Hiring of Hearty Eaters in Russia

[LeBlanc, Ronald]

Dear SEELANGers,

Re: hearty eaters.

In his book, “Crowds and Power” (1962), Elias Canetti notes that in many cultures the person who can eat more than anyone else – what he calls a “champion eater” – is accorded great respect and is often taken by people to be their chief.

Several years ago I published an article in The Russian Review that examined Olesha’s Andrei Babichev in this and other food-related contexts (“Gluttony and Power in Olesha’s Envy”).

I must admit, however, that I’m not familiar with the practice from the 1920s or 1930s that you refer to.

It certainly seems to me that potential productivity (from high caloric intake) could well have been one of the motivations behind choosing potential factory workers on the basis of their capacity for eating large quantities of food.

I, too, would be very interested in hearing more about the history behind this putative Stalinist-era practice, if anyone is familiar with the details.

Thanks,

Ron


Ronald D. LeBlanc
Professor of Russian and Humanities
Department of Languages, Literatures, and Cultures
Murkland Hall
University of New Hampshire
Durham, NH 03824
603-862-3553
ronald.leblanc at unh.edu



-----Original Message-----
From: SEELANGS: Slavic & East European Languages and Literatures list on behalf of Richter, Laurence Raymond
Sent: Mon 4/7/2008 10:20 AM
To: SEELANGS at BAMA.UA.EDU
Subject: Re: [SEELANGS] Hiring of Hearty Eaters in Russia
 
Hello there Charlie.

The association of ample appetites and ample figures being indicative of good health and stamina is not rare or new, nor is it restricted to Russia. No candidates for high public office in Germany in the decades following the war had a chance to win if they weren't conspicuously overweight. And look at the evidence right in the Russian language. Remember that popravit'sja can mean either to recover from an illness or to put on weight. And the word for 'worse' in Russian really means 'skinnier.' Remember the Russian joke that I first heard in the 70's: Studies show that 90% of Russian men prefer fat women. The other 10% prefer VERY fat women.


Laurence R. Richter
431 W. Jed Street
Bloomington, IN 47403-3569
Hm 812-334-2523  Cl 812-219-5710
________________________________________
From: SEELANGS: Slavic & East European Languages and Literatures list [SEELANGS at BAMA.UA.EDU] On Behalf Of Charles Byrd [byrdc at UGA.EDU]
Sent: Monday, April 07, 2008 9:48 AM
To: SEELANGS at BAMA.UA.EDU
Subject: [SEELANGS] Hiring of Hearty Eaters in Russia

In the 1981 blockbuster movie, "Moscow Does Not Believe in Tears,"  Tonya's father tells
his future son-in-law how in the old days (1920s? 1930s?) potential factory workers were
supplied with a meal, and only those who ate the most were hired.  Can anyone point me to
a source explaining the history and logic of this policy?  Was it that the hungriest were most
deserving of jobs in a strictly moral sense?  Or that high caloric intake would enhance
productivity, a hearty appetite being presumably a sign of good health?   Was this a strictly
Bolshevik policy or one with pre-revolutionary origins?  One of my students is captivated by
the parallelism of this moment from "Moscow Does Not Believe in Tears" and a similar
reference in the 2007 American movie "Wristcutters" which includes Russian characters.
Here the grandmother says: "We have a saying in  Russia, 'How much you eat, that's how
worthy you are.' My grandpa, before he'd hire anybody, he'd feed them a free meal. Those
who ate the most - that's the ones he hired..." (All at table, in unison) "Cause those were
the best workers."

Thanks,

Charles Byrd
University of Georgia

-------------------------------------------------------------------------
 Use your web browser to search the archives, control your subscription
  options, and more.  Visit and bookmark the SEELANGS Web Interface at:
                    http://seelangs.home.comcast.net/
-------------------------------------------------------------------------

-------------------------------------------------------------------------
 Use your web browser to search the archives, control your subscription
  options, and more.  Visit and bookmark the SEELANGS Web Interface at:
                    http://seelangs.home.comcast.net/
-------------------------------------------------------------------------



-------------------------------------------------------------------------
 Use your web browser to search the archives, control your subscription
  options, and more.  Visit and bookmark the SEELANGS Web Interface at:
                    http://seelangs.home.comcast.net/
-------------------------------------------------------------------------