The Modernity of Andrei Platonov: On the Understanding of the Writer’s Essential Ideas

Abstract

The article analyzes Andrei Platonov’s heritage by approaching his literary fiction as a manifestation of a holistic philosophic message. Viewing it from this angle, we can assume that the central idea of Platonov’s work is his reflection concerning the crisis of individualism, as well as revival of collectivist principles in Soviet Russia (later, this process would be labeled as “ionization” of contemporary society). In this regard, the first object of study was to analyze the prevailing approach toward Platonov’s genius (primarily based on the writer’s unique diction). We challenge this approach, showing that Platonov’s language serves more general concepts than those that can be revealed in his works by purely philological study. Further, we demonstrate that the phenomenon to comprehend is potential relevance of the writer’s inner world to the philosophical structure of European Modernity and, more specifically, to the theory of the stages of modern society development. This part of the study yields the conclusion that Platonov’s concept of “ionization,” in fact, logically complements the theory of European development put forward in the 20 th century, that is, the theory of the transition from “individualization” to “atomization” (“massification”) of society. Therefore, the writer’s creative impulse is empowered by his aspiration to restore the lost social bonds; yet this does not make him, a utopian daydreamer. In his works, the “ionization” of society is represented as a dramatically contradictory process, as an important part of cultural and political movement (individualization – atomization – ionization) in post-revolutionary society. Viewed from this perspective, the writer remains a participant of the philosophical discourse on Modernity, and not only of Russian Modernity, but its European implementation, too.