Medical vocabulary in the dilogy of I. Ilf and E. Petrov "Twelve chairs" and "Golden Calf"

Zav'yalov Viktor Nikolaevich ORCID: 0000-0001-5087-162X Doctor of Philology Professor; Higher School of Russian Philology; Pacific State University 136 Pacific Street, Khabarovsk Territory, 680035, Russia victorzoff@list.ru

Sidorova Alevtina YUr'evna Graduate student; Higher School of Russian Philology; Pacific State University 136 Pacific Street, Khabarovsk, Khabarovsk Territory, 680035, Russia 2019103437@pnu.edu.ru

1. Introduction

The study of medical discourse in fiction today is one of the most sought-after areas of modern philological research, including linguistic research proper (see: ^{[2; 6; 9; 12; 18; 20]} Researchers identify the medical aspects of the text of a particular work, as well as determine their role in the organization of visual-the expressive fabric of the narrative, because medical discourse is not only "individual, biographically motivated connections with medicine of a particular writer" ^{[9, p. 78]}, but also "the general nature of his work and, accordingly, his individual "poetics of medicine"" [Ibid.]. The relevance of this topic is evidenced by the fact that only in the last three years two international scientific conferences dedicated to it have been held at the Institute of Russian Literature (Pushkin House) of the Russian Academy of Sciences ^{[7; 8]}. They examined various aspects of the poetics of medicine in Russian literature, the functioning of psychopathological discourses in it, the use of medical terminology in both direct and comically transformed meanings, and other problematic issues. At the same time, interest in medical topics in the literature is generally traditional, because "medicine, as a type of human intellectual activity, is constantly on the very edge between the world of nature and the world of culture, between the life of the body and philosophical ideas about the essence of man" ^{[12, p. 7]}.

Special attention was also paid at the conferences to the connection between the medical education of an author and his work. Among the Russian classical writers, doctors in the specialty were, as is known, V. I. Dahl, A. P. Chekhov, V. V. Veresaev, M. A. Bulgakov. Among Soviet writers, such are, for example, V. P. Aksenov, G. I. Gorin, and others (see: ^{[6; 14; 18]}). This list can also include the outstanding surgeon Nikolai Amosov, who, in addition to a large number of journalistic works devoted to his professional field, also wrote the fantasy novel "Notes from the Future" and the novella "Notes of a military surgeon". Foreign writers, one way or another related to medicine, are also widely known: Francois Rabelais, Stanislav Lem, Somerset Maugham, Oliver Sachs, Louis Boussenard, Arthur Schnitzler, etc.

Of course, a writer with a medical education will reflect this topic in his work more fully and authentically than one who does not have it, especially if the topic concerns the category of physicality, which presupposes professional knowledge of the physiology and psychosomatics of the human body, especially since in current cognitive science a "corporeal turn" or "turn to the body" is asserted"" ^{[3, p. 78]}. This category "can perform various functions both in the individual artistic system of the writer and in the system of the whole aesthetic direction" ^{[19, p. 309]}. However, there are a large number of works in which medical discourse is not directly related to the education of their authors, i.e. it has an indirect character (they have relatives of doctors, life vicissitudes that have encountered medicine, etc.). The object of such works may be various manifestations of the psychiatry of the characters ("Notes of a Madman" by N. V. Gogol, "Crime and Punishment" by F. M. Dostoevsky, "Petersburg" by Andrei Bely, "Faculty of Unnecessary Things" by Yu. O. Dombrovsky, "Pyramid" by L. M. Leonov, "Kolyma Stories" by V. T. Shalamov, "On on the sunny side of the street" by D. I. Rubina, etc.), as well as doctors themselves, such as Dr. Krupov in the story by A. I. Herzen "From the notes of Dr. Krupov", surgeons Vladimir Ustimenko in the trilogy "The Cause you Serve" by Yu. P. German and Vera Tereshnikova in the story by B. N. Polevoy "Doctor Faith."

