A. Platonov, "The Third Son": a summary and analysis of the work. A. Platonov is an artist of death and life

When the reader, as a rule, well-trained and knowledgeable, hears the name of Andrei Platonov, then he immediately remembers the "Pit" and "Chevengur." And with them comes the hard charm of the Platonic syllable that can not be felt at once, as his tongue envelops the reader as a narcotic dope, gradually, and drags in like a swampy marsh. It is not clear whether the person likes his books or he simply can not get out of the bizarre literary space imbued with death by the Russian classic of the 20th century. All this is true also for small literary forms in which the style of the Platons does not change. "The third son" (a summary including) is an additional proof.

Plot

In a small provincial town the old man dies at the old man, and he gives telegrams to his sons (they have six in all) all over the Soviet Union to help them with the funeral and say goodbye to their mother.

First, the eldest son arrives at the scene of events, then all the others follow him in a short time. With the child comes only the third son - he brings with him a small daughter. With great skill, he described in the story all that concerns the death of his mother, the Platonovs. "The third son" (the summary only conveys this only in part) - in this sense a little eerie work.

Then there was a funeral service in a house where no one particularly believed in God, so the whole procedure took on a surreal and slightly absurdist character: the priest read prayers, the sons stood guard (no one prayed) over the coffin of the mother and quietly cried, tearfully dropping tears. And the priest at that time was very anxious for a closed fraternal society, I wanted to feel involvement in what was happening, I wanted to talk with men about socialism and its construction.

Grandfather put all the brothers in the same room, and he went with his granddaughter to another. After a while, laughter, childish fuss and songs were heard from the brothers' room. And my grandfather burst into tears with his granddaughter. Then the girl stopped crying about her grandmother, whom she did not know at all, but Grandfather could not calm down his quiet tears.

In the brothers' room there was only one - the third son - silent. In it soon the fuss and the noise ceased. The door opened, a third son came out of the room, went to the coffin of his mother, wanted to lean on him in the dark or grab him, but made an awkward movement and pulled the coffin off the table, then lost consciousness. Other brothers hurried to his aid. There were no more songs, no more fun. The brothers scattered around the house and yard and howled about the dead mother. These events were described in a heartfelt manner by Platonov. The "third son" (a brief summary of this testifies to this) is a small but powerful work.

Death as a household phenomenon and as an existential event

But the storyline is not limited to the content of this article. When they say and write about Platonov, there is always the temptation to look beyond the storyline of the work and see something behind it. This is the temptation we are giving, passing from retelling to the existential analysis of the work that Platonov wrote. "The third son" (the summary can not hide this) has to do with such research as the author's entire work.

Until the moment when the third brother left the room, death seemed to all gathered people, except, perhaps, granddaughter and grandfather, an event ordinary and even, maybe, ordinary. Well, yes, my mother died, so what? After all, the life of the sons is on. Life ends and ends with death - this is perfectly normal. The brothers had not seen each other for a long time and it is not known when they would meet again, except at the funeral of their father. So why not fool around.

Logic in this is, because there are basic postulates of everyday thinking. If you recall, then rarely does anyone perceive the death of the elderly as a true tragedy. It is quite common for elderly people to die, but young people live. But this "ordinariness", as a rule, is not disclosed, but is hid behind the ritual: they throw themselves at the coffin, howl and weep over the deceased, so that no one realizes that in fact all do not care.

Existential event, death occurs when the third son with his "quiet word" stops the joy of the brothers, leaves the room to touch the mother for the last time in the dark and faints from the excess of feelings. And then everyone else understands that all this is for real - the mother is no more and will never be. The fainting of one of the heroes tears the fabric of everyday life, exposing the tragic essence of death.

Such is the existential interpretation of the event of the death of the old woman in the work "The Third Son". Andrei Platonov is a great master not only of words, but of philosophical thought.

Contrast of life and death in the work "The Third Son"

Surprising deal, but first, even if the deceased is in the house, the sensation of tragedy is conveyed only by the unique language of Platonov, the sons do not feel it. For them, death is part of life. But when the third brother loses consciousness, the others understand that death is irreversibility, something quite different than life. This discovery, of course, frightens the heroes (and with them and the reader). Thoroughly conveyed the sense of a tragic gap between the life and death of the Platons. Andrei Platonov "The Third Son" built on the contrast between the standard of life and the irreversibility and abnormality of death. This work of the Russian classic is worth reading. In addition, it is perfect for first acquaintance with the work of A.P. Platonov.