Russian stereotypes
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Russian stereotypes are the attributes commonly described as the main items of Russian culture. To a certain extent, Russians maintain many of these stereotypes themselves. Hence, Russian stereotypes can be classified as the ones widespread in the West and those advertised by Russians themselves. These classes partially intersect.
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[edit] Western stereotypes about Russians
[edit] KGB
KGB is evidently very strong associated with Russian culture in the minds of Westerners because practically every Russian who happens to be abroad is humoristically asked if he is a KGB spy. This stereotype has roots in the propaganda of the Cold war era and especially in the Hollywood movies in which KGB spies planned various "evil" actions against the "people of the free world". In Russian movies, KGB agents were attribute an opposite set of characteristics: kindness, solidarilty with the working class, self-sacrifice for the better life of others, etc. KGB ceased to exist in the early 90s, and it was replaced by FSB. However, the "KGB spy" remains a popular joke and has not been replaced by "FSB spy".
[edit] Stereotypes maintained by Russians themselves
A set of Russian stereotypes is typified by the ironic song "Forever" by Vasiliy Shumov the leader of rock band Center (Центр):
- Матрёшка, балалайка, "волга",
- Борщ, самовар, блины -
- Все наше - навсегда...
- Пушкин и Евтушенко,
- Иванов, Петров, Курчатов,
- Калашников, Винтиков, Шпунтиков
- Навсегда ... все наше.
which is translated as
- Matreshka, balalayka, "Volga",
- Borsch, samovar, Russian pancakes -
- This is all ours - forever ...
- Pushkin and Evtushenko,
- Ivanov, Petrov, Kurchatov
- Kalashnikov, Vintikov, Shpuntikov
- Forever... all ours
Each of these stereotypes has a long history. Here some of the main ones are overviewed to show why a particular item is Russian stereotype.
[edit] Matreshka
Matreshka, also known as a Russian doll, is perhaps the leading symbol of Russian culture. It can be bought at Arbat, Moscow for a high price, and much cheaper at other places unknown to foreigners.
[edit] Balalayka
A balalayka is a traditional Russian stringed instrument.
[edit] Volga
Volga is not only the river, but also an automobile brand.
[edit] Borsch
Borsch is a soup enjoyed by many.
[edit] Samovar
Samovar is rarely used to heat water nowadays, mostly for decoration.
[edit] Russian pancakes
Russians eat pancakes with red caviar, red fish and many other additions.
[edit] Pushkin
Pushkin is not only a famous poet, but also a hero of Russian jokes. Russians often say "Do you think that Pushkin will do this instead of you?", which means "You are lazy".
[edit] Kurchatov
Igor Kurchatov created the Soviet atomic bomb.
[edit] Kalashnikov
Kalashnikov is a colloquial name for the assault rifle AK-47. It was designed by Mikhail Kalashnikov, hence the name.
[edit] Vintik and Shpuntik
Not exactly stereotypes; just heroes of a popular children's book Neznaika, skillful mechanics.
