viewpoint-east.org

On A Happy New Year, your delightful Christmas and my visit to Kyiv

Category: ukraina, ukraine
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(Läsningstid: < 1 minut)

Friends,

From now until 11th of january I will only post sporadically. I will however try to post a review of one of Sholem Aleichem‘s novels (the post will be in English).

ukrainian xmas

I therefor want to wish you A Very Happy New year, Holidays and Christmas!

soviet new year

I also would like to add that I will be in Kyiv from 26th of january to 9 of February. If you want to meet, talk about viewpoint-east.org or anything else likewise, please write me a email.


Sholem Aleichem, Kom in från glömskans förmak! Del II

Category: by sophie engström, gender, jiddish, literature, russia, ryssland, ukraina, ukraine, yiddish
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(Läsningstid: 2 minuter)

… fortsättning från gårdagen …

Något som han kritiserade i flera verk var utnyttjandet av fattiga. Han kritiserade till exempel Kyivs judiska plutokratin som hänsynlöst utnyttjade mindre bemedlade i staden. I hans verk Spekulanten (som kommer att recenseras här på viewpoint-east.org troligtvis nästa vecka) framkommer den kritiken med all önskvärd tydlighet.

Men det finns en annan komplexitet i många av Aleichems verk, som även den kommer att beröras i nästa veckas recension, och det är han ofta åskådliggör samhällsförändringar genom kvinnor och mäns relationer. I Classic Yiddish Fiction hävdas att han, i till exempel Tevye berättelserna, framställde det traditionsenliga i judisk kultur genom männens agerande och krafter mot social förändring genom kvinnors agerande. Detta är ett intressant påstående, som jag kommer att återkomma något till.

aleichem2

En annan aspekt av hans författarskap är ironin. Aleichem var mycket inspirerad av författaren Sholem Abramovith (även han en förespråkare för jiddish) samt Gogol. I Aleichems verk återfinner man ofta en typ av självkritiserande ironi som, enligt honom själv, är en viktig del av den judiska humorn. Men hans ironi har en tendens att ändra perspektiv. Understundom vet man inte om romanfiguren är självironisk/självkritisk eller om det är författaren, alltså Aleichem, som ironiserar romanfiguren. Detta är dock ingen osäkerhet som skapar en oangenäm förvirring hos läsaren, utan faktiskt bara en frisk metanivå som ger flera parafraser till egna misstag, dumheter eller förvirringar.

Hans konstnärliga stil är monologisk. Hans verk är ofta brev eller samtal som övergår i monolog – till exempel bekännelser för Rabbin eller till Gud eller en skriftställare som då inte alltför osökt heter just Sholem Aleichem. Hans verk Spekulanten är av sådan karaktär, den består av en brevväxling mellan den synnerligen otursförföljde Menachen Mendl och hans sarkastiska och klagande hustru i hembyn.

Jag ville skriva om Sholem Aleichem här, dels för att jag tycker hans författarskap och författarstil är mycket intressant, men också för att lyfta fram en författare som idag tyvärr befinner sig i glömskans förmak. Jag hoppas få återkomma till honom flera gånger, men att finna bra översättningar av hans verk är inte helt lätt. Att lära mig jiddish framstår kanske inte som ett lockande alternativ i dagsläget, så jag får nog försöka hushålla med de översättningar som finns. Jag hoppas i alla fall att er bekantskap med Sholem Aleichem kommer att bereda er lika mycket glädje som det ger mig.


Sholem Aleichem, Kom in från glömskans förmak! Del I

Category: by sophie engström, gender, jiddish, literature, russia, ryssland, ukraina, ukraine, yiddish
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(Läsningstid: 2 minuter)

Sholem Aleichem är en författare som kanske är okänd för många svenskar. Men han har på senare tid upptagit alltmer av min uppmärksamhet. En del kanske känner igen hans namn från musikalen Spelman på taket som hans romanfigur Tevje mjölkutköraren utgjorde förlagan till. Noteras bör att Tevje mjölkutköraren förekommer i flera olika noveller av Aleichem, så grunden till Spelman på taket vilar alltså på flera verk och inte ett som ofta felaktigt påstås.

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Sholem Naumovich Rabinovich föddes den 2 mars 1859 i den ukrainska byn Perejaslav, i dåvarande Tsarryssland, i en fattig judisk familj. Han sägs mycket tidigt ha beslutade sig för att ägna sig åt författarskapet, och en av hans tidiga mer häpnadsväckande alster lär vara en judisk tolkning av Robinson Cruse. Sholem Aleichem är en pseudonym som i översättning blir “fred vare med dig”.

