Andrej Platonovs ‚Unsterblichkeit‘ : Teil II: ‚Unsterblichkeit‘ diesseits des ‚Neuen Menschen‘

This is the second and final part of the analysis of Platonov’s work with regard to the idea of ‘immortality’. The first part has revealed that Platonov preferred ‘collective immortality’ thus rejecting the then-mainstream topos of ‘new man’. The second part deals with the stalinist trend to turn all ideas into ideologies: the topos of ‘new man’ as well as the concept of ‘collective immortality’. An analysis of several fictional texts shows that Platonov, while remaining true to his concept of ‘collective immortality’, resisted its ideologisation by tying his concept to characters who struggle for their individuation and yet recognize their relativity in the collective of all people.