A HORSE IN TOWN

Have things changed much since the days of Nekrasov?

by Svetlana Bestuzheva-Lada

I agree that the title is strange, to say the least. What has it got to do with an animal, be it even a noble one, if we are discussing mankind's better half? Moreover, it is my personal view and profound conviction that our Russian women (formerly Soviet) did not come from apes at all, and were not even created from the very best male rib. They are tenderhearted, a cross between a horse and Prszewalski. It must be said that since the days of Nekrasov very few changes indeed have taken place regarding the status of women. Just as she used to put in a twenty-four-hour day, she continues to do so today. Just as she used to put up with the hard drinking and bravery of her "lord and master", she is still putting up with it today. Save that she has had to also undertake to carry out traditional male responsibilities - so thank the Lord, we have had eighty years of complete and absolute equality. True, men have not managed to learn how to give birth, but what would you get from those poor creatures, anyway? While all this was happening mainly in rural and village areas, there was relatively little harm in it. Things were equally bitter for both men and women, with the daily heavy work, a huge family, and the rigid laws of a patriarchal mode of life. This dark past was not accursed, but was very much lacking in initiative. However here lies the paradox: when three quarters of the Russian population moved out of the country and into the cities, the situation became even worse. But only for women. This move simply freed the men from the necessity of plowing the earth, gathering wood for the winter, and fulfilling all kinds of traditional male obligations. As for women . . . The need to work outside the home was added to their traditional duties. Nine hours a day plus the unavoidable waiting on line for food, and the long trek to bring it home - not in her own car, of course. Then there is the same old housework, which as always requires an expenditure of physical and nervous energy, which is quickly exhausted. These are loads which can only be borne by a horse, and only when it is well fed and not being beaten. We have examined the horse. Now - about Prszewalski. There is not a woman alive, be she a living genius who can get anywhere in any modern society if she does not accept its rules of the game. However these rules were put together with only men in mind and they categorically refute such traditional female qualities as kindness, charity, deference, and tolerance. If you are kind - they will step all over you, without batting an eyelid. If you are charitable, they will push you away, or simply cheat you. If you are deferential, they will wrap you around their little finger like a baby. If you are tolerant, they won't give a rat's ass about you. All those who possess these qualities had better forget about a successful career, and be content with the role of housewife. In the mouse trap of a small apartment such tricks are still being gotten away with. So a woman needs to be . . . a man, in character, lifestyle and habits. However, since she cannot allow herself to simply be a man, she has to become a superman, a wild horse, no more, no less. Only then does she have the opportunity to be on an equal footing with the representatives of the stronger sex on their own territory. However since free cheese exists only in Krylov's fable, she will have to wait for this victory, for quite a while moreover. At the same time she will lose her feminine nature once and for all. Willy nilly, the horse is turning into a wild horse. I am not exaggerating at all or embroidering. Now, unfortunately if a woman is not young and physically attractive (i.e. a commodity which can be sold more or less profitably or worn with pride) the chances of her succeeding in the city are almost nil. Our megalopolises are overflowing with creatures of neutral gender, with just a few remaining female traits: made-up faces, fashionable shoes, and a scent of perfume. One woman in three is a single mother, with just one child moreover. One in two is divorced, one in five is a spinster, and they are all extremely unhappy, because there is a constant struggle with nature going on inside them, the maternal instinct, the female essence combined with hurriedly assimilated male behavior stereotypes. This cross-breed is doomed to failure by its very nature. There are nevertheless some bright spots, even in this dismal situation. What are they? We should discuss them separately, in application to different social strata of women, because there is no stock formula. One thing can be said in general: we must try to "unshackle" Russian women, and help them to become women once again, and not cart horses. Because turning Prszewalski's horse into a wild horse is not evolution but degradation.