მეთიუ ო’კონორის სიმბოლურ-ასოციაციური სახე ჯუნა ბარნსის რომანებში „რაიდერი“ და „ღამის ტყე“

Abstract

The multifaceted and heterogeneous nature of characters, being a landmark characteristic of modernist literature, is also reflected in the novels of Djuna Barnes, particularly in “Ryder” and “Nightwood”. This paper aims to discuss nature of polysemic characters based on Matthew O’Connor. Barnes portrayed homosexual and transvestite gynecologist Matthew O’Connor, living in Paris as a primary figure in “Nightwood”, who also appears in Ryder” as a family doctor. Barnes depicted O’Connor possessing multiple identities from multiple epochs and with claims to have a prehistoric memory, in both novels, thus emphasizing that his eternity is everlasting. Unlicensed gynecologist Dr. Matthew O'Connor describes being trapped inside a man's body. Witnessing the birth of every child in family and facing the fact that he can never be mother O’Connor wants to be their mentor as well. He will never have a chance to feel different experiences of his patients during pregnancy and childbirth. There is no greater pain than what is caused by the doubts of incompleteness and barrenness, O’Connor is trapped by dogma - he is forced to live under pressure of other people's thinking, going against his own inner voice. Barnes accomplishes much of her message through the figure of Dr. Matthew O’Connor in “Nightwood”. As already mentioned, O'Connor is an American who practices medicine without a license in Paris during the 1920s. He has deep understanding that life itself is meaningless. Based on O'Connor's first-person monologues Barnes offers a Tiresian character of expatriate Irish-American character. The character of Matthew O’Connor, in both of Djuna Barnes’ novels became not only the echo of the epoch but also the symbol of inseparable concepts - human and suffering.