This article examines the artistic portrayals of horses in the novella “Kholstomer” by the great Russian writer Leo Tolstoy (1828-1910) and the short story “Alkho” by the renowned Armenian writer Hrant Matevosyan (1935-2002). The aim is to compare the characters of the horses in the two works and identify their similarities and differences. These similarities stem from the influence of Tolstoy’s literary tradition on Matevosyan’s work, as well as the similarities in the worldviews of the Russian and Armenian writers. The relevance of this article stems from the importance of researching intercultural connections and interactions.
An analysis of the “horse stories” by Leo Tolstoy and Hrant Matevosyan reveals that Matevosyan’s Alkho is very similar in its characteristics to Tolstoy’s “Kholstomer.” A comparison of the horses’ characters reveals significant similarities between these works and their protagonists, despite a number of differences. The commonality stems from the influence of the Tolstoyan literary tradition on Matevosyan’s work, as well as the similarities in the worldviews of Russian and Armenian writers. Matevosyan’s “horsiness” and Tolstoy’s “equine sense” are synonyms, which are formulations of the individualization of the horse. To embody horseness, the authors employ the method of identification: Tolstoy identifies with Kholstomer, Matevosyan with Alkho. This is the essence of their desire to look at the horse “from the inside.”
The authors’ preference for animalistic themes, and in particular their use of the image of the horse, is determined by personal, literary-historical, ideological, artistic, and psychological factors. The most attention has been paid to the creative history of the two works, the real prototypes of the horses Kholstomer and Alkho, the appearance of the fictionalized horses, their work, their relationships with other horses and people, and the fate of the horses. The article is written using a combination of comparative and psychological literary studies methods. Particular attention has been paid to the psychology of animals and their inner world, the phenomenon of “horseness.” In addition to the literary originals, additional explanations by Tolstoy and Matevosyan, and supporting materials from Tolstoy studies and Matevosyan studies were also used.