Tożsamość hybrydowa – bogactwo czy balast? (Dzieci Kronosa Siergieja Lebiediewa)

Аннотация

The aim of this article is to examine whether the hybrid identity depicted in Sergei Lebedev’s novel The goose Fritz poses a threat to representatives of multiculturalism or, through its constant enrichment, it offers a potential that brings tangible benefits to people. Until now, analyses and interpretations of Lebedev’s works have primarily referred to the post-memory trend. The thesis of the following text is that hybrid identity plays a significant role in the aforementioned novel by the Russian émigré, both in its ideological and formal dimensions. The author of this article attempts to define hybrid identity, drawing on the literature on the subject and, above all, on the content of Children of Kronos. It seems that Lebedev agrees that thanks to the hybrid identity, people are subject to integration, living at the intersection of many cultures and nationalities. On the other hand, excessive identification with Others can lead to the annihilation of one’s own culture. Lebedev argued this point by referring in his novel to the history of the Schwerdt family – Russian Germans who constantly encountered short-lived happiness or, more often, threats from the imperial, expansionist state. The writer attempts to connect the broken branches of the Schwerdt family tree. This article leads to the conclusion that hybrid identity can be a treasure if we understand it as the creative use of many cultures, but it can also be a burden if we lose the memory of our own culture and history.