How she wrote it? Why she wrote it? Any Discrepancies?
· As discussed in class My Long Journey Home was written after Lily Golden’s daughter, Yelena Khanga, wrote her narrative Soul to Soul. After its success people soon became interested in the story of her mother and wanted to know more.
o “The arcs of the mothers and daughters careers tell us much about the transition from Soviet to post-Soviet times and the strange fate of being black and Russian.” (Peterson)
· It can be assumed that Golden wrote the book herself due to the repetition and factual discrepancies. We can see a cultural clash in the book with her upbringing and her education; this is shown with her grammatical errors juxtaposed with the high register in which she uses in other parts of the narrative. We think that there is a lack of editing to give a more honest account of herself as diverse, not a fixed identity in the diaspora.
o There is an omission of a bibliography despite her referencing her own and others works.
· Throughout the book Golden mentions certain characters but does not follow through on these characters.
o We can see this when she does not mention the divorce of her second husband.
· “I only discovered much of the history of my family when I came to the United States ten years ago.” (p.1).
o This was a way of looking back on her family history, especially her own father who she never got to know.
· Overall, this is a reflective account of Golden’s life written in the last phase of her life.
Homeland?
· Golden seems to be on a quest to find her true identity and the place she can call her homeland.
· As Benedict Anderson has theorised, Golden creates an imagined place of origin. She has an utopian image but this never seems to be fulfilled.
· Part of this struggle comes from the fact she says: "I belong to all races. I am African-American, a Polish Jew and a Red Indian who became Russian in everything but blood."
· When studying African music she finds “definition and determination” (p.70) in African culture and finds more of her African identity in this.
· However she still struggles with her Soviet and American identity. This was seen when she was attempting to get a passport: “I told them that “American” was a term of citizenship, while I was “Soviet”. The officer explained that “Soviet” did not mean nationality…I was born in the Soviet Union. So I should be Soviet, but you explained that there is no such nationality. I think you should write that I am a “Negro”” (p.37)
· At the start of the book Golden has a map of Russia whereas the book finishes with a map of America. The whole book is a journey back home which ends up not being Africa but in fact America, where she finds herself surrounded by her family.
· Therefore we can see that home to Golden is where her family is.
Her role in Communism/ Colonialism
· Dale E. Peterson touches upon the fact that the book is “a personal tale of good choices and good fortunes rather than as a political commentary on the special status accorded to Soviet Blacks”.
o She is almost accidentally involved with politics. For example, when she was elected leader of the Komsomol in her University class despite having no interest in its political aims.
· “I knew nothing of Stalin and Stalinism” (p.49)
o The passive attitude that Golden took shows that she is distancing herself from Communism.
· “We were brainwashed by the Communist party, which had begun a war against “cosmopolitism”, which means the love to everything foreign… and we must resist all these alien influences” (p.36)
o She struggles between Communist ideals and Western influences. This is seen with her discovery of jazz music and her inability to practice it in Russia for fear of being reprimanded.
· Her political interest came when decolonisation of Africa started. “Looking back, I realise that we were too naïve and optimistic. We really believed that the entire continent would soon be free of colonialism and that all Africa’s problems would be solved automatically.” (p.77)
o In hindsight the political interest was influenced by prominent figures like DuBois and she created an idealised free Africa.
· Her only true political involvement came when she married an African man: “in the Diaspora, we were feeling solidarity with our brethren who were fighting for and gaining their freedom”. (p. 111)
· Although the book has a lot of references to political events, Golden is never actively involved in them but they always have an influence on her life.
Bibliography
Golden, L, My Long Journey Home (Chicago: Third World Press, 2002)
Anderson, B.R.O’G, Imagined Communities: Reflections on the Origin and Spread of Nationalism (Verso 1991)
Peterson, D.E, “Lily Golden: My Long Journey Home”, Slavic and East European Journal, vol. 48, no.4 (Winter 2004)
http://afroeurope.blogspot.com/2011/02/lily-golden-russian-african-american.html
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