Skachkova D. Interpretation of the Tibetan Epic of King Gesar in the Contemporary Chinese Literature (based on ‘King Gesar’ novel by Alai).

This thesis is dedicated to interpretation of the Tibetan epic of Gesar in ‘King Gesar’, a contemporary Chinese novel by Alai. In this thesis, the choice of the research topic has been justified, the research targets have been set, and the steps to achieve these targets were stated. Moreover, the respondent identified the subject and the object of the research, analysed theoretical background, determined academic novelty, as well as theoretical and practical application of this thesis. This study is justified by the necessity of a detailed analysis of interpretation, Tibetan epic of King Gesar, Alai’s literary work, as well as determining the purpose and specific features of Alai’s interpretation of the ancient Tibetan epic of Gesar. With a great risk of losing the identity of ethnicities with a rich spiritual heritage in the age of global national integration, the question of the preservation of the spiritual non-material values, as well as their detailed study arises. The epic of King Gesar determines the foundation of Tibetan culture and the Tibetans’ mindset. The scientific novelty of the research is defined by the following: • traditional and innovative features of the epic characters’ description in Alai’s novel were discovered and analysed • the hypotheses regarding the reasons of the ‘Narrator’ story line in Alai’s novel were proposed • potential reasons for the interpretation of the ancient epic by Alai in his novel ‘King Gesar’ were stated The practical significance of this research lies in the possibility of using the results in compiling textbooks on Chinese and Tibetan literature, as well as developing the lecture materials for students of higher educational institutions. Moreover, this study contributes to the understanding of the Tibetan epic of Gesar among scientists and any individual interested in Tibetan culture. The structure of the thesis was determined by the appointed tasks. The research consists of the introduction, three chapters, conclusions to each chapter, general conclusions and bibliography.