Сharacter of Arkalyk Batyr in the Great Steppe Folklore

Abstract

Literature and folklore have a great importance in human cultural development. If we
talk about the spiritual and cultural heritage of the people, then there are certain similarities and significant
differences in the oral and written forms of literature. Therewith, it is very important to know the essence
of these phenomena and their features. In particular, the formal character of the batyr created in the heroic
epos cannot be considered as a literary image. The images of the batyrs are displayed only in the framework
of a particular epoch, there is a struggle of batyrs against external enemies of that period, there are praises
of their courage and bravery in these battles, and there is a description of the difficult life of the people
in those historical circumstances. Historical events described in heroic eposes often do not correspond to
reality due to their superiority.
This article provides an analysis of the poetics of the unique poem “Arkalyk Batyr” and
demonstrates its various versions. In particular, the paper considers the history of the study of the poem
“Arkalyk Batyr”, the presence of its numerous variants, as well as the question of the role of the works
of the scientist-folklorist Bekmurat Uakatov, who managed to collect and preserve all the variants of this
poem as an integral literary complex.