#264 Zhirinovsky as a Nationalist "Kitsch Artist'' by Sergei Kibalnik Sergei Kibalnik is Senior Associate at the fustitute of Russian Literature of the Russian Academy of Sciences in St. Petersburg and a former USIA-Supported Regional Exchange Scholar at the Kennan fustitute for Advanced Russian Studies. The Kennan Institute for Advanced Russian Studies The Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars The Kennan Institute for Advanced Russian Studies is a division of the Woodrow WJ.lson International Center for Scholars. Through its programs of residential scholarships, meetings, and publications, the Institute encourages scholarship on Russia and the former Soviet Union, embracing a broad range of fields in the social sciences and humanities. The Kennan Institute is supported by contributions from foundations, corporations, individuals, and the United States Government. 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Feldmesser TABLE OF CONTENTS The Russian Anti-Hero 1 Verbal Kitsch 6 Kitsch in Pictures 13 The "Kitsch Man" 15 Conclusion 16 ZHIRINOVSKY AS A NATIONALIST "KITSCH ARTIST" The Russian Anti-Hero present in his eclectic mixture. It is, In their comments on Vladimir moreover, striking that Zhirinovsky Volfovich Zhirinovs~ many himself does not deny this. He Western and Russian scholars fault acknowledges it and even boasts him for being an ultranationalist. Yet about it. He has said, for example: this epithet might be regarded as ''Women frequently deceive by not flattering rather than harsh. It has saying what they think. Consequently, been noted that Zhirinovsky has you also have to deceive them, not frequently switched the political telling them what you want but what circles he moved in, the political they want to hear. I transferred this platforms he stood on, and the concept to politics and achieved political views he expressed. Indeed, great success."2 Like Khlestakov in by now he may have exhausted all Gogel's The Inspector General, the options that the current political Zhirinovsky constantly displays and ideological situation offers to a what he really is, and consequently politician. He has been active in nobody believes it. The mayor in Shalom, a Jewish cultural group. He Gogol's classic story was surprised has attended the meetings of, and that he had taken Khlestakov to be apparently wanted to join, various the inspector general. This happened democratic organizations. He did precisely because the former bore no join the misleadingly named Liberal resemblance to the latter, continually Democratic Party of the U.S.S.R., and showed that he had nothing in after the breakup of the Soviet Union common with him, and the mayor he formed his own party, the Liberal expected the inspector general to be Democratic Party of Russia (LDPR). cleverly disguised. 1his party interestingly enough, Presumably in order to soften this became the first registered party in cynical lack of scruples, Sergei the Soviet Union-although it broke some electoral rules, thus arousing Plekhanov (that last name!-history the suspicion that it was created "to repeating itself as farce), in his undermine the influence of genuine apologetic Zhirinovsky: Who Is He?, liberal organizations."1 created a theoretical justification for A reading of Zhirinovsky's Zhirinovsky's frequent ideological interviews and articles confirms that shifts. Seeking to paint Zhirinovsky's in different periods he has professed disdain for convictions as a pseudcr quite contradictory views. He began readiness to make concessions and with what seemed to be truly liberal compromises in order to reach an and democratic convictions and agreement, Plekhanov makes this ended with the stridently imperialistic argument (alluding, in the course of and chauvinistic ideas that are still it, to another work of Gogol's ): 1 Boris Kagarlitsky, Restoration in Russia: Why Capitalism Failed (London and New York: VERSO, 19"95), 63. 2 Interview in Playboy (May 1995): 61. 