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How Children Were Raised in the USSR: 4 Horror Stories That Still Work
17.07.2024 20:20
In the Soviet Union, children were taught from an early age to live by their own wits and rely on their own strength.
As for the methods of education, they were, as a rule, simple: the unquestionable authority of the man in the family and the teacher at school, if you don’t like the food – get away from the table.
No one tried to please the children with pickles. Only a child who did something could sit down to eat: helped around the house, did homework, went to the store for groceries.
Want new clothes – study well, dream about felt-tip pens – collect waste paper, hand it in and buy some. First duties, then rights. Some methods of education were harsh.
Do it at all costs
This technique is a prerogative of men so that the child is not afraid of anything. No one had heard of psychology then and there was no one to shout that the child would get injured.
And the technique really worked. For example, a father could make his child do 30 push-ups, even if he had no strength, go down a hill on a sled or skis, or jump into water.
There was no use whining and crying. Father usually said, "We'll stay in this place as long as it takes until you overcome your fear and do it."
The child had no choice but to complete the task. And they did.
Be prepared for difficulties
In the Soviet Union, there were no special activities for children.
If the parents went to pick potatoes, they took the child with them, and he, like the adults, worked all day under the scorching sun.
And if the whole family went to pick berries in a swamp, near which there were tons of mosquitoes, no one created special conditions for the child. He had to work together with the adults.
The most his parents could offer him was to keep the fire going. And the child could have been six or seven years old at that time.
Even in the late Soviet Union, offspring were taken along to guard tents and cars.
Of course, if there were intruders or wild animals, the children would not be able to do anything to them. In this way, fortitude was cultivated.
But how many emotions there were later, when you could brag to your friends about your exploits!
Don't smoke
If the head of the family found out that his child smoked, he was able to rid him of this habit for a long time. He simply forced his son or daughter to smoke several cigarettes at a time.
The vomiting that followed completely took away any desire to smoke or drink alcohol.
Usually, one time was enough. Nowadays, this technique would attract the attention of the authorities and be considered violence against a person.
However, in the Soviet Union, the authorities intervened in the upbringing process only in cases of constant violations of the child's rights, and a one-time "vaccination" was an effective method.
Solve problems yourself
In Soviet times, parents did not have the physical opportunity to delve into the intricacies of their child’s life: they worked from bell to bell.
On weekends, there was a lot of work to do. Only a few minutes were left for raising children.
If a child had problems in relationships with peers or older students, he had to solve them himself.
The most he could get was advice from his father or mother, or, for example, the address of a section where he could be taught to stand up for himself.
Even children had to enroll in clubs themselves.
Of course, there were situations in which adults were forced to intervene.
However, they were rare. And children were not as cruel as they are now: not only the family, but also the school was responsible for the moral side of their upbringing.
If anyone showed obvious behavioral deviations, such children were quickly sent to special schools. As for financial status, all parents earned almost the same and the students were equal.
As a rule, the conflict ended with bruises and bumps. But there were no problems with socialization: the children quickly learned to make friends in order to resist the offenders.
