Poetics of New Sincerity Literature vs Postmodern Aesthetics: Kazuo Ichiguro’s Novel “Never Let Me Go”

The purpose of the study is to determine the peculiarities of the poetics of the literature of new sincerity as polemically sharpened against postmodern irony, scepticism and cynicism and to identify the poetics of new sincerity in K. Ishiguro’s novel “Never Let Me Go”. To achieve this goal, the author uses cultural-historical, cultural-philosophical, hermeneutical research methods. The paper traces the formation of the concept of ‘sincerity’, which has been transformed over many centuries, acquiring new meanings against the background of different eras. The concept of ‘sincerity’ is considered in the context of cultural philosophy and literary criticism. Much attention is paid to the opposition between the new sincerity and postmodern irony, which is analysed not only as an artistic manifestation but also as a way of thinking. The phenomenon of new sincerity is considered in the work as a reaction to the socio-cultural shifts that led to the end of the postmodern era. The research attempts to identify the differentiating features of the poetics of the works that make up the layer of the literature of new sincerity. Among them are the peculiarity of the issues, which consists in the aggravation of problems of a more intimate, personal nature, the originality of the hero, who is a reflective personality who pays great attention to his inner world, is concerned with the issue of self- identification; characteristic narrative style, which is characterised by the presence of a diegetic narrator and a confessional character; deep psychologism and empathy; appeal to universal values; self-irony as an indicator of the writer’s individual style or the complete absence of irony. Kazuo Ishiguro’s dystopian novel is studied from the perspective of aesthetics and poetics of new sincerity. The study has made it possible to draw conclusions about the characteristic features of the work inherent in the literature of new sincerity. Thus, the narrative in the work is conducted on behalf of a diegetic narrator who is preoccupied with issues of self-identification and cognition of his inner world. The narrative style invites the reader to an active dialogue and promotes empathy, including for working through their own psychological problems. The fragmentary affective narrative style is supported by the minimal plot intensity, which allows for a deep psychological impact. The images of the novel’s characters are fully consistent with the paradigm characteristic of the literature of new sincerity. The author traces the presence of motifs of home, road, understatement, loss, death, and conscious sacrifice, which are used to implement the humanistic idea of the work, and their into the opposite. The author draws conclusions about the opposition to the new sincerity of postmodernism at all levels of a work of art. Thus, the novel lacks the dominant function of play; on the contrary, the text of the novel is extremely simple, artistic means are minimised, and the narrative style is as close as possible to a conversational diary confession. One of the aims is to find ethical absolutes that could be relied upon in a globalised world where all borders have been erased. The novel’s eclectic and fragmentary images of postmodernism give way to complex, multifaceted, and carefully drawn ones. The behaviour and various reactions of the characters are psychologically motivated. The novel shows a refusal to depersonalise the action due to the dominant function of the diegetic narrator and a complete rejection of postmodern irony.