December 11, 2007

Solzhenitsyn's Birthday


[This commentary appeared on Vermont Public Radio on December 11. To hear the streaming audio, visit the VPR page.]

For 18 years, Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn - writer, Nobel laureate and political dissident - lived with his family in Cavendish, Vermont. Exiled from the Soviet Union in 1974 for cataloguing the crimes of the Gulag, he spent long days at the family's Vermont home, writing and researching, his isolation and seclusion protected by his wife.

I have been thinking about Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn this past week. Not just because today (December 11) is his 89th birthday. No, I have been thinking about Solzhenitsyn because of Russia's recent election. I have been wondering why the 20th century's most famous dissident has not spoken out against the increasing intolerance of dissent in Russian society, against crackdowns on the media, against the liquidation of political opposition.

The answer, I believe, tells us much about where Russia is today, and about where it may be going.

In September of 2000, soon after Vladimir Putin was elected Russian president, Putin and Solzhenitsyn met for the first time. Back then, the Western press saw Putin as a Westernizer - moderate in his relations with the West, an advocate of human rights and of a market economy. Solzhenitsyn, in contrast, was painted as "a potential adversary" to Putin - what Russia-watchers call a Slavophile, someone who feels Russia has a special role in history, who feels Russia should not follow the same path as the "decadent West." He advocates a strong state and a powerful Orthodox Church. He sees Russia as encircled by hostile powers, and condemns the "moral vacuum" of secular Western societies.

Since 2000, the West has gradually come to realize that the Putin it saw back then was a figment of its imagination. In fact, over the last eight years, Putin's opinions and actions have increasingly reflected Solzhenitsyn's nationalistic, Slavophile views. This summer, Putin awarded Solzhenitsyn a State Award for humanitarian achievement, saying that "millions of people around the world associate" Solzhenitsyn's name and work "with the very fate of Russia itself."

But unfortunately the fate of Russia is this: yesterday's reformers now call for a Strong State and warn of Western conspiracies. Nationalistic youth groups harass minorities and foreigners. Politicial pluralism is ridiculed. Opposition leaders are imprisoned. Muckrakers are murdered.

To understand all this, we should remember that Russia never reckoned with its communist past, with the 40 million citizens murdered in Gulags, in state-orchestrated famines, genocides, war and deportations. In short, it never reckoned with the horrors Solzhenitsyn wrote about. Nazi Germany had the Nuremburg Trials, South Africa has its Peace and Reconciliation process. But the Soviet Union held no one to account.

Today, Russia chooses to look forward, not back. As a result, Russians do not feel the echo of history in today's rising intolerance and nationalism. Nor do they see the societal benefits of dissent.

Certainly this is something Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn, who suffered much for his dissent, could speak to.

Like this post? Get a weekly email digest + member-only deals

Some of our Books

The Latchkey Murders
July 01, 2015

The Latchkey Murders

Senior Lieutenant Pavel Matyushkin is back on the case in this prequel to the popular mystery Murder at the Dacha, in which a serial killer is on the loose in Khrushchev’s Moscow...

Steppe
July 15, 2022

Steppe

This is the work that made Chekhov, launching his career as a writer and playwright of national and international renown. Retranslated and updated, this new bilingual edition is a super way to improve your Russian.

At the Circus
January 01, 2013

At the Circus

This wonderful novella by Alexander Kuprin tells the story of the wrestler Arbuzov and his battle against a renowned American wrestler. Rich in detail and characterization, At the Circus brims with excitement and life. You can smell the sawdust in the big top, see the vivid and colorful characters, sense the tension build as Arbuzov readies to face off against the American.

Murder and the Muse
December 12, 2016

Murder and the Muse

KGB Chief Andropov has tapped Matyushkin to solve a brazen jewel heist from Picasso’s wife at the posh Metropole Hotel. But when the case bleeds over into murder, machinations, and international intrigue, not everyone is eager to see where the clues might lead.

Fearful Majesty
July 01, 2014

Fearful Majesty

This acclaimed biography of one of Russia’s most important and tyrannical rulers is not only a rich, readable biography, it is also surprisingly timely, revealing how many of the issues Russia faces today have their roots in Ivan’s reign.

Life Stories
September 01, 2009

Life Stories

The Life Stories collection is a nice introduction to contemporary Russian fiction: many of the 19 authors featured here have won major Russian literary prizes and/or become bestsellers. These are life-affirming stories of love, family, hope, rebirth, mystery and imagination, masterfully translated by some of the best Russian-English translators working today. The selections reassert the power of Russian literature to affect readers of all cultures in profound and lasting ways. Best of all, 100% of the profits from the sale of this book are going to benefit Russian hospice—not-for-profit care for fellow human beings who are nearing the end of their own life stories.

Moscow and Muscovites
November 26, 2013

Moscow and Muscovites

Vladimir Gilyarovsky's classic portrait of the Russian capital is one of Russians’ most beloved books. Yet it has never before been translated into English. Until now! It is a spectactular verbal pastiche: conversation, from gutter gibberish to the drawing room; oratory, from illiterates to aristocrats; prose, from boilerplate to Tolstoy; poetry, from earthy humor to Pushkin. 

How Russia Got That Way
September 20, 2025

How Russia Got That Way

A fast-paced crash course in Russian history, from Norsemen to Navalny, that explores the ways the Kremlin uses history to achieve its ends.

A Taste of Russia
November 01, 2012

A Taste of Russia

The definitive modern cookbook on Russian cuisine has been totally updated and redesigned in a 30th Anniversary Edition. Layering superbly researched recipes with informative essays on the dishes' rich historical and cultural context, A Taste of Russia includes over 200 recipes on everything from borshch to blini, from Salmon Coulibiac to Beef Stew with Rum, from Marinated Mushrooms to Walnut-honey Filled Pies. A Taste of Russia shows off the best that Russian cooking has to offer. Full of great quotes from Russian literature about Russian food and designed in a convenient wide format that stays open during use.

About Us

Russian Life is a publication of a 30-year-young, award-winning publishing house that creates a bimonthly magazine, books, maps, and other products for Russophiles the world over.

Latest Posts

Our Contacts

Russian Life
73 Main Street, Suite 402
Montpelier VT 05602

802-223-4955