Two Worlds of Archibald Joseph Cronin

The paper is devoted to A. J. Cronin’s literary works. Archibald Joseph Cronin was a famous Scottish novelist of the 20th century. It is shown how three aspects - biographical, professional and ethico-religious ones - are reflected in the works by the writer. Particularly accentuated is the influence of the ethico-religious (in particular, pacifist) views of A. J. Cronin on the character of his works. Besides A. J. Cronin’s works of art, analysis is made of his autobiography «Adventures in Two Worlds». Among the readers and investigators of Cronin’s works an opinion has rooted itself that the two worlds mentioned in the title of the book are the world of medicine and the world of literary activities (in other words, Cronin’s practice as a doctor and a writer). However, the present paper suggests a different explanation of the title: there are two Cronin’s worlds: the spiritual world and the material one, their interaction and confrontation. This viewpoint is supported by contents of Cronin’s literary works. In his best novels («The Stars are Looking Down», «The Citadel, Crusader’s Tomb», «The Keys of the Kingdom») the writer warns the humanity about disastrous consequences to which the loss of spiritual values leads. In the paper it is asserted that A. J. Cronin belongs to Christian writers.

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