The dilogy of I. Ilf and E. Petrov "The Twelve Chairs" and "The Golden Calf" is considered one of the most striking phenomena of Soviet literature of the XX century. Only in the last decade, the issues of reflection in the dilogy of the topography and toponymy of the Volga region ^[4], the cultural memory of a contemporary ^[5], the proper name as a connecting and meaning-forming element of the text ^[11], the traditions of carnival culture ^[13], winged words and expressions ^[15], newspaper polemics in the history of publications ^[17] etc . However, medical topics, which have not yet been the object of special scientific research, are no less widely represented in the dilogy. In this regard, it is necessary to identify and systematically describe the lexico-thematic groups of medical vocabulary found in it, consider its role in organizing the visual and expressive space of works, and also correlate all this with the personalities of the authors of the dilogy, who, as is known, also did not have a professional medical education. Thus, we have chosen the texts of the dilogy of I. Ilf and V. Petrov "The Twelve Chairs" and "The Golden Calf" (hereinafter – DS and ZT) as the empirical base of the study. Specific linguistic facts were obtained using the "National Corpus of the Russian Language" (hereinafter referred to as the NCRR) ^[16].

2. Material, methods, overview

We understand medical vocabulary in relation to a literary text in two ways. On the one hand, these are standard units (both individual words and phrases) of "a special name serving the professional (scientific) sphere of modern official medicine, enshrined in the usus" ^{[1, p. 32]}, and on the other – one of the means of artistic narrative and its visual and expressive specificity. At the same time, this vocabulary "in the language of an artistic work acquires interest precisely in connection with the peculiarities of its stylistic use" ^{[6, p. 24]}.

2.1 Lexico-thematic groups of medical vocabulary

The medical vocabulary functioning in the dilogy can be divided into several thematic groups that form a certain lexical and semantic field. In defining the semantic field, we follow I. M. Kobozeva, according to which it is "a set of linguistic units united by a commonality of content and reflecting the conceptual, objective or functional similarity of the designated phenomena" ^{[10, p. 99]}. In turn, a lexico-thematic or thematic group is "a series of words that more or less closely coincide in their main (core) semantic content, i.e., belonging to the same semantic field" ^{[1, p. 118]}. These can be the names of anatomical components of the body and its physiological features, designations of various diseases and their symptoms, names of medicines, as well as structural and functional features of the medical environment.

2.1.1 Anatomical components of the body and its physiological features

The anatomical components of the body and its physiological features include the names of its parts, internal organs and cavities, as well as other morphological features (cavities and neurophysiological formations, secretions, mucus and fluids functioning in the body or secreted by it, hair and skin, etc.).

1. Names of body parts. Body parts include external anatomical formations (trunk, neck, head, upper and lower limbs) that have their own individual morphological features (ears, nose, mouth, eyes, fingers, back, shoulders, etc.) and perform certain functions peculiar to their psychophysiological purpose.

The names of body parts are used in the dilogy mainly when describing the appearance of characters or any actions and events in which they are involved:

Chickens are sitting on the shoulders, arms and head of the individual [DS]; A little more, the most nonsense, the last stroke of the brush – and he will finally ripen [TT]; Katerina Alexandrovna knocked on the bedroom door with a bent finger [DS]; Pasha Emilevich raised his head, but saw only the buffers of the last car and kicked even harder [TT]; And all night the poor madman, wherever he turned his feet, could not find Plekhanov Street [DS]; Such creatures are never business acquaintances – for this they have too blue eyes and a clean neck [DS]. Etc.

The use of these words in a specific medical sense (i.e., when describing clinical situations related to body parts) is found in the dilogy in isolated cases:

– Congenial. So, here's what, Kitty, please look at what's on my back. It hurts between the shoulder blades [DS].

In this example, the lexeme "shoulder blades" is used as a localizer of the place of pain.

2. Names of internal organs. Internal organs include organs located in the thoracic, abdominal or pelvic cavity of the body (heart, lungs, liver, stomach, appendicitis, etc.). Their names are also widely represented in the dilogy, however, unlike the names of body parts, they are often used with emphasis on the medical component of their semantics:

– heart: A man came out of the door of the horn harvesting office and, clutching his heart, slowly walked away [TT], The amazing cow caused her to salivate and heart failure [DS]; Tea stimulates excessive heart activity, and Koreiko treasured his health [TT];

– liver: What was said upon awakening, "gut morgen" usually meant that the liver was playing tricks, that 52 years was not a joke and that the weather was damp today" [DS], Ippolit Matveyevich lost a lot of weight, and his liver began to ache [DS], ... Over globes, skulls and cardboard, cheerfully colored liver of a drunkard Two skeletons were hugging each other in a friendly way [TT];

– stomach: – The stomach pains have already begun, – he said with satisfaction, he eats fried chicken, which is dear to him, hard–boiled eggs, harmful to the stomach, and olives, - So everything is fine with you? – That's it! The millionaire replied with a charming smile. "Is your stomach okay?" [TT];

– lungs: – Really, Musik, your lungs are not in order [DS]; The weak lungs of the old women still blew out of them only a puppy squeal [DS].

