THE ARTISTIC AND PHILOSOPHICAL SIGNIFICANCE OF MYTH AND ANTIQUE IMAGES IN 20TH-CENTURY ENGLISH LITERATURE

This article explores the aesthetic, psychological, and structural functions of myth and antique images in the 20th-century English novel. Within the framework of the concept of “myth in 20th-century English literature,” the works of James Joyce, William Golding, and Iris Murdoch are analyzed. The study reveals the role of the “mythological method” in organizing the spiritual crisis and chaos of society during the modernist and postmodernist periods. Furthermore, it substantiates the transformation of ancient images from heroic figures into archetypal representations of the human psyche.