14
PARTISAN REVIEW
ANDREI SINIAVSKI: Nationalism can vary, and in different his–
torical epochs it plays various roles. At times the nationalism of
small and oppressed peoples is a great thing. At the same time, the
nationalism of large and strong nations is a horror. I myself am Or–
thodox, but I am afraid of Russian nationalism, because it can turn
into anything.
It
is a danger because Marxism is finished in Russia;
yet Russians must live by some idea- a great or a maximal idea.
Nationalism is growing stronger both inside Russia and even among
some of the dissidents. Here there are also various shades of nation–
alism, from the liberal to the fascist. I belong to the so-called liberal–
democratic trend among the dissidents.
Perhaps democracy will never win out in Russia. But the duty
of the Russian intelligentsia is to be democratic, simply for the rea–
son that without freedom, culture cannot exist. Though there may
not be freedom in life, at least in art freedom will remain.
VASSILY AKSYONOV: Nationalism is a somewhat more natu–
ral feeling for a human being than are communist, totalitarian feel–
ings. Probably we writers have to encourage some liberal tendencies
in the Russian nationalist movement. I'm a cosmopolitan man, but
if we dream of the future for Russia, the cosmopolitan dreams are
groundless. Nationalism, in its liberal vein, is probably the most
serious rival for the totalitarian idea in Russia nowadays.
WILLIAM PHILLIPS:
If
I understood Siniavski, he said there was
little or no hope for a democratic society in Russia? Is that correct?
ANDREI SINIAVSKI: Yes. But there are other hopes- for the ex–
istence of opposition. And it is among the intelligentsia that culture
exists, despite the absence of democracy.
BORIS SHRAGIN: Disagreement exists even here among us. As a
democrat and a liberal democrat, I believe that this is good, because
most of the time we didn't really have a political life in our country.
And the different ideas might be the beginning of political tendencies,
even of future parties. Now we share a common enemy, the Soviet
totalitarian regime, which gives us some common background for
our positions. And whether democracy or authoritarianism will win
out is the problem of the political development of our country.
PAVEL LITVINOV: Nobody knows the future, and it's very diffi–
cult to predict what's going to happen in Russia and throughout the
world. True, recent developments are fine and unexpected. But I
want to talk about the question of democracy in Russia from a
broader perspective.
