"DPP (NN) (collection)" by Victor Pelevin, summary

A collection of short stories and novellas by a Russian writer captures the absurdity of business and spiritual life in the era of early capitalism. Published in 2003, the book’s title describes the magic of numbers that governs the financial flows of a vast country. This magic operates through the neuroses of leaders who convert their superstitions into business schemes. The collection captures the state of mind of the elite, caught between gangster notions and Western consumerism.

The work received high praise from the literary community. In 2003, the author was awarded the Apollon Grigoriev Prize. A year later, the collection won the prestigious National Bestseller award.

Elegy and Numbers

The text opens with the poem "Elegy 2." The lyrical hero coldly reflects on the emptiness of existence and the meaninglessness of shifting historical scenes. It follows the collection’s central novel, entitled "Numbers."

The novel’s protagonist, Styopa Mikhailov, has been obsessed with numbers since childhood. He chooses the number 34 as his patron. This combination of numbers brings him good luck. Styopa’s enemy is the number 43, which brings misfortune. This choice of numbers influences the hero’s entire life. Styopa becomes a banker, opening a commercial bank called "Sunbank." Styopa builds his business plans around the appearance of sacred numbers in contracts, dates, and quotes. This belief protects him from stress.

Styopa works under the protection of the Chechen brothers Isa and Musa. The brothers are radical Muslims. During a meeting at the Japanese restaurant "Yakitoriya," the brothers are killed by the bullets of state security captain Lebedkin. Lebedkin takes the bank under his strict guardianship. Later, Styopa meets the British folklore researcher Myus. Myus becomes his lover and a bank assistant. She is fascinated by toy Pokémon and secretly worships the number 66. Styopa and Myus’s romance is full of strange rituals.

Styopa learns of a powerful competitor. This is Georgy Srakandaev, the head of Delta Credit. Srakandaev builds his life around the number 43. Styopa decides that Srakandaev is his mystical enemy. He plots to kill his competitor. His weapon of choice is an Eastern souvenir — a plastic lingam converted into a firing device. Styopa tracks Srakandaev to the Perekrestok nightclub and breaks into his office.

In his office, Srakandaev uses drugs. He forces Styopa to do the same. Due to his drug intoxication, Styopa loses control of the situation. Srakandaev rapes Styopa, imagining himself as an animal. After this incident, Styopa learns of the theft of her money — $35 million has disappeared without a trace. The transfer was secretly arranged by Myus. She leaves a hurtful farewell note and breaks off the relationship. The stolen funds end up in Srakandaev’s offshore companies.

Lebedkin refuses to help Styopa. The captain demands immediate repayment of the corporate debts. Styopa calls Srakandayev, hoping to negotiate a high-interest rate for repayment. Srakandayev agrees to help, but that same day, he shoots himself in his own office. Styopa is left completely bankrupt, surrounded by creditors and enemies. The hero throws his cell phone into the snow and walks to the highway. He heads to Sheremetyevo-2 Airport.

Macedonian criticism of French thought

The next text is the novella "Macedonian Critique of French Thought." The protagonist, Nasyh Nafikov, goes by the nickname Kika. He inherits a vast fortune after the death of his father, an oil worker. Kika receives a philosophy degree from the European Sorbonne. He writes a treatise, cruelly ridiculing French thinkers. Jean Baudrillard and Jacques Derrida come under fire. Kika detests their philosophical ideas, considering French thought to be intellectually hollow.

Kika later developed the "human oil" theory. According to his logic, the vital energy of Soviet citizens flowed to the West after the country’s collapse. It took the form of exported capital. To save Europe from the infernal retribution of dead souls, Kika organizes a reverse process. He rents an abandoned factory near Paris. Inside, he sets up a secret workshop where he tortures hired volunteers.

People are tied to the floor and forced to read French philosophy. A computer delivers stinging blows with a cane. The program synchronizes the blows with bank transactions. For each blow, 368 euros are sent to Russia. Interpol quickly discovers the factory. The police free the captives. Kika manages to escape in an unknown direction. The text concludes with the criminal’s reflections on the nature of Western capital and human suffering.

One wog and Akiko

The story "One Vogue" takes place in the women’s restroom of an upscale restaurant. Two young women compare their designer clothes. They measure their personal success by the luxury of fashion. The arrival of a more prestigious rival, Myus, shatters their self-confidence. All the glamour of consumerism pales in comparison to the harsh reality of the elite. There, status is determined by the expensive make of a wealthy sponsor’s car.

The story "Akiko" is written in the form of monologues from the interface of a pornographic website. A user named "QWERTY" accesses a Japanese-themed website. A virtual geisha, Akiko, asks for payment for initial access. The user enters confidential credit card information. Gradually, innocent cyber games escalate into brutal financial blackmail.

The site pushes expensive automatic subscriptions on the user. When QWERTY tries to protest, Akiko’s tone changes abruptly. From a submissive girl, she transforms into a state security investigator fighting cybercrime. Akiko reveals the user’s exact IP address. She hurls accusations of extremism: "Do you think we don’t understand what kind of QWERTY you are?" The virtual trap snaps shut. The hero is forced to silently obey the police’s absurd orders.

Focus group

In the story "Focus Group," seven souls of the dead enter the afterlife. They sit before an entity called the "Luminous Being." The being invites them to design an ideal personal paradise. The souls discuss their earthly physical passions. One woman wants to constantly iron curtains, while a man recalls donuts with powdered sugar. Later, the souls realize the limitations of their fantasies. Any human pleasure will quickly become boring in eternity.

The Luminous Being shows them an illusory machine called the "Globotron." The device is supposedly capable of generating infinite happiness through direct brain stimulation. The souls approach the device one by one. As soon as they touch the metal contacts, their personalities are instantly annihilated. The Luminous Being cynically bids the souls farewell: "You will evaporate on your own, without any help." The last young man standing realizes the monstrous deception. Tormented by excruciating pain in his illusory body, he rushes toward the device. The Being dissolves into an endless desert filled with similar hellish machines.

The Lives of Remarkable People and a Record of Searching for Wind

The text "Guest at the Bon Feast" describes the final moments of a Japanese warrior. The hero spent his entire life searching for perfect beauty. He found it in the pages of the ancient Hagakure. The samurai draws a stark conclusion about human nature: supreme beauty is tantamount to physical death. He calmly commits ritual suicide with his sword.

As he cuts open his stomach, the hero recalls his distant childhood. He understands one thing: people are like clockwork dolls, manipulated by an invisible, merciless puppet master. The samurai realizes the futility of his rebellion. You can’t kill a doll. You can only stop playing with a doll. The dying hero’s final thought softly merges with the absolute void as another sword cuts off his head.

The collection concludes with a pastiche of an ancient Chinese treatise, "A Record of Wind Search." An unnamed writer writes a respectful letter to the philosopher Jiang Zi-ya. The author recalls their long-ago conversation in the Yellow Mountains, under the influence of narcotic powders. The writer was then attempting to create a literary narrative about the Great Journey.

In the process of writing, the writer suffers a crushing defeat. He realizes the utter impotence of language. Words are mere finger shadows on a blank wall. The highest truth is formless. Attempting to describe the Path in words instantly destroys the very essence of the Path. The author admits defeat before infinity. The true text about the Path is a ream of blank, unwritten paper. The entire material world is illusory. Human consciousness is like a feeble blade of grass, bending under the blows of an invisible wind.