MAIN MOTIVES OF WAR POETRY (PAVLO VYSHEBABA, DMYTRO LAZUTKIN, MAKSYM KRYVTSOV)

Abstract

The article is dedicated to analyzing contemporary Ukrainian war poetry. The primary focus is on the poems of Pavlo Vyshebaba ((“Tilky ne pyshy meni pro viinu” (“Only Don’t Write to Me About the War”), 2022), Dmytro Lazutkin (“Zakladka” (“Bookmark”), 2022), and Maksym Kryvtsov ((“Virshi z biinytsi”, “Poems from Battlefield”, 2023). The article highlights significant accent markers of wartime lyrics, particularly their focus on “being”. Considerable attention is given to the role and tasks of culture during times of combat. The article also explores the ways poetry from the period of full-scale invasion reaches its audience, emphasizing the efficiency of distribution through media and social networks and their role in shaping printed publications. The dominant motifs of the warrior poets’ lyrics, along with the methods and techniques used to express their feelings, thoughts, and impressions, are examined. The analyzed poems demonstrate the artists’ sincerity and utmost frankness in their expressions. The focus on biblical motifs, personal reflections, and understanding of losses becomes a pathway for authors toward self-knowledge and self-identification. The interpretation of faith in the poetic lines of the mentioned authors acquires a much broader meaning: faith in oneself, the inevitability of fate, faith in Victory, and a bright future for Ukraine. A detailed examination of the poetic lines reveals that the narrative quality, more typical of epic works until recently, is now evident in war-themed poems during the Russian-Ukrainian war. The article proposes a hypothesis about the rehabilitative function of literature in overcoming post-traumatic syndrome through the reception of poetry and personal creativity. This function will likely become one of the most crucial for Ukrainians’ return to peaceful life.