Cross-Cultural Blog

Russian culture

I am Ekaterina Vlasenko, a freshman in the Academy of Economics and Law, majoring in International Accounting.

I hope you know that contemporary life in Russia has very little to do with playing the balalaika amidst matrioshkas and samovars, or wild rushing in sleighs driven by troika (three horses harnessed abreast) along the streets where bears supposedly wander. All these stories are just myths for naive tourists. Don’t believe them. But many things about Russia still remain unknown, such as our mentality, our attitude to religion and family, our manners, facial expressions, gestures and behavior in different situations and so on. For example, people from other cultures don’t understand why we cry when we are happy and why we smile when something is wrong. In my essay, I’ll try to cover some popular stereotypes about Russian culture and to offer my vision of these problems.

- Many stereotypes are connected with Russian vodka. Much is told about Russians drinking hard. People from other countries seem to think that most of Russians have been drinking vodka from birth

This stereotype is really offensive. And it really hurts. Such a steteotype forms a wrong image of our country. Although the level of consumption alcohol in Russia is one of the highest in the world, various steps in order to fight with the problem are being taken. As in every country, alchogolism has been desperately disapproved in our country. New clinics of treating alcoholism anonimously appeared, the number of comercials and advertisments of alkohol drinks has been cut down. Struggle against alkoholism has also a strict legislative basis. The fines for drinking alcohol in public places have been increased, selling spirits at night has been prohibited. As a result, the consumption of alkohol in Russia decreased 20 percent and the length of life increased 3 times during the last 20 years.

- Another popular stereotype is about our religion. Some people think that Russians are very pious. Others find Russians extremelly superstitious

Russia is a multinational and multiconfessional country. Although Orthodoxy is our State religion, contemporary Russia contains more than 68 religious streams and each of them more or less influences the lifestyles of Russians. Religion has always played a special role in Russian life. The statistics shows that nowadays about 90 percent of all Russians are religious. But at the same time I can’t say that religion plays as important role in our everyday life as it probably played many years ago. We have a proverb about religion: “Everyone is a believer in hard times”. As for our attitude to superstitions, it seems to be inborn. Many psychologists hold that Russians have a special sense of intuition and premonition but I am inclined to believe that its just an influence of our pagan past. About 45 percent of Russians still continue to believe in signs, tokens and supernatural strength. Pagan times of our history greatly affected Russian lifestyle and futher development of our culture. And now these two interexcluding religions co-exist in Russian society.

- A lot of stereotypes are connected with mimicry and gesticulation of Russian people. What shocks tourists most of all in Russia is that Russians seldom smile. From the first sight Russians seem very unfriendly and gloomy. And many people think that we are deeply unhappy and depressed

This is the main cause of “cultural shock” for all tourists from abroad. This really makes tourists feel uncomfortable and upset in our country. But after some days of living and communicating with Russians most visitors understand that this is just the feature of our character and our mentality. Smile is a culturally loaded phenomenon. Different cultures have different attitude to smiles, facial expressions and body language. For European cultures as well as for Americans, a smile is an expression of one’s politeness. A smile for Russians is something very intimate. It is a sign that a person likes to see another person, usually a close and a well known one, for example a friend or a relative. Russians perceive smile as a personal favour towards someone they know. We don’t usually smile to strangers as it can be misunderstood.

But when Russians get to know you, they will smile broadly and willingly, like in these pictures.

Like probably in every culture, a smile here is a natural reaction on positive impressions. It’s a reflection of your good mood and happiness that you want other people to see and appreciate. It’s the most effective method to raise the spirits of people. So I am convinced that we need to “learn to smile” in order not to offend our visitors but to bestow a smile upon everyone.

Relationships between people in Russia

I am Marianna Sidorenko, a sophomore in the Academy of Economics and Law, majoring in International Business.

I consider that understanding social relationships in a country is very critical to establish good connections with people. If people know more about peculiar attitudes and behaviors of each other, this will serve well for collaboration and friendly relationships among the nations on the planet. On the contrary, misunderstanding in different spheres of life is often caused by tense relationships and inability to be tolerant to the cultural diversity, represented by different social attitudes. My essay is aimed at shedding more light on how relationships in Russia are culturally loaded:

- Relationships between people and the government:

People here in Russia don’t trust their government very much; they don’t rely on it either. What is new, though, that people can voice their dissatisfaction with the policy or some undertaken measures in hope they are heard, and some measures to improve the situation are taken. People in Russia used to be more passive and apathetic, now they are getting more and more initiative and courage to voice their criticism and willingness to improve things.

- Relationships between people of different ages:

Russia is a relationship oriented country. Children are taught from the very childhood that they must help the elderly. For example if an elderly gets on the bus and all the sit are occupied, it’s common to concede her/him a sitting place. What is more, it’s rather common to help a senior citizen (even if you don’t know him/her) to cross the road or to carry a bag

- Relationships between family members:

Russians usually start family at 22-25 years. Men sometimes get married a little later. Many couples start a family later. Father is considered to be the head of the family, however many women have actually more power than men in families nowadays. Women work as much as men do, but they also manage to raise children, to maintain cleanliness and coziness in the house, and take care of their husbands. Grandmothers often help to raise the children. There is also a joke in Russia, that a man dislikes his mother-in-law. Actually, it is a kind of a stereotype; however, such situation does occur in a number of families.

- Relationships between the people, who are dating:

Usually it is the boy who initiates the relationships. He may invite a girl to the movies or to the café. As a rule, he pays for a girl; however it is getting pretty common to go Dutch. Also, it is considered to be very polite to open the door in front of the girl and let her enter the first. After the date he should walk her home or give her a ride.

