“My Children” by G. Yakhina: Individual-Ethnic Aphasia and Resistance

Abstract

This article is a comprehensive study of how individual and ethnic experiences of the Volga Germans in the 1920s-1930s are represented in the novel My Children by the contemporary writer Guzel Yakhina. This analysis examines the aspiration of Russian Germans to create their own “heterotopia” and the influence of significant historical events of the first half of the 20th century – such as wars, famine, exile, etc. – on the formation of both personal and collective identity of the Gnadenthal colony. These processes are analyzed through the prism of the image of the protagonist, Bach Jakob, existing in two (real and fairy-tale) spaces. Psychological trauma of the hero is manifested in somatic symptoms, in particular, Bach loses the ability to speak, which can be interpreted as a symbolic representation of the loss of voice by the German ethnos under the influence of heavy social and political pressure.  In other words, aphasia caused by harsh reality is manifested not only at the personal level of the hero but also at the group level. Despite all the hardships of his existence, the character makes his way to the gaining of confidence and courage. At the same time, an entire community of Russian Germans shows persistence and caution in protecting their national cultural roots, using traditional fairy tales and other cultural forms. Thus, in the novel, Russian-German individuals and ethnos preserve their “traces” in history, manifesting their ethnic identity and leaving an eternal memory of their existence.