national parts
Jun. 8th, 2008 05:13 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
In a recent book review, Niall Ferguson illustrated the lipodermo-phallogocentric take on Henry Kissinger. Its attribution of Kissinger’s constructively ambiguous shenanigans to his role as “a hybrid of the Court Jew and the State Jew — what we might tentatively call the ‘policy Jew’”, echoes a classic Soviet joke dating from the Seventies. It related an exchange between Kissinger and Soviet columnist, commentator, political scientist, and nonpareil raker of Americanist muck, Valentin Zorin. Zorin was an approximate contemporary of Kissinger. They sported the same horn-rimmed spectacles, the same curly hair, the same flap-ears, and the same pudgy chin. They could have passed for twins, but for the fact that, standing the average American male height of five foot nine inches tall, Kissinger dwarfed the diminutive Zorin.


Looking Zorin over, Kissinger inquired: “Are you a Jew?” [«Вы еврей?»] Rearing up, Zorin proudly announced: “I am a Russian!“ [«Я русский!»] Kissinger retorted: “In that case I am an american one.” [«В этом случае я — американский.»]
Much as the grammar of this exchange becomes distorted in the most faithful English translation, it reflects a commonplace of Russian primary schooling. Thus Russian blogger B-29 recalls his teacher in the second or third grade enthusing about the only nation on earth, whose name is not a noun, but an adjective. Only the designation of a Russian [русский] responds to the question “what kind?” [«какой?»] To the contrary, B-29 suggests that “Russian” responds to the question “whose?” [«чей?»]
Here are additional Russian reflections on national propriety of parts of speech:
Last comes an embryonic attempt to classify English usage. Of special interest are the cases where adjectives deviate from nouns in morphology. More work is required to label slurs according to parts of speech.
Crossposted to
larvatus and
linguaphiles.
Henry Kissinger
Valentin Zorin
Looking Zorin over, Kissinger inquired: “Are you a Jew?” [«Вы еврей?»] Rearing up, Zorin proudly announced: “I am a Russian!“ [«Я русский!»] Kissinger retorted: “In that case I am an american one.” [«В этом случае я — американский.»]
Much as the grammar of this exchange becomes distorted in the most faithful English translation, it reflects a commonplace of Russian primary schooling. Thus Russian blogger B-29 recalls his teacher in the second or third grade enthusing about the only nation on earth, whose name is not a noun, but an adjective. Only the designation of a Russian [русский] responds to the question “what kind?” [«какой?»] To the contrary, B-29 suggests that “Russian” responds to the question “whose?” [«чей?»]
Here are additional Russian reflections on national propriety of parts of speech:
В современном русском языке единственная национальность, которая обозначается не существительным, а прилагательным, это русская. Немцы, французы, шведы, узбеки, эфиопы, папуасы, эскимосы и все остальные — называются существительными. И только о человеке русской национальности на русском языке говорится русский.[…] Охотно допускаю, что слово русский для обозначения человека русской национальности – это не очень хорошо. Лучше было бы называть этого человека существительным. Эта проблема решается очень просто: берётся слово великорус или великоросс, и этим словом называется русский человек. Для тех, кому непонятно, нужно будет при этом объяснить: есть три России: Великая, Малая и Белая. Для иноземцев, которым это покажется неприятным или даже неприемлемым, нужно будет жёстко указать, что это не их дело, пусть разбираются в своих языках и не лезут в чужие. И на этом спор о существительных и прилагательных для обозначения людей русской национальности будет полностью закончен в пользу существительных. |
In modern Russian language, the only nationality designated not by a noun, but by an adjective, is Russian. Germans, Frenchmen, Swedes, Uzbeks, Ethiopians, Papuans, Eskimos and all the rest are designated by nouns. And only a man of Russian nationality is designated as Russian in Russian.[…] I gladly allow that the word Russian is not very properly used to designate a man of Russian nationality. It would be better to denote this person by a noun. This problem is solved very simply: take the term Great Russ, and use it to denote the Russian man. To those who are puzzled by this, we shall explain: there are three Russias: Greater, Lesser and White. To foreigners, who imagine that this is unpleasant or even unacceptable, we shall insist that it is none of their business; let them sort out their own languages without encroaching on those of the others. And thus the dispute concerning nouns and adjectives used to designate people of Russian nationality shall be fully settled in favor of nouns. |
Русские — гораздо больше, чем просто национальность; недаром слово «русский» — прилагательное, и оно приложимо ко всему живому, светлому, творческому, великодушному, настроенному на добро, на великое Дело. | Russians are much more than a mere nationality; not for nothing is the word “Russian” an adjective, and it may be adjoined to all living, bright, creative, magnanimous, benevolent, dedicated to a great Cause. |
Сатирик Задорнов удивляется, что все названия народов — существительные, и только русский — прилагательное, моё мнение таково, что для русских важнее не кем быть а какими быть, вот и ответ на загадку истории. | Zadornov the satirist wonders about all the names of peoples being nouns, and only Russian being an adjective; in my opinion it is more important for Russians, not whom to be, but what to be; that is the answer to the historic enigma. |
Русский — большая часть национальностей — это имена существительные, а русский – это прилагательное, а значит какая-то характеристика. Что это за характеристика? Видимо качество описываемое словом русский, близко по значению слову русый. Русый — значит светлый. Так и русский — значит светлый. Если сердце у человека светлое, и помыслы чистые — значит его можно назвать русским. | Russian — most of the nationalities are nouns, but Russian is an adjective, and therefore some kind of characterization. What is this characterization? Evidently, the quality described by the word Russian, is close to the meaning of the cognate word meaning fair. Fair means clear. Thus Russian means clear. If a man has a clear heart and pure thoughts, he can be called Russian. |
|
|
|
|
Crossposted to
![[info]](https://stat.livejournal.com/img/userinfo.gif)
![[info]](https://stat.livejournal.com/img/community.gif)