- Relationships between the colleagues:

Russian people are collectivistic more than individualistic, so they tend to solve their problems as a group, however since the beginning of a new century there is a trend among the younger generation to becoming more independent, thus individual. Typically, people are loyal to the institution they work for and have very warm relationships; they spend much time together after job, celebrate different holydays, and help each other

- Relationships between people, who don’t know each other:

Russian people often treat associates with some sort of caution. They aren’t used to trusting strangers. They may help you to find your way or to show the bus stop, however don’t be surprised if a Russian doesn’t smile at you very often. Russians don’t smile to strangers very much. That absolutely doesn’t mean that they treat you badly. The function of a smile here is not being polite but recognizing someone one knows and likes to see. Sometimes a smile may mean the sign of flirt.

- Relationships between friends:

Russians value friendship very much. There is a proverb: “It’s better to have one friend for a long time, than two new ones”. So, usually friends from high school or university become friends for the whole lifetime. Russians are always ready to help their close friends. They are interdependent and often ready to sacrifice their own interests in favor of their friends. In addition, they don’t require any gratitude in exchange. A good friend is considered the one who will not only help in a difficult situation, but also will sincerely share his/her friend’s happiness. Friends can come without any invitation; they are welcome any time.

To summarize, Russian culture is very collectivistic and relationship oriented, so this determines human attitudes and behaviors to a large extent. Although, culture is dynamic and changing. Also, some sort of generalization is unavoidable, when we try to characterize national cultural behavior; still I consider this kind of research on people relationships very critical to raise cultural awareness about each other

Russian politics

I am Ksenya Pekar, a sophomore in the Academy of Economics and Law, majoring in International Economy

Since the collapse of the Soviet Union, the foreign media is overarching, if unspoken, perception of Russia and Eastern Europe as if this region doesn’t matter much any longer. Though some countries still see Russia as a dangerous enemy, most mainstream media appears to have lost interest in what truly is happening there, except for occasional sensational events. As a result, in my understanding, there is inadequate awareness of the fascinating cultural, political and economic developments taking place in today’s Russia. Relying on old cold war stereotypes results in ignoring Russia’s modern history and in lack of adequate understanding of certain events.

Reading international newspapers, I often think: “Stop! There is something confusing about this or that information!”. That is why I decided to attempt to interpret some political events from my own perspective, and to contribute to breaking rigid assumptions often provided by media.

- First of all, I would like to speak about our Ex-President Vladimir Putin. Many people are curious about our perception of this leader

“He has beaten all his adversaries: independent media, oligarchs, regional governors, communists, liberal parties, the parliament as such and even the government apparatus. The power they once wielded is being seized by Mr Putin’s KGB friends... the KGB men move into the commanding heights of the economy…”

This extract is taken from the article “Putin’s Quest for Power is harming Russia” by Anders Aslund, Financial Times; august 23, 2004. It reveals that Putin is a former KGB agent who is suppressing opposition and accumulating power. But I would like to say, that like many others in the Russian elite, Putin was once a KGB officer. The KGB, however, no longer exists. By the early 1980s, the organization had been almost completely transformed. Yes, it is associated with many bad deeds in the history of our country. But, one good thing KGB became known for is that it used to hire bright, capable young people to serve there. I think Putin was one of such a bright candidate and it served him well to have this kind of education and experience. For example, he speaks foreign languages and is more culturally aware than many other heads of the countries. Labels, however, are always dangerous if they are put on people for specific purposes.

Another aspect of controversy is his term of presidency.

As I understand it, if Putin had been preoccupied with power, he would have been seeking a third term as a President, but he had made it clear that he had no such desire and left this post, although still in service as Prime Minister.

Washington Posts “Stand Up to Putin” by Robert Kagan, September 15, 2004 and “Putin Moves to centralize authority” by Peter Baker, September 14, 2004” made me think that the USA media considered that Russians lived under Putin`s tyranny. Here is the quotation that made me think like this: “Vladimir Putin, the aspiring dictator of Russia, has forced President Bush to reveal how committed he really is to the cause of democracy around the world”. “…while critics called Putin another step toward restoring the tyranny…” In my understanding, the fact that Putin was elected with 71 percent of the vote in 2004 tells about his popularity among Russians. And many wished him to stay on for a third term. The latter is impossible according to the Russian constitution. There have been many positive changes under Putin, for example, average salaries have been increased by one third. Individuals and businesses have actually begun to claim their real incomes and to pay taxes. Due to the stability brought by Putin’s administration, people started planning long-term savings and constructing business strategies.

To move on, Russia’s media is considered as being under strict state control. “…the media in Russia is now—with a few embattled exceptions in print and on the Internet— entirely under state control.” (“Meet the Chief Exec of Kremlin Inc” by Nick Paton Walsh; The Guardian; July 6, 2005)

In my understanding, the situation with media has changed recently – media is now far from simply affirming the government’s actions. Moreover, many Russian media outlets are openly critical towards the Kremlin. Independent Internet media is getting very popular in places, where Internet access is available. Besides, Western TV news channels such as SNN, FOX, BBC, Euro news, and others are widely available and often freely broadcast in our country.

To summarize, in this essay we attempted to interpret some widely discussed and vexed questions about our country’s culture, traditions, and politics, from our point of view. We hope that our culture will become closer to you and more understandable. We look forward to getting your comments and learning about your culture as well. Thank you!