The image of the Soviet state in the novel “Nikolai Nikolaevich” by Y. Aleshkovsky

Abstract

   The article analyzes the novel “Nikolai Nikolaevich” (1970), written by the dissident writer Yu. Aleshkovsky who was one of the brightest representatives of underground Soviet literature.

   The purpose of this article is to describe and conceptualize the image of the Soviet state, which is built by the writer in his work.

   The article examines the methods and techniques of constructing the image of the Soviet state. The problematic level of the work is presented through the analysis of the relationship between the authorities and not-quite-a-Soviet person – the former prisoner Nikolai Nikolayevich. At the level of poetics, we analyze the techniques aimed at creating the images of the “material and bodily bottom” and carnivalization, which oppose the “official” culture. As a result of the study, we conclude that the model of the Soviet state is presented through the consciousness of a former convict who was “lucky” to be engaged in Soviet science. Aleshkovsky created a caricature of the Soviet state system in order to expose the cynicism of the authorities. It is important for the writer to show the need to realize the value of freedom as a condition for preserving man in a man; without it, the personal fate and the history of the people are meaningless. The language of Y. Aleshkovsky, with its taboo elements, serves the purpose of exposing the contrast between the foul language and the rotten language of the Soviet state.