The Theme of War Childhood in Russian and English Fiction (Based on the Works of I. P. Tokmakova and M. Magorian)

The theme of childhood during wartime is a recurring theme in literary works and is interpreted as a foundation for understanding patriotic reality – an expression of love for one's homeland, responsibility for its well-being, and loyalty to its interests. Using wartime prose and poetry as a basis for exploring the spiritual, moral, and sociocultural values of children, adolescents, and young adults, this paper demonstrates the relevance of this research. The study is comparative in nature, using texts of I. Tokmakova's "The Pines Are Rustling" (1966) and M.J. Magorian's "Goodnight, Mister Tom" (1981). The aim of this study is to identify allomorphic and isomorphic linguistic means of addressing childhood during wartime in Russian- and English-language literature. The study utilizes quantitative and contextual analysis of lexical units, as well as comparative analysis, when creating character sketches and exploring the concept of "war." A search of library databases, scientific literature databases, social media for scientists, and artificial intelligence platforms revealed a lack of research on wartime childhood on the basis of works from two or more national literatures, which explains the scientific novelty of the undertaken research. The main results are summarized as follows. The high percentage of isomorphism in the treatment of wartime childhood is explained by common highlights in the life of a child-evacuee: attending school, doing homework at home, engaging in extracurricular activities and festive events (including those outdoors), age-appropriate assisting with defensive measures, and the exchange of news from the front lines. The leading allomorphic characteristic is the vivid politicization and historicity of the English-language text in comparison with the Russian-language text: numerous radio addresses and newspaper excerpts, mentions of political and military figures of the corresponding period are characterized by factuality.