And in the end, TRUTH PREVAILED and TRIUMPHED over LIES and DECEPTION.
Posted by Judith at August 5, 2008 03:20 PM
Unless I'm confused, Solzhenitsyn was at least later in life an authoritarian - it's not at all surprising Putin would honor him in death, having honored him in life.
Posted by rilkefan at August 5, 2008 04:58 PMSolzhenitsyn was always a Mother Russia nationalist, and he saw Russia under Putin as reclaiming its rightful place amongst the great countries of the world...he commended Putin for routing the oligarchs, and for extending the freedoms offered to the Russian Orthodox Church (at no cost to Putin's grip on power)...whether Solzhenitsyn was an "authoritarian" is debatable, but he did insist that historically, Russia was neither West nor East, and her style of government was unique to her very being...which - of course - is Putin's argument as well.
Posted by at August 5, 2008 05:21 PMSolzhenitsyn was always a Mother Russia nationalist, and he saw Russia under Putin as reclaiming its rightful place amongst the great countries of the world...he commended Putin for routing the oligarchs, and for extending the freedoms offered to the Russian Orthodox Church (at no cost to Putin's grip on power)...whether Solzhenitsyn was an "authoritarian" is debatable, but he did insist that historically, Russia was neither West nor East, and her style of government was unique to her very being...which - of course - is Putin's argument as well.
Posted by barrisj at August 5, 2008 05:21 PMI didn't hear about this -- it's a shame. I read Gulag Archipelago in college and it's one of the few that stuck with me. And that line:
A state of war only serves as an excuse for domestic tyranny.
I want that on a black t-shirt w/ white lettering. Do you guys have a store? Is there a MERCH link I can't find?
Posted by MaskedVigilante at August 5, 2008 05:44 PMI enjoyed your post, Jeff. I am not sure about this though:
"Solzhenitsyn's "Gulag Archipelago" pretty much loosened the Soviet's grip on power"
The book didnt lessen the grip of the soviets upon their own people. I would say it brought the suffering into the open so that western intellectuals with a romantic notion toward communism were forced to face the depravity of the soviet system. So in that sense, your comment seems accurate.
In the 80s, the melting of the river shore lines in Siberia released thousands of formerly buried corpes murdered by the nkvd prior to its renaming as the kgb and after. This backed up the claims of dissendents of long-term mass murder.
If I remember correctly, when Alexander S went back to Russia during Glastnost, he was mocked as bizarrely out-of-touch because of his love of the old agricultural focus of the peasants etc and was against modernization. His hatred for the oligarchs was more about a retro anti-business bias than any real comradery with Putin.
I can recommend "Cancer Ward" if you want a trip down misery lane.
I hope you post more thought provoking things like this, Jeff. Thank you.
Posted by the young Judith (tyj) at August 5, 2008 06:31 PMI just finished Little Brother and this phrase, " . . since the nation had not absorbed such detail of Stalin oppression in Solzhenitsyn's simple, direct prose . .", really gongs with me right now.
I'm not saying Doctorow is an American Solzhenitsyn, but Little Brother lays out in very stark terms what being classified as an enemy combatant is like. It's a fantastic book. And best of all, it's free for download.
More at L&Lpd when I get the words.
Posted by idiosynchronic at August 5, 2008 07:42 PMSolzhenitsyn was no fan of American democracy, preferring an Authoritarian government. He did not like Yeltsin. Gorbachev, who closed the last of the Soviet political prisons in the 1980s, praised Solzhenitsyn as "one of the first who spoke aloud about the inhuman Stalinist regime and about the people who experienced it but were not broken." He did have a favorable view of Putin, and Putin was eloquent in his remarks: Putin called Solzhenitsyn "our compatriot and contemporary," saying the "entire thorny path of his life will remain for us an example of genuine devotion and selfless serving to the people, fatherland and the ideals of freedom, justice and humanism."
MV, we need to get someone to design those shirts; a drawing of El Sol on the front and the quote on the back. It's a fucking awesome quote.
Young J you're probably right about the loosening of the grip wording, pretty strong, but too a degree, you have to admit it indeed did, in part because of the international reaction it caused, as you mention. And thanks. I felt this was a significant death of an amazing man.
And Idio!! Thank you for bringing up Cory Doctorow's "Little Brother". I was thinking about doing a post on that. The idea that "America" has been fought over continuously, and "America" will only survive if its citizens push back or eventually fight for it, is important, especially targeted at the teenage market, it is essential reading right now. While Solzhenitsyn cast a light upon life in labor camps, Doctorow intelligently instructs young people how to fight back against the first signs of the kind of oppression which leads to "camps" of some sort. The U.S. prison-building industry is booming. You don't lead the world in prison construction without some intent to fill them.
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Hey Jeff -
are you implying that the book was allowed to be published in the soviet union? I thought it was smuggled out to the West while he was in hiding/living at his pal's dacha -
Totally agree he was an important dissendent figure of the 20th century. Someone who suffered gravely and yet didnt back down. There was/is a whole generation of Russian/Soviets who lasted throught the most briuutal warfare of WW2. They scared the hell out fo the western powers because they showed how much stamina they had under the most barbaric of circumstances. I recommend the book "Ivan's War" to those who want to get an education regarding the Soviet soldier's war experience.
take care --
Posted by the young Judith (tyj) at August 6, 2008 08:33 AM