Traditions of “the Kailyard school” in Rosamunde Pilcher’s novels

Abstract

The article examines the novels of the contemporary English writer Rosamunde Pilcher (1924–2019) in terms of continuing the “Kailyard school” tradition. This literary phenomenon appeared in Scottish literature at the end of the 19^th century and gained popularity at the turn of the 19^th–20^th centuries. However, it was immediately criticized by its contemporaries, in particular, by Hugh MacDiarmid (1892–1978), one of the most prominent representatives of Scottish literature of the early 20^th century, a constitutor of the “Scottish Renaissance”. Thus, the “Kailyard school” was accused of creating an overly romanticized and idealized image of Scotland, without revealing the social and political problems that the Scottish community had to face. References to the traditions of Kailyardism can also be noted in such works by R. Pilcher as “Snow in April” (1972), “Wild Mountain Thyme” (1979), “September” (1990) and others. Their action takes place in the Scottish countryside. As in the case of the Kailyard literature, these works are characterized by an idyllic chronotope, atemporality, an emphasis on the moralizing principle based on the religious consciousness attributed to the Scots. In addition, the writer addresses the stereotypes common among the English about the Scots and Scotland.