Russian Soul..what is it?

[OlgaH]

A part of the FSU -- still informing the Russian soul

Georgians will disagree with you.  They have their own historical roots and origin, their own language and culture.  And they did not lose it as you can see and hear

[Shostakovich]

Thanks for the info on Roads.  Traditional Russian music is often very beautiful.  Interesting how you dismiss Rustavi as not informative of Russian soul because of Georgian origins.  Is it true that Russians do not like Georgians much or is that just the politics?  Based on your comments, perhaps the opposite may be true as well.

Anyway, I made a mistake in the above post and meant to include this also:

[youtube=425,350]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AubhcF3pKJ4[/youtube]

As for Dimitri, I understand many of his works as either reaction against Soviet authority or descriptions of life in Soviet times.  The str. quartet fits the latter bill.  The movement I labeled 'The Knock' has special significance:  The dat-dat-dat, dat-dat-dat is the sound of the KGB knocking on the door to take you away to Siberia.

[OlgaH]

 Interesting how you dismiss Rustavi as not informative of Russian soul because of Georgian origins.  

Russian culture and Georgian culture are two different cultures  

If you ask me I love Georgian music and dances, as I love native African music and dances   Every culture has its own fascination. I like Orera and Iveria

Have you read poetry by Shota Rustaveli? or Nikoloz Baratashvili? What Georgian movies have you seen? Have you seen "Keto and Kote" with Leila Abashidze or "Khevsureti ballad" with Sofiko Chiaureli. "Mimino" with Vakhtang Kikabidze is one of my favorite comedies of the Soviet time.

[Shostakovich]

Nope, not seen any of the ones you mentioned.  I understand that Georgia wants to be considered separate.  This happens around the world.  'Don't mess with Texas', they say, but that is mostly braggadocio and bluster -- they eat their cheeseburgers and fries like everyone else.  In fact I notice many similarities in the Red army and Rustavi links -- as an outsider I do not see essential differences.  Not the difference between France and Germany for example. 

[OlgaH]

Nope, not seen any of the ones you mentioned.   

Georgian literature, poetry, music cinematography and of course history, traditions and customs are really very interesting and as any culture worth to take interest in 

[OlgaH]

In fact I notice many similarities in the Red army and Rustavi links -- as an outsider I do not see essential differences.  

Maybe you will see the difference when you will know more about Georgian culture  

For many Westerns the Kazakhs and the Tatars are Russians  

[Shostakovich]

Maybe you will see the difference when you will know more about Georgian culture  

For many Westerns the Kazakhs and the Tatars are Russians  

Well, I'd never make that mistake, after all I know all about the Kazakhs after seeing Borat.

[Mike78]

Nope, not seen any of the ones you mentioned.  I understand that Georgia wants to be considered separate.  This happens around the world.  'Don't mess with Texas', they say, but that is mostly braggadocio and bluster -- they eat their cheeseburgers and fries like everyone else.  In fact I notice many similarities in the Red army and Rustavi links -- as an outsider I do not see essential differences.  Not the difference between France and Germany for example. 

Georgia is a country with unique and rich culture and ancient origins (older than Russia). Georgians are not even Slavic peoples, in fact they even have their own unique alphabet (completely different from both Cyrillic and Latin). Yes, the difference between culture of France and Germany and culture of Russia and Georgia might be of similar level. Of course, Russia is by far the most dominant country/culture in the region, so there definitely would be some major influences on most of the FSU nations...

[Boethius]

"Mimino" with Vakhtang Kikabidze is one of my favorite comedies of the Soviet time.

My husband said he liked "I, My Dog, and My Best Friend Niko".  And he said
they usually call Kikabidze "Buba".

Shostakovich, Georgian is not a Slavic language, their alphabet is not Cyrillic, their foods are different, their music is different, their dances are different, and only one Georgian tribe is Caucasian (as in "white", not "from the Caucasus").  Germany and France are far closer culturally than are Georgia and Russia.  Serbia and Russia are far closer, linguistically and culturally, than are Georgia and Russia.

[Mike78]

My husband said he liked "I, My Dog, and My Best Friend Niko".  And he said
they usually call Kikabidze "Buba".

Shostakovich, Georgian is not a Slavic language, their alphabet is not Cyrillic, their foods are different, their music is different, their dances are different, and only one Georgian tribe is Caucasian (as in "white", not "from the Caucasus").  Germany and France are culturally far closer culturally than are Georgia and Russia.  Serbia and Russia are far closer, linguistically and culturally, than are Georgia and Russia.

Actually, yes, thinking about it France and Germany are probably culturally closer than Georgia and Russia

[Shostakovich]

Interesting about Georgia and Russia - it seems I am over-ruled.  Russia ≠ Georgia it is then.

[Gylden]

I love Kharcho!!  hope I spelled it right!!  Love Georgian food!!

[Aphonia]

If you talk to Russians and ask them to define the Russian soul, it is usually summed up thus: the Russian soul makes Russians kindhearted, makes them hospitable, that the Russian soul is as vast as Russia, etc.... It usually expresses itself in certain ways. If you are invited to their home for "tea" they will invariably have a full meal on the table as this is what hospitality is all about and they may even cite one of the folk sayings collected by Vladimir Dahl saying that there will be the smell of the Russian spirit in the home.... Nikolai Berdiaev (1874-1948) wrote quite a bit on the whole idea of the Russian Soul and there are a number of books written by American scholars as well on the the topic.

Hope this helps. I am sure the Russians and Russian-speakers here can add or clarify this.

Hi, I am new to this forum, and this discussion is really thrilling .

As a translator, I once worked on the article of a Russian journalist Ada Baskina, who shared her views on the matter of the mysterious Russian soul as seen by Americans. She also referred to American researchers, and it was a sincere mixture of her personal opinions and a kind of mini-research conducted by her on the topic:

"To better understand this claim to the emotional side of American life, I turned to the book “From Nyet to Da: Understanding the Russians” written by another American, Yale Richmond. Comparing the behavior of people belonging to two cultures, he draws attention to the following difference: “The Russian soul, that is, sensitivity and rich spirituality, is in stark contrast to American rationalism, materialism and pragmatism…” Obviously, as a sociologist, Yale does not have the words to describe the typical features of the Russian emotionality called Soul in one word. So he just quotes Tatyana Tolstaya, who surely has enough of the power of observation and the wealth of expressive means, “In the Russian culture, feelings are seen as a clearly positive value… The more people express their emotions, the better they are perceived as being more honest, more open … Soul is the sensitivity, dreaminess, imagination, proneness to tears, compassion, dedication, patience that helps survive in intolerable circumstances; poetry… and a fancy to wander through the dark, damp alleys of consciousness … “(I apologize for the reverse translation). The Russian soul causes J. Richmond’s “respect and admiration.” Both he and his compatriot Max Lerner lack that kind of bright emotionality in their native culture."

Here's the link to the full text of the article: http://happyinterfamily.com/many-a-little-makes-a-mickle/