NEGOCIEREA ABJECTULUI: GEN ȘI IDENTITATE ÎN INCIDENTUL DE VSEVOLOD GARȘIN

This paper analyzes Vsevolod Garshin’s short story An Incident (1878) through the perspective of Judith Butler’s theory of gender performativity and Julia Kristeva’s concept of the Abject. By focusing on the character of Nadezhda, a young prostitute, the article explores how her identity is constructed and constrained by societal norms, male expectations and patriarchal discourse. This research aims to investigate how gender roles, social recognition and abjection shape Nadezhda’s subjectivity, revealing the limits of her personal agency within inflexible social structures. This analysis demonstrates that the protagonist’s attempts to maneuver between socially prescribed roles are temporary and eventually coerced, while her encounter with her counterpart, Nikitin – a civil servant who falls in love with her –, illustrates the destabilizing power of the Abject. Ultimately, the fates of both characters exemplify the inevitable tension between desire, social regulation and identity, thus highlighting the structural forces that trap individuals in liminal roles.