Христо Манолакев

The present paper examines the dialogue between three Bulgarian literary texts from the National Revival period and the Russian 19th century literature. On this basis the paper tries to find new possibilities for bringing up-to-date the traditional understanding of the aims of literary reception as a research of a dialogue only with an identified "foreign" text. The part dedicated to the first Bulgarian poem "Stoyan i Rada" by N. Gerov shows through the functionality of the sentimental cliche how Gerov elaborates the conception of hero in the paradigm of European "sensitive hero". The semantic analysis of the "temptation" motif in P. Slaveykov's poem "Izvorat na belonogata" traces a comparative parallel with the emblematic Russian literary project of female "choice" and "responsibility". In the last part the comparative analysis proves that even though it is not a translation, Lyuben Karavelov's short novel "Maminoto detence" has its prime source in the Russian novel "Mammen'kin synok" by I. Panaev.

The problem of Gogol’s influence on Karavelov’s writing process of his best short novel "Old Time Bulgarians" is over interpreted in the comparative studies of Bulgarian-Russian literary connections. The present research offers new empirical facts, which broadens the idea of the reception of Gogol’s artistic tradition from the Bulgarian writer. The motives of time, gossips and demonic are analyzed. It is proved that Karavelov purposively doesn’t hide the signs of Gogolian, because he thinks of it as a high aesthetic norm, which is necessary also and for the development of Bulgarian national literature.