Nizhnevartovsk Philological BulletinNizhnevartovsk Philological Bulletin2500-1795Nizhnevartovsk State University89120Research ArticlePSYCHOLOGICAL AND PHILOSOPHICAL ASPECTS AS A WAY OF CHARACTER’S INNER WORLD DEPICTION (ON THE BASIS OF M. CUNNINGHEM’S NOVEL «BY NIGHTFALL», 2010)BerdnikovaI. VCandidate of Philological Sciences, Associate Professor at the Department of the English language-MokinaM. V.5th year student of the Department of the English language Omsk State Pedagogical University-Omsk State Pedagogical University1506201721495326112021Copyright © 2017, Berdnikova I.V., Mokina M.V.2017The article deals with the psychological and philosophical aspects of Michael Cunningham’s prose on the basis of the novel “By Nightfall” (2010). These aspects are expressed by means of principles of literary metamodernism and existential philosophy. The aim of the article is to study the functioning of philosophical and psychological aspects in the novel under the title “By Nightfall”. The research was conducted by means of continuous sampling and contextual analysis methods and revealed that psychological and philosophical aspects fit into the limits of theory of metamodernism and existentialism. Furthermore, the results of the research state that the author mainly touches upon such aspects of metamodernism as syncretism - the aesthetic type (the combination of sensuality and transcendence) and the rational type (the combination of various shades of the mood) - and borrows the essence of existential philosophy i.e. the search for individual path and one’s self, the overcoming of the life crisis (“liminality”). The interaction of principles of metamodernism and existentialism gave the author the opportunity to convey the struggle of the life crisis through getting in touch with one’s sensuality and to fully expose the idea of the book implied in its title - “By Nightfall”, the reflection of the transitional state of mind caused by the midlife crisis that is journey from youth with all its energy and opportunities to the decline when many of the opportunities are closed forever. The scientific novelty and relevance of the work lie in the exploration of the interaction of psychological features and principles of existential philosophy in the novel “By Nightfall” by Michael Cunningham and in the reflection of this interaction with the help of such stylistic devices as free indirect speech and elliptical dialogues. The methodological basis for the study were the works of T. Vermeulen and R. van den Akker, L. Turner, V. Gorunov (metamodernism); M. Heidegger, K. Jaspers, G. Marcel, N. A. Berdyaev (existentialism). These sources were deemed reliable as the studies belong to the founders of metamodernism and existentialism. The research can be used in two directions: philosophical and psychological. The value of the paper for philosophy exhibits itself in the opportunity to resort to it in the lectures, seminars, elective courses, for writing scientific papers such as bachelor and master degree theses devoted to Modern Literature issues. In psychology the work may contribute to teaching differential diagnostics of various psychological conditions.psychologismmetamodernismexistentialismliminalitysyncretismпсихологизмметамодернизмэкзистенциализмпороговое состояниесинкретизм[Bianco M. Michael Cunningham: On Writing Sex, the Creative Process, and Why New York City is (Not) for Writers//Lambda Literary. URL: http://www.lambdaliterary.org/features/05/22/michael-cunningham-on-writing-sex-the-creative-process-and-why-new-york-city-is-not-for-writers/ (2017. 2 мая).][Cunningham M. By Nightfall. Farrar, Straus and Giroux. URL: http://royallib.com/read/Cunningham_Michael/By_Nightfall.html#0 (2017. 2 мая).][Turner L. Metamodernism: A Brief Introduction//Notes on Metamodernism. URL: http://www.metamodernism.com/2015/01/12/metamodernism-a-brief-introduction/ (2017. 2 мая).][Vermeulen T., van den Akker R. Notes on Metamodernism. URL: Journal of AESTHETICS&CULTURE // http://www.emerymartin.net/FE503/Week10/Notes%20on%20Metamodernism.pdf (2017. 2 мая).][Горюнов В. Метамодернизм и синкретика: попытка семантизации // Metamodern. URL: http://metamodernizm.ru/syncretism/ (2017. 16 янв.).]