Lyudmila Petranovskaya: “Why did Gerasim drown Mumu”

“They are discussing in the feed. It’s not why he drowned, but why this terrible and obscure story is for children in the fifth grade. Even before they knew about serfdom.
Why it has been firmly established in the school curriculum since Soviet times is understandable; it denounces “life under the Tsar” to its fullest extent. Why so early - I think it’s very simple, because it’s about a dog. The children will feel sorry for the dog and will dislike serfdom. And in general, about dogs - this is for children...

...the story about Mumu is actually very scary, and there is especially a lot of protective folklore about her. What about children? It’s rare that an adult would want to re-read this at their leisure. And what he gets from this story is not because it’s about a dog. And not even because it’s about serfdom. Let me try to explain how I see it,” writes psychologist, teacher and publicist Lyudmila Petranovskaya in her LiveJournal .

“The fact that the lady was largely based on Turgenev’s mother is a well-known fact. And the story was similar, only the poor fellow didn’t go anywhere. He endured everything and remained faithful to his lady.

Children are told about this at school, but all the details of the writer’s childhood are wisely not reported.

And there was terrible horror there, cruel treatment at the level of torture. Mom was, it seems, a psychopath of an epileptoid type, and she herself, apparently, was post-traumatic, she beat the children for everything, and for nothing, too. My favorite pastime was to punish, and for what - not to say: “You know better.” There was no avoidance strategy - they would beat you up anyway. All the servants reported on the children, and during the execution the mother also liked to pretend that she was so upset that her heart hurt, that she was about to die, and then in a letter she described how touchingly afraid her son was for her, whom she had just whipped with rods. There was no one to protect the children, the mother’s power over them was complete, other attachments were not allowed.

That is, the most severe scenario of child abuse took place:

- totality (there is no avoidance strategy, no matter how well you behave, they will still beat you up;

ambivalence (the only person you love is torturing you);

- blaming the victim (ungrateful, brought mommy down);

- there is no defender except the rapist himself.

In short, she was a bitch, no offense to Mumu.

She completely broke her eldest son; judging by his life, he was a deeply victimized person. But Ivan resisted somehow, he wanted to run away, but he was caught and whipped half to death. In addition to beatings, there was total control of all aspects of life, constant psychological violence.

And in the context of all this, the story about Gerasim can be read as an attempt to comprehend one’s experience, a narrative practice of self-psychotherapy. The story was written when Turgenev was under arrest, which in itself creates conditions. On the one hand, there is a trigger: you are again in someone’s power. On the other hand, there is time, peace and sufficient security. That's it.

Gerasim is a deaf-mute hero who was forcibly brought to the lady’s house.
This is a metaphor for a gifted child who could not choose where to be born, who has neither words nor rights, and most importantly, initially sincerely wants to be a “good boy”, to earn the love of his mother (by the way, Turgenev himself was also of heroic build).

It’s very difficult for him, but he tries very hard, shows devotion and diligence, and for a long time hopes that he will be able to become so “worthy” (to sew a caftan) that he will be allowed to simply live, have his own secret personal life of the soul, love someone. And it won’t be up to him - he will always be a faithful servant.

Tatyana herself, quiet, meek, resigned - this is the subpersonality that a child in such a situation hopes for as a saving one. If you are very, very, very nice and obedient, then maybe they won’t destroy you, they won’t burn out everything in you, they will spare you.

“No matter how it is!” the lady-mother answers this, “the secret life of his soul, his love, bite him off!” - and arranges a vile story with Tatyana allegedly getting drunk and having a forced marriage. That is, he gives up this meekest subpersonality for abuse, tramples it, and even arranges everything in such a way that, they say, it is her own fault, such rubbish.

And we have to say goodbye to this hope. This path turns out to be closed. In a situation of such violence, it is impossible to keep your soul alive, loving, developing (there could also be children).

The child is still not broken, he is not ready to give up and turn into a zombie, an empty helpful shell without a soul, to become a complete slave.

A new attempt - to hide, to shrink all that is alive and vulnerable to a very small, negligible size - just think, little dog, who will it bother. A small creature, a tiny piece of something alive and warm, personally significant, and so - here I am, your humble servant.

But no, you can’t fool a rapist. He senses with his spinal cord where there is a zone free from his control.

As in Winston’s conversation with O’Brien: “I didn’t betray Julia,” and a grin in response, almost sympathetic: if you betray, dear, where will you go. Everything will be cleared, down to the nook and cranny. They both understand how important it is - even a tiny corner of love and affection in the heart stands between you and Big Brother, this is the last stronghold before the destruction of the soul. Special closeness and complete mutual understanding between the victim and the executioner.

The situation of a child who is at the mercy of a harsh parent is always worse. Because despite all this, he loves the rapist with all his soul and dreams of his love - to the last. And there is no sacrifice that he would not make - not out of fear, but simply because he is sure to the very depths of his soul that this is right. He is a child, he belongs to the parent by right, and so does his soul.

Gerasim drowns this last tiny piece of hope for maternal love, the dependent subpersonality of a child recklessly hoping for a miracle and mercy, and first takes care of it, says goodbye and mourns. As it happens in therapy.
Now he can leave, he is no longer tied - in any sense. And no longer a child.

In life, of course, everything is more complicated...

Do you know what Turgenev’s mother ordered to write above the entrance to the house when her sons left her power? "They'll be back."

There is always such a risk; victimization is tempting. He even entrusted his little daughter to the old woman for a while, but then he came to his senses.

It’s good when you manage to comprehend your experience in images, speak out, and role-play the inner drama of your soul. Then you can leave, albeit with losses and wounds, but still free. And live your own, difficult, not very happy, but your own life, with your feelings and your choices.

Returning to children and reading - we gave “1984” to the child to read at 14.

And “Mumu” ​​is too early at 14, because family horrors are worse than the horrors of the regime.”