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A.M. Gorky Institute
of World Literature
of the Russian Academy of Sciences

IWL RAS Publishing

A.M. Gorky Institute of World Literature
of the Russian Academy of Sciences

 IWL RAS

Povarskaya 25a, 121069 Moscow, Russia

8-495-690-05-61

edition@imli.ru

iwl.ras.publishing@gmail.com

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Information about the author: 

Lenora C. Murphy, PhD in Philology, Assistant Teaching Professor, Bucknell University, 1 Dent Drive, 17837 Lewisburg, PA, USA. 

ORCID ID: https://orcid.org/0009-0003-8040-6798 

E-mail: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. 

Abstract: The article considers Platonov’s depiction of the United States, starting with his early works in the 1920s and 1930s, which betray a fairly positive attitude towards that country. In those early texts, Platonov acknowledges the US’s scientific power and understands that that power can also help the Soviet Union. The article then turns to “Noah’s Ark,” a play that Platonov wrote in his final full year of life. This play centers on an American expedition on Mount Ararat; as a result, many of the principal characters are American. Here we see a dramatically different approach to the United States: in 1950, at the beginning of the Cold War, Platonov depicts Americans as, almost without exception, evil and selfish. In contrast, the image of Stalin presented in the play is almost god-like, capable of saving even his enemies. This contrast reinforces the impression that this play truly takes the Soviet side of the Cold War. 

  • Keywords: Andrey Platonov, “Noah’s Ark,” Soviet literature, Cold War, geopolitics, United States of America.

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