1 The images of the imperial All of this nonsense is thoroughly subconsciousness are Zhi.rinovskian. The open immoralism, extraordinarily multilayered. the pretension of being the epitome They arose out of the necessity of of "Russian national character," and accommodating various national stereotypes in the name of the readiness to adapt in order to get preserving the leading role of the something from someone are prevailing nation As paradoxical constantly displayed by Zhirinovsky as it may be, those who profess himself. In a talk given in September imperial ideology are always 1995 at the Kennan Institute for somewhat opportunistic. It's hard Advanced Russian Studies, Vladimir to imagine ruling a superstate without having the ability to Gusinsky, the head of MOST, the negotiate or to concede on certain largest bank in Moscow, said that issues. The Russian soul is the Zhirinovsky had recently spent an incarnate confirmation of this hle hour in his office trying to convince principle. Specifically among several Jewish foreigners just how Russians, there is a very common much he liked Jews-while in type of person, who is prepared speeches in the provinces, he blames to say gladly whatever those surrounding him expect him to the Jews for all of Russia's misfortunes. say: with the Tartars, to praise Even his family background Islam; with the Germans, to changes to suit his location. When slander the Asiatics; with thieves, Zhirinovsky is in Israel, his father is to curse the informers; with Jewish; when he's in Russia, his soldiers, to lament the decrease in father becomes just "a lawyer." discipline-and in each of these When the newspaper Moscow situations a tear of honesty and tender emotion will be experienced. Komsomolets published an article about Zhirinovsky, the headline was, The non-Russian has subtly "Vladimir Volfovich is a pure Russian noticed this peculiarity in the but sometimes just a little bit Jewish."4 classics of Nikolai Gogol. His Plekhanov extends his comparison novel Dead Souls presents a whole gallery of Russian types, one of between Zhirinovsky and Nozdrev: which is the landowner Nozdrev, "In Zhirinovsky there is this a character who is ready to praise Nozdrev-like self-assurance in his any opinion and who has the zeal standing up for the opinion of any to stand up for it as though it were person to whom he is speaking. The precisely the source of his personal fact that he was received by various thoughts on life. Incidentally, national groups in the early stages of there is nothing bad about this characteristic. It is an altogether his political career grew out of precisely this Nozdrev-like aspect of idle occupation to place moral 5 evaluatio-s-s on peculiarities of his character." But Plekhanov fails character. to mention that Gogol portrayed 3 Sergei Plekhanov, Zhirinovsky: Kto on? (Moscow: Evraziya-Nord, 1994), 112- 113. 4 Aleksei Minkin, "Vladimir Vol'fovich chistyi russkii, no inogda nemnozhechko evrei," as quoted in Eduard Limonov, Limonov protiv Zhirtnovskogo (Moscow: Konets veka,1994), 43. 5 Plekhanov, Zhirinovsky: Kfo on?, 113. 2 Nozdrev as a li~ an egoist, a Maksimov. When Zhirinovsky swindler, and a scoundrel: appointed Eduard Limonov as minister of security in the shadow In a sense Nozdrev was a historical character. There was always some cabinet of his LDPR, Moscow "history" attached to any gathering Komsomolets headlined the story, at which he assisted. Something "Zhirinovsky has found an iron always happened: Either he would Edik"7-an allusion to Felix have to be conducted from the room Dzerzhinsky, "Iron Felix," the first by gendarmes or his own friends head of the Communist government's would be obliged to push him out. If nothing of the kind happened, secret police. then inevitably something else out of Plekhanov makes another note­ the ordinary would occur: Either he worthy comparison between would get so tight at the refreslunent Zhirinovsky and Khlestakov, the bar that he could only roar with Gogolian character whom I have laughter, or he would tell such already mentioned. whoppers that his own conscience would prick him. And he used to Perhaps the most important indulge in lies without any necessity: factor in Zhirinovsky's success was He would suddenly spin a yarn his ability to bluff fearlessly. about some horse he had with a Distributing letters of indemnity left pink or light-blue coat, or some nonsense of the sort, so that the and right on his party's stationery, he people he was talking to would received, on credit, more time than leave him, saying, "That's a was offered to any other electoral 6 fisherman's tale, my lad." bloc in the official drawing for Zhirinovsky's public behavior, television advertising time. It was his perpetual scandals and fights in said at the time that he spent a billion the Dwna, his incredible promises rubles to purchase television time for and stories, convince us that he is his electoral propaganda. The thing indeed a ''historical character" in the is, that billion did not exist. All that same sense.