Dialectical Identity and Destiny: A General Introduction to Alexander Zinoviev's Theory of the Soviet Man

Dialectical Identity and Destiny: A General Introduction to Alexander Zinoviev's Theory of the Soviet Man Libor Brom University of Denver Alexander Alexandrovich Zinoviev, formerly head of the Logic Department at Moscow University and now exiled and stripped of his Soviet citizenship for "behavior damaging Soviet prestige," has authored numerous books, lectured at international conferences, and is considered to be one of the most provocative thinkers of our time. Ranging from a satire that depicts the practices of Communist ideology in the Soviet Union to the sociological descriptions of a new type of man (substituting Homo Soviéticas for Homo Sapiens), his publications appear to be unorthodox analyses of contemporary Soviet life. In spite of his controversial conclusions, Zinoviev refuses to call himself a Soviet dissident and emphasizes that he is, first and foremost, the Soviet Man par excellence. He says: "Soviet people cannot shed their identity. They may be dissidents, they may live abroad, they may be anti-Soviet from head-to-toe: their Soviet character will stand out in everything they write and do' ' (A Dissenter 35). Yet, when speaking of the Soviet Man, he says: "I respect him and I despise him. I am delighted with him and I am appalled by him. I myself am a Homosos. Therefore I am merciless and cruel when I describe him" (Homo 5). This paper is directed to those who wish to be acquainted with the intricate undercurrents found in contemporary Soviet life. It attempts to introduce the literary world of a highly educated Soviet thinker while, at the same time, identifying the major traits of his remarkable protagonist — the Soviet man. Method and Theory Zinoviev views Soviet society from the point of view of a dialectic materialist who stresses certain generally neglected logistic points. First, he furnishes himself with dialectical methodology as a "totality of logistic approaches toward understanding complex actuality" (Kommunizm 41). He stresses that the Soviet Man behaves differently when in isolation from a collective than when within a collective. In the former, the Soviet Man may denounce decisions made by the Central Committee of the Communist Party or by its General Secretary, whereas in the latter he may applaud them. In the first example, the Soviet Man's judgment is abstract, in the latter it is concrete. Zinoviev claims that Marxist apologists and critics have equally failed to accept dialectics as a totality of logistic approaches. As a matter of fact, he 15 16Rocky Mountain Review says, the dialectical method inevitably produces results which contradict the image of Communism (41). Second, Zinoviev endorses wholeheartedly the materialist theory. He believes that an accurate cognitive method must necessarily imply recognition of the objective social laws and historical tendencies. However, power and determinism of these objective laws are irreversible . For example, a person who has mastered the objective laws of a Communist society must conclude with absolute certainty that Communism with democratic freedoms cannot exist as a normal state of affairs. Such knowledge, Zinoviev claims, is important: people who conform to objective laws will not waste their energy on some ' 'third way" and will "seek realistic fighting ways in order to meliorate their lot" (M svobody 25). Third, in order to understand a Communist ideological society, one must examine the social relations within the actual ' 'accumulation of a large number of people forjoint life and activity" (Kommunizm 46). This means that in the practical application of dialectical and historical materialism one must begin by drawing from the actual everyday human relations existing in the widely spread collectives. Fourth, there is only one power which can weaken the fetters of ideology, even if only for a small number of people. It is literature as a form of comprehension which presents a merciless analysis of the significant events that have occurred. Zinoviev believes that true literature should ultimately remove the illusion that human beings can be saved by history and the hope that someone will be coming to their rescue. Such a literature places the responsibility for each event upon its participants and mobilizes their moral and spiritual powers. Zinoviev feels that literature must reveal to human beings the foundations and mechanisms for their existence and at the same time point...