Savyna A. Metafiction in the Context of Metacriticism: Character, Narrative, Discourse

The dissertation presents a comprehensive investigation of the concepts "metafiction" and "metacriticism" and the related categories of character, narrative, and discourse, outlining their theoretical and methodological significance and cognitive potential, based on the artistic and aesthetic paradigm of postmodernism, as well as its stylistic variations, and subsequent transformation into metamodernism as a defining contemporary tendency. The topicality of the problem under study is due to the need for a theoretical and methodological conceptualization of the processes that arise at the intersection of literary studies, critical and artistic visions of the development of contemporary literature, as well as the ways of its comprehension. The dialogical connection of the global cultural code with postmodernism and its subsequent transformation into metamodernism as a leading artistic trend is explained by the discursive pluralism of narratives and structures that embody the idea of panlogism in a certain way. The focus and emphasis of contemporary art on itself bring the problem of auto-reflection to a new level, allowing us to express ideas about the emergence of metafiction and metacriticism. Metafiction examines the process of fiction creation and its further reception. Hence, the author's creative act becomes the subject of their metacognitive processes. By analyzing the issue of literary creativity from the perspective of the literary theory and philosophical ideas, authors of metafictional works occasionally act as literary critics by incorporating their explicit authorial persona into their texts. Therefore, writers express their beliefs about literary theory and literary criticism comprehension, through various discussions, polemic engagements, or even the ideas and opinions support of literary scholars. Thus, metacriticism becomes a phenomenon of re-reflection that is formed from the assessments and interpretations of already existing assessments and interpretations, constructing itself over criticism and considering the mechanisms of functioning of this branch of literary studies. Additional categories that influence the formation of metafiction and metacriticism are the category of narrative (in its combination with intertext, metatext), and discourse. All of them are mainly explained by the narrative turn, which enables us to conceptualize art and literature. An example of such conceptualization is the creation of a certain cult of literature as the pinnacle of artistic self-reflection, which is subordinated to metafiction and metacriticism.