Archetypal images of the Animus and the Shadow in the novel “Finist the Bright Falcon” by Andrei Rubanov and “The Poppy War” trilogy by Rebecca F. Kuang

The article presents a comparative analysis of the archetypal images of the Animus and the Shadow in the novel “Finist the Bright Falcon” by Andrei Rubanov and in “The Poppy War” trilogy by Rebecca F. Kuang within the framework of Jung’s analytical psychology. The novelty of the study lies in addressing the underexplored comparative aspect of the Jungian interpretation of archetypes in contemporary Russian and Anglo-Chinese literature. The aim of the research is to identify the specific ways in which the archetypes of the Animus and the Shadow function in the selected works and to reveal cultural differences in the models of interaction between the feminine consciousness and the masculine archetypal principle. The theoretical and methodological foundation includes the concepts of Carl Gustav Jung and Marie-Louise von Franz, complemented by structural-semiotic and cultural approaches. The material of the study comprises the Rubanov’s novel, which reinterprets archetypes of the Russian fairy-tale tradition, and the English-language trilogy by Rebecca F. Kuang, an American writer of Chinese origin, whose archetypal system emerges at the intersection of Western and Eastern cultural codes. The analysis demonstrates that in the Rubanov’s text the archetypal dynamics lead to inner harmony and integration of the Shadow, while in the Kuang’s works they result in the disintegration of personality and spiritual catastrophe. The study reveals that universal Jungian structures are refracted through cultural contexts: in the Russian tradition they represent a path of overcoming and renewal, whereas in the Eastern one they express historical trauma and loss of wholeness. The practical significance of the study lies in the possibility of applying its results in the study of archetypal models in modern literature and in the development of the methodology of Jungian literary analysis.

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