German and/or Russian?

In the second part of this issue: writer Zinovy Zinik: "My Jerusalem." The Lithuanian artist with Ukrainian roots. "My favorite records" with Greek journalist Dimitris Bakols.

In the section “Native Language”, a conversation with a German international journalist Boris Wright Shuster. From 1991 to 2011, he lived in Moscow. From 1999 to 2015 he headed the Moscow Bureau of the German magazine Focus.

Igor Pomerantsev:

- Boris, for me personally, the German language began in childhood with reading the fairy tales of the Grimm brothers in Russian. These tales were imprinted in my memory, because they had a pronounced element of sadism inherent in folklore. Moreover, the Grimm brothers willingly emphasized this. How and when did you realize that you speak not just in the language, but in German?

“The awareness came with the acquisition of foreign languages, I studied Latin, ancient Greek, English, although not at the highest level, so awareness came when I began to really speak Russian-this is somewhere from 17 years old.

- In the background of the Russian language, what did you look like, how did your native language sound, German?

“I still consider myself more free in the Russian language.” Because in your native language you have a lot of restrictions, there are a lot that you are embarrassed to say. You are in it as if in born shackles. For example, the Germans have a very big problem with everything related to sentimentality. In German, a lot would sound very puffy, but in Russian I can very simply express it. Despite my emphasis, I feel more at home, it’s more comfortable for me to speak in Russian, I am more free to say in Russian than in German. Maybe because he is a foreign, maybe I would feel more freely in Thais.

“You know, I have my own experience.” I understood something about German thanks to English, I realized how hard the words order in German in contrast to English. You said that, speaking in Russian, you feel freer. Maybe the fact is that German is an orderly, rigidly organized language?

- Now, when you say this, this is logical. It seems to me that in Russian, despite the fact that I am not a carrier, it is much easier for me to joke than in German. This is amazing. It’s much easier to play with Russians, you won’t play German especially. You can logically build some kind of joke, but you can not play with the language, all its shades, despite the fact that this is my dear. He is different. There you have to joke differently. It is very amazing, as if one language is a car, and the other is a plane.

“Is it that the language dictates a sense of humor?”

“I think, definitely. I don’t really understand with the Germans who did not live abroad, I don’t really understand what is funny, to be honest. It’s hard for me to watch a German supposedly humorous television program. You cannot translate most jokes - this is another operating system.

- My son grew up in London. When he was a child, I came up with a phrase for him: “Children and Foreigners Shoup Not Make Jokes” (children and foreigners should not joke). You are still a foreigner, but you run the risk of joke in Russian.

- I do not consider myself a foreigner in Russian. I came to Russia at the age of 19, my tongue was already formed, but my head is not yet. So I consider myself both Russian and German in this regard. There are friends who, on the contrary, know the Russian language poorly, but they have a musical mindset, and they speak Russian without an accent. I have no complexes, so I'm joking. I think I have already convinced you that sometimes I succeed. Not even every native speaker manages to joke.

“Do you think your jokes are successful in Russian?”

- But not all jokes are always successful. I believe that those who are unsuccessful, they are not unsuccessful because of the language, let's say so.

—Do of the properties of the German language are long composite words. I will try to reproduce such a word now, I also like to take risks: Rindfleischetiekengsüberwachungsaufgabenübertragungsetz. If I am not mistaken, this is related to the labeling of beef. Do these components say something about German psychology?

—Tlob, say Linksradikalenrechtschutzversicherung.

- I will not risk. What does the psychology of the Germans have a love of complex long words?

-MENITY that these are nouns, not verbs, yes, this is a certain mindset. The Russians would describe this with two verbs, they would describe it as an action, and in German the official logical perception of the world, one noun after another. I think this is still a certain mindset: seriousness. You can’t joke with such words. The Russian is probably to the Mediterranean languages in this regard, so light, playful. You sing, and we seem to score words with a hammer.

- Are you marching?

–Marching, yes.

–Agushin Prussian step?

- In the form of certain historical events, to the Germans, it is better not to joke like that.

—Wh if I touched your national feelings.

—Abas did not hurt.

- In German, there are a lot of borrowings from different languages. In Russia there are guardians of the Russian language, fighters for its purity. Are there any fighters in Germany for the purity of the German language?

- I did not notice. Most likely there are fighters to make even more foreign words. I honestly tell you, it sometimes infuriates me, because there are so many good German words. It feels like we just do not want to use them. It is very strange that, for example, songs in their own language are not very popular, it is considered kich, they sing only in English. I think this is connected with history, it is such an alienation from your own language. I believe that this is a very big problem, it is a symptom of a phenomenon that is much deeper: the Germans have enough problems with their identity after all these horrors of fascism and other things. These problems are very strongly expressed in the language, therefore there should be a lot of English names, they are even invented sometimes. For example, our cell phone is called Handy - this is an artificial, false, allegedly borrowed from the English word, because in English this word is not used. “Mobilleron” would be a normal German word, but it is necessary for us to sound in Zamyani, so that we would not be. I think it's funny. The French, on the other hand, for the word "computer" came up with some kind of word. There may be two extremes - French and German.

