The Value of the contemporary Lithuanian novel as a struggle in the literary field

ENThis article explores the discourse of the value(s) of contemporary Lithuanian novels of the first decade of the twenty-first century as a struggle in the literary field. The hypothesis proposes that the issue of value(s) is a complex question both of field (agent(s), capital(s), habitus, etc.) and of the construction of identity. The methodological background, which includes both the theory of the field by Pierre Bourdieu and Manuel Castells's conception of the three different forms of identity, is used to analyze the structure of the literary field and the struggle between the "players", who implicitly can have legitimizing, resistance, or project identities. The article analyzes how different types of capitals, the positions of various authors and institutions, and the writers' (self-) representations modify the literary field and construct both cultural values and the writers' identities. The research concludes by arguing that the field of literature and identity are not a stable discourse. It is a problematic area in which the value(s) of literature, value(s) of creator, value(s) of readers, and value(s) of cultural productions clash. [From the publication]