THE AUTHOR'S VOICE AND THE IMAGE OF THE NARRATOR IN A LITERARY TEXT: NEW METHODOLOGICAL STEPS

Abstract

In modern literary studies, the problem of distinguishing between the author's voice and the narrator's image in a literary text has become one of the most important theoretical and methodological issues. In Kazakh literature, especially in prose works, the complexity of the narrative system and the indirect and multi-layered presentation of the author's position require a new approach to this issue. The purpose of this study is to determine the relationship between the author's image and the narrator's personality in a literary text, to clarify their artistic and functional roles, and to analyze them using modern literary theories. The main idea of the study is to prove that the author cannot be limited to a biographical identity, but is a complex category that is expressed implicitly in the text through the narrator. The study uses theoretical insights from poststructuralism, including deconstruction, cognitive narratology, and discourse analysis. These methods help to identify the structure of narrative voices in literary texts, the system of perspectives, and the hidden forms of the author's position. As a result of the study, the relationship between the author's image and the narrator was revealed, and it was determined that the narrator is an independent and complex artistic personality who conveys the author's ideas indirectly rather than directly. It is concluded that the author's image is not limited to a single narrative voice; it is expressed through the text's structure in a multifaceted manner. This study contributes to the systematization of narratological analysis in Kazakh literary studies, the clarification of the conceptual and terminological framework, and a deeper understanding of the stylistic and ideological features of Kazakh prose. The findings can be effectively utilized in teaching literary theory in universities, preparing educational and methodological materials for a comprehensive analysis of Kazakh prose.