French name?

[Alexandra Smith]

Dear Annie,

It might be a long shot but it's possible that there are some personal  
cryptograms and allusions embedded in Platonov's Antiseksus. A.  
Znatnov explains the usage of the surname Berkman thus: "По-видимому,  
намек на американского анархиста русского  происхождения Александра  
Беркмана (1870-1936). Эта  гипотеза  принадлежит  американскому  
исследователю  творчества  А.Платонова  Дж.Шепарду  (см.:  Shepard.J.   
The Origin of a  Master:  the  Early  Prose  of  Andrey  Platonov.  -   
Indiana University, Ph.D., 1973, р.185), который  соотнес   
"Антисексус"  с  книгой А.Беркмана "Антиклимакс". (См.: Berkman A. The  
Anti-Climax: The Concluding Chapter of My Russian Diary, the Bolshevik  
Myth. - Berlin. 1925).  С  1892 по 1906 год А.Беркман находился в  
Америке в  заключении  за  покушение  на стального магната Генри  
Фрика. В 1917 году вторично осужден за антивоенную деятельность. В  
1919  году  Беркман  был  выслан  из  США  в  Россию,  где занимался   
активной  общественной  деятельностью.   После   кронштадтского  
восстания 1921 года выслан в Европу. Автор книг и памфлетов,  
разоблачающих "большевицкий миф".).
Given that the name Shotlua appears next to the name of the anarchist  
opposed to Boslsheviks, it well might be that Platonov alludes to his  
own family as a unit that has its own anarchistic tendencies. The name  
can be read in a mirror-like way backwards as an anagram. It will  
appear then as  this phrase: AUL TOSH. The word "aul" refers to a  
nomadic settlement that includes immediate family. Tosh is a short  
version of the name Platon. Platonov's son Platon was born in 1922. I  
have seen some references suggesting that he was often called Tosh.
As Robert Chandler pointed out, Platonov's texts are full of puns and  
playful allusions.

All best,
Alexandra

-- 
The University of Edinburgh is a charitable body, registered in
Scotland, with registration number SC005336.

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