Defense of the dissertation of Ibraikhanova Akmaral Konyrovna for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) in the educational program «8D02314 - Literary Studies»
L.N. Gumilyov Eurasian National University, a dissertation defense for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) by Ibraikhanova Akmaral Konyrovna on the topic «The poetics of Sapargali Begalin’s creativity» to the educational program «8D02314 – Literary Studies».
The dissertation was carried out at the «Kazakh Literature education department» of L.N. Gumilyov Eurasian National University.
The language of defense is kazakh
Official reviewers:
Kazhibayeva Gulden Kenesovna – Candidate of Philological Sciences, Professor, Associate Professor at Sh. Ualikhanov Kokshetau University (Kokshetau, Kazakhstan).
Kamarova Nagbdu Sultansikhkyzy – Candidate of Philological Sciences, Associate Professor of the Department of Kazakh Philology at Sh. Yessenov Caspian University of Technology and Engineering (Aktau, Kazakhstan).
Temporary members of the Dissertation Committee:
Metin Ekici – PhD, Professor at the Institute of Turkish World Studies, Ege University (Turkey);
Tulebayeva Kuralay Toktarovna – Candidate of Philological Sciences, Head of the Department of Philology, Associate Professor at Alikhan Bokeikhan University (Semey, Kazakhstan);
Adayeva Yermek Sabyrbayevna – Candidate of Philological Sciences, Lecturer at the Department of Kazakh Language and Turkic Studies, Nazarbayev University (Astana, Kazakhstan).
Scientific advisors:
Altai Amanzhol Duisenbayuly – Doctor of Philological Sciences, Acting Professor of the Department of Kazakh Literature at L.N. Gumilyov Eurasian National University (Astana, Kazakhstan).
Mingazova Lyalya Ikhsanovna – Doctor of Philological Sciences, Professor at Kazan Federal University (Kazan, Republic of Tatarstan).
The defense will take place on November 28, 2026, at 11:00 AM in the Dissertation Council for the training direction «8D023 – Languages and literature» in the educational program «8D02314 – Literary Studies» of L.N. Gumilyov Eurasian National University. The defense meeting is planned to be held offline and online.
Link: https://teams.microsoft.com/meet/430079920103103?p=zXztIOqEW5OirxXHyG
Address: Astana, K. Satpayev St., 2, Educational and Administrative Building, Room 101.
Abstract (English): Ibraikhanova Akmaral Konyrovna Dissertation on the topic «The poetics of Sapargali Begalin’s creativity» Submitted for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) in the Educational Programme 8D02314 – «Literary Studies» General Description of the Research. This dissertation is devoted to a comprehensive study of the poetics of the literary works of Sapargali Ysqaqūly Begalin, a prominent representative of Kazakh literature, poet, prose writer, children’s author, playwright, translator, collector of folklore, and memoirist. The study examines the writer’s literary legacy not merely within the framework of children’s literature, but as a multi-genre and multilayered artistic system within Kazakh literary art. S. Begalin’s literary output is distinguished by its role in the development of children’s prose in Kazakh literature, its incorporation of folk and folkloric heritage into literary texts, its educational and aesthetic portrayal of historical figures, and the author’s creative explorations in poetry, prose, drama, journalism, and memoir writing. The breadth of the writer’s creative range is reflected in his poetic works, including «Qazaq Qyz-Bozbalalaryna», «Yntyǵyp Izdep», «Besik Zhyry», «Qūan, Böpem!», «Qanatty Qazaq», «Qyran Kegi», «Ūr, Toqpaq!»; his novellas, «Sätzhan», «Köksegenniñ Körgenderi», «Bala Shoqan», «Shoqan Asulary»; his short stories, including «Bala Mergen», «Ermektiñ Almasy», «Zhylqyshy», and «Esennıñ Kirpisi»; his novel «Zamana Belesteri»; and his essays on prominent figures of Kazakh culture, including Zhambyl, Shashubai, Yestai, Isa, Tättimbet, Yqylas, Maira, and Ämire. The dissertation provides a systematic analysis of the genre-typological characteristics, thematic and ideological dimensions, narrative structure, and systems of characters of S. Begalin’s works. It also examines their intertextual connections, the use of folkloric elements, the artistic devices employed in his poetry, and the artistic functions of landscape, portraiture, detail, symbolism, chronotope, dialogue, and monologue in his prose. The study aims to explore the poetics of S. Begalin’s literary works from the perspectives of literary text theory, historical poetics, narratology, intertextuality, folklorism, the poetics of children’s literature, and the continuity of national literary traditions. Relevance of the Research. Sapargali Begalin made a significant contribution to the formation and development of Kazakh children’s literature. His works have shaped several generations of readers, artistically portraying the relationship of Kazakh children with nature, labour, national traditions, and historical