Andrei Platonov

Andrei Platonov
BornAndrei Platonovich Klimentov
(1899-08-28)28 August 1899
Voronezh, Voronezh Governorate, Russian Empire
Died5 January 1951(1951-01-05) (aged 51)
Moscow, Russian SFSR, Soviet Union
Occupation
  • Novelist
  • philosopher
  • playwright
  • poet
  • engineer
Period1919–1951
Genre
  • Novel
  • short story
  • poetry
  • journalism
Notable works
Signature

Andrei Platonovich Platonov (Russian: Андре́й Плато́нович Плато́нов, IPA: [ɐnˈdrʲej plɐˈtonəvʲɪtɕ plɐˈtonəf];  Klimentov [Климе́нтов]; 28 August [O.S. 16 August] 1899[1] – 5 January 1951) was a Soviet Russian novelist, short story writer, philosopher, playwright, and poet. Although Platonov regarded himself as a communist, his principal works remained unpublished in his lifetime because of their skeptical attitude toward collectivization of agriculture (1929–1940) and other Stalinist policies, as well as for their experimental, avant-garde form infused with existentialism which was not in line with the dominant socialist realism doctrine. His famous works include the novels Chevengur (1928) and The Foundation Pit (1930).

  1. ^ It used to be thought that Platonov was born on August 20/September 1, but recent scholarship has established the earlier date. See Thomas Seifrid, A Companion To Andrei Platonov's The Foundation Pit (Academic Studies Press, 2009: ISBN 1-934843-57-1), p. 4.