Panmongolism and wordplay: An approach to the problem of laughter in Vladimir Solovʹev’s oeuvre

The article focuses on the problem of laughter in the intellectual and literary experiences of Vladimir Solovʹev. His peculiar sense of humour is represented in small talk, in his lectures, in his journalistic publications, in his literary parodies, in his lyrical poetry, and in his philosophical works. The problem of laughter as a specific component of Vladimir Solovʹev’s creative legacy was formulated by Aleksej Losev. This article is an attempt at elaborating a preliminary approach to the problem. Vladimir Solovʹev’s humour is understood here as an essential experience inextricably linked to his intellectual individuality. In particular, in this article the play of words is studied on all the levels of his philosophical and literary activities. Vladimir Solovʹev permanently made puns, intentional slips of the tongue and neologisms. Manipulations of language seemed to him a necessary element of philosophy and literature. Even in his late works on Panmongolism, he uses wordplay as a component and form of thought. By demonstrating that his philosophical statements are tightly linked to his peculiar humour, we open a possibility for further research of his works.

The article is written in Russian.