麻豆影院

For Svetlana Alexievich, the Soviet Union is a kind of 鈥榟istorical Chernobyl that still produces contamination and radiation鈥攑sychological, historical, political and cultural,鈥� notes CU-麻豆影院 professor who is a leading scholar in Russian postmodern literature and culture

---

For Russian-literature experts like Mark Leiderman, a professor at the 麻豆影院, the awarding of the 2015 Nobel Prize in Literature to Svetlana Alexievich was no surprise.

Alexievich is a Belarusian writer who writes in听Russian and is critical of both the Putin regime and the former Soviet Union.

The award might have surprised readers in the United States, where Alexievich is not well-known. Leiderman welcomes the spotlight that comes with her听听and predicts that Alexievich will be studied in more courses here. He says now is a good time for students and the world to learn more about Russia, and the university has already moved to meet that need.

Alexievich writes in Russian, and her work is non-fiction. The Nobel committee cited her for her 鈥減olyphonic writings, a monument to suffering and courage in our time.鈥�

Leiderman was born and educated in Russia and is one of the leading scholars in Russian postmodern literature and culture. He also chairs the听听at CU-麻豆影院.

Leiderman was pleased with the award, the first time since 1987 that it has gone to an author who writes in Russian. That year, it was awarded to听.

鈥淚n the current political climate, (the prize is) very important,鈥� Leiderman says. 鈥淎lthough Alexievich writes in Russian, she identifies herself as a Belarusian writer. At the same time, all her books, they reflect upon the Soviet and post-Soviet catastrophe, anthropological catastrophe.鈥�

鈥淭his, in my opinion, is very important, because it is also the subject of my research interests,鈥� Leiderman adds. In general, after听辫别谤别蝉迟谤辞颈办补,听the 1980s Soviet reform movement, perceptions of Russia have been 鈥渇ogged, and the attraction that was there back in the early 90s is gone.鈥�

Today, Russia is seen as 鈥渁nother strange, typical authoritarian, capitalist country, and there is nothing interesting about it.鈥�

However, 鈥淚t is still very, very important, and not only Russia but this entire area.鈥�

Alexievich, who writes about Russia and the Soviet Union in 鈥渧ery particular terms,鈥� is much more broadly known in Europe than in the Americas, partly because she lived for a decade in Europe.

Current events in Ukraine鈥攚hich is locked in a military conflict between Ukrainian forces and Russian-backed rebels鈥攎ake Alexievich an important voice, because she is a 鈥渢rue dissident,鈥� Leiderman says.

Alexievich maintains a 鈥渧ery principled position鈥� regarding Belarus President Alexander Lukashenko, and she is a strong critic of Russian President Vladimir Putin and 鈥渉is imperialist policy.鈥�

At the same time, 鈥淪he is not in the least nostalgic for the Soviet Union.鈥� One of her books is about the 1986 meltdown of a nuclear reactor in Chernobyl, Ukraine.

鈥淔or her, the Soviet Union is some kind of historical Chernobyl that still produces contamination and radiation鈥攑sychological, historical, political and cultural.鈥�

Some may debate whether each Nobel Literature Laureate 鈥渋s indeed setting high standards of literature,鈥� Leiderman notes. Previous winners might seem to be lesser writers than some non-winners, including James Joyce, Franz Kafka or Leo Tolstoy.

But the Nobel Prize attracts attention. Before the Alexievich won the prize, only three of her books had been translated into English. Now, more are scheduled to be translated, thus making her important work accessible here.

Before this year, Alexievich was studied in only one of CU-麻豆影院鈥檚 courses, on women鈥檚 culture in Russia of the 20th听century. 鈥淚鈥檓 pretty confident that with this 鈥榬ediscovery鈥� of Alexievich, she will be in many other classes, and I hope even be on Russian-language curriculum.鈥�

Alexievich conducts in-depth interviews with real people and uses their real names. 鈥淎nd the power of these books is exactly in the stories that people tell.鈥�

Alexievich鈥檚 鈥渃ycle of fire鈥� books include two books about World War II and two about the last years of the Soviet period. All of them focus on catastrophic experiences: war, Chernobyl, Afghanistan, people who killed themselves after the collapse of the Soviet Union, and, most recently, 鈥減eople of my generation who were excited and inspired by听辫别谤别蝉迟谤辞颈办补听鈥� and then felt deceived and betrayed.鈥�

History is typically written from the winners鈥� perspective. 鈥淏ut there is another side of history, from the standpoint of losers, those who have been defeated, and that is exactly what Alexievich is doing.鈥�

In this respect, Alexievich鈥檚 books resonate with Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn鈥檚听Gulag Archipelago,听his monumental account of the Josef Stalin鈥檚 prisons and labor camps (and for which he was convicted of treason and expelled from the Soviet Union).听Solzhenitsyn won the听, but the听Gulag Archipelago听was published afterwards, in 1973.

鈥淣evertheless, there is this association between (Solzhenitsyn鈥檚) non-fiction and Alexievich鈥檚 non-fiction,鈥� Leiderman says. The fact that Alexievich won the prize as Russia again 鈥渂ecomes a dangerous state and again spreads aggression and nationalism鈥� is probably not a coincidence, Leiderman says, adding:

鈥淚t鈥檚 highly laudable. It鈥檚 very important.鈥�

The importance of Russia is one reason CU-麻豆影院 has beefed up its program in Russian studies. That program, which includes six faculty members, reflects the fact that that Russian is the official language of 148 million people in the Russian Federation.

鈥淚t is also an invaluable tool for anyone interested in the newly independent countries that were formerly part of the Soviet Union,鈥� the program鈥檚 web site states.

One of the program鈥檚 purposes is to improve contemporary knowledge of Russia, which Leiderman argues is lacking. When the Ukrainian crisis erupted, 鈥渢he political commentaries turned out to be very much inadequate,鈥� he observes.

鈥淪uddenly the formulas from the Cold War had been restored, and they do not work. But there is no other conceptual language to analyze this (situation), and there is no good knowledge of the material that is required for sufficient analysis.鈥�

鈥淲e will try to contribute to the resolution of this crisis, because it is a crisis,鈥� Leiderman says, adding, 鈥淭hat is probably what the university has to do, to go against this stereotypical, impoverished world view.鈥�

For more information on the Department of Germanic and Slavic Languages and Literatures and its Russian Program, click听.

听