Ivan Petrovcij & Rusyn Erotica

Ivan Petrovcij [1945-2016] is controversial figure not only within Ukraine but also in Rusyn (and Ukrainian) circles elsewhere. He is best known for his poetry and translation work, but he has also published numerous books in Ukrainian and lately several controversial books in Rusyn. In 1997, he founded the first Rusyn-language literary journal, Rusyns'ka Bysjida. In 1998, he won the Aleksander Duchnovyč Award for Rusyn literature. Bytangüs’ki Spüvanky, Rusyns'kyj Eros (Songs of Youth - Rusyn Eros) is Petrovcij’s latest book. Published in early 2001, the book is ostensibly a collection of erotic poetry, but the poetry is often better described as dirty, vulgar or even pornographic.

The book created something of a spectacle in both the local Rusyn and Ukrainian press when it appeared. The Ukrainian weekly Dzerkalo Tyžnja blasted not only the book, but also Rusyns'ka Bysjida as well as Petrovcij himself. Dzerkalo saw the fact that Rusyns'ka Bysjida was publishing erotic poetry on its front page as symptom of a larger problem:

No small role is played by the weak authority of [Rusyn] leaders, incapable of adapting to the interests of young people. In attempts to attract young people's interest to the Rusyn language, many activists have gone to extravagant measures. And so, several issues of Rusyns'ka Bysjida featured erotic poetry from the book Bytangüs’ki Spüvanky, Rusyns'kyj Eros, by the well-known Transcarpathian writer, Ivan Petrovcij, who is coincidentally also the paper’s editor.

The Ukrainian paper went further, saying "...already the poems (a couplet or two) have been gladly reprinted twice in the most influential of regional independent newspapers, Rio. Bearing in mind the respectability of Dzerkalo Tyžnja, the poetry can only appear here in part." And so it did, with any and all offensive words censored out. "Young people do read it with pleasure, but they are not lining up to join the Rusyn organizations," the paper concluded.

So what’s all the fuss about?

Consider the fact that the word jebaty, “to fuck” appears in nearly every poem. Creative descriptions of different aspects of fucking see the use of words like pojebaty, dojebaty, ujebaty, zjebaty, perejebaty and variations like jobnuty and jebatysja. The word also appears in idioms like jebi-ho, which translates as "fuck it." Derivative nouns include jeblja, jebanja, jebayn’o (all of which mean “a fuck”) and jebak and jebanka (male and female forms of “fucker”). Perhaps the most interesting derivative of jebaty is mnohojebučyj, an adjective which translates as “slut, tramp,” but literally means “one who fucks many.”

Another frequent word is pyzda, a coarse term for the female organ, along with pyča and its diminutive pyčka. While still on the topic of women’s bodies, the words cicï and cyc‘ka – which both mean “tits” – should also be mentioned.

The two basic nouns for the male organ are khuj (cock) and puca (dick), and euphemisms include kolbasa (kielbasa). Khuj pops up in such idiomatic expressions as na khuj, which refers to something that is worthless, and khuj (komu) daty, which translates as “to hell with it.” The other interesting part of the male anatomy shows up as the word jajca, but sometimes as jajka or even jaječky – all of which refer to testicles.

One word that shows up in virtually every other poem is kurva, “whore.” Derivatives from kurva include kurvačica (a little whore) and kurvaryty (to whore around).

The majority of the words, predictably, are the same as or similar to the profanities of other Slavic languages, with the exception of the word huzyca, which means “ass.” Huzyca appears to be a unique Rusyn profanity, with diminutives including huzychyna and huzychka.

Reading this, an English speaker will no doubt understand why older Ukrainians and Rusyns are so scandalized by Petrovcij’s poetry – but at the same time younger readers will immediately see why young Rusyns in Ukraine are eating it up.

Given most people’s conception of Rusyn culture, the fact that Bytangüs’ki Spüvanky is exploring themes of sexuality and using dirty words is nothing short of shocking, not only to the Ukrainians, but also to the average Rusyn reader. Bytangüs’ki Spüvanky certainly puts a new spin on the image of the Rusyns as demure, folksy, religious people. This is by no means a bad thing, as it should help attract the interest of more young people than a collection of poetry about sheep, wooden churches and mountain pastures ever would. Even while Dzerkalo Tyžnja accused Petrovcij of pandering to younger audiences, it did point out that young people were in fact reading the poetry. Laughing at it, perhaps, but reading it nevertheless.

Petrovcij stresses that erotic poetry bears an impressive pedigree. In the introduction to the book, he describes a historical tradition that includes such luminaries as the Roman Empire's Martial, England's Shakespeare and Russia's Pushkin. He also quotes Simone de Beauvoir and uses epigrams by Sophocles, Vladimir Mayakovsky and Isaac Bashevis Singer, showing clearly that this sort of poetry is found across many cultures and eras.

