10Problems in the Development of Satire In

Presentation date: September, 2020, Date of acceptance: November, 2020, Publication date: January, 2021 PROBLEMS IN THE DEVELOPMENT OF SATIRE IN THE EARLY STAGES OF SOCIALIST REALISM PROBLEMAS EN EL DESARROLLO DE LA SÁTIRA EN LAS PRIMERAS ETAPAS DEL REALISMO SOCIALISTA Gulshan Agabey1 E-mail: [email protected] ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1009-8913 10 1 Azerbaijan State Pedagogical University. Azerbaijan. Suggested citation (APA, seventh edition) Agabey, G. (2021). Problems in the development of satire in the early stages of socialist realism. Revista Conrado, 17(78), 80-86. ABSTRACT RESUMEN The goal of this work is to analyze the problems of El objetivo de este trabajo es analizar los problemas the development of satire in Azerbaijan in the early del desarrollo de la sátira en Azerbaiyán en las pri- stages of socialist realism between the 20-30s in the meras etapas del realismo socialista entre los años XX century. It is shown that the national poetic idea, 20-30 del siglo XX. Se demuestra que la idea poética which historically prefers a poetic-lyrical way of thin- nacional, que históricamente prefiere una forma de king (and also a form of expression!), Has a comple- pensar poético-lírica (¡y también una forma de ex- tely new content in the awakening and formation of presión!), tiene un contenido completamente nuevo the national consciousness at the beginning of the en el despertar y formación de la conciencia nacio- 20th century. However, this process did not last long, nal a principios del siglo XX. Sin embargo, este pro- and with the change of political power in the country ceso no duró mucho, y con el cambio de poder po- in 1920, the satire that had undergone almost half lítico en el país en 1920, la sátira que había sufrido a century of artistic development, was impeded by casi medio siglo de desarrollo artístico, fue impedida administrative means and entered a period of res- por medios administrativos y entró en un período de triction. The application of censorship of fiction and restricción. La aplicación de la censura de la ficción the press, for some time impeded the development y la prensa, durante algún tiempo impidieron el de- of the genre, conditioning a change in its path and sarrollo del género condicionando un cambio en su direction. This confirms that there was a great obs- camino y dirección. Esto confirma que hubo un gran tacle to satire in the early stages of socialist realism obstáculo a la sátira en las primeras etapas del rea- so that, during this period, satire did not develop in lismo socialista por lo que, durante este período, la the same upward trend. However, it cannot be said sátira no se desarrolló en la misma tendencia ascen- that the satire remained static at this stage becau- dente. Sin embargo, no se puede decir que la sátira se, although the satire did not function deeply in permaneciera estática en esta etapa pues, aunque the social context in the stage of socialist realism, la sátira no funcionó profundamente en el contexto it underwent a certain development and created a social en la etapa del realismo socialista, experimen- gallery of new satirical images, portraits and charac- tó un cierto desarrollo y creó una galería de nuevas ters. that expressed the character of the time. imágenes satíricas, retratos y personajes que expre- saban el carácter de la época. Keywords: Socialist realism, satire, Azerbaijan, method, Palabras clave: development. realismo socialista, sátira, Azerbaiyán, método, desarrollo. Volume 17 | Number 78 | January - February | 2021 CONRADO | Revista pedagógica de la Universidad de Cienfuegos | ISSN: 1990-8644 INTRODUCTION. “remnants of the exploiting classes,” the “class enemies” of the proletariat, the “reactionary ideologues” and the Satire is usually regarded as ‘unserious,’ and thus “modern elements”. not deserving of an analysis in the context of nation- alist ideology. This ideology is supposedly included Mammadov (1965), agreed with the role given to satire in more serious publications, like programmatic arti- by the ruling ideology and wrote: “Satirical works greatly cles, party manifestos, legal, and historical treatises, helped the party, the government, and the Soviet people. where one can observe the development of a conceptual In those years, satire became popular as a means of crit- apparatus and ideological representation. Nevertheless, icism and propaganda, as a literary and artistic method. the analysis of satirical production can be productive for This period is becoming a period of satirical stories, leaf- several reasons. Existing social norms are challenged, the lets and small and large-scale comedies, both quantita- corporeal and animal ‘nature’ of human beings is emphasized, tively and qualitatively”. (p. 160) and the world is turned upside down, thus relativizing the For a long time, this attitude of literary criticism and liter- existing order. The