– kidneys: The "ugly Chatelaine", as the giant ads broadcast, instantly gave the kidneys their original freshness and immaculate purity [DS].

The dilogy also uses a generalized or combined description of the state or functioning of human internal organs:

Ptiburdukov II put his ear to Lokhankin's torso for a long time and listened to the work of his organs [CT]; His nasopharynx and lungs worked perfectly, regularly inhaled and exhaled air [DS], his Heart sent blood flows noisily throughout his body" [DS]; – There is a noble and very healthy heart inside, excellent lungs and liver without the sign of stones [CT].

3. Bone formations, integuments and neurophysiological features of the body. The following lexemes of a similar plan have been identified in the dilogy:

– bone formations: – You know, they have so many mammoth bones, but they sent me only one tooth, – Of course, you know that horns, that is, outgrowths covered with hair or a hard horny layer, are appendages of the skull and are found mainly in mammals? [TT];

– skin and hair: In the complete darkness of the corridor, Ippolit Matveyevich suddenly smiled in the most sarcastic way and felt the skin move on his forehead [DS], A dog skin was bought on a work loan, depicting a muskrat [DS]; "The sight of a rotten body covered with hair makes a repulsive impression" [TT];

– neurophysiological formations (both in general and in particular): He urged himself to go downstairs several more times, but could not – his nerves gave out [DS]; – How is your health? Lapidus asked anyway. – The calcaneal nerve? [TT].

The vocabulary of this subgroup is used in the dilogy mainly in the general linguistic meaning, i.e. for the purpose of naming the realities represented by it as objects of narration (with the exception, perhaps, of the combination of the heel nerve), however, the very presence in the text of such specific words and combinations as outgrowths, stratum corneum, appendages of the skull, heel nerve indicates a more than the authors' general understanding of the anatomical semantics and usage of these tokens.

4. Secretions and fluids formed and secreted by the body. The following lexemes of the specified type are used in the dilogy:

His true stories knocked the defendants off their feet, and they, choking in tears and snot, confessed everything [TT]; ... Pink drool ran from his mouth [TT]; Light diamond sweat drenched his fat face [DS]; "Do not be distracted while eating by talking. This interferes with the proper secretion of gastric juice" [TT]; Ostap, elegantly and far spitting blood oozing from a broken gum, hobbled to join with Ippolit Matveevich [DS].

And in this group of examples, the terminological combination of gastric juice, broken gums, pink saliva indicates a good understanding by the authors of the dilogy of the features of the anatomy and functioning of the human body.

2.1.2 Designations of various diseases and their symptoms

The designations of diseases and their symptoms already contain medical semantics in themselves. They represent several thematic groups in the dilogy, each of which has a lexical and semantic component of the disease, expressed verbally or implicitly.

1. The verbally expressed component of the "disease":

– the disease as a general information about it or a medical document: An hour later, Berlaga learned in all details the true medical histories of his neighbors in the ward [TT], – It is already recorded in the medical history that you are the viceroy [TT];

– the name of the disease by origin: The leader, who recovered from seasickness, flaunted on the bow near the bell [DS], Ostap... suddenly felt that if he did not immediately settle to the ground, he would die from some mysterious railway disease [TT], In the eighth grade he learned "Logic", "Christian morals" and mild venereal disease [DS];

– the name of the disease according to the age of the patient: While the son was growing up, suffering from childhood diseases and developing his first views on life, Matvey Alexandrovich drove pigeons with a long bamboo pole [DS], the ancient woman was obsessed with many senile diseases [DS];

– the name of the disease according to the time and degree of course: Exhausted readers eagerly listened to the words of the benefactor, hastily prescribed a patented remedy and received a chronic form of the disease" [DS], ... Lively conversations were held, caused by the news of the serious illness of Claudia Ivanovna [DS];

2. The implicitly expressed component of "disease". It can be:

– the name of the disease or its pathology: And ppolit Matveyevich was not afraid of hemorrhoids, he was afraid to wipe his trousers and therefore used blue felt [DS], He earned five hundred million [TT] on typhus, ... Gavrila suffered from gangrene, Gavrila fell ill from gangrene... [Ilya Ilf, Evgeny Petrov. Twelve chairs (1927)], The body, weakened by the eternal consumption of meat, is unable to resist infection [DS], – Previously it reached blood poisoning… [DS];

