Papers by Mikhail Martynov
Slovo.ru: Baltic accent, 2024
In contemporary critical literature, there are various perspectives on the relationship between ... more In contemporary critical literature, there are various perspectives on the relationship between the political and the poetic. Some view poetry as a form of politics, encapsulated in the aphorism ‘the word is a weapon’, while others argue that politics itself should embody the qualities of poetry, as suggested by Andy Merrifield's assertion that "politics should be like poetry." This article seeks to explore the poetic dimensions that underpin the political necessity for poetry, namely, the attributes of poetry that establish a connection with the political sphere. The focus of this exploration is the concept of poetic defamiliarization and its interaction with the political within Jacques Rancière's theoretical framework. Rancière posits that the political function of poetry, and art more broadly, lies in its ability to disrupt the established order of sensory perception, challenging the prevailing system of unquestioned perceptual facts. This disruptive quality of poetry contrasts with what has been termed "police aesthetics" by Vatulescu, which reflects the conformity and uniformity inherent in consumer society. The article contends that, within the contemporary cultural landscape, the transformative potential of poetic expression risks being co-opted by aestheticizing practices prevalent in consumer culture. As a result, the subversive nature of poetic utterance is somewhat diluted, as it becomes assimilated into commodifying forces. However, the article also suggests that poetry retains the capacity to resist such commodification by transcending the limitations imposed by conventional boundaries, thereby offering a means of resisting capture by commercial interests.
Topos, 2020
This article analyzes the problem of creation and functioning of an anarchist community, which in... more This article analyzes the problem of creation and functioning of an anarchist community, which in its basis unites opposite values of individual autonomy and social necessity. The study is based on the thesis that nomadism (the idea of free movement) is more important for the successful realization of an anarchist ideal than the notion of place and territorial integrity. The connection between anarchist values of individual and collective is defined in the work by the concept of “idiorrhythmy” (Roland Barthes). The study of nomadic experience is largely based on the evidence of Ken Kesey and Merry Pranksters traveling on the Furthur bus through America in the summer of 1964 — from the West (La Honda) to the East (New York) and back. Analyzing the circumstances of this trip, the author concludes that the possibility of “idiorrhythmy” in anarchism is connected to the ideology’s criticism of the mythological principles of space and the formation of special relations between the part and the whole.
Критика и семиотика / Critique and Semiotics, 2020
The name of Egor Letov (1964–2008), one of the most famous Russian punks today, has a stable asso... more The name of Egor Letov (1964–2008), one of the most famous Russian punks today, has a stable association with anarchism in the mass consciousness, with a protest against any form of power. Some of Letov’s texts and phrases (for example, “Kill the state in yourself!”) have acquired the character of precedent – they are identified and function as anarchist texts without necessarily referring to the original source. At the same time, there are elements in Letov’s works that are difficult to reconcile with an anarchist worldview, and in general, Letov’s anarchism is not obvious. For example, the theme of death, which is one of the key themes in Letov’s works, is hardly associated with anarchism, which takes the side of life. The main purpose of the article is to clarify Letov’s attitude to anarchism, to show the role and place of the anarchist worldview in his works. The author concludes that Letov’s works is either not anarchist enough (a turn towards nationalist views) or, on the contrary, too anarchist (a form of total protest). This situation is conditioned by structural peculiarities of anarchist theory. Classical anarchism has a Manichaean structure (S. Newman), as subject and power in it are clearly separated. Letov’s creativity is not anarchist in this Manichaean sense, which requires unambiguity and clarity of its elements. Despite the evasion of Manichaean binaryism, Letov’s texts are able to keep the link with anarchism. Letov’s anarchism has broader grounds and expresses a total protest against reality, which condenses freedom into a conventional communication framework, makes it predictable, and protects it from waste.
