TIME IN THE NOVELS OF MILOS CRNJANSKI - Nottingham eTheses

CHAPTER FIVE
United States.
Third. Rjepnin's dependence on his
memory of who he once was reinforces the breakdown of
the division between i11usion and reality. In the final
sta~e. the disinte~ration of Rjepnin's persona1ity is
traced in the very manner of his suicide.
The lack of
distinction between i11usion and rea1ity is expressed
within the sta~e
motif which is deve10ped in the noveL
There are two issues which" burden Rjepnin from the
be~innin~ of the nove1. They are the Questions of
nationa1 identity. and the materia1 conditions which he
and Na4a are forced to endure as emi~r's.
Their
materia1 conditions have chan~ed
dramatica11y over the
years. and in London are felt most keenly:
S1omi10 ~aje. to. da imse ~ivot. kad su
iz Rusije izilli. pretvorio sad ve6
~odinama u neprekidnu samo6u. bedu.
besposlenost. kao neki stralan san. iz
koje~ ne mo~e da se probudi. Ni~de nije
mo~ao da se skrasi. ni~de ni da ~ivi i
zara4uje kao dru~i 1judi. 2ivot im je
postao ne samo te~ak. ne~o i ~udnovat.
besmislen. neverovatan (59).
It dejected him that their 1ife. when
they 1eft Russia. had chan~ed for years
now into continual solitude,poverty.
unemployment. like some ni~htmare from
which he could not wake himself.
Nowehere cou1d he sett1e down. nowhere
could he 1ive and earn a livin~ like
other ~eople. Their 1ife had become not
only difficult. but stranse. pointless.
incredib1e.
London- and the En~lish
bear the bt'unt of the blame for
their state of affairs. Rjepnin cannot understand how.
as a soldier in the Russian army when Russia and En~1and
were allies in the First World War. as someone who
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