– an external manifestation of pathomorphological and pathophysiological changes: During the night, a volcanic pimple popped out on the cheek of the extremely distressed Ippolit Matveevich [DS]; A fragile white scar cut his muggy throat [TT], "Honestly, the number eight! Vorobyaninov exclaimed. – This is the first time I've seen such a bruise" [DS], a bend due to the fact that I didn't lubricate the wound with iodine [DS];

– names of mental disorders: – It is already written in the medical history that you are the viceroy, and a madman cannot change his manias like socks [TT], He took out a book about the mores and habits of the mentally ill, and after a long debate, delirium of greatness was chosen from all obsessions [TT], -Schizophrenic delirium, complicated by manic-depressive psychosis, and moreover, note Berlaga, a twilight state of mind [TT], "What if it's a seizure? – he thought, – there will be no end of trouble with him" [TT], – Have you read Professor Bleuler's book "Autistic Thinking"? [TT].

– the object or cause of the disease, as well as the consequences of this: – Paralysis of the heart, – said Ostap, to at least say something. – I can tell even without a stethoscope [CT], Madame Kuznetsova picked up her lips and pointed to the door of the second room: – A severe heart attack [DS], – And there is a fever due to malnutrition, hair and teeth loss [CT].

2.1.3 Medicines and accessories, medical care system

This lexical and thematic group includes:

–the names of medicines or substances necessary for human life: ...The bend due to the fact that he did not lubricate the wound with iodine [DS], Now all the strength is in hemoglobin. Having said that, "Pierre and Konstantin" fell silent [DS], For every vitamin that I feed you, I will require many small services from you [TT], Because you are a normal consumer of calories... [DS], Another [slogan] was composed in verse: "Fruit waters bring us carbohydrates" [TT];

–the structure of medical care: The hospital turned out to be completely different than Berlaga imagined, he expected to sit out an anxious time in this medical institution, you, my dear, that's what. Go to the pharmacy [DS], And he bitterly regretted what he had done in a quiet room [TT];

– names of auxiliary medical accessories and items: A Komsomol member with a red cross on her apron ran up to Ostap. She pulled bandages and cotton wool out of a canvas bag [TT]; ... A separate sterilized brush is required for each client [DS], In addition to a bathrobe, there was also a stethoscope in the bag [TT];

–names of types of doctors and objects of their activity: Landlords strenuously invited the city doctor to their hunting [DS], Ptiburdukov brought his brother, a military doctor [TT], He was loved by housewives, domestic workers, widows and even one woman – a dental technician [TT], – I am not a surgeon, – Ostap noted. – I'm a neurologist, I'm a psychiatrist. I study the souls of my patients, and what does the doctor say? – What is the doctor? Are there doctors in the insurance office? [DS], the brother-in-law spoke so weightily, as if he were at least a junior resident of a mental hospital, Two patient orderlies took the grumpy viceroy to a small ward for patients with abnormal behavior.

We also note the adjectives "medical" and "apothecary", which have an increased frequency in the text of the dilogy:

– The lacquered doors slammed, an alarming medical horn sounded, and the car sped off Viceroy Berlaga to his new possessions, Andrey Ivanovich, and here he did not miss the opportunity to show his knowledge in the medical field, which he had learned from the Moscow magazine Ogonek, Pierre and Konstantin, for a long time eager to make a message on a medical topic, he spoke, looking around warily [DS];

Long glass cylinders with syrup on a rotating stand flickered with apothecary light [TT], full-fledged apothecary drops fell from the trees and flopped to the ground [TT], At the moment of the highest languor, Galkin, Palkin, Malkin, Chalkin and Zalkind, who were sitting on the stern, struck their apothecary and beer accessories [DS].

This is the general thematic composition of medical vocabulary in the dilogy of I. Ilf and V. Petrov "Twelve Chairs" and "Golden Calf". Its diversity is noteworthy: the designations of external and internal organs, various fluids and secretions produced by the body, bone and cavities, and body coverings. At the same time, in many cases we are dealing with the medical specifics of this vocabulary, i.e., as a set of "special names denoting the concepts of medicine as a science, and special nomenclature names of medicine as a field of professional activity" ^{[1, p. 31]}.

