A MYSTERY PLAY ABOUT THE ABSURD MAN: GOD MAY BE AROUND BY ALEKSANDR VVEDENSKII

This paper examines the dramatic text God May Be Around by Aleksandr Vvedenskii, which is viewed through the prism of the medieval mystery play. The structure of the text and the main motifs of the play are analyzed, and they reveal to us that this is a new type of the eschatological mystery play, created as a response to the apocalyptic changes in society after the Bolshevik Revolution. The categories of time and death are interpreted against the background of the Soviet reforms of the 1920s (calendar, religion), which brought about a feeling of instability and disintegration of the world. (c) 2022 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Automated summary

This paper examines the dramatic text God May Be Around by Aleksandr Vvedenskii, which is analyzed through the lens of the medieval mystery play. The structure of the text and the main motifs of the play are explored to reveal it as a new type of eschatological mystery play, responding to the apocalyptic changes in society after the Bolshevik Revolution. The categories of time and death are interpreted in relation to the Soviet reforms of the 1920s, which brought about a sense of instability and disintegration of the world.