Our Own Personal Jesus, or Phenomenon of “Walks on Water” by I. Kormiltsev

Abstract

The research is based on the analysis of the poem “Walks on water” by I. Kormiltsev and consideration of this text as a song of the group “Nautilus Pompilius”. The interpretation of the text is based on comparison of the plot with the text of the New Testament, on analysis of the opposition of the two heroes, on consideration of separate images of the poem within the poetics of the whole creativity of the poet. The anthropological concept of “meme” as a unit of cultural evolution was involved to analyze the reasons for the popularity of this composition. When people listen to the song, they don’t perceive the meaning of the original statement, but only memes are perceived.