Ukrainian speculative fiction
Science fiction, fantasy and horror are literary genres found in Ukrainian literature and media, written in both Ukrainian and Russian. The most influential classic writer of Ukrainian science fiction is Oles Berdnyk.[1][2][3][4]
Language and culture
For most of the 20th century, Ukraine was part of the Soviet Union, and before that, the Russian Empire, where Russian language was dominant. Although Ukrainian is now the official language of independent Ukraine, many Ukrainian authors speak and write in Russian, which also allows them access to a larger market.[3][4][5] Writing in Ukrainian is, however, becoming increasingly common in the 21st century, also in part due to tensions and conflicts between Ukraine and Russia.[4][6][5] Because of that complex history, some writers born in territories of modern Ukraine are not usually considered Ukrainian; for example, Mikhail Bulgakov is commonly described as Russian, and Stanisław Lem as Polish, though both were born in Lviv, Ukraine.[4] Likewise, Nikolai Gogol, one of the originators of Russian fantasy, has Ukrainian origins and often used Ukrainian folk motifs in his works.[3] For these reasons, while Ukrainian literature, including fantasy and science fiction, is increasingly distinctive, traditionally it has close ties with, and has often been analyzed in the context of, the Russian literary tradition.[1]
Some works are also written in other languages, including English, by Ukrainian emigree writers, such as R. B. Lemberg and Anatoly Belilovsky.[4]
History
As in many other countries, the history of Ukrainian science fiction and fantasy goes back to the beginning of the 20th century,[1] although it draws inspirations from earlier works. Among those are magic motifs in the poetry of the 19th-century Ukrainian poet Lesya Ukrainka or works of Gogol.[3] Over the next century, Ukrainian works would be inspired both by the Russian and Western science fiction and fantasy literature.[1][2]
Among the first Ukrainian authors of science fiction were Pavlo Krat (1882-1952) and Vasyl Berezhnyi (1918-1988).[2][3] Krat's works represent utopian social science fiction, whereas Berezhnyi's is the more traditional, adventure- and science-focused classic science fiction-type of literature.[2][3] Other older generation writers of Ukrainian origin include Volodymyr Vynnychenko, briefly a prime minister of the short-lived Ukrainian People's Republic in the late 1910s; the Soviet-era dissident Oles Berdnyk, described as the most significant Ukrainian classic science-fiction writer;[7][2][1] and other figures such as Myroslav Kapii ("‘the progenitor of space voyages in Ukrainian science fiction"), Igor Rosokhovatski who coined the Ukrainian word for cyborg, syhom,[3] and former marine Volodymyr Savchenko.[8] Soviet-era Ukrainian writers writing in Russian include, among others, Anatoly Dneprov, Yurii Smolych ("‘almost invariably hailed as the patriarch of Ukrainian science fiction") and Volodymyr Vladko .[2]
Modern popular Ukrainian science fiction and fantasy writers include Volodymyr Arenev, Maryna and Serhiy Dyachenko, Max Frei, H.L. Oldie, Volodymyr Savchenko, Oleh Shynkarenko and Andriy Valentynov.[3][4][9] One of the most controversial writers is Fyodor Berezin, a writer born in the disputed Donetsk territory and associated with the Donetsk People's Republic, whose military science fiction represents an extreme pro-Russian viewpoint.[3][5][10]
Themes and genres
Traditionally, science fiction was much more popular in Ukrainian literature than fantasy, but that began to change in the recent decades.[7] The first anthology of Ukrainian fantasy stories was published in 1990 (Ohnenyi zmii, The Fiery Dragon), and the first anthology of horror stories in 2000 (Antolohiia ukrainskoho zhakhu, The Anthology of Ukrainian Horror Fiction); the latter was soon followed by another anthology in 2001 (Nichnyi pryvyd: antolohiia ukrainskoi hotychnoi prozy XIX stolittia, A Night Spectre: the Anthology of Ukrainian Gothic Prose from the 19th Century).[11]
According to Smyrniw, major themes of the 20th century Ukrainian science fiction include space travel, time travel, alien contact, robots, androids, and cyborgs.[3]
Fandom
Fantasy and science fiction fandom in Ukraine has been described as strong, as evidenced by the fact that Kiev has been a host of the Eurocon twice (in 2006 and 2013).[3]
Reception
Like Russian, Ukrainian science fiction and fantasy is popular in Poland. Among the most popular Ukrainian science fiction and fantasy writers in Poland and Russian-speaking countries are Maryna and Serhiy Dyachenko.[3][12] Ukrainian works are sometimes translated to English, although this not very commonly.[1][3][4]
Ukrainian fantasy and science fiction have been subject to a 2013 monograph by Walter Smyrniw (Ukrainian Science Fiction: Historical and Thematic Perspectives).[1][2][3]
References
- ^ a b c d e f g Roberts, Brittany (2014). Smyrniw, Walter (ed.). "Elusive Information about a Largely Untranslated SF Tradition". Science Fiction Studies. 41 (3): 674–676. doi:10.5621/sciefictstud.41.3.0674. ISSN 0091-7729. JSTOR 10.5621/sciefictstud.41.3.0674.
- ^ a b c d e f g Maguire, Muireann (2016). "Smyrniw, Walter: Ukrainian Science Fiction: Historical and Thematic Perspectives (review)". Slavonic and East European Review. 94 (3): 518–520. ISSN 2222-4327.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n locusmag (2018-01-31). "SF in Ukraine by Michael Burianyk". Locus Online. Retrieved 2022-04-16.
- ^ a b c d e f g Shvartsman, Alex (2022-02-27). "A List of Ukrainian-born SF/F Authors Whose Fiction is Available in English". Future Science Fiction Digest. Retrieved 2022-04-16.
- ^ a b c "Post-Soviet pulp fiction: Presages of the war in Ukraine". University World News. Retrieved 2022-04-17.
- ^ "Ukraine: Maria Galina on the Russian Language as 'a Trigger'". Publishing Perspectives. 2022-03-21. Retrieved 2022-04-17.
- ^ a b Hajder, Tatiana (2019). "Myth and Philosophy in the Slavic Science Fiction Novel". LOGOS - A Journal of Religion, Philosophy, Comparative Cultural Studies and Art (101): 85–93. ISSN 0868-7692.
- ^ Kowal, Pawel Mink, Georges Reichardt, Iwona Reichardt, Adam (2019-11-30). Three Revolutions: Mobilization and Change in Contemporary Ukraine II. BoD – Books on Demand. p. 445. ISBN 978-3-8382-1323-1.
{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) - ^ "Andriy Valentynov". eurocon.org.ua. Retrieved 2022-04-17.
- ^ Pancevski, Bojan. "Sci fi writer enters parallel universe to lead separatists' defence of Donetsk". The Times. ISSN 0140-0460. Retrieved 2022-04-17.
- ^ Lis-Markiewicz, Przemysław (2020). "The Development of the Ukrainian Horor Fiction on the Background of European Gothic Traditions: A Brief Overview". Studia Ukrainica Posnaniensia. 8 (2): 151–162. doi:10.14746/sup.2020.8.2.12. ISSN 2300-4754. S2CID 234447079.
- ^ Witecki, Arkadiusz (2009). "Recepja Najnowszej Rosyjskiej Literatury Science Fiction I Fantasy W Polskiej Praste Opiniotworczej Na Przełomie Stuleci". Przegląd Humanistyczny (in Polish). 422 (1): 99–112. ISSN 0033-2194.