Semantics of the cemetery chronotope in the novel «Laurus»
by E. Vodolazkin

The cemetery chronotope is considered for the first time in the space-time structure of the
novel «Laurus» written by E. Vodolazkin. The cemetery chronotope represents one of the main
chronotopes in the novel «Laurus». The cemetery culture constitutes the core of the socio-cultural
code of any nation. Hence, the author depicts a significant part of the nation’s worldview by using
the chronotope concerned. The paper analyses two forms of the cemetery chronotope presented
in the novel «Laurus» – the cemetery and skudelnitsa. The description of their semantics is given:
the integration of space structure, relevant characteristics and associative valency. For example,
time at the cemetery is sacralized, the cemetery possesses a mnemonic function and is considered
to be a space allowing living and dead people to contact with each other. In the novel, the village
cemetery does not have any other description but silence. The silence characterizes the time spent
at the cemetery as sacral, as one correlated to eternity and opposed to everyday’s life. This time is
uneventful. There are only three episodes taking place partially in the cemetery: reading the favourite
book, the old teacher’s funeral, the appearance of beloved Ustina. All three events are
fateful for the main character. The mnemonic function of the cemetery in the novel differs from
the modern one: the cemetery is anonymized – there is neither oral nor written speech (inscriptions
on the tombstones). It is the mnemonic function that reflects the cultural code of medieval
Russia, the attitude to God and the dead. The time in the novel possesses the category of perspective:
some characters can see the future in their visions. The spacial structure of the cemetery
correlating with the threshold chronotope and taking the mediatory semantics reflects the concept
of the border. Another form of the cemetery chronotope is skudelnitsa, which is a burial place for
suicides, unbaptized people and those who died a violent death. It differs from the cemetery in the
following: skudelnitsa does not have any sacral function, it is not just an other-worldly space, but
also a hostile one to the people alive; in addition to this it does not have any mnemonic function –
this place is not meant to be visited. The novel highlights that the semantics of cemetery and
skudelnitsa has not an archetypical but a contextual opposition: burial without a Christian rite is
considered illegal. The main character resolves this conflict by deliberately choosing the burial
method and giving skudelnitsa the status of the martyr’s burial place. The contextual opposition
of the cemetery chronotope forms is found to underlie the narrative structure of the novel.