While it is interesting enough to see the erotic poetry of Bytangüs’ki Spüvanky put into an international context, it is perhaps even more interesting to discover that erotic poetry is not exactly foreign to Rusyn literature either. U koliby: výbor obhroublé erotické poesie verchovinského lidu na Podkarpatské Rusi (In the Hut: A Selection of the Coarse Erotic Poetry of the Highlanders of Subcarpathian Rus) was published in Mukačevo in 1933, while Subcarpathian Rus was still part of Czechoslovakia. The book consists of erotic poetry gathered by Czech ethnographers doing fieldwork in Subcarpathia. Some sixty years later, the topic was explored once again in the book Erotica Ruthenica – Erotika Rutenika, published in 1995 in Novi Sad, Yugoslavia. A major feature of this book is also ethnographical fieldwork, this time conducted by Volodymyr M. Hnatjuk (1871-1926) in the Rusyn villages of Ruski Kerestur, Kucur and Vinkovci in 1897 and 1899. Today, both U koliby and Erotica Ruthenica have been forgotten. With Bytangüs’ki Spüvanky, however, Rusyn erotic poetry has moved from the field of ethnography into literature and is back with a vengeance.

Given Petrovcij’s interest in the erotic poetry of other cultures, along with the fact that Bytangüs’ki Spüvanky was published in Ukraine, it would logically follow that the book would at least touch on the erotic poetry traditions of the Ukrainians. On the contrary, a significant part of the book is given over to Rusyn translations of the erotic poetry of the Russians, the Ukrainians' cultural rival. Petrovcij’s explanation is simple: the Ukrainians are no model for the Rusyns, since they are the worst lovers in the world!

He sees the Russians as being much more hot-blooded and knowledgeable about the ways of love, pointing to the Russians’ greatest poet Aleksander Pushkin in particular. Petrovcij also has high praise for Ivan Barkov, one of Russia's earliest and most prolific writers of erotic poetry. Barkov was a major influence on Pushkin, who himself wrote a significant amount of erotic poetry. In fact, a book of Pushkin’s erotic poetry called Ten' Barkova (The Shadow of Barkov) was recently published in Russia. Bytangüs’ki Spüvanky also includes Rusyn translations of poetry by the Russian poets Lermontov, Turgenev, Mayakovsky, Yesenin and Vysotsky.

As if this was not enough of a slight to Ukrainians, Petrovcij's introduction offers a biting critique of the place of love in Ukrainian culture: “Of the many gifts which the Lord God so generously gave man - love, work, food, rest and so on - each nation has its favorite in first place. For the Rusyn, 'love' is in first place: both spiritual – for the homeland, as well as physical – for his wife…”

“And for the Ukrainian?” Petrovcij then asks.

He then cites literary passages from the works of Ivan Kotljarevskij, Ivan Karas' and other Ukrainian writers, and concludes that “...these suffice, since there are millions of such examples which show that the Ukrainian would only eat, sleep, rest and – worst case scenario – work. But love?”

It gets worse: “When we read in English dictionaries of the world of sex about the best theoreticians and practitioners of this holy act, we are not surprised that in the French are in first place, followed by the Japanese, Chinese, Jews, Abkhazians, Yakutians...but the Ukrainians are never once mentioned. They would mention the Rusyns first!.”

Petrovcij himself sees no shame in what he is doing. As far as he is concerned, there is no question that Rusyn profanities are worthwhile to document, "since the Lord God gave man every word, just as he gave them gave him every drop of his living blood," as he writes in the introduction. Other scholars have a more practical approach. In The Anatomy of Swearing, Ashely Montagu writes, “Swearing is a rather more civilized form of behavior that replaces physical violence. If physical combat between individuals and nations could be replaced by the more sophisticated arrangement of a swearing contest, how much more satisfying that would be than our present barbaric method of settling disputes.”

Elaine Rusinko, a scholar of Rusyn literature, has found that post-colonial studies are a useful way to approach Rusyn literature. She uses a definition which explains that post-colonial studies are an approach to cultural texts which is “preoccupied principally with analysis of cultural forms which mediate, challenge or reflect upon the relations of domination and subordination – economic, cultural and political – between (and often within) nations, races or cultures, which characteristically have their roots in the history of modern European colonialism and imperialism, and which, equally characteristically, continue to be apparent in the present era of neo-colonialism.”

Using the prism of post-colonial studies, Rusinko confirms that Petrovcij’s use of profanity is nothing special in the grand scheme of things. She points out that “[p]ostcolonial authors in Africa and the Caribbean have also discovered the power of profanity.” However, in terms of Rusyn culture, Petrovcij’s dirty poems are nothing short of groundbreaking. Not only are the poems paving new ground in Rusyn language and literature, they have the potential to influence the self-image of the Rusyns themselves. If Rusyns want to ensure that their young remain Rusyns and do not assimilate into a larger – sexier – group, clearly work such as Petrovcij’s is not only necessary but crucial. As with the rest of the nascent Rusyn pop culture, however, attention and promotion are required for Petrovcij and his poetry to fulfill their potential. Bytangüs’ki Spüvanky must be read and discussed by the Rusyns themselves for it to truly enter the popular culture.