Poetics of the Buryat epics at the decline stage of the epic tradition

The paper addresses the preservation of the epic tradition and the relationship between the plots and “common places” (loci communes) based on heroic epics (üligers) performed by B. Barnakov in 1961-1962 and recorded on a magnetic tape. At that time, Buryat scholars witnessed a decline of the heroic epic genre. However, owing to the storytelling gift and memory of üligershin B. Barnakov, the tales in his performance feature a variety of plots and stability of typical places. The analysis of poetic and stylistic means has shown the narrator’s knowledge of the epic fund of stereotypes and laws of plot construction of the heroic epic. He used a variety of general epic and situational typical places, characteristic of the Western Buryat epic tradition. Of importance is the interdependence of internal connection between typical places and plots. The decline of the heroic epic genre was manifested in the plot development of some epics, resulting in incomplete endings and confusion in the names of secondary characters. It should be noted that typical places and stable poetic phrases are of great functional importance in the plot construction of the heroic epic and in the preservation of the epic tradition. In Siberian epic studies, there are still topical issues to be explored in depth, such as correlation of plot and motif, plot and stereotypes, including “common places”. Studying these issues will contribute to identifying the factors of sustainability over time of the epic tradition, narrative memory, and the role of the fund of poetic means.

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