Limbă, Literatură, Folclor

Abstract: This paper examines Fourteen Days (2024), a collaborative novel edited by Margaret Atwood and Douglas Preston, through the lens of Boccaccio’s Decameron and the broader context of pandemic literature. Written by 36 authors, Fourteen Days exemplifies contemporary collaborative fiction, using multiple voices to portray traumatic experiences during the COVID-19 lockdown. Set within the confines of a New York City apartment building, the novel presents characters who, having been isolated due to the pandemic, convene to exchange personal narratives as a means of emotional sustenance. Employing the theoretical framework of intertextuality (Kristeva) and Bakhtin’s concept of dialogism and the plurality of voices, this study analyzes the narrative structure, thematic connections, and the novel’s modern meta-Decameron approach. The paper argues that Fourteen Days not only reflects Boccaccio’s Decameron in its structure but also updates it by addressing contemporary issues such as inequality, isolation, trauma, and the function of storytelling. Additionally, it explores the dynamics of collaborative fiction, emphasizing how the integration of multiple perspectives enriches the novel’s thematic depth. By bridging classical literary forms with modern crises, this article illustrates how collaborative fiction can produce a polyphonic narrative that resonates with diverse audiences. It also critically engages with the representation of marginalized voices within collaborative projects, contributing to the fields of pandemic literature and collective storytelling.

Keywords: collaborative fiction, pandemic literature, metafiction, The Decameron, intertextuality, dialogism, collective storytelling