figures. However, although the writer’s literary legacy has primarily been examined in terms of the history of children’s literature, its educational value, biographical information, and thematic content, the poetic system of his works requires a comprehensive and specialised study. In particular, the structural organisation of his texts, narrative strategies, artistic techniques, genre-typological characteristics, and intertextual and folkloric layers have yet to receive systematic scholarly analysis. The relevance of the research is determined by several scholarly, theoretical, and literary-historical factors. First, S. Begalin’s literary output is characterised by its diversity of genres: he worked across various genres, including poetry, ballads, narrative poems, short stories, novellas, novels, plays, essays, memoirs, scholarly studies, and translations. It is therefore insufficient to assess such a multifaceted literary legacy solely within the framework of children’s prose or didactic literature. Accordingly, examining the writer’s works as an integrated poetic system constitutes one of the important objectives of contemporary literary studies. Second, folklore elements in S. Begalin’s works, including folk narrative traditions, fairy-tale and legendary plots, as well as motifs related to falconry, hunting, livestock breeding, nature, homeland, folk art, and historical figures, are significant as artistic representations of national cultural memory. While his poems such as «Ūr, Toqpaq!», «Qyran Kegi», and «Altai Añyzy» transform folk tales and mythological worldviews into original poetic forms, his prose works, including «Sätzhan», «Köksegenniñ Körgenderi», and «Bala Mergen», explore the interconnectedness of nature and child character development, labour, and traditional cultural practices. Analysing these phenomena through the theoretical frameworks of intertextuality and folklorism makes it possible to gain deeper insight into the poetics of S. Begalin’s literary works. Third, the author’s artistic approach to portraying historical figures is also of particular scholarly relevance. In works such as «Bala Shoqan», «Shoqan Asulary», «Ğalym Shoqan», and «Zhambyl», the author transforms historical facts into artistic images. Through the figures of Shokan, Zhambyl, Tattimbet, Ykylas, Amire, Maira, Isa, and Shashubai, the spiritual continuity of Kazakh culture and art is revealed. These works demonstrate the interplay between factual historical material and artistic imagination, as well as between historical reality and the educational narrative characteristic of children’s literature. Fourth, in contemporary Kazakh literary studies, the analysis of a literary text from the perspective of poetics is no longer limited to identifying its themes and ideas. Modern poetics requires a comprehensive examination of the text’s structure, narrative voice, focalization, chronotope, system of characters, literary devices, stylistic features, and intertextual relationships. From this perspective, S. Begalin’s works offer extensive material for narratological, intertextual, linguopoetic, and comparative-historical analysis. Fifth, the study of children’s literature poetics is closely associated with contemporary issues of national spiritual education, cultural memory, linguistic and cognitive heritage, and ethnopedagogical values. In his works for children, S. Begalin conveys ideas of hard work, respect for nature, art, science, morality, courage, and responsibility without resorting to overt moralising. Instead, he explores these values through narrative events, dialogue, landscape descriptions, literary details, and the representation of child psychology. This further underscores the relevance of examining his literary craftsmanship in children’s literature from the perspective of poetics. The object of the research is the creative legacy of Sapargali Begalin. More specifically, the research encompasses the writer’s poems, ballads, narrative poems, short stories and novellas for children, historical and biographical prose, the novel «Zamana Belesteri», essays on prominent figures of art and folk poets, dramatic works, as well as autobiographical and memoir writings. The subject of the research is the poetic structure of S. Begalin’s literary works, including their genre-typological system, thematic and ideological dimensions, narrative techniques, systems of characters, chronotopic organisation, intertextual relationships, folkloric elements, artistic and stylistic devices, and aesthetic features characteristic of children’s literature. Research Aim and Objectives. The aim of the research is to conduct a comprehensive analysis of the poetics of Sapargali Begalin’s literary works and to identify, from a scholarly perspective, the genre-related, thematic, narrative, intertextual, folkloric, and artistic-stylistic features of the writer’s creative legacy. To achieve this aim, the following research objectives have been established: 1. To examine the history of scholarly research on S. Begalin’s literary legacy and review academic studies, literary criticism, and memoirs devoted to the writer’s creative work. 2. To identify the genre-typological characteristics of S. Begalin’s works and classify his literary output into poetry, prose, drama, and journalistic and memoir writing. 