NATIONAL IDENTITY AND THE MORAL CRISIS IN FORD MADOX FORD’S THE GOOD SOLDIER AND PARADE’S END
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Azerbaijan, bakuAbstract
Ford Madox Ford (1873–1939) is regarded as one of the prominent representatives of modernist literature. His fiction is not limited to aesthetic experimentation but is also enriched with profound observations on the system of national identity and values in England. In particular, The Good Soldier (1915) and Parade’s End (1924–1928) are presented as literary expressions of the political, social, and moral crises that occurred in English society during the First World War. In The Good Soldier, the author employs the technique of the unreliable narrator to portray the collapse of personal relationships; the disintegration of values such as family, friendship, and loyalty becomes part of a broader national identity crisis. The novel’s fragmented narrative structure reflects both individual and social breakdown, directing the reader to comprehend the complexity of national identification. The Parade’s End tetralogy offers a larger historical and social panorama. Its protagonist, Christopher Tietjens, is portrayed as a symbol of “late Victorian” values, but war, the transition to the modern world, and the transformation of social structures put his identity and ideals to a severe test. In this series, Ford depicts not only the institutional crisis of society but also the confrontation of individual identity with modernity. The article analyzes Ford’s concept of national identification through the lens of modernist aesthetics. His understanding of fragmented time, the central role of memory in narrative, and the principle of polyphony open up new horizons in representing English national identity. Thus, Ford Madox Ford is evaluated not only as the creator of modernist narrative techniques but also as a writer who introduced an original perspective on issues of national identity.
Keywords: modernism, national identity, First World War, Victorian values, English literature
