We often hear, read, or even say something similar ourselves. Has going abroad become our main concern? What do we want to say with this exclamation?
It seems that Heine noticed that the first person who compared a woman to a flower was a great poet, and everyone who did it after was a real idiot. It is probably impossible to find out who was the first to say the sacramental «it’s time to get out.» But I readily believe that what was said was very appropriate. However, the more often this phrase is repeated, the more, it seems to me, it begins to annoy.
In principle, this happens with most common phrases that suddenly gain popularity. “Goodbye” is not very amusing, and the “Albanian” “preved bear” at some point became generally bad form. But there is a serious difference: “it’s time to get out” is not just a proverb, this phrase has a very specific meaning. That’s just more often — not at all the one that seemed to be implied.
Wanting does not mean going
“The phrase “it’s time to bring down” I hear from many Moscow acquaintances. The paradox is that among immigrants in Europe I meet a lot of immigrants from Russia, but practically I don’t meet Muscovites, — says psychologist Anna Fenko, an employee of the University of Twente (Netherlands). — The average salary in Moscow is 40-50 thousand rubles: about 1000 euros. And people who repeat “it’s time to leave” get about twice as much, 2-3 thousand euros per month. This is approximately equal to the average salary in France, Germany and the Netherlands. But in order to receive such a salary, you need to know the language, have an education recognized in the country, and have the necessary skills. To make a successful career in Moscow, you need increased resistance to stress and adaptability. Professional standards are blurred: psychologists work in insurance, and conservatory graduates edit economic journals. Therefore, Muscovites can repeat the mantra about leaving as much as they like, but they have nothing to do in Europe.”
Probably, what has been said is true not only for Muscovites, but also in general for representatives of that class, which we call either “average” or “creative”. In a word, for those who repeat (aloud or to themselves) “time to go” every time they look at the news headlines. Do they really pack their bags? More likely no than yes.
- For convenience or for love?
Unfortunately, there is no exact data on the number of those who left the country: in different sources there are figures that differ by literally 20 times. And it is all the more difficult to say whether the flow has increased over the past year and a half, when the idea of blaming the masses has taken possession. But how many of our friends, relatives, acquaintances and neighbors have left during this time? Unlikely.
Anna Fenko is also sure of this. “Most of my friends living abroad left in the mid-1990s, when the economic situation in Russia was much worse,” she says. — Then the migration flows dropped sharply, and not only because life in Russia became more prosperous, but also because the immigration laws of European countries became tougher. For example, now the Netherlands is expelling the families of Iraqi refugees who have lived in the country for 15-20 years. They have raised children who only speak Dutch. But they are sent «home» despite the protests of their teachers and classmates.»
In the US, the situation is similar, finding a decent place in developed Asian countries is even more difficult, and leaving in all other directions is more like downshifting than emigration. This “time to leave” is inevitably replaced by “time to return”, as soon as the money runs out.
Symptom of disappointment
If there is no exact data on real emigration, then there is data on the desire to emigrate. And the numbers here, of course, are impressive. Exactly half of the members of the middle class at least occasionally think about emigration*. 75% of them are under 35 years old, well educated and cannot complain about low wages. If we talk about Russians in general, then almost a quarter of the population thinks about emigration — 22%. But if these thoughts do not lead to action, then what does “it’s time to leave” really indicate? Sociologist Natalya Zorkaya is sure about the serious internal crisis of those who do not part with this phrase. “These people know how to live in today’s Russia and can solve their problems,” she states. “But they don’t like the way it has to be done.” They would prefer the civilized forms adopted in European, that is, democratic countries. They do not like the environment, the spirit or the moral state of a society that is willing to put up with this state of affairs.
“In a sense, this reaction also indicates psychological immaturity,” notes psychologist Yevgeny Osin. “Restricting ourselves to noticing our dissatisfaction, we will never be able to solve our problems. Having taken such a position, a person ceases to perceive some part of reality that does not suit him, avoids peering into what is happening around him. But if suddenly something bad happens to him, he will no longer be able to close his eyes and turn away. Such a collision with reality, from which he mentally distanced himself for so long, can be very painful.
The growth of emigration sentiment is not even directly related to the current government, although it is largely related to its actions. It’s just that the values of the new generation do not find understanding in the «traditional» Russian society. “There is a detachment or even rejection of modern European norms and rules of behavior, structures of consciousness from our usual everyday life with its violence, rudeness, patience and servility,” states Natalya Zorkaya. — This is a problem of a much more general sense than disagreements with the current government. It lies in the civilizational incompatibility of the already almost European man and the still serf Russian society.
The diagnosis is harsh, but Anna Fenko fully agrees with it: “This is a symptom of the disappointment of the middle class. People who have satisfied their urgent needs want not only money, but also convenient urban infrastructure, good ecology, reasonable laws, fair courts … But you never know what a person who is stuck in a traffic jam for many hours and listens to on the radio that the budget for the Winter Olympics in Sochi exceeds 50 billion dollars, while 14,5 billion were spent on the Summer Olympics in London! “Time to go” is just a dream of a better life. But the representatives of the middle class are sensible people and understand that milk rivers with jelly shores are not waiting for them in the West.
speak and do
Is the problem runner always wrong? “There is a theory of so-called coping strategies — coping strategies, dealing with problems,” says Evgeny Osin. One of them is an exit strategy. Saying “it’s time to leave,” we are essentially running: we are actually or figuratively closing ourselves off from what is happening.”
It is unlikely that the internal crisis in question can be overcome by going to a psychotherapist. But even more so, it cannot be overcome by the repetition of «it’s time to bring down.» The erased phrase sounds more and more like a powerless spell in the mouth of a helpless half-educated wizard. The same class that suffers the most from the situation, which is especially inclined to sigh abroad and which has the least chance of finding a decent life there, still does not deserve to be turned into a caricature. It is worth remembering this the next time you want to say “it’s time to bring down” — even if for a very significant reason.
Because if it’s time, then you have to go. And if you don’t go, then there’s no need to idle talk. Moreover, in Russia, successful, educated and energetic people have something to do. And the “serf Russian society” that Natalya Zorkaya speaks of will definitely not change either on its own or under the influence of spells.
Can psychology help in this situation? In essence, the same as in any other situation. Psychology gives understanding, helps to see the path and choose the course of action. But it is still up to us to act. “The first step is to look at reality as it is, in all its complexity, from different angles,” Evgeny Osin believes. — Look honestly and openly, without fear, no matter how frightening the picture may seem. And the next step is to understand what I want to do with this reality. Leave, realizing that I am not guaranteed a comfortable existence? If so, then you need to collect things. And if not, then you need to be here, really deciding what I can change — on the scale of my personal world and on the scale of common problems.
* Research by the Levada Center «The Russian middle class: his view of his country and Europe», 2008, levada.ru
** For more details, see N. Zorkaya “Will Angry Citizens Leave Russia?” on the Forbes website