How a lithuanian transformed a nazi into a jew: forgotten fantasy satire by Ignas Šeinius

LTReikšminiai žodžiai: Įvaizdžiai; Satyra; Ignas Šeinius; Images; Satire; Ignas Šeinius.

EN[...] By asking why the transformation of a German into a Jew is done by a Lithuanian, I presume that this story is a symbolic structure with two narrative lines, created by unexpected combinations of national types through the interference of foreign genes. The first line revolves around the ironic incongruence of the historic and political situation (small nations can hardly influence the affairs of big ones), while the second is centred on a fantastical or even utopian statement (by chance, small nations can unexpectedly change the fates of big nations). On the one hand, as writer Antanas Vaičiulaitis claimed, the fact that a Nazi turns into a Jew "is the sharpest derision and humiliation our expansive neighbour can gel", but because it only operates in a fantastical plot, the fact that this transformation is accomplished with the help of a Lithuanian gives the story a sadly ironic or even tragicomic feeling. On the other hand, in such a utopian story (yet not very distant from scientific reality), the author sees the opportunity for a meaningful, albeit grotesque, historic participation for a person from a small nation. This analysis of the images of a Lithuanian and the other nations presented aims to question the very function of the national image in a literary work. If the field of imagological investigations is a cultural construction and literary representation of national characters, then in this regard the satirical fantasy novel of Ignas Šeinius, "Rejuvenation of Siegfried Immerselbe", shows that the representation of the national character can also have an additional function of artistic expression.This insightful, even prophetic Lithuanian novel about the menace of Nazi ideology, which appeared in 1934, turns out to be a symbolic narrative. Albeit not fully understood in its time, and also underrated today, this story very clearly fulfils the function of satire as a "hopeful genre" which "suggests progress and the betterment of society, and it suggests that the arts can light the path of progress". Improbable combinations and transformations of national identities contribute to the deconstruction of ideology. A play with images creates something that does not exist but which can come into being as a possible "scenario of reality", while the artistic strategies of irony, grotesque, and the absurd aim to shock and open the eyes of the readers. [Extract, p. 90-91]

• Filosofija / Philosophy
• Literatūrologija / Literary Studies