3. To identify the major thematic and ideological dimensions of the writer’s literary works. 4. To examine the narrative structure and identify the types of lyrical subjects in S. Begalin’s poetry. 5. To analyse the artistic devices employed in the writer’s poems and narrative poems. 6. To examine the narrative structure, types of narrators, focalization, and the artistic functions of landscape, portraiture, literary detail, symbolism, dialogue, monologue, and chronotope in the writer’s prose. 7. To identify the systems of characters, models of child characters, representations of historical figures, and distinctive features of memoir narration in the writer’s works. 8. To identify and classify the forms of folklorism in the writer’s literary works. 9. To provide a scholarly assessment of the place of S. Begalin’s poetics in Kazakh children’s literature and the history of national literature. Research Methods. The dissertation employs a comprehensive set of research methods corresponding to the multifaceted nature of the research subject. The genre-typological method was used to systematise S. Begalin’s works across various genres, including poems, ballads, narrative poems, short stories, novellas, novels, plays, essays, memoirs, and scholarly studies. The structural method was aimed at examining the compositional organisation of literary texts, plot development, the interrelationships between episodes, and the functional interaction of artistic components. The narratological method was employed to identify the narrative voice, narrator types, focalization, the relationship between the time of narration and the time of the narrated events, and the functions of dialogue and monologue in the writer’s prose works. The intertextual method provided the basis for examining the continuity of the Abai tradition in S. Begalin’s texts, folkloric source texts, fairy-tale and legendary plots, folk narrative formulas, allusions, reminiscences, stylisation, imitation, and manifestations of folklorism. The statistical and bibliographic classification method was used to categorise the writer’s works by genre, compile a register of literary titles, and determine the proportion of his creative output represented by poetry, prose, drama, and journalism. Scientific-Theoretical and Methodological Foundations of the Research. The scholarly and theoretical framework of the dissertation is based on the works of Kazakhstani and international scholars in the fields of poetics, text theory, narratology, intertextuality, folklorism, the poetics of children’s literature, historical poetics, and linguopoetics. In examining the theory of poetics, the study draws on Aristotle’s concepts of mimesis, plot (mythos), and the unity of action; A. Baitursynuly’s national literary-theoretical framework concerning verbal art, rhetorical figures, expressive devices, and poetic structure; Z. Kabdolov’s theoretical reflections on poetics and literary theory; and Z. Akhmetov’s research into the syllabic structure, metrical units, rhythm, and rhyme system of Kazakh poetry. Z. Akhmetov emphasises that the figurative and patterned nature of poetic language constitutes a fundamental condition for the expressive conveyance of thought and emotion in poetry. This theoretical proposition served as a methodological basis for analysing the artistic devices employed in S. Begalin’s poetry. The study of literary text theory and structural poetics draws on the works of B. Tomashevsky, V. Zhirmunsky, Yu. Lotman, R. Jakobson, N. Valgina, I. Galperin, N. Bolotnova, and V. Khalizev. Yu. Lotman regards a literary text as a complex semiotic system that preserves cultural information while simultaneously generating new meanings. This theoretical perspective provides a basis for analysing national cultural codes and layers of folkloric and historical memory in S. Begalin’s works. The narratological analysis is informed by M. Bakhtin’s concepts of chronotope, dialogism, and polyphony; G. Genette’s categories of narrative time, voice, and focalization; and B. Uspensky’s theoretical principles concerning the point of view. M. Bakhtin interprets the chronotope as a meaningful interrelationship between time and space within a literary work. This concept serves as a key theoretical framework for examining the chronotopic representations of villages, steppes, mountains, forests, roads, schools, cities, and historical journeys in S. Begalin’s prose. In addressing issues of intertextuality and folklorism, the study draws on M. Bakhtin’s ideas concerning “another’s word” and the dialogue between texts, as well as the scholarly works of J. Kristeva, R. Barthes, N. Piégay-Gros, N. Fateeva, I. Arnold, and