-At the same time, you are a fighter for the purity of the German language.

“You found one, but so secret, secretive, who did not leave the underground.”

- The period of Nazism did not last long, a little less than 15 years. Did this period affect German?

“Yes, there are a lot of words that have entered German vocabulary and which are still practically not recognized as such.” On the other hand, there are words that have become a taboo. For example, for us, for the Germans, it is very difficult to perceive the word "homeland"-this is some kind of kich is considered to be suspicious. If you say that you love your homeland, you are already half a fascist.

—It the phrase "Voice of Blood".

- God forbid, the type is on your tongue. A lot of taboos on the one hand, and on the other hand, it entered the language. And the attitude to the language in this regard is warlike. There is a big struggle, which can be said, and what is impossible. You have political correctness in England, and in Germany it is square.

- Even to say the "leader of the Indian tribe" - this is already dangerous i.e. Fuhrer?

-Yes, very dangerous. Our deputy recently said that we need to find the final solution to the problem with immigration, and he said innocently, so it was all over the whole of Germany. But this is already some kind of infantility. If there was a context at least, but just a person used a word, he did not say “Endlösung”, then it would be clear, but he used in a more or less soft form, but even that was enough. Not the topic was discussed, but "bad word." I agree, there are toxic words, they should not be used as “endlösung”, God forbid, this is forever connected with the “final decision”, but the deputy used it in a different context. I show Russian videos where the cadets sing: “Uncle Vova, we are in the last battle,” I always see how they hear when they hear when they hear when they hear The word "last battle", you would just see their eyes.

-How much is the modern German language still politicized? You are a journalist, you are an international journalist, you use this language.

- He is very much, unfortunately, politicized. You can no longer say "refugees", you must say "running away." I really don't like it. We are far from what Orwell wrote about, thank God. Things must be called their proper-names and not try to be engineers of the language, to impose some thought to people. I always say this: these are the great-grandchildren of Lenin, they believe that it is necessary to direct human souls somewhere with an engineering way. I really don't like it. I am a deeply liberal person in the sense that there should be freedom, there should not be this idea that the people need to be brought up on top. When the language is used for such purposes, this, unfortunately, is now quite common in Germany, it is alarming me. I didn’t think about five years ago that it would acquire such forms as it now acquires in Germany. The language has become very ideologized. I think this is an abuse of the language, what is happening.

“In your articles, can you call the war to Ukraine“ War ”, Russian aggression“ aggression ”, Russian intervention“ Intervention ”? Will the editor accept these words?

-When, depending on where. I know colleagues on television, with which it is deleted. I know very well that this is a very thin line. If I call it, even if the editor misses, then for so many I-some kind of radical, marginal. It’s like Orwell said: the more lies, the more hatred of those who are telling the truth. And here a little differently: the more they do not like to call a spade a spade, the more contempt for those who call these things their names. Therefore, if I am talking about the war in Ukraine, if I am talking about the invasion of Ukraine, if I talk about the fact that this is Russian aggression, I just can’t reach many people, the blinds are closed immediately. Here it is very good to weigh. I need to weigh what is more important to me: so that I call things with my names or that I get to more people. This is a difficult choice. You have to be like an icebreaker. Due to the fact that I call the Russian regime criminal, mafia, and I'm talking about war, about aggression, many people consider me a radical, extreme. It's sad.

- Boris, you have a long -term romance with the Russian language. What is this novel: love, challenge, professional interest? How would you call your relationship? Roman oh ...?

- This is definitely love. I did not say this during the life of Voinovich, who was a dear friend to me, now I can: he said that I am the only Western person with whom he is familiar, who understands Russia, who completely accepted it into himself. This is a huge wealth, I think. I acquired the second homeland, I really think so. I deep down, despite the emphasis, I feel as Russians as a German. Maybe this is due to the fact that the Germans have identity problems. When I arrived, while still very young, at the age of 19, to Russia, for me the German identity was very weak for obvious reasons, and I accepted Russian identity. I consider it great wealth, this is a big gift. I love Russian sayings, Russian words, your humor. I am a walking encyclopedia of Russian folklore. I love your mat, I use it very dosed, but it is unequer. It is also a wealth of emotions. In German there is nothing comparable - this is amazing.

“I see you are afraid of the words“ Mutterland ”, but are not afraid of the word“ homeland ”?

“That's, I found the language of my freedom.”

Further in the program: "My Jerusalem."

Says writer Zinovy Zinik:

“My Jerusalem, my London, my Moscow, the metropolis, are cities invented. Each has their own Jerusalem. Each person is trying to arrange his past within the city. And Jerusalem in its essence is a fictional city invented by King David, which built it in the middle of the desert, in a mountainous area. It was, I would say, a conceptual project, and this very project has remained Jerusalem in the last millennia. ”

Lithuanian artist with Ukrainian roots.

The artist Anatoly Stisko once lived in Kaunas, but once decided from a city person to become rural. The artist exchanged all the benefits of a city dweller and an honored artist for an almost deserted village.

“My favorite records” with Greek journalist Dimitris Bakolas.