Seminar on Russian Culture (1998)

     This is the culture of the Russian people as seen through a millenium (tysiachiletie), with comparison to their religious history. Russian people have been proud of themselves for the longstanding vitality and cultural heritage of their nation. Without mentioning Slavic prehistory, Russia itself towers above other world cultures the world with its valuable cultural creativity. Russian history originally begins with its Christianization, which was introduced via Byzantium in 988. The Russian people celebrated the year of 1988 as ten hundred years since they accepted Christianity. In fact, their national pride can be traced to this turning point. Russian culture, which is a reflection of what Russian people have lived, is based on the depth and longevity of its history.

     In this book I have attempted to show the overall contour of Russian cultural history on the basis of three categories: “traditional Russian everyday life,” “Russian religious culture” and “the role and image of women in Russian culture.” These three axes inseparable offer the following problems: “who are the Russian people?” and “how have they been living?,” in a literal sense. It goes without saying that we cannot understand Russian culture until we penetrate the inner world of what Russian people have managed to do. Therefore, the reader will gain a deeper understanding when he reaches the end of the book. For these reasons, I have decided to translate various interesting articles. Even though the articles were written in different periods, they all point out a basic idea permeating Russian culture. As for the organization of the contents, it is arranged chronologically: from the past to the present. This will help the reader to grasp the historical development of thought on this topic.

     The first chapter, “traditional Russian everyday life,” mainly deals with the basic surroundings such as natural environments and everyday life. They consist of ways of living, family structure and rich customs in connection with birth, marriage, death, etc. the so-called rite of passage is introduced in this chapter, which in fact makes the foundation not only in understanding Russian culture but also in the framework of the book. As George Fedotov puts it in his Russian Religious Mind, “the Russian peasant had been living in the Middle Ages through the nineteenth century.” Along with this statement, the reader will come to grips with the harshness of the peasants’ life. At the same time, the reader is presented with the other side of their life, how they became masters of nature and how they lived in harmony with nature.

     The second chapter “Russian religious culture” goes further into the inner core of the peasants’ mentality. To begin with, “The Religious Background of Russian Culture” (George Fedotov) succinctly presents us with the characteristics of the Russian mind with respect to religion. Significantly, he shows how the opposition between barbarism and piety coexisted. In his brief article, Sergei Zenkovsky examines one of the most important concepts, ‘Sobornost’, ’ in which Russianness finds its fullest spirituality and philosophical background. Further, Donald Tredgold, who places an emphasis on the Schism, handles the problems of struggle between the holy and the secular originated from the Nikon’s Church Reform in 17th century.

     On the other hand, one must not overlook the fact that the peasants, the majority of Russian people through Russian history, believed in their pagan gods and spirits. To the extent that the peasants firmly trusted the power of the supernatural believed to may have affected their whole life. The concept of double faith (dvoeverie), therefore, cannot be separate from belief in Christianity. This is one of the very contradictory elements throughout Russian culture. The aspiration for the sacred and the creative corresponds to the opposite feature of the ‘deconstructive’ and the ‘iconoclastic’ elements in Russian culture. The philosophical root that brought about October Revolution comes from this way of thinking, put to practice in the lives of the Russian people.

     The third chapter “the role and image of women in Russian culture” gives the reader an opportunity to look into the other side hidden in the strict patriarchal tradition: the destiny of women in Russian history. Unlike the positive image of Russian women deeply ingrained in Russian literature, George Siegel’s insightful view explores the fallen women who have become an object for salvation. In an attempt to represent the possibility of resurrection, he traces various women characters from Gogol’s prostitute to Dostoevsky’s Sonia. The fate of those fallen women, therefore, paradoxically leads the reader to the understanding of despotic Russian society. However, the fallen women win over the spiritually hungry, so to speak, patriarchal culture itself. In this way women’s character plays an important role in that it is the potential power of salvation as well as the catalyst that must be in charge of the whole fate of Russian society.

     Masha, represented as a typical housewife in Moscow, is nothing but a symbolic woman. The chores of what she has to do are the same that of the traditional peasant women. At first glance, their social positions are quite low; even they are neglected by the patriarchal heads of the family. A day in the life of Masha seems to be endless. She cannot help going through all manner of the dark side of society as is Moscow today. One can predict the future of Russia as seen through whole cultural history. The main hero who will take the role should be the potential woman as represented in Masha’s character.

     This book is designed to introduce various sides of Russian culture from the past to the present. The study of Russia and its cultural heritage is in its early stage in Korea. It has been only ten years since academic research on Russia began. In spite of having talented specialists on Russia in many disciplines, there were some difficulties understanding Russia. First of all, we have been oriented toward the international relationship between two countries. Second, comprehensive studies of Russia were rare, as a result of which there has been an inclination to concentrate on political science and literature. For these reasons the translator have decided to select those materials not well known to public.

     The book titled Seminar on Russian Culture (September, 1998) is a fruitful result of what I have employed to try to understand the overall contour of Russian culture. With the help from my adviser and colleagues at my alma mater in Korea I have organized the contents and basic framework of the book. Basically, the book is composed of three chapters and twelve translated articles: “Traditional Russian Everyday Life,” ”Russian Religious Culture” and ”The Role and Image of Women in Russian Culture.” The authors of each article are as follows;

• Mary Metossian, “The Russian Way of Life.” (1968)
• N. S. Arseniev, “Traditional Russian Family.” (1968)
• Christian D. Worobec, “The Culture of Patriarch.” (1991)
• George P. Fedotov, “Religious Background of Russian Culture.” (1943)
• Vasily Zenkovsky, “The Spirit of Russian Orthodoxy.” (1963)
• E. O. Bondarenko, “Religious Calendar of Christian Rus’.” (1993)
• Donald Tredgold, “The Peasant and Religion.” (1968)
• Moshe Lewin, “Popular Religion in Twentieth-Century Russia.” (1990)
• Anthony Netting, “Images and Ideas in Russian Peasant Art.” (1990)
• Dorothy Atkinson, ”Society and Sexes in the Russian Past.” (1977)
• George Siegel, “The Fallen Woman in Nineteenth Century Russian Literature.” (1970)
• Galina Dutkina, “The Russian Woman.” (1996)