V. Chernyavskaya. The analysis of folklorism is based on the theoretical propositions concerning folkloric formulas, folkloremes, plots, motifs, fairy-tale structures, and precedent texts developed in the works of A. Kostina, D. Medrish, A. Zinedina, B. Abdykhanova, S. Kaskabasov, and V. Propp. In examining the poetics of children’s literature, the works of M. Zhumabayev, M. Alimbayev, Sh. Akhmetov, S. Kirabayev, B. Ibyrayimov, A. Altay, B. Akysh, B. Kapasova, Zh. Rustemova, G. Kazhybayeva, and K. Zharykbayev were used as methodological foundations. The scholars’ theoretical insights into child psychology, cognitive perception, linguistic simplicity, vivid imagery, and the unity of educational and aesthetic principles play an important role in the analysis of S. Begalin’s literary works. The study of S. Begalin’s literary legacy draws on the works of S. Mukanov, S. Kirabayev, R. Nurgali, R. Syzdyk, N. Gabdullin, B. Ibyrayimov, B. Akysh, and other scholars. R. Nurgali characterises S. Begalin as a multigenre writer who made significant contributions to poetry, prose, drama, literary research, and memoir writing. This assessment provided a theoretical basis for the genre-typological analysis undertaken in the dissertation. Research Sources. The research sources include S. Begalin’s literary works published in different years, his collected works in multiple volumes, individual publications, manuscripts and biographical materials, memoir essays, as well as scholarly studies, critical reviews, and memoir publications devoted to the writer and his literary legacy. Original Contribution of the Research. The scientific novelty of the dissertation is reflected in the following findings: 1. For the first time, S. Begalin’s literary works are examined comprehensively as an integrated poetic system encompassing poetry, prose, drama, and journalistic and memoir writing. 2. The writer’s literary legacy is systematised from a genre-typological perspective and classified according to the following genres: poems, ballads, narrative poems, short stories, novellas, novels, plays, essays, memoirs, and translations. 3. Two major thematic strands in S. Begalin’s works – the representation of folklore and the portrayal of human figures – are substantiated as integral components of his poetic system. 4. The types of lyrical subjects, narrative forms, and manifestations of the Abai tradition and folkloric elements in the writer’s poetry are subjected to a focused analysis. 5. The system of artistic devices employed in S. Begalin’s poetry is identified and classified. 6. The syllabic structure, metrical units, rhyme patterns, and rhythmic organisation of the poet’s works are analysed. The study identifies the predominance of short rhythmic patterns, repetition, sound play, and folkloric melodies in his poetry for children, while epic rhythm and the meditative intonation characteristic of tolgau poetry are widely employed in his civic and narrative poems. 7. The types of narrators, historical and biographical narrative, nature-based psychological landscape, ethnographic detail, and the functions of dialogue and monologue in S. Begalin’s prose are examined in detail. 8. The folkloric elements in the writer’s works are classified, within the framework of intertextuality theory, into formulaic, motif-based, figurative, structural, and chronotopic levels. 9. The cognitive, educational, aesthetic, and national-cultural functions characteristic of children’s literature in S. Begalin’s works are identified and examined from the perspective of their poetic structure. Theoretical and Practical Significance of the Research. The theoretical significance of the research lies in its comprehensive examination of S. Begalin’s literary works within the framework of poetics theory. The findings of the dissertation contribute to the study of the poetics of Kazakh children’s literature, the poetics of individual authors, historical and biographical prose, folklorism, and intertextuality. The model of analysis of poetics employed in the study, which examines literary works through the interconnected dimensions of genre, theme, narrative, chronotope, systems of characters, artistic devices, intertextuality, and folklorism, is also significant as a methodological framework for studying the creative legacy of individual authors in Kazakh literary scholarship. The practical significance of the research lies in the applicability of its findings and materials in higher education courses and specialised programmes, including «History of Kazakh Literature», «Children’s Literature», «Literary Theory», «Literary Text Analysis», «Poetics of Kazakh Prose», «Poetics of Kazakh Poetry», «Narratology», «Theory of Intertextuality», and The Relationship Between Folklore and Written Literature». Furthermore, the research findings may be used in teaching S. Begalin’s works in secondary schools and colleges, developing textbooks and methodological guidelines on children’s literature, preparing literary reference publications, and writing scholarly introductions and explanatory commentaries for new editions of the writer’s works. Main Propositions Submitted for Defence: 1. S. Begalin’s creative legacy constitutes a multigenre artistic system encompassing poetry, prose, drama, journalism, memoir writing, translation, and folkloric research. 