Game historiosophy of A. Ivanov: the violence of form and the rehabilitation of meaning (based on the novels “Psoglavtsy” and “Pishcheblok”)

The paper analyzes the specificity of Ivanov’s historiosophy in two novels, “Psoglavtsy” and “Pishcheblok,” which are particularly interesting in this sense since in terms of genre, they do not correspond to the scale of historical issues as much as possible. These novels use the Gothic genre model, preserving the specifics of artistic space and type of hero. However, the generic Gothic time is replaced by historical time, experienced personally and subjectively. Meanwhile, a specific feature of Gothic time is retained, such as repetition, replaying a crisis moment of the past until the balance is restored. The author refuses a vector image of national history, forcing historical time to repeat itself in a cycle that resembles not only literary Gothic but also a computer game. It is not a question of bad infinity, but a game repetition, eventually leading to the “passage” of a crisis section of history. Thus, the struggle against genre form rehabilitates the content of national history. This principle also defines the history concept as a whole: A. Ivanov tends to see the historical process as including both the aggression of “form” (empire, state power, fate) and the defense of “content” (humanity revealed in individual choice), which, being opposed, are equally necessary for each other. Not only does the method based on the struggle and mutual necessity of form and content shape historiosophy in A. Ivanov’s novels, but it also organizes their artistic world. Ivanov’s game historiosophy is thus opposed to a postmodern game tending to destruct form and meaning.

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