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Below is an archive of the Russian Mini-Lessons featured in the SRAS newsletter over the 2012 school year. Please see our FULL TABLE OF CONTENTS for a list of all lessons, arranged by subject. To subscribe to the newsletter, and receive a free Mini-Lesson each month, simply sign up.
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Старение - Aging
Most Russians feel uneasy talking about aging. There are many Russians proverbs that express a negative attitude towards old age, such as "Старость – не радость" (Getting old is no fun; literally: old age is no fun), or "Жизнь протянется - всего достанется" (If one’s life is long, one will have to endure all kinds of things), or "Молодость - не грех, старость - не смех" (Youth is no sin, old age is no fun). The general Russian outlook to old age, whether positive or negative, is usually fatalistic.
In certain cases, there is a tradition of уважение к старости (respect towards old age). Younger people often уступать места старикам (give up their seats to old people) in public transportation. They may also переводить старикa через дорогу (help an old person cross the street). There are some Russian expressions that convey respect to the physical signs of old age, such as "благородная седина" (noble grey hair), as well as some expressions that associate older people with wisdom: "мудрый старик" (wise old man) or "мудрая старая женщина" (wise old woman).
However, many Russians say, "Так не хочется стареть!" (I so don’t want to get old!). Some people say, "Жизнь клонится к закату" (Life is coming to twilight). This attitude is partly caused by a feeling of insecurity, since for many people in Russia, в старости становятся острее финансовые проблемы (in old age, financial problems become more pressing). This is mainly due to the fact that пожилые люди (elderly people) retire and have no substantial savings, unless they are successful businessmen or executives who состоялся в жизни (established themselves in life).
While in many countries, уходить на пенсию (to retire), is often viewed as something pleasant, in Russia state pensions were decimated by the финансовые кризисы (financial crises) and гиперинфляция (hyperinflation) of the 90s. While they are now beginning to recover, most still say that it is "невозможно жить на пенсии" (impossible to live on one's pension). To make matters worse, the кризисы also destroyed any savings that people had and Russia had not yet developed corporate or personal pension funds (which are still, for the most part, underdeveloped). In part because of this, the elderly are the main support for the Communist Party, because they remember a USSR slogan , “пенсионерам - достойная жизнь” (the elderly [must be given] adequate lives).
Also, some expressions in Russian reveal a sarcastic attitude towards old people, such as pejorative collocations like "старый хрыч" (old grumbler), "старикашка" (little old man), or "песок сыпется из него" (someone on his last legs; literally: the sand is running out of him), which refers to men’s loss of strength. Another common conception of old age in Russian is "Седина в бороду – бес в ребро" (a grey beard but a lusty heart; literally: when grey [comes] into the beard—evil spirits [come] into the rib). This describes older men who начинают бегать по молоденьким девочкам (start chasing after young girls) to prove their manliness. In dating younger girls, some men want to get rid of their страх дряхлости (fear of senile infirmity). Other men just гонят от себя мысли (drive away their thoughts) when thinking about the effects of старость (old age).
At the same time, some older people have a wise and calm outlook on their age. A старушка/бабушка (old lady/grandmother) may talk about her plans for the future with the remark, “Если доживу” (If I live till then). A very old lady can say, “Пора на покой” (It’s time to rest), meaning she has accepted the fact that she will die soon and will rest after she dies. Many modern Russians have a special respect for старушки (old ladies), because many people were brought up by their grandmothers while their parents were busy working; for this reason, some people feel closer ties with their grandmothers than with their parents.
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Ортодонтия - Orthodontics
In Russia, ортодонтия (orthodontics) получила широкое распространение (has become widespread) относительно недавно (relatively recently), and only in bigger cities. During the Soviet era, most orthodontics were performed преимущественно по медицинским показаниям (predominantly for medical reasons), while after the collapse of the USSR, a growing number of operations have been performed с эстетической целью (for aesthetic purposes).
At a forum for orthodontists, a Russian doctor stated that ортодонтия стала развиваться в России примерно около 20-ти лет назад (orthodontics began to develop in Russia about 20 years ago), and currently, the американская школа ортодонтии (American-style orthodontics) is practiced most often in Russia; that is, техники прямой дуги (straight arc techniques) or брекеты (braces) are used.