2. The defining characteristic of the writer’s distinctive poetics is the integration of children’s literature, national folklore, historical figures, nature, labour, folk art, and enlightenment ideas into a unified artistic system. 3. Two principal thematic strands are clearly distinguished in S. Begalin’s works: the first focuses on the representation of folklore, and the second on the portrayal of human figures. These two strands converge in their shared purpose of preserving national cultural memory and transmitting it to younger generations. 4. The influence of Abai’s poetic tradition in S. Begalin’s poetry is manifested not merely through formal imitation but also through the principles of enlightenment, aspiration, education, moral self-improvement, social criticism, and rhetorical conclusions. 5. Folkloric elements in S. Begalin’s poetry are manifested through lullabies, children’s games, dialogues with animals, fairy tales, legends, heroic epics, and the intonational features of tolgau poetry. 6. The child characters in the writer’s prose develop through their interaction with nature, engagement in labour, and exposure to the life experience of adults. Through characters such as Satzhan, Köksegen, Uash, Mysyk, and young Shokan, the writer creates an artistic model of a child who is inquisitive, hardworking, fair-minded, knowledgeable about nature, and deeply rooted in national traditions. 7. In the works «Bala Shoqan», «Shoqan Asulary», and «Ğalym Shoqan», the image of the historical figure is constructed through a combination of factual accuracy and artistic generalisation. Shokan’s image thus becomes a symbol of knowledge, art, people's creative talent, humanism, and national consciousness. 8. In S. Begalin’s poetry and prose, folklorism manifests itself not only through direct quotations but also, more frequently, through allusion, reminiscence, stylisation, and motif-based and chronotopic parallels. 9. The writer’s artistic language is rich in ethnographic vocabulary, nature-related terminology, hunting and falconry terms, simple intonations characteristic of children's speech, folkloric formulas, and figurative details. Publications and Dissemination of Research Findings. One article has been published in a journal indexed in the Scopus database: 2. Genre features of hunting in literature: Comparative analysis // Cuadernos de Investigación Filológica. – 2026. – №59. – P. 301-326. One article has been published in an international journal. 1. Typology of Children’s Images in Modern Kazakh and English Children’s Literature // Forum for Linguistic Studies. – 2025. – Vol. 7, №10. – P. 152-164. Two articles have been published in academic journals recommended by the Committee for Quality Assurance in the Sphere of Science and Higher Education of the Republic of Kazakhstan, presenting the research findings and key conclusions. 1. Traces of Fairy Tales and Legends in S. Begalin’s Poems // Bulletin of the Eurasian Humanities Institute. Philology Series. – 2024. – No. 1. – P. 143–157. 2. Historical Lessons in S. Begalin’s Poems // Bulletin of the Kazakh Ablai Khan University of International Relations and World Languages. – 2024. – No. 1. – P. 476–492. The main scholarly and theoretical findings of the dissertation (5 articles) were published in the proceedings of national and international conferences and presented at sectional sessions. 1. The Portrayal of Characters in S. Begalin’s Novel Zamana Belesteri // Proceedings of the International Conference “Current Issues and Achievements of Modern Science” (Nur-Sultan, 2022. – P. 345–351). 2. The Portrayal of Characters in S. Begalin’s Novella Shokan Asulary // Proceedings of the 6th International Scientific and Practical Conference “Research and Innovations in Philological Studies” (Astana, 2023. – P. 29–136). 3. Research Endeavours of S. Begalin in the Genre of Poetry // Proceedings of the International Scientific and Theoretical Conference “New Paradigms of Literary Studies at the Intersection of the Humanities”, Dedicated to the 95th Anniversary of Z. Akhmetov (Astana, 2023. – P. 146–151). 4. The Educational Significance of S. Begalin’s Stories for Children // Proceedings of the Conference Dedicated to the 75th Anniversary of R. Minullin (Kazan, 2023. – P. 437–445). 5. The Reality of the Historical Era in S. Begalin’s Novel Zamana Belesteri // Proceedings of the International Scientific and Practical Conference “Psychological Aspects of Developing Students’ Intercultural Communication in the Era of Globalization” (Astana, 2024. – P. 235–242).
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