The space of a metaphysical journey in Anastasia Strokina's fairy tale Derzhioblako

The present study aims to analyze the spatiotemporal characteristics (chronotope) of the metaphysical journey in Anastasia Strokina's fairy tale Derzhioblako [The Cloud Holder] (2023), with a focus on their cultural and philosophical implications. The work fits into the context of literary studies of travel narratives, focusing on the specifics of composition and symbolic spatial organization. As a genre, the fairy tale is a unique tool for representing reality. The modern philosophical fairy tale, to which Strokina's text belongs, transforms traditional narrative models by actualizing questions of existential search. This research aims to determine the features of the chronotope of the metaphysical journey in Derzhioblako and interpret its cultural and philosophical connotations. The material for the study was the text of the fairy tale, considered within the framework of the literary discourse on travel. The methodological basis includes: narrative analysis - decoding symbols, images, and spatial categories; comparative-typological method - comparing the chronotope of the work with classical models; interpretive approach -reconstructing the philosophical meanings embedded in the structure of the narrative. The spatio-temporal organization of the fairy tale follows the logic of transcendence: the linear movement of the hero through "alien" space is accompanied by his symbolic appropriation. This contrasts with the cyclical models of the traditional fairy-tale chronotope, emphasizing not repetition but progressive knowledge. Locations ("city," "forest," "white mountain," "boundaries of worlds") function as zones of existential testing. Their semantics are linked to philosophical categories such as limit, infinity, and self-identification. The development of the plot correlates with the internal evolution of the character: overcoming physical boundaries initiates reflection on issues of meaning, memory, and belonging. In the text, motifs dominate of searching for "home" as a metaphor for harmony and ontological rootedness. This resonates with Martin Heidegger's conceptions about "being-in-the-world", emphasizing the dialectic between the external and internal. The fairy tale Derzhioblako represents a contemporary interpretation of a metaphysical journey, synthesizing archetypal motifs with philosophical problems. The chronotope of the work, based on the linear exploration of space, serves as an instrument for representing the existential crisis and its overcoming. The results of the study demonstrate that the author's model of the world combines traditional fairy-tale elements (border, test) with postmodern multidimensionality of meanings, expanding the genre possibilities of the philosophical fairy tale. The authors declare no conflicts of interests.

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