Yanka Kupala is not only a classic, but also a forward-thinking philosopher. His works are an attempt to understand who Belarusians are in a world of changes, cataclysms, and blurred boundaries. "Tuteishyja" is one of the key texts where Kupala acutely and ironically depicts the state of the nation between self-discovery and self-destruction. Reading these works today, it's easy to see how accurately the poet sensed the future—and how many of his questions remain open.
*** Yanka Kupala is deservedly considered not only a great poet but also a creator of the future of the Belarusian nation. According to his prophecies and insights, the matrix of Belarus' historical development and its movement toward state independence was formed. Belarusian-centrism permeates the entire work of the poet-prophet, who foresaw the main events and phenomena of the 20th century—bloody cataclysms and wars, totalitarianism, and the costs of globalization.
Who are they, the "tuteishyja" from the famous play of the same name? This is an artistic marker for Belarusians who felt their distinctiveness but did not fully embrace their Belarusian identity. Kupala's main "tuteishy" Mikita Znosak once dreamed of a mixture of languages and ethnic groups—and indeed, in the era of globalization, this seems to be coming true…
The bard looks at today's realities with the same thoughtful smile hidden in his mustache: as if to say, everything will pass.
