Andrei Platonov, Sharmanka [The Hurdy-Gurdy; The Barrel Organ]

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Many Russian writers and critics see Platonov as the greatest Russian prose-writer of the last century. Even in Russia, however, some aspects of his work have received little attention. His six film scripts have barely been studied at all; his eight finished and two unfinished plays are still seldom staged. At least two, however, are masterpieces. Along with the short novel Kotlovan [The Foundation Pit, 1930], Sharmanka [The Hurdy-Gurdy or The Barrel Organ, 1930] and 14 Krasnykh izbushek [Fourteen Little Red Huts, 1933] constitute Platonov’s most impassioned, and penetrating, response to Stalin’s assault on the Soviet peasantry. There is something of Brecht’s political urgency in …

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Citation: Chandler, Robert. "Sharmanka". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 04 July 2016 [https://staging.litencyc.com/php/sworks.php?rec=true&UID=14450, accessed 28 March 2024.]

14450 Sharmanka 3 Historical context notes are intended to give basic and preliminary information on a topic. In some cases they will be expanded into longer entries as the Literary Encyclopedia evolves.

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