Synthesis of Documentary and Artistic Codes in Dave Eggers’ Story “The Monk of Mokha”

Abstract

This article is devoted to the analysis of documentary fiction based on the material of the story “The Monk of Mokha” by a contemporary American writer Dave Eggers. The purpose of the study is to identify methods of implementing and synthesizing documentary and artistic codes in this work, as well as to determine the main functions of such a synthesis in the conceptual and thematic structure of the story. The study of factual and fictional narratives’ components in the story under consideration has shown that the factual narrative is determined by the author’s concern for authenticity, accuracy and truth, which is revealed through the following elements: using the names and descriptions of real geographical objects, depicting the typical attributes of the era, presenting historical facts and real-life events of our time, portraying real persons as characters. Fictional components include special forms of real facts interpretation: the author’s mode of narration, special narrative strategies, imaginative expression of ideas and themes, using various stylistic means and devices. As a result of such contamination, the author creates a certain model of artistic reality which is based on documentary materials.