The Artistic Interpretation of the Child Image in 20th–21st Century English and Uzbek Drama: A Comparative-Typological Analysis

This article examines the artistic interpretation of the child image in English and Uzbek drama of the twentieth and twenty-first centuries from a comparative-typological perspective. The child character occupies a significant position in dramatic literature because childhood frequently functions not only as an age-related category but also as a symbolic means of representing innocence, vulnerability, social injustice, generational conflict, cultural memory, and the prospects of society. The study focuses on the ways English and Uzbek playwrights construct child characters, reveal their psychological worlds, and employ them to express broader social and moral concerns. Particular attention is paid to the relationship between the individual and social environment, the representation of family and childhood, the dramatic functions of innocence and vulnerability, and the transformation of the child image under changing historical and cultural conditions. The comparative analysis demonstrates that English and Uzbek drama share a number of universal approaches to representing childhood while simultaneously reflecting distinctive national-cultural values.