Aleichem förde ett ganska kringflackande liv, vilket kan illustrera hur många judar hade det i dåtidens Tsarryssland. Antisemitismen var utbredd och flera judar råkade ut för progromer och fick därför flytta alternativt fly för sina liv. De fick inte heller mantalsskriva sig var de ville. Som exempel fick det inte mantalsskriva sig i Kyjiv, utan bara under vissa förutsättningar, mot rätt betalning samt vid rätt tid. Detta gjorde att Aleichem, och många andra bodde i byar kring Kyjiv. Aleichem bodde bland annat i Bojarka, en liten by sydväst om Kyjiv.

Aleichem yrkesbana var dessutom ganska brokig vilket kanske inte berodde på hans judiska ursprung utan snarare på en del okloka beslut. Han försökte sig bland annat på en karriär som börsmäklare, men han slutade som helt utblottad. Hans hustru, som kom från en förmögen familj, lär ha stått för en del av familjens försörjning. Aleichem försökte även emigrera till USA två gånger. Första gången 1907, men han blev tvungen att kapitulera redan 1908 efter en rad misslyckanden. 1915 emigrerade han en andra gång och han stannade till sin död året därpå. Aleichem var mycket kritisk till den judiska assimileringen i USA och några av hans senare verk kritiserar “amerikaniseringen” av nyanlända judar.

Inledningsvis skrev Sholem Aleichem på ryska samt på hebreiska, men långsamt växte sig beslutet starkt att skriva på jiddisch. Han blev slutligen en mycket stark förespråkare för jiddisch i Europa och han uppmuntrade många yngre författare att skriva på språket, som dessförinnan främst hade varit ett talspråk utan stark Litteraturscen. Aleichems beslut att skriva på jiddisch skulle också göra det lättare för andra att ta vid. Han var en stark förespråkare av zionismen, men man skulle kunna hävda att en för stark betoning av Sholem Aleichems zionistiska verksamhet riskerar att helt förta hans kanske viktigaste arv, konsten att genom ironi synliggöra en frän samhällskritik.

… fortsättning följer i morgon ….


A forgotten masterpiece

Category: avantgarde, by sophie engström, movies, russia, ukraine
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(Läsningstid: 2 minuter)

The movie “The Eve of Ivan Kupala” is perhaps one of the most intrigues movies I have ever seen. The movie is based on Nikolai Gogol’s short story “The Eve of Ivan Kupala” (or “S:t John’s Eve” in translation). I did read the short story by Gogol a couple of years ago, but can’t say my imagination was able to create anything like this movie. The director, Yuri Ilyenko, has made a very independent interpretation of Petro’s pact with the devil, or what is thought to be the devil.


Petro’s meeting with the devil at Bear’s Ravine

The story is, as I told above, based on a short story by Gogol. Gogol has in his turn interpreted and collected Ukrainian folk tales. The story circles about the poor peasant Petro that falls in love with Pidorka. She is much richer than Petro, and her father disagree to their love. Finially her father forbid him to ever see her again, and Petro tries to make everything in his power to see her. He gets so desperate that he makes a pact with a stranger in town, that possibly could be seen as the devil. To make a long story very short, Petro agrees to blood shred in order to get the gold so he can get his Pidorka back. After protests he agrees to kill the child, in order to get the gold. Petro wakes up after two days Petro, unable to reember how he got the money.

Yuri Ilyenko has created a nonlinear masterpiece, with very little dialogue. He has left a lot of space for your own imagination and interpretation. But the fact that it isn’t easy to follow only makes the narration more complex and intrigues.

The movie was made in 1968 but wasn’t released until 1989. I believe it could be because the spoken language is Ukrainian, which was rather controversial to use in Soviet days. If anyone can fill me in why this movie was “forgotten” about for so long, I would be more than thankful. I can’t find much info about the movie, even though I have been looking almost everywhere.


Who is who in Ukraine?

Category: by sophie engström, ukraina, ukraine
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(Läsningstid: < 1 minut)

Feel lost in the drama of Ukrainian political life? Never knows who is who and always sits with endless google-lists and wiki-links never know what is right or wrong? Try Who is who in Ukraine. I can’t anser for everything they write, but it is a great guidance for someone with limited knowledge in Ukrainian.


Is there a greater Scheme? – About Swedbank in Ukraine: Part 2

Category: business, by sophie engström, economy, swedbank, ukraina, ukraine
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(Läsningstid: 2 minuter)

Yesterday I wrote a short summery on what has been said in Swedish media about Swedbank’s engagement in Ukraine. Today I will continue with a possible interpretation of why Swedbank stays in Ukraine even though they loose a lot by staying.

