Utopian Studies

abstract:

This article analyzes the vision of an electrified utopia in Soviet Russia in the 1920s and its depiction in Andrei Platonov's related works. While focusing on Platonov's Technical Novel, the article compares his other works, mainly "The Homeland of Electricity" and "Lenin's Little Lamp" briefly, on how they depict electrification and technology. The problems of money and the lack of material resources are important topics in all three works, and the article discusses the different ways in which Platonov presents these problems in each work. In relation to the topic of money and costs, the article analyzes how the Soviet reality of the early 1920s is reflected in the works. The main argument is that among Platonov's several "electrification stories," Technical Novel is the only one that presents a broader perspective concerning the entire country and the building of a better society.