The Locus of the Otherworld in Fairy Tales and the Narratives of the Russo-Ukrainian War

• In Event: Ritual Otherworlds in Oral Traditions of Matrimony, War, and Death

Abstract

Since the beginning of Russia’s war against Ukraine (2014–2025), Ukrainian society has developed narratives that demonize Russia and characterize spaces marked by Russian presence accordingly. This is evident both verbally (Mordor, zombies) and visually (memes depicting Putin as a Serpent or Devil). In contemporary Ukrainian war discourse, a concept of the otherworld emerges, resonating with fairy tale structures where a space separate from the hero’s familiar world is represented as an underworld (realm of the dead), magical world (inhabited by supernatural beings and trials), or other social world (distant kingdoms). This functions as a realm of trials, initiation, and transformation. The locus of the otherworld in war narratives appears on levels: Russia as the Serpent’s kingdom and its minions. Occupied territories as enemy-controlled space, akin to folkloric domains of malevolent forces. The front line as a liminal space between life and death. The study includes interviews with Ukrainian soldiers.

Author

• Olesia Naumovska, Taras Shevchenko National U of Kyiv (Ukraine)