On the 12th of December Dagens Nyheter, one of the leading newspapers in Sweden, denoted that Swedbank not only looses a lot by staying in Ukraine, but possibly also having a very unique position in comparison to other international banks. Through the the Finicial Cooperation for the World Bank, IFC, Swedbank has got a loan on about half a Billion Swedish Kronen (≈€48 000 000). And even the fact that Swedbank actually violates and working on a high risk level, IFC have no intension in breaking their cooperation with the Swedbank. For instance, 42% of Swedbank debts are risky or even bad. Moreover, the bank also has too much exposure and loans to one single customer. It is however not clear who it is it, but several observers mean it is Sergey Tigipko. This is a clear violation against the agreements with IFC. All this is very agrivating facts and also leads us to the question why Swedbank stays in Ukraine.

Knut Kainz Rognerud imples in his book Det stora bankrånet (The big bank robbery) that Swedbank, and many other Swedish banks, did in fact make the crash in the global finical crisis bigger because the banks gave unwise and very unstable loans. One might ask oneself if this could be the irony of it all. Today it looks like the banks are losing and actually risking a lot, but in a longer perceptive Swedbank will possibly be one of the only international banks left in Ukraine – and will possibly own a great deal of Ukraine’s resources. I would say that this interpretation is not too paranoid, but are only based on the simple fact, that no bank will stay in Ukraine just from pure generosity. Of course they have a greater plan with their engagement, possibly not a “scheme” but at least a plan. And that plan is not open for either of us, but concerns our well-being.

If you have any comments of thought about this let me know. It is possible you have some information I have not, and I would highly appreciate if you would share it with me.


Is there a greater Scheme? – About Swedbank in Ukraine: Part 1

Category: by sophie engström, swedbank, ukraina, ukraine
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(Läsningstid: 3 minuter)

This is an article for my Ukrainian readers that may be interested in knowing how the discussions goes in Sweden about Swedbank’s engagement in Ukraine. I will focus some on how the debate has been going, and I will continue tomorrow with an interpretation on how one can see Swedbank’s engagement in Ukraine and what one can fear from their present and future actions.

A couple of weeks ago I had a chat with a friend from Kiev/Kyiv about the financial crisis and the effects on her own business. I was rather stunned when she said that Swedbank was considered to be one of the good banks, or even “good guys”, since they were staying in Ukraine and didn’t try to escape from the financial crisis. I was stunned, because I thought people in Ukraine (and in the Baltic states) wanted to get rid of banks as Swedbank. This was actually caused by my understanding that banks, as Swedbank, played a very important role in increasing the financial crisis among those countries.

The tone and the degree of irritation has been much greater in Sweden than in Ukraine. Many Swedish newspapers has during the past year written articles that actually focus on how Swedish banks could, or even should, withdraw their interests for Ukraine and the Baltic states. Swedbank has the greatest capital and loaning in Ukraine and the Baltic states among the Swedish banks. This have made them rather exposed for Swedish critic in media. This has been compromised with Swedbank’s rather daring attitude, for instance with buying Kommerzbank in 2007, which has been a course of irritation among media and Swedish small investors. It is actually possible that Swedbank’s action just didn’t fit with Swedish values, such as to be humble and trying to avoid all negative attraction to oneself. But the purchase of Kommerzbank could also be seen as a millstone for the bank. Swedbank is in a rather deep dip and the downward spiral never seems to end and the Kommmerzbank purchase haven’t made their situation better, but rather worse!

My interpretation is that Swedish savers have been rather critical against Swedbank’s refusal of giving up their Eastward investments, and mainstream media have not been helping the situation much. Last week the state owned television, Sveriges Television, had a reportage about a Latvian farmer family that had to leave their farm, slaughter all their animals and sell all their properties to be able to pay Swedbank back. But even so, their debt to Swedbank was still around € 96 000. These kind of stories are pretty effective in Sweden I’d say, especially because Swedes in general never wants to be villains that rob people in other countries, that possibly have a much tougher situation than ourselves. Swedes are used be the “good guys”, and being a brick in a great global economic war on high financial level, leaving many as losers and rather few are winners.

The above recounted story are however a rather fresh element in Swedish media. The main focus was previously on how Swedbank’s actions could affect Swedish investors and the labor force in Sweden, without little account on a global scale. From a personal point of view I appreciate that Swedish media has been able to change their perspective and not only showing concern for the well-being of Swedish investors and savers.

But I can also see several problems with having a negative focus on Swedbank’s engagements in Ukraine, since it could discourage other investors. Especially in regard to what I mentioned above, no Swede really wants to be depicted as the bad guy. But even so, we might also ask ourselves why Swedbank think it is so important to stay in Ukraine and Baltic states? You do not need to be too conspirotial to believe that Swedbank have a greater scheme by staying. I will therefor continue the discussions tomorrow and highlight Knut Kainz Rognerud’s book “Det stora bankrånet” (“The big bank robbery”), and how he urge that banks, as Swedbank, actually made the financial crisis greater in Ukraine and the Baltic states.