collective nature of carni- ary criticism to satire, led to the gradual withdrawal and val practices is important: common laughter weakening of satirical pathos from literature. It should be creates a certain type of communi- noted that the approach of literary criticism from this point ty, which differs and exists separately from the of view stemmed from the interference of the existing offi- rigidly hierarchical order of official politics (Ījabs, 2019). cial ideology in literature and art. Taking this into account Early Soviet interest in a political culture of the goal of this paper is to analyze the problems in the satire influenced popular art forms and media, from development of satire in Azerbaijan in the early stages of literature to painting and music, from theatre to cinema and socialist realism. the circus. But its most pervasive visual expression was without a doubt print culture, as satire became ubiquitous DEVELOPMENT in broadsheets, posters, periodicals, and books that If in the early 1920s the theater “Criticism-Propaganda” disseminated mass propaganda in the early years of the (“Satire-Agit”) was established and the function of criticism regime. Print culture had been harnessed to mould public of the past and the promotion of the new was launched, opinion and collective self-image for centuries in Russia however towards the end of the 1920s the attitude to satire as elsewhere and in Soviet Russia, the mass reproduction became more acute. Soviet critics and theorists began to of images and text was understood as a tool that could speculate about the futility of satire. According to those play a considerable role in popular mobilization and who had already argued that satire was useless in Soviet acculturation (Gérin, 2018). society, with the strengthening of Soviet power, the withdrawal of satire was inevitable. Proponents of this view Although socialist realism was formalized as a method in believed that as the enemy cleared the political scene, the early 1930s, steps had been taken since the 1920s to the object of satire disappeared, and therefore the need manage the literary process and literature, and to pursue for satire diminished. Of course, there were various rea- a new literary policy. First of all, the freedom and liberty sons for this attitude to satire and many of these reasons of press, which began in the early twentieth century, was stemmed from existing ideology. being put to an end, and work was done in the direction of proletarian literature. Critical realism was forced to end Thus, after the Bolsheviks came to power, satirical expo- its life and it could not be otherwise, because where there sure gave way to pathos and propaganda. Especially in is censorship, there is no criticism, no exposure, but there the first years of Soviet rule, satire as a genre completely is a legitimate criticism. In fact, critical realism, which retreated. It was thought that the purpose of satire was to reached its peak at the beginning of the century, could radically change the existing structure and if the structure have entered a new phase if it had not been prevented had already changed, then it had completed its function. administratively. What is true here is that satire has historically been ac- companied by ups and downs in world literature. In other However, with the change of the political system, every- words, at different stages of history, satire has sometimes thing was cut in half, and satire fell into decline. Despite grown and sometimes receded. the fact that during the existence of social realism, the ruling ideology decided to create conditions for the develop- Between 1920s and 1950s, there was a period of decline ment of so-called satire, satire did not reach the previous in satire, and even it was banned. Theorists at that time level of development. The dominant ideology believed had difficulty in determining the attitude of satire to the that satire was needed in Soviet society to criticize the social structure (and to the government). Then, finding a 81 | Volumen 17 | Número 78 | Enero - Febrero | 2021 CONRADO | Revista pedagógica de la Universidad de Cienfuegos | ISSN: 1990-8644 certain way to do it, goverment tried to present satire as a emergence of the works of V. Mayakovsky, D. Bedny, I. Ilf, struggle against antiquity, as a weapon. This was an excu- Y. Petrov, M. Zoshchenko and the public pathos of sati- se to mean that satire had no place in the life events and re became the practical basis of its existence in the new social relations of the modern society. Kazimov(1987), period. wrote about the attitude of the time to satire: “Those who In the 1920s and 1930s, the attitude to satire like “do we opposed the method of laughter and whipping had diffi- need satire?” led to discussions. This, in general, meant culty in determining what satire and satirical literature questioning the existence of satire.

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