Vasyl Stefanyk and Edvard Munch: Intermedial Dimensions of the Expressionist “Scream”

Abstract

The article provides a comparative analysis of the artistic systems of Ukrainian novelist Vasyl Stefanyk and Norwegian painter Edvard Munch within the context of European Modernism. Despite the lack of personal contact, both creators developed a unique expressionist language based on the philosophical triad of Schopenhauer’s pessimism, Nietzsche’s nihilism, and the existential "abandonment" later articulated by Sartre. A central role in this dialogue is played by Stanisław Przybyszewski, an intellectual mediator between Berlin and Krakow circles, who introduced the concept of the "naked soul" (naga dusza).

The study examines the phenomenon of the expressionist "scream" – visual in Munch’s masterpieces and verbal in Stefanyk’s "silent" laconic prose. The author argues that Stefanyk’s "quiet scream" serves as an ontological statement of the subject in a situation of total metaphysical loneliness. Special attention is given to the transformation of eroticism and thanatology, where physiological naturalism becomes a tool for marking the human subject in a state of anthropological catastrophe.

The scientific novelty lies in the rejection of the sociologization of Stefanyk’s persona in favor of analyzing his work as an integral part of the pan-European modernist movement. Drawing on the historiographical contributions of O. Chernenko, R. Pikhmanets, and other scholars, the research confirms that Stefanyk’s artistic world represents a literary parallel to Munch’s canvases.