Touchy subjects you should avoid while dating Russian ladies

You wouldn’t want to spoil a nice conversation (the real one or on the Internet), and, perhaps, even the entire relationship by saying something tactless, would you? That’s a lot easier than you’d think, but it also depends on the sort of person you are dealing with. That said, there is a lot of subjects you wouldn’t want to touch when dating Russian ladies, but you can’t say for sure if your girlfriend cares about any of them either.

Unsurprisingly, there are lots of landmines you wouldn’t want to step on in this area of expertise. As remarkable as it is, it’s not only about politics and general differences in culture, you can also blow yourself up just by saying something you thought would be appropriate.

Is it possible that your Russian girlfriend won’t care about any touchy subjects?

Sure, it’s plausible, but she needs to be a pretty chill person. And in our times, it’s quite a rarity, because everyone wants to express their opinions. And even though she may not get triggered by some slight vocal misstep on your part, she may very well be alarmed by your general behavior. 

So, if you can’t help but be a tactless brute, dating Russian ladies is not for you, try looking elsewhere for a partner. But if you’re quite adept at controlling your temper and minding your tongue, you’ll surely do fine in Russia. And with other women too, it’s a pretty important skill.

Subjects that grind their gears no matter what

Even if you find the most chill person in the whole of Russia, there are things that can make her upset no matter what kind of person she is.

Stating that your culture is ‘normal’ and theirs is weird

True, no sane people in their right mind would be jingoistic enough to say that the Russian culture is weird and wrong. But people are people, and as the English language keeps getting more and more widespread, people start having delusions.

Delusions that the English language and English-based cultures are standard and any other is something you can ignore. Sure, you can ignore anything you like, it’s your life and people generally don’t care, but that’s doing it while dating Russian ladies isn’t smart.

The logic behind it usually consists of these arguments:

-The Cyrillic alphabet is a weird rip-off of a ‘normal’ Latin ABC’s. But the truth is… they are both rip-offs of the Greek. Avoiding such behavior may look reasonable to you, but it’s still happening;

-The Russians aren’t even European. You know, Russian society is pretty divided about some historical events. Some like to demonize the Soviet Union, some choose to defend it. But the statement that Russians aren’t even European or Slavic really enrages everyone. Oh, yeah, the Mongols were there for some time. Then the Poles, the Magyars, and the Ukrainians aren’t European either… go figure;

-Russian culture and history take root in Ukraine. Therefore, they are less developed by default, right? Nope, it’s a common misconception. Right as France isn’t a by-product of an Italian culture due to their Roman past, the Russian and the Ukrainian cultures too share a common predecessor. So, stop it.

The stereotypes

-The Russians are savages. You may not go that far on that thought, but admit it — you’ve seen some of those videos on the Internet where Russians do some crazy stuff and laugh about it. And once you did, you’ve had similar thoughts. But actually, if there are lots of something online, that means that people want to see that. 

Nobody wants to see drunk French or Poles, everyone wants to see Russians behave like barbarians. So, to be short, the view on the Russians and their culture is somewhat diminished by this factor, sadly.

-The Russians are pretty cruel. Despite the fact that people generally are quite cruel, giving so much credit to Russians isn’t valid. Sure, history has a few arguments, and the wars still occasionally break out in the region, but all and any of it regards only the government, not the common people. And though there are lots of Russians who would readily promise to kill you for no reason on the Internet, you won’t find the same attitude offline;

-The Russians are largely alcoholics. Contrary to the popular belief, Russians don’t drink vodka instead of the water when they are thirsty… nor they ride bears. Russia is indeed pretty hard-drinking, but even the British drink more alcohol per capita a year, what’s the trick? 

This, and all the other stereotypes and misconceptions aren’t necessarily driving the Russians mad. Again, it depends on the person. Some people don’t care or treat these jokingly, some will get mad at you instantly. 

And not because they believe these are not true, but rather because a foreigner dared criticize the Russian environment and the way of life.

Subjects that may or may not upset your girlfriend

Some topics, like culture, history or common life are touchy when people have a lot of misconceptions about them. Well, some topics are touchy, but, at the same time, many of them depend a lot more on opinion.

Politics

Oh, that’s the touchy subject, it’s a minefield. Your Russian girlfriend may either not care about it, criticize Russian course politics or support it. Whatever she’s thinking, you will be able to understand her position very well before jumping into any discussion with her.

If she hasn’t ever expressed her opinion on the matter for a long time, that means she’s not into politics or has a very meager view of them. Otherwise, you’ll understand her position with ease and be able to avoid the poor choice of words in a conversation.

There are many topics you may be tactless about, some not even involve Russia at all. That’s why minding your words is entirely up to you on this one. You should be aware of the topics your girlfriend doesn’t like and the opinions she has on different things. 

There’s really no situation where you’ll be obliged to speak about the political situations. But if you really must discuss it with everyone, including your girlfriend, then you really should learn about her views.

The conditions of life in Russia

You have a few words to say, don’t you? Well, you should keep them to yourself, because most people don’t want to hear a foreigner criticize it. The ‘most’ in people implies that several people in your environment will agree or disagree with whatever it is you have to say.

Anyhow, you don’t want to get yourself into this mess. The standard of living is one of the most popular complaints coming from Russia. All including the taxes, the prices, the quality of medicine, etc are so relevant — people discuss every small change and innovation.

Regardless, if you want to say something bad — just don’t. But if you want to know more about life in Russia, it is always welcome. People will gladly tell you that life is good but also harsh and so on and so forth. This principle pretty much applies to every subject. You can ask, but don’t express your own opinion, you’ll get into trouble.

In conclusion

In case you’ve lived a long time in Russia or have been in the company of your girlfriend for a while, you should know what not to say. But if you don’t want to gain your own experience, this article is just for you. However, it doesn’t cover all the topics and subjects and doesn’t include all the aspects of what can make your gal mad. In short, think for yourself sometimes.

But if you want some other practical advice regarding dating Russian ladies, try some of the other articles on this website. Alternatively, you can also watch the video below for a few interesting facts about them: