In an attempt to contextualise the past experience of my family life with my own present life experience, I have constructed a relatively effective representational strategy (Williams). Using a documentary style of narration and emotive language, I constructed the story around the life experiences of my family members, of which I was not a part of. That makes the story inauthentic (Landsberg, Alison), because what I remember is not part of my own memory, but I am still able to transmit the stories that I’ve been told to me by parents and my sisters. The way I imagined life under socialism in the Soviet Union is represented by the pictures that I’ve chosen and the text that I have composed, making the work mediated and not a natural representation of the past (Landsberg, Alison).
The use of technology allowed me to not only reconstruct my own view on the history and way of life in the USSR, but it has also enabled me to evoke feelings and immerse readers in the representation. The photos reflect the idea of the text written and are closely woven together, so that readers may rely on the picture to comprehend the main idea in the text.
The blog can be shared between many people online within seconds, which makes another principle of prosthetic memory work. The story can also be easily spread through social networks with the functions available under each blog post. People who might find the topic of communism interesting can forward the link to their friends.
This story can easily become part of one’s “archive of experiences” (Landsberg, Alison). As it is placed on the internet and can be disseminated broadly in such a short period of time, people of different cultures are able to access some personal insight into communism. Another reason this blog post is able to influence people on a bodily level (Landsberg, Alison), so much so that it becomes a part of their own memory, on which they will further rely on when remembering the theme of communism, is because of the nature of the theme/content itself. Communism is regarded as evil by the capitalist world, and many people do not challenge their views on communism due to a dispersed negative attitude towards the regime. And as the story represents a slightly different perspective on the political system and therewith is based on real life story, it may also incite people to question their existing knowledge about communism.
Bibliography
Landsberg, Alison. "Prosthetic Memory." Prosthetic Memory: The Transformation of American Remembrance in the Age of Mass Culture. New York: Columbia University Press, 2004. 25-48.
Williams, Linda. "Mirrors without Memories: Truth, History, and the New Documentary." Film Quarterly 46.3 1993: 9-21.
Thursday, September 30, 2010
Sunday, September 5, 2010
Creative task
(Me and my sister)
I have been deprived of a happy and blissful childhood, one where I should have been showered with my parents' attention, instead, their presence in my everyday life was sadly, limited. My sister and my grandmother took their roles. At the time of my birth, my country experienced the biggest economic crisis in the history of the USSR and my parents, like all other citizens, had to leave their old views behind and start life anew.
their sense of collectivism and focus more on making profits through business even though business innovation had never been popular before this. For 60 years, such attitudes that focused on monetary gain were said to be bad and wrong in the USSR and these were ingrained in the people's minds. And out of the blue, they would have to turn around and make business a central part of their lives, ignoring their previous beliefs and labelling it good and advantageous.
The USSR collapsed overnight and the need to look for other jobs became the main problem for millions of people stranded on the streets. My parents were no exception. Used to being provided with jobs, they struggled with their loss of income and were lost in a country full of new rules. They worked hard for very little to make ends meet for our family of 5 as our new country did not provide the benefits we were used to any more, and finding a well-paid job in the light of the looming inflation was extremely difficult.
This changed my parents; the parents that my sisters knew when they were young were not my parents. In the same way, just as our country had become economically and politically estranged from us, we, too, felt like we had become estranged from our parents. I, for one, was brought up in that atmosphere of estrangement and knew no better alternative, whereas my sisters did.
The new system made the people choose between their work and families; there was no such thing as both. In the past, those who worked for the communist party like my father,had the chance to bring their families to concerts, public holidays and military marches, and so one's work place was a means of
holding family gatherings. Communist workers had a bond between themselves and their respective families and all their time was spent with each other . The new system, however, dismantled this bond and an isolated individualism started to grow in its place.
From the photos, they could have been more than just workmates, family even.
(My eldest sister at school celebration; she is the third from the left)
(Me in "Artek"after
my sister went to this camp)
2001
When I went to that camp, I experienced my summer vacation differently. The idea
of an upbringing that cultivated a sense of collectivism as an integral part of the development of communism became outdated and unimportant. The
activities remained the same, but its content changed significantly. We would still gather around the campfire before going to bed but different songs were sung. Pioneer uniforms were also abolished.
(My second older sister with her class at the museum; the third from the right in the low row; 1988)
(me and
my class 2006)
I have been deprived of a happy and blissful childhood, one where I should have been showered with my parents' attention, instead, their presence in my everyday life was sadly, limited. My sister and my grandmother took their roles. At the time of my birth, my country experienced the biggest economic crisis in the history of the USSR and my parents, like all other citizens, had to leave their old views behind and start life anew. 
their sense of collectivism and focus more on making profits through business even though business innovation had never been popular before this. For 60 years, such attitudes that focused on monetary gain were said to be bad and wrong in the USSR and these were ingrained in the people's minds. And out of the blue, they would have to turn around and make business a central part of their lives, ignoring their previous beliefs and labelling it good and advantageous.
The USSR collapsed overnight and the need to look for other jobs became the main problem for millions of people stranded on the streets. My parents were no exception. Used to being provided with jobs, they struggled with their loss of income and were lost in a country full of new rules. They worked hard for very little to make ends meet for our family of 5 as our new country did not provide the benefits we were used to any more, and finding a well-paid job in the light of the looming inflation was extremely difficult.
This changed my parents; the parents that my sisters knew when they were young were not my parents. In the same way, just as our country had become economically and politically estranged from us, we, too, felt like we had become estranged from our parents. I, for one, was brought up in that atmosphere of estrangement and knew no better alternative, whereas my sisters did. 
The new system made the people choose between their work and families; there was no such thing as both. In the past, those who worked for the communist party like my father,had the chance to bring their families to concerts, public holidays and military marches, and so one's work place was a means of 
This wasn't the case only for communists. Although my mother worked for a non-communist organisation, a clothing store, she and her work partners had that same bond.
From the photos, they could have been more than just workmates, family even.
My eldest sister Tanya still remembers her experience of being a "pioneer" (a child who is admitted to the Young Pioneer Unit) with excitement. There were a lot of pioneer organisations around the country, and she was delighted to be a part of it. One such organisation was the biggest summer camp for children by the seaside in Ukraine called "Artek".
(My eldest sister in the biggest Soviet summer camp for children "Artek", 1979)
(Me in "Artek"after
my sister went to this camp)
2001
When I went to that camp, I experienced my summer vacation differently. The idea of an upbringing that cultivated a sense of collectivism as an integral part of the development of communism became outdated and unimportant. The
activities remained the same, but its content changed significantly. We would still gather around the campfire before going to bed but different songs were sung. Pioneer uniforms were also abolished.
I also feel that I don't know as much about politics in Russia today; at least not to the same extent my sister did when she went to Soviet school. Activities that her class engaged in and all methods of teaching were soaked with political messages of what the country needed and how they (children) might be of help to the development of communism.
(My second older sister with her class at the museum; the third from the right in the low row; 1988) It was tradition to take pictures in front of museums or other public places on class trips; this was not the case with me at school under new Russia. I guess traditions like these were not important any more with the denouncement of the communist ideology, and teachers at my school did not bother with the organisation of common photos.
my class 2006)
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