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As Americans we have some common cultural icons. Some were real people, some not, but chances are in elementary school we all heard tales of the old American folk heroes: Johnny Appleseed, Paul Bunyan, Daniel Boone, Davey Crockett, Casey at the Bat, John Henry, and Brer Rabbit come to mind (hmm…I’m having trouble thinking of female folk heroes…anyone have any suggestions? Does Betsey Ross count?)
Then there are our “founding fathers,” who were real people, of course, but around which have grown a certain mythology. George Washington, Ben Franklin, and Thomas Jefferson are “characters” well-known by most American school children, although they might have gotten their “facts” from a cartoon movie of the founding of our country.
Then, of course, there is popular culture and its icons and references. I’m not going to pretend to be young and hip enough to know what teenagers are into these days, but certainly all American children (unless they’re living in a hole) are familiar with Star Wars, Harry Potter, and Barney. Not to mention Superman, Spiderman, Batman, and the like.
Finally, even though not everyone in our country belongs to the Judeo/Christian religions tradition there is no doubt that basic knowledge of the Bible and the stories inside are part of our cultural common knowledge. I was not raised in any religion, but I did buy a Bible when I became an English major in college because I simply could not read any pre-20th century text without it as a reference.
So – what’s my point and what does it have to do with Russian adoption?
Here it is: if you want to raise a child who was born in Russia with cultural links to her past, it’s necessary to explose them to the folk and fairy tales of her culture. Who are the Russian cultural icons? What does every Russian boy or girl, rich or poor, city or country, grow up knowing?
Beats me!
Just kidding…I do have some ideas. But I am not a student of Russian folklore although I do my best, for Little J’s sake and also to satisfy personal curiosity. In part 2 of this blog entry I’ll try to explore some common Russian cultural icons.
