artistic detail, and it is precisely this that gives his works the organicity and truthfulness, persua- siveness, and perfection that demanding readers expect, look for, and find.

Therefore, the importance of S. Kolesnyk’s works is worth emphasizing, both in terms of artistic journalism and documentary, since thanks to them we can reproduce social events that took place several decades ago.

KEYWORDS: artistic detail; image; essay; means of expression; creative handwriting