“Shagi / Steps” the Journal of the SASH

SHAGI/STEPS 9(1)

Keywords: “the infra-ordinary”, theory of everyday life, style, places of memory, intimate writing, autobiography, Georges Perec

Abstract: The article is devoted to the concept of “the infra-ordinary” in the work of the French writer Georges Perec. The purpose of the study is to define the notion of “the infra-ordinary” and establish its forms in the poetics of this author. This concept often appears in his works, although it may not be directly indicated. To this day, the meaning of “the infra-ordinary” remains poorly clarified, because it is difficult to find support for its understanding in the author’s texts, while it occupies one of the main places in his poetics. Perec articulates the term “the infra-ordinary” in one of his little-known essays, yet “the infra-ordinary” as an approach to writing is found in both his early and later texts. The indeterminacy of “the infra-ordinary” is largely connected with the multi-valued functioning of the concept of “everyday life” in Perec’s texts. This paper discusses the general problems of the concept of everyday life, the emergence of the concept of “the infra-ordinary”, the features and forms of implementation of “the infra-ordinary” in different texts by Perec. In the end, a conclusion is drawn about the serious significance of “the infra-ordinary” in his works, since it substantiates the author’s attitude both to the material of his writing and to writing itself, being meaningfully connected with the themes of memory, recollections, history, language and reality.

To cite this article: Kirichenko, V. V. (2023). The concept of “the infra-ordinary” in Georges Perec’s works. Shagi/ Steps, 9(1), 305–319. (In Russian). https://doi. org/10.22394/2412-9410-2023-9-1-305-319.