Images and metaphors of power in contemporary fiction of Belarusian and British authors

Starting from the second half of the 20th century critics have extensively written about a pronounced historical turn in contemporary fiction. At the beginning 21st century the focus on historical themes has become one of the predominant trends in world literature. The article aims to identify universal elements in the understanding and representation of state power and social hierarchy in the historical fiction by Belarusian and British writers of the late XX – early XXI centuries (L. Daineko, O. Ipatova, L. Rublevskaya, S. Balakhonov, A. Navarich, K. Tarasov, H. Mantel, J. Crace, B. Unsworth and others). The problem of power, along with the problem of identity and trauma, is one of the central issues in contemporary fictional representations of the past. The authors actively turn to the ancient metaphors of theatre and board games (images of chess figures, puppetry, playing Go). On closer examination, the gender distribution of hierarchical powers between characters contradicts the prevailing stereotypes about the difference between female and male prose. At the same time, the attention of writers shifts from the external political aspect to the influence of power on the personality of a leader, actualizing the idea that it is a strong leader, and not circumstances, people or natural determinism that are the driving force of the historical process.