Federico Consuegra

Re-envisioning Russia
Oral History Report
For my project, I interviewed Professor Scholl, who has spent a lot of time in the former
Soviet Union and in todays Russia. Most of this time was in the early 1990s, right before the
collapse of the Soviet Union. Professor Scholl presented some key insight that allowed me to
better understand the influences of the West on the cultures and customs of Russia and the
Soviet Union.
The relative cultural isolation of the Soviet Union brought about a fascination for all
things Western. Blue Jeans,an ordinary clothing article in the west, were highly coveted in the
Soviet Union . Professor Scholl tells of a time when a random man entered his hotel room,
raided his closet, and offered to buy his whole wardrobe for a significant amount of money. Due
to the lack of availability of these western articles, occurrences like these were common. In
1977, the Moscow Communist Youth League acknowledged that the obsession for blue jeans
had become a huge phenomena.1 They reported in their paper, Moskovsky Komsomolets, that
the universality of jeans is unquestionable and their is nothing to replace them. In fact, blue
jeans became so popular in Soviet Russia that a pair were selling for as much as 66 dollars in
the black market.1 Despite the huge demand for Jeans, the Soviet Union refused to produce or
allow Western companies to produce them, because doing so would essentially be admitting
that Western culture is better than their own. Allowing the production of jeans meant the Soviet
Union would have to succumb to American influences, which could have led to the introduction
of other Western ideals that rivaled the Soviet ones. The Soviet Regime's attempts to block off
Western culture made this culture even more fascinating and attractive to the Soviet citizens.
Thus, an obsession for American Popular Culture began.
This obsession for American Popular Culture was evident in Soviet fashion. Western
trends and styles became symbols of privilege, wealth, and freedom. In the 1950s a youth

subculture, Stilyagis, emerged. This culture followed western fashion trends and used them as
means of expression. Professors Scholl tells that after fashion magazines are allowed to enter
the Soviet Union, the american trends seen in magazines such as Vogue became popular.
Ironically, this trends werent even used in the west. Soviets women would wear the outfits seen
in the magazine even though they werent actually worn elsewhere. The upper class were
usually the ones who had access to these forms of expression. So naturally, western trends
became a symbol for affluence.
In the Soviet period, it was customary for a host to gather his guests in the kitchen. The
kitchen provided a space where everyone can talk and interact without fear of being overheard.
These kitchen talks became a very common aspect of Soviet private life. They became one of
the few places where friends could meet and discuss politics, western literature, or western
music without fear of being imprisoned.2 It was in these kitchens were the thirst for Western
Culture and Music could be quenched. One could not read Western literature in public for fear of
being seen by the government and one could not read literature in a coffee shop because most
coffee shops were government run. However, in the kitchens, one was free to explore these
forbidden aspects, as long as a copy was at hand. Soviets listened and shared western Music in
the kitchens. In the 1950s before the tape recorder became widespread, Russians would copy
music on used x-rays and share them in the kitchens.2 This camed to be known as bone
music. Banned western genres such as jazz and rocknroll were copied onto these x-rays.
Specifically, RocknRoll was extremely powerful in influencing the Soviet Citizens, especially
the youth. Rock music thrived in the underground and groups such as Deep Purple and AC DC
became extremely popular. The Soviet Regime attempted to prevent the spread of RocknRoll
because it considered it ideological anti-soviet pollution. 3 The attempts were futile however
because the popularity of Rock only grew. In the late Soviet Period, lounges catering to the
youths taste for Rock music began to spring up. These lounges were illegal and so they

survived by bribing government officials to let them stay open.3 These lounges fostered a home
where Rock can be heard and it facilitated its popularity.
Professor Scholl, tells of his friend who after the collapse of the Soviet Union bought an
american coffee table and set it in the living room. He made his guests gather around the coffee
table to converse instead of gathering in the kitchen. Vodka was exchanged for cocktails. This
change was seen as a way to make Soviet home life more western. The intrigue and fascination
for American aspects led to the integration of Western Culture into the life of Soviets. According
to Professor Scholl, this curiosity for Western customs is seen in Russian enchantment with
sushi. Sushi is seen as a hip, modern cuisine in the west and the integration of these ideals into
Russian life could have resulted in the popularity for sushi. In a Russian neighborhood of New
York, we see the captivation with sushi come to life.4 Sushi has become a new staple for most
Russian restaurants in the region. Sushi has become so popular among russians that
Vyacheslav Dobrer the manager of a Russian restaurant stated "Sushi! Yes! Sushi!" he says.
"You can't have a Russian restaurant without it."4 The cause of this obsession for sushi in
Russian Restaurants in New York is most likely the same cause that creates the obsession
Professor Scholl described. Russians probably viewed sushi as a new, exciting, and Western
cuisine and they were eager to adopt it. The older generations were not as eager as the young
to adopt these new dishes. Professor scholl explains that older generations saw these Western
influences as an invasion of soviet culture. They denounced the adoption of these customs
because they helped to promote foreign culture instead of Russian culture. Some even thought
that the integration of the customs was a signal of the death of Russian customs.
Interestingly, Professor Scholl mentions that Latin American telenovelas had significant
influences in the late Soviet Union. Telenovelas were introduced in 1988 and had tremendous
success. A mexican novela, Los Ricos Tambien Lloran, became the top-rated show in Russian
television and as much as 70 percent of the population said they tuned in regularly to watch it.5
The Moscow Times wrote when the film started, streets became desolate, crowds gathered in

stores selling tv sets, tractors stopped in the fields, and guns fell silent on the AzerbaijaniArmenian front. Professor Scholl remembers that people eagerly copied the styles and
arrangement of furniture of the telenovelas thinking they were copying European customs. Once
again, the new influx of cultures and ideas seems to fascinate the Russian viewers. After many
years of controlled foreign influence, the sudden opening of borders captivates Russian citizens
by providing them with new and exciting concepts.
It is evident that the adoption of foreign influences varies by generation. The youth are
more eager to adopt foreign customs while it is a lot harder for the older generations to do so.
Although there is also huge popularity for foreign influence among the older generation,They
tend to meet these changes with more cynicism and criticism and a feeling of nostalgia for the
former Soviet life.

Bibliography
1. Jean Craze Has Caught On for Good in Russia. Herald-Journal. 26 February 1977.
Print.
2. How Soviet Kitchens Became Hotbeds for Dissent and Culture. www.kuow.org May 27,
2014. n.p.
3. Former Soviet Union: What Was Rocks Role in the collapse of Communism?
www.eurasianet.org March 23, 2011

4. Joe Mathews. 'Little Odessa' is nuts about sushi Fashionable: Immigrants from the old
Soviet Union have a big appetite for the trendy, and what could be more haute than
eating Japanese sushi in a Russian restaurant in Brooklyn? The Baltimore Sun.
January 23, 1998.online.
5. Ibsen Martnez. Romancing the Globe. yaleglobal.yale.edu 1 November 2005