Release:
2026. Vol. 12. № 1 (45)About the author:
Kirill V. Kamensky, Postgraduate Student, Department of Literature, University of Kursk, Kursk, Russia; State Forensic Expert, Kursk Laboratory of Forensic Expertise of the Ministry of Justice of Russia, Kursk, Russia; deconstruction@internet.ru, https://orcid.org/0009-0007-3354-5233, https://elibrary.ru/author_profile.asp?authorid=1167568Abstract:
While mathematical imagery in Velimir Khlebnikov’s poetics has often been noted, it has rarely been studied systematically. This article addresses this gap by offering a poetological analysis of philosophical-mathematical images as key elements of the poet’s idiolect. Tracing their evolution from the binary oppositions of “yes-” and “no-numbers” to the complex concept of “imaginariness,” the study reveals their semantics and artistic functions. “Yes-/no-numbers” are interpreted as tools of historiosophical discourse and a critique of human irresponsibility, while “imaginariness” becomes a means of expressing existential states, creative imagination, and the conflict between the individual and society. Through textual and archival analysis, the connection between numerical images and the entomological motif of the butterfly is demonstrated. Ultimately, philosophical-mathematical imagery emerges as the foundation of Khlebnikov’s unique model of artistic thinking, which synthesizes scientific, philosophical, and poetic worldviews.Keywords:
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