3. Results and discussion

The above statements related to medical vocabulary are given by us in a minimal context, but in the dilogy they are inscribed in the narrative and artistic picture of each of the novels. Under these conditions, even the medical vocabulary itself, of a purely terminological order, "sometimes acquires a new lexical meaning, actively participates in creating an expressive effect" ^{[1, p. 204]}. It is even acceptable to talk about the "poetics of medicine", i.e. that "the use of images related to the world of medicine has its own specifics in fiction" ^{[7, p. 269]}.

The following phrase is a good example of this:

All diseases come from meat [DS].

By itself, it has sentential semantics, and sophistic content, but in context it is associated with the difficult financial situation of the hero of the novel "The Twelve Chairs" by Kolya Kalachov. Therefore, when Kolya suddenly finds out that today his wife Lisa certainly wants meat for lunch, he begins to passionately dissuade from this extremely destructive desire for the family budget:

"Just think, devouring the corpses of slaughtered animals! Cannibalism under the guise of culture! All diseases come from meat.

–Of course," Lisa said with shy irony. – for example, angina.

– Yes, yes, and sore throat! What do you think? The body, weakened by the eternal consumption of meat, is unable to resist infection.

– How stupid is that!

– That's not stupid. The one who seeks to fill his stomach is stupid, not caring about the amount of vitamins [DS].

Thus, the phrase All diseases come from meat, which includes the lexeme "disease", is used, on the one hand, as hyperbole, indicating that improper nutrition can affect human health, and on the other hand, it is a tactical ploy by Kolya Kalachov in order to influence the wife's disastrous desire for the family budget.

The physiological description of the work of the heart is used in the novel "The Twelve Chairs" at the moment when Ippolit Matveyevich suddenly learns from Claudia Ivanovna about the diamonds hidden in the chair. This creates an image of a violent emotional reaction and emphasizes the importance of what is happening:

– Your diamonds! – he shouted, frightened by the power of his voice. – Into the chair! Who put you up to this? Why didn't you give them to me? – How was it possible to give you diamonds when you blew my daughter's estate to the wind? The old woman said calmly and angrily. Ippolit Matveyevich sat down and immediately got up again. His heart was pumping blood noisily all over his body. My head started buzzing. "But you took them out?" Are they here? [DS].

The state of excitement and anxious expectation of the underground millionaire Koreiko in the novel "The Golden Calf" before he was going to propose to Zosa Sinitskaya is also conveyed using vocabulary describing the work of the cardiovascular system:

Today, finally, he decided to declare his feelings to Zosa and offer his hand, where the pulse was beating, small and angry like a ferret, and his heart, bound with fabulous hoops [TT].

In the next episode, Ippolit Matveyevich is at an auction and, as it seems to him, only moments separate him from getting the coveted chair with treasures hidden in it. A high degree of his emotional state is transmitted in combination with tokens of medical content:

The motif "Walk, you wander everywhere" jumped wildly in Ippolit Matveyevich's head. "Our chairs, ours, ours, ours!" his whole body screamed about it. "Ours!" the liver screamed. "Ours!" the cecum confirmed. He was so happy that his pulses appeared in the most unexpected places. All this vibrated, swayed and cracked under the pressure of unheard-of happiness. A train approaching Saint-Gotthard became visible. On the open platform of the last car, Ippolit Matveyevich Vorobyaninov stood in white trousers and smoked a cigar [DS].

Terms related to mental disorders contribute to a deeper and more dramatic description of the characters' condition. For example, the character Brother-in-law helps Berlage, an accountant from the Golden Calf, who has fallen into a madhouse, to determine his "madness", reasoning at the same time as if he were an expert in this field:

He took out a book about the mores and habits of the mentally ill, and after much debate, delirium of greatness was chosen from all the obsessions. "You don't have to do anything," his brother–in–law explained, "you just have to shout in everyone's ears: "I'm Napoleon!" or: "I'm Emil, I'm angry!" or: "Mohammed!" if you want. – Is it possible for the Viceroy of India? Berlaga asked confidingly. – You can, you can. Anything is possible for a madman. The Viceroy of India, then? [TT].

The lexemes joints and toothache are used to convey the sensations of sudden braking of the train on which Ippolit Matveyevich arrived in Moscow:

The sudden braking made the train joints crack. Everything screamed, and it seemed to Ippolit Matveyevich that he had fallen into the realm of toothache. The train docked at the asphalt platform. It was Moscow. It was Ryazansky, the freshest and newest of all Moscow railway stations [DS].