В массовом сознании имя Егора Летова (1964–2008), одного из самых известных российских панков, имеет устойчивую ассоциацию с анархизмом. Отдельные его тексты и высказывания, например «Убей в себе государство!», приобрели характер прецедентных, – они опознаются и функционируют как анархистские без обязательной отсылки к первоисточнику. Вместе с тем в творчестве Летова встречаются элементы, которые непросто согласовать с анархистским мировоззрением, что делает летовский анархизм не таким очевидным. Например, многократно появляющаяся в текстах тема смерти с трудом согласуется с классическим анархизмом, который подчеркивает ценность жизни, а не смерти. Автор ставит перед собой цель уточнить отношение Летова к анархизму, показать роль и место анархистского мировоззрения в его творчестве.
By analyzing the characteristics of contemporary avant-garde artistic practices that employ the s... more By analyzing the characteristics of contemporary avant-garde artistic practices that employ the street space of contemporary cities as their medium, this article theorizes that the current system of urban video surveillance transforms the visual parameters of the street, making it more transparent and permeable to the view. Thus, city streets lose the quality of anonymity that was originally described and interpreted by many 20th century sociologists and philosophers. The very disappearance of these unobservable zones creates the condition out of which avant-garde artists interest emerges in the search for inactive urban areas (“non-places”) that accumulate anonymity.
Slovo.ru: baltijskij accent, 2017
The subject of this paper is the semantics of the colour black in anarchism. The author analyses ... more The subject of this paper is the semantics of the colour black in anarchism. The author analyses the sociocultural and ontological aspects of the colour black as a symbol of anarchist criticism of power and the state. The anarchist black colour is counterposed to the white colour — a symbol of power in many cultures. The author shows that the idea of destruction, which the black colour of anarchy manifests, is correlated with the anthropological universals of visual experience. This idea is connected with the prototypical root of the colour black — the night, which is associated with chaos across many cultures. The protest semantics of the colour black is increasingly used in contemporary art activism. The author considers examples demonstrating that the colour black is used to criticise political representation and the anonymity of power. The primary focus is on the artistic practices of blackout (painting over/blocking out in black ink), which are interpreted in the context of the criticism of the political idea of transparency. In conclusion, the opacity of the black and white colours is compared. It is shown that the colour black can serve as a tool to create a radical semantic gap.
Ключевые слова: анархизм, отрицание, русская языковая картина мира, Бакунин, Кропоткин
This article analyzes the characteristics of discursive interactions underlying the genesis of an... more This article analyzes the characteristics of discursive interactions underlying the genesis of anarchist symbols, arguing that the origin of the symbol “circle-A” is related to the process of active interaction between the avantgarde and anarchist discourse, neither of which functions as a dominant. The author identifies several important contexts of interaction, including the symbolism of the triangle (A) and circle (O) that make up the anarchist symbol “circle-A”. Following E. Kozlov’s viewpoint that a triangle-wedge crashing into a circle symbolically expresses the idea of a revolutionary in the avant-garde, the author shows that “circle-A” is also one of the central images of avant-garde art in the 20th century. The triangle and the circle became widespread after they were pictured artist El Lissitzky’s poster (“Beat the Whites with the Red Wedge”, 1920). The author analyzes the pan-anarchist concept of a universal language called AO, which was developed by the Gordin brothers in the early 1920s (“Grammar of the Language of the Mankind. Translated from AO”, 1920) and shows that the image of the language AO was formed under the influence of the avant-garde poetry of Velimir Khlebnikov. At the same time, the name of the language is graphically reminiscent of the anarchist symbol “circle-A” – AO looks like A outside the circle. The author also addresses the analysis of the functioning of the letter A in lettrism, which is closely associated with the avant-garde and anarchism. In addition, the author examines the creativity of Isidore Isou in order to relate the idea of incompleteness in lettrism signs to the variability of the anarchist symbol “circle-A”. The author rejects the widespread understanding of the symbol “circle-A” as a monogram composed of the initial letters of the word “anarchy” and “order” (“Anarchy is the mother of Order”) – monogram principle is not true for all languages – and, instead, hypothesizes that “circle-A” is primarily related to the concept of “chaos”. First, the word “chaos” is held to be a necessary anarchist neighbor of the letters A and O in all major European languages (CHAOS, ХАОС, CAOS, KAOS, etc.). Second, the triangle-wedge (A) crashing into a circle (O) and splitting it expresses the idea of the gap between the old world and the new; this corresponds to the etymology of the Greek word “chaos”, which is associated with the words “chasm, gape, etc.”
