“The Semantic Environment” of the Late Dramatic Works of A. Platonov
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.15826/qr.2020.2.490Keywords:
plays of A. Platonov; plot poetics; context; intertextual dialogue; biography and creative work of a writerAbstract
This review raises a set of important issues. The use of contextual, motif, and “evidence-based” methods make it possible to identify hidden semantic layers which are hard to discern in Platonov’s late plays at first. The authors manage to demonstrate both the peculiarities of the plot of Platonov’s late dramas and their connection with the writer’s creative work as a whole. Particularly important is the autobiographical context which significantly enriches the “semantic environment” of the works analysed. It is based on Platonov’s family drama related to the arrest and premature death of his son Platon. The study reveals various ways of inclusion of the “son motif ” in the plays Voice of the Father, A Magical Being, and A Student of the Lyceum. The analysis of the play Noah’s Ark turns out to be less interesting, which is largely due to the fact of its being unfinished and, thus, lacking artistic perfection. The stylistic originality of Platonov’s late creative work and its artistic distinction from the works of the 1920s – 1930s remain outside the authors’ framework of reflection. This range of issues may serve as a future focus of study.
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