There is also the европейская школа ортодонтии (European-style orthodontics), which uses функциональные аппараты в лечении (functional devices for treatment), but почти не практикуется (is hardly practiced) in Russia, the doctor says. He calls today’s orthodontic practices in Russia ортодонтический МакДоналдс (orthodontic McDonalds), meaning that doctors would rather provide faster service to a larger number of patients, than more in-depth and longer treatment.
If a patient has кривые зубы (crooked teeth) or a глубокий прикус (overbite) or дистальный прикус (underbite), then пластины (orthodontic trainers) and брекет-системы (braces) are applied to fix the problem.
Пластины съемные (The trainers are removable). Children most often use them and they can носиться только ночью или круглые сутки (be worn either only at night or all day long).
A брекет-система (braces) consist of a набор из множества пластин (set of many brackets), связанных воедино металлической дугой (joined together by a metal arc). Брекет-система укреплённая на зубах (braces are affixed to the teeth), which allows them to оказывать равномерное давление на зубы (put uniform pressure on teeth) and возвращать их к идеальному положению (return them to an ideal position).
As a rule, the курс лечения (course of treatment) for braces lasts 1.5-2 years, sometimes up to 3 years. Ортодонт (the orthodontist) наблюдает за процессом работы системы (monitors the system’s process) and вносит соответствующие коррективы (makes relevant adjustments).
Ортодонтическое лечение (orthodontic treatment) is возможно в любом возрасте (possible at any age).
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Стоматология - Dentistry
To prevent cavities, both Russian and Western dentists recommend that you come in for regulars гигиеническая чистка зубов (regular cleaning; sometimes called Профессиональная чистка зубов). Some foreign visitors to Russian стоматологическая клинка (dentist offices) may be surprised that the медсестра надевает маску пациенту (nurse puts a mask on the patient) before обдувка песком (sandblasting), the most common method to clean teeth in Russia. Before this process, the area will undergo обезболивание/ анестезия с помощью геля (anaesthetization by means of a gel) as it can be uncomfortable for the patient. Some bleeding after the procedure is normal.
If you have зубная боль (a toothache), you will need to get лечение зубов (dental treatment). There are a variety of стоматологическая клиника (dental clinics) in Russia, from a государственная клиника (state clinic) with низкое качество лечения (low quality treatment), but бесплатные услуги (free services), to a частная клиника (private clinic) with лечение по мировым стандартам (treatment according to international standards) без очередей (without waiting) and usually for высокие цены (high prices).
Prior to лечение (treatment), стоматолог (a dentist) обследует зубы (examines (your) teeth) to find the дупло (cavity), or any other problems, such as налет (plaque) or зубной камень (tartar). A больной зуб (painful tooth) will undergo обезболивание/ анестезия с помощью укола (anaesthetization by means of injection). Once the участок зуба (tooth area) замораживаться (is anaesthetized), the стоматолог (dentist) can удалять нерв (extract the nerve) and очищать кариозную полость (clean out the decaying cavity) безболезненно для пациента (with no pain for the patient).
While the стоматолог очищает зубную полость (dentist cleans out the tooth cavity), a медсестра (nurse) applies a вакуумная воздуходувка (suction; literally a "vacuum blast engine") to откачивание слюны (pump out saliva).
As a rule, especially at state clinics, a временная пломба (temporary filling) is put into the cavity for a day or two, then она заменяется постоянной пломбой (it is replaced with a permanent filling). After установка пломбы (installing a filling), it is шлифовка (polished).
When a зуб (tooth) is невозможно вылечить (impossible to cure), it is удаляют (extracted) or вырывают (pulled out), using зубные щипцы (dental forceps).
Russians know a few ways to save money on dental services. For example, some Moscow residents go to Belarus and лечить зубы (undergo teeth treatment) there, since prices are at least three times lower. Others go to smaller Russian towns or стоять в очереди (stand in line) at a государственная клиника (state clinic).
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Акции протеста в России - Protests in Russia
Article 31 of The Russian Constitution states that граждане Российской Федерации (citizens of the Russian Federation) имеют право (have the right) собираться мирно (to meet peaceably) без оружия (without weapons), проводить собрания, (hold meetings) митинги и демонстрации (rallies and demonstrations), шествия и пикетирование (processions and pickets).
