On the page and on the snow: Vladimir Makanin's 'Andergraund ili Geroi nashego vremeni'

The article presents an analysis of Makanin's novel (1997), concentrating o n the use of setting as a structural formant, the range and categories of s econdary characters, and the representation of drinking and sex. The hero o f the novel is then analysed, using gender as a primary category. As an unr epentant murderer, he is held to represent the endgame of the Russian super fluous man, a failed writer who has deliberately renounced his creative mis sion.