Redakcja informuje, że wersją pierwotną czasopisma jest wydanie papierowe.
The paper considers the philosophical aspects of repetition in Gennadii Aigi's poetic texts. The ... more The paper considers the philosophical aspects of repetition in Gennadii Aigi's poetic texts. The author concludes that repetition in Aigi's works is of a non-numerical nature. Unlike the quantitative parameters of repetition, their non-numerical ability to correspond to the entire poetic text is of major importance. In this regard, repetition manifests itself as a structure that reminds a fractal. The cornerstone of Aigi's repetitions is a cyclic model of time that is impossible to describe in terms of evolution and memory. Repetitions accumulate nothing: topics and ideas do not grow from each other, but rather grow into each other forming the general poetic unity. Repetitions in Aigi's poetry constitute a non-communicative phenomenon that is not associated with imitation and mimesis.
Books by Mikhail Martynov
В книге на материале русскоязычных поэтических текстов рассматривается вопрос об анархистских осн... more В книге на материале русскоязычных поэтических текстов рассматривается вопрос об анархистских основаниях поэтического творчества. Раскрываются наиболее существенные моменты в истории взаимоотношений между анархизмом и поэтическим авангардом. С различных теоретических позиций показывается, каким образом принципы и ценности анархистского мировоззрения соприкасаются с принципами организации поэтического языка. Исследуются особенности поэтического акционизма. Отдельные главы посвящены изучению творчества Егора Летова и группировки «Ленинград», а также анализу поэтического блэкаута (blackout poetry), в практиках которого актуализируется протестная семантика черного цвета, являющегося одним из важнейших анархистских символов.
https://www.peterlang.com/document/1137178
Uploads
Papers by Mikhail Martynov
В массовом сознании имя Егора Летова (1964–2008), одного из самых известных российских панков, имеет устойчивую ассоциацию с анархизмом. Отдельные его тексты и высказывания, например «Убей в себе государство!», приобрели характер прецедентных, – они опознаются и функционируют как анархистские без обязательной отсылки к первоисточнику. Вместе с тем в творчестве Летова встречаются элементы, которые непросто согласовать с анархистским мировоззрением, что делает летовский анархизм не таким очевидным. Например, многократно появляющаяся в текстах тема смерти с трудом согласуется с классическим анархизмом, который подчеркивает ценность жизни, а не смерти. Автор ставит перед собой цель уточнить отношение Летова к анархизму, показать роль и место анархистского мировоззрения в его творчестве.
Books by Mikhail Martynov
https://www.peterlang.com/document/1137178
В массовом сознании имя Егора Летова (1964–2008), одного из самых известных российских панков, имеет устойчивую ассоциацию с анархизмом. Отдельные его тексты и высказывания, например «Убей в себе государство!», приобрели характер прецедентных, – они опознаются и функционируют как анархистские без обязательной отсылки к первоисточнику. Вместе с тем в творчестве Летова встречаются элементы, которые непросто согласовать с анархистским мировоззрением, что делает летовский анархизм не таким очевидным. Например, многократно появляющаяся в текстах тема смерти с трудом согласуется с классическим анархизмом, который подчеркивает ценность жизни, а не смерти. Автор ставит перед собой цель уточнить отношение Летова к анархизму, показать роль и место анархистского мировоззрения в его творчестве.
https://www.peterlang.com/document/1137178