While many of the articles of Russia's constitution state specifically that условия и порядок (conditions and rules) определяются (will be determined) на основе федерального закона (on the basis of federal law), there is a basic understanding in practice that all constitutional rights may be regulated.
Indeed, Russians’ constitutional right to public meetings is regulated by Федеральный закон Российской Федерации от 19 июня 2004 г. N 54-ФЗ «О собраниях, митингах, демонстрациях, шествиях и пикетированиях» (Federal Law No. 54-FZ of the Russian Federation of June 19, 2004, “On Meetings, Rallies, Demonstrations, Processions, and Picketing”). According to the law, one person or a group can act as the организатор публичного мероприятия (organizer of a public event), and anyone who is at least 16 years old имеет право (has the right) организовывать (to organize) демонстрации (demonstrations), шествия (processions) and пикетирование (picketing).
Also, the организатор публичного мероприятия (organizer of a public event) can be a политическая партия (political party), or другие общественные объединения и религиозные объединения (other public associations and religious associations), and их региональные отделения (their regional branches).
These people or groups are authorized to проводить митинги, демонстрации (conduct rallies and demonstrations) в местах и во время (in locations and at times), которые указаны в уведомлении (as specified in the notification) о проведении публичного мероприятия (about conducting public events). Such уведомление (notification) should be в письменной форме (in writing), and should be submitted to the local authorities no later than 10 days before the event, or, in case of picketing, 3 days.
The law does not state that the authorities must be notified about protests or rallies. Neither does the law state that a несанкционированный митинг (unauthorized rally) can or must be прекращен (stopped) by the police. According to the law, a rally or a demonstration must be postponed if any нарушение правопорядка (violation of the law) occurs; if such a violation poses a threat to the life and health of citizens or to their property, the rally or demonstration must be ceased.
However, in practice, all the forms of public meetings are often прекращены and organizers are often told that they must meet at a different location or time – or, in the case of gay pride parades, for instance, are simply told that they cannot meet at all. The authorities have often used the excuse that the event would pose a threat to protestors’ health and lives because of the likelihood that such an event would be broken up forcibly by violent nationalists as a counter-demonstration.
After подача уведомления (submitting notification), protest organizers have the right to агитация через СМИ (advertise through mass media) for the event and cause. They can also размещать объявления в блоге (place ads in a blog) or раздавать листовки (hand out leaflets).
At the protest, participants can be engaged in a variety of activities: произносить речи (give speeches), скандировать (chant), or держать лозунги (hold signs). Протестующие (protesters) are entitled to организовывать сбор добровольных пожертвований (organize collections of donations). They can also use звукоусиливающие технические средства (sound amplifying devices), such as a мегафон (megaphone), which is colloquially called a матюгальник (cursing device) in Russian.
Sometimes, protests have элементы театрализованного шоу (elements of theatrical show). At the protest on Sakharova Prospect in Moscow on December 24, some participants свистели (whistled) with whistles issued to them by organizers, some came dressed in various costumes and masks, and some attendees привязывали свои лозунги к воздушному шару и запускали его в воздух (tied their signs to balloons and released them into the air).
At the protests of the so-called несистемная оппозиция (non-system opposition), such as their rallies at Triumfalnaya Square in Moscow, participants били в барабаны (beat drums). Several years ago, hundreds of participants of the youth movement Nashi dressed as Santa Clauses and Snowmaidens for their pro-government rally. Communists frequently играть советские песни (play Soviet era songs) at their demonstrations.
At the end of a rally or a demonstration, participants зачитывать резолюцию (read out a resolution). For example, at the protest for fair elections at Bolotnaya Square in Moscow on December 10, the organizers worked out the following resolutions: “1.) немедленное освобождение всех политзаключённых (the immediate release of all political prisoners); 2.) отмена итогов сфальсифицированных выборов (nullifying the results of the forged election); 3.) отставка Чурова и расследование его деятельности (the resignation of Churov as Chairman of the Central Election Committee and an investigation of his activities); 4.) регистрация оппозиционных партий (registering opposition parties); and 5.) проведение новых и честных выборов (conducting new and fair elections).
The resolution is then accepted by a largely nominal voice vote.
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