Border consciousness in the fictional worlds of Andreï Makine

This article examines the work of the bilingual writer Andreï Makine, in particular his use of Russian literary allusions and motifs. Makine writes in French, and consistently embeds Russia literary and linguistic realia in his texts. In his depiction of the War, rural life and in his portrayal of women, Makine self-consciously references themes and imagery from Soviet war prose and village prose, the work of Soviet writers such as Andrei Platonov and Iurii Trifonov, as well as the work of classical writers such as Fedor Dostoevskii and Anton Chekhov. Far from contrasting French and Russian culture, Makine embeds Russian literary allusions within his French language texts, thus enriching modern French culture.