REFLECTIONS ON CHARACTER AND LEADERSHIP

284 REFLECTIONS ON CHARACTER AND LEADERSHIP

corollary to the mir mentality is an emphasis on the role of self - sacrifi ce

out of a sense of duty. Russians are prepared, when the situation warrants

it, to make extraordinary sacrifi ces for the sake of the community or the

nation. Russia has seen incidents of mass heroism seldom paralleled in

history.

The mir mentality has also contributed to the Russians ’ preoccupa-

tion with egalitarianism. Leveling has always been a popular pastime,

and envy an important controlling device for reminding people of their

proper place. A well - known Russian proverb states that ‘ The tallest blade

of grass will be the fi rst to be cut, ’ and illustrates the degree to which

individualism and personal achievement are frowned upon in Russia.

While in certain other cultures it is a sin to be a loser, in Russia — until

the dissolution of the communist regime — it was a sin to be a winner.

The expression of individual desires was associated with selfi shness.

Anyone wanting to stand out was looked at with suspicion. As a conse-

quence, Russians are still very low - key about their individual accom-

plishments, boasting is frowned upon, and people are careful not to be

ostentatious in their habits. Succumbing to these perceived faults is a

sure invitation to envy, pity, and vindictiveness.

Under communism, this spirit of egalitarianism and collectivism

became perverted. Over time, ideological, even romantic, communist

fervor turned into stark disbelief for many and disillusionment with the

system and alienation from it set in. These factors led to a rise in mate-

rialism and opportunism, an increase in corruption and insidious moral

decay. The privileges of the nomenklatura (the secret roster of people in

positions of party leadership or in jobs within the party apparatus), with

their reserved shops and special hospitals, became all too common. Ironi-

cally, this oscillation between egalitarianism and privilege has contin-

ued, as demonstrated in the behavior of the new rich, and their status

consciousness in the new Russia.

Character Formation in Childhood and Youth

Swaddling in Infancy

In his article on Gorky ’ s childhood, Erikson (1963) hypothesizes that

the ancient Russian custom of swaddling babies is signifi cant to the

development of the Russian personality. Swaddling is a practice whereby

newborn infants are bound from neck to toe in pelenka (a wrapping

similar to that used in mummifi cation) for the greater part of the day

and night for three to fi ve months — or, less typically, for as long as a