The literary image of the grandmother in the context of Turkic traditions
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.25178/nit.2026.3.4Keywords:
Turkic world, image of the grandmother, culture of childhood, Tuvan literature, Tatar literature, Uzbek literature, Kyrgyz literatureAbstract
The article analyzes the literary image of the grandmother created by the Tuvan writer S. Saryg-ool, the Tatar writer A. Eniki, the Kyrgyz writer Ch. Aitmatov, and the Uzbek writer T. Pulatov. The theoretical basis of the analysis is provided by C. G. Jung’s concept of the crone archetype and V. Ya. Propp’s concept of the grandmother figure, which are indirectly reflected in the literary works of authors from the Turkic-speaking area.
The image of the grandmother as the “framework” of the worldview (in E. Meletinskii’s terms) has developed in those cultures which, up to and including the twentieth century, preserved the “grid” of a patriarchal world order and its traditions. Literature within the Turkic cultural sphere vividly reflects this aspect of life in the image of the grandmother, who shapes the worldview of her grandchildren. The intentionality of the grandmother figure is linked to the preservation of the history of the clan and family and of folk traditions.
In S. Saryg-ool’s novella “The Story of the Bright Boy” the grandmother is an “encyclopedia” for the boy Angyr; in A. Eniki’s novella “The Unspoken Will” the grandmother serves as a bridge between the past and the present; in Ch. Aitmatov’s novella “Mother’s Field” the grandmother is a giver of life who rises above the personal for the sake of preserving the memory of the people; in T. Pulatov’s novella “The Boys’ Choir” the grandmother, akin to Saryg-ool’s Tuvan grandmother, shapes the personality of her grandson Dushan.
A comparative analysis of the four literary works reveals a shared set of mental values in the Turkic-speaking world, despite differences in religious beliefs and geographical space. These works address not only concrete-historical realities but also a universal layer of human existence: questions of life and death, moral choice, and intergenerational ties, which allows us to speak of their existential fullness. The problems raised in these texts go beyond the local and the momentary, forming a stable model of ethnocultural identity.
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For citation:
Shafranskaya E. F., Shaimerdenova N. Zh. and Garipova G. T. The literary image of the grandmother in the context of Turkic traditions. New Research of Tuva, 2026, no. 3, pp. 47–62 (In Russ.). DOI: https://doi.org/10.25178/nit.2026.3.4
Author Biographies
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Eleonora F. Shafranskaya Peoples' Friendship University of Russia
Doctor of Philology, Professor, Professor at the Institute of the Russian Language, RUDN University.
Postal address: 6 Miklukho-Maklaya St., Moscow, 117198, Russia.
E-mail: shafranskayaef@mail.ru
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Nursulu Zh. Shaimerdenova Al-Farabi Kazakh National University
Doctor of Philology, Professor, Professor, Department of Russian Philology and World Literature, Director, Research Institute of Turkology and Altaistics, Farabi University.
Postal address: 71/27 Al-Farabi Ave., Almaty, 050000, Republic of Kazakhstan.
E-mail: turkology.ri@gmail.com
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Gulchira T. Garipova Peoples' Friendship University of Russia
Doctor of Philology, Associate Professor, Professor, Department of Russian and Foreign Literature, RUDN University.
Postal address: 6 Miklukho-Maklaya St., Moscow, 117198, Russia.
E-mail: ggaripova2017@yandex.ru
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