Two editions of Ivan Efremov's novel “A razor's edge”

The novel “A razor’s edge” written by the famous Soviet writer I. A. Efremov had two editions issued in 1963 and in 1964. The majority of subsequent editions, including both of the complete works (1988 and 1992), are guided by the edition of 1964. This article is focused on the comparison of these editions, identification, and systematization of their different interpretations. The research revealed 153 alterations of the author’s original text. The identified changes in spelling and punctuation are viewed as insignificant. The most interesting changes are associated with censorship editing, which addressed such issues as genders’ relations, references to Stalin’s repressions, and data on the weaponry and chemical substances’ proliferation. All changes were classified into 12 groups, including one unnoticed typographical error, which appeared in the second edition. The above mentioned classified groups were studied; all provided examples of the author's and editorial editing were analyzed; the possible motives for these changes were also investigated.