The medical term "hemorrhoids" is used to convey a character's phobias:

Taking a blue felt cushion out of a desk drawer, Ippolit Matveyevich put it on a chair, gave his moustache the right direction (parallel to the line of the table) and sat on the cushion, somewhat towering over all three of his colleagues. Ippolit Matveyevich was not afraid of hemorrhoids, he was afraid to wipe his trousers and therefore used blue felt [DS].

The phrase "Oh, gangrene!" reflects the speaker's shock or disgust towards something-or someone:

– Thieves live in your house No. 7! The janitor yelled. – All kinds of bastards! The seven-tailed viper! He has secondary education!.. I will not look at secondary education!.. Damn gangrene!!! At that time, a seven-year-old viper with a secondary education was sitting behind a trash can on a can and longing [DS].

The Golden Calf even describes the operating room in detail with the appropriate context:

The great combinator felt himself in the position of a surgeon who was about to perform a very serious operation. Everything is ready. Napkins and bandages are steaming in electric pots, a nurse in a white toga moves silently across the tiled floor, medical earthenware and nickel shine, the patient lies on a glass table, languidly rolling his eyes to the ceiling, the smell of German chewing gum is carried in specially heated air. The surgeon with his arms outstretched approaches the operating table, accepts a sterilized Finnish knife from the assistant and dryly tells the patient: "Well, take off the burnous" [TT].

This whole situation imagined by Ostap Bender demonstrates his responsible attitude to any case, comparable to the actions of a surgeon:

"It's always like this with me," Bender said, his eyes shining, "you have to start a million–dollar business with a significant shortage of banknotes. All my capital, fixed, circulating and reserve, is calculated in five rubles [TT].

Moreover, in a number of episodes of the novel "The Golden Calf", Ostap Bender actually behaves like a real specialist, using the medical component as a means of manipulating his interlocutors:

"You are pigeons,– Ostap was saying, "of course, you will never understand that an honest Soviet pilgrim like me cannot do without a doctor's coat. In addition to the robe, there was also a stethoscope in the bag. "I'm not a surgeon,– Ostap remarked. – I'm a neurologist, I'm a psychiatrist. I study the souls of my patients. And for some reason, I always come across very stupid souls [TT];

"I consider it my first duty," Bender said boastfully, "to introduce you to the magic cellar. It's called "Under the Moon." I was here about five years ago, lecturing on the fight against abortion. What a cellar! Semi-darkness, coolness, a host from Tiflis, a local orchestra, cold vodka, dancers with tambourines and cymbals. We'll go there for the whole day [TT];

"I'll help you,– Ostap said. – I had to treat friends and acquaintances from Freud. Sleep is nothing. The main thing is to eliminate the cause of sleep. The main reason is the very existence of the Soviet government. But I can't eliminate it at the moment. I just don't have time. You see, I am a tourist-athlete.

In the fragments of the novels "The Twelve Chairs" and "The Golden Calf" considered by us, all the signs of the poetics of medicine are evident in those aspects in which the term "poetics" is understood: a certain system of artistic means based on medical vocabulary and inextricably linked with the plot of the works and the images of their main characters.

4. Conclusion

The conducted research has shown that medical vocabulary is represented in the dilogy of I. Ilf and E. Petrov "Twelve Chairs" and "Golden Calf" both at the general linguistic and at the medical proper, i.e. terminological level. This indicates the serious attitude of the authors of the dilogy, even if they do not have the appropriate professional education, to the medical subject, set in it directly by the image of the main character, the key symbol of which is the obstetric bag, which appeared on the scene at the first appearance of Ostap Bender in the novel "The Golden Calf", but at the same time extrapolating to the novel "Twelve Chairs":

The citizen in the white-topped cap, which is mostly worn by administrators of summer gardens and entertainers, undoubtedly belonged to the larger and better part of humanity. He moved through the streets of the city of Arbatov on foot, looking around with condescending curiosity. He was holding a small obstetric bag in his hand.

At the same time, medical vocabulary in the context of the artistic narrative of the dilogy is used not only to describe the physical and mental state of the characters, as well as the environment surrounding the characters, but also involves the reader in his plot collisions, creating a special medical poetics of the text.

The relationship between medicine and literature can be assumed "as a necessary condition for medical education and practical medicine. On the other hand, this connection is also necessary for a writer" ^{[12, pp. 7-8]}. And this relationship can be clearly seen throughout the artistic space of the dilogy "Twelve Chairs" and "Golden Calf".