The Taiga Frontier
In 1936, premonitions of war and a coming violent change were floating around in Russia. Religious Old Believers were in danger. It was during this year that Old Believer Karp Lykov moved his family into the Siberian mountains, into the treacherous biome of the taiga - a zone primarily filled with coniferous trees and lots of snow. This area became the home of the growing Lykov family, including the birth of Agafia in 1944. Her life had been gruelling - no contact with the outside world, an intense environment, and more. In fact, once during a food shortage, Agafia’s mother starved herself to death so that her 4 children could eat. When the Lykov family was contacted by geologists in 1978 after 40 years of isolation, they had not even known about World War II. With these researchers came a presumed disease which killed 3 of the 4 Lykov children, leaving only Agafia. She lived alone with her animals for another 25 years before the return of one of the geologists, Yerofei Sedov. Incidentally, their relationship does not seem to be a happy one, as Agafia has to do most things for him. Additionally, she finds some of his actions sinful.
There are several research methods that can be utilized in the field of human geography. In this case, I feel that the team that produced the documentary Surviving in the Siberian Wilderness for 70 Years utilized the emperical-analytical approach. In this approach, researchers were physically in the location, taking in experiences and interacting with their subject rather than “viewing from afar”. They absorb hands-on information as opposed to simply studying literature or a perceived reality. Additionally, the researchers in this case were able to actually form a relationship with their subject. They stayed with Agafia for several days and observed her daily habits. They got to take part in some of her daily activities, such as fetching firewood and cooking the (albeit little) food she had. This immersive experience is certainly beneficial in getting an “inside” perspective into the world you are trying to learn more about. Through talking directly with Agafia, the researchers have potentially learned more about life isolated in Siberia than they could should they had only read books and taken on information second-hand.
The “invisible backpack” taken on by these researchers is a way in which we can refer to their struggles in ascertaining accurate first-hand knowledge. For example, while Agafia gets around either by walking or on homemade skiis, the research team was able to fly in on a helicopter. Another factor would be the fact that Agafia wears homemade clothing, while the researchers are adequately bundled up. Agafia is 70 years old, and not only takes care of herself and her house, but takes care of her neighbour as well. I would personally say that the only point in which these researchers do not have an “invisible backpack” is that they slept in tents in the Siberian mountains, while she has her heated house (albeit probably heated only by a wood stove). Despite all this I felt the documentary team was fairly ethical in their filming. They silently observed Agafia while she practiced her faith, singing prayers and reading from centuries-old texts. They aided her with some of her daily activities that she would have otherwise had to perform herself, such as the exhaustive work of sawing down a tree. They seemed to ask as few questions as possible in order to allow her to speak freely, adding to the conversation or stopping it when needed.
Should I conduct this research on my own, I would personally immerse myself even deeper into Agafia’s life. As such, I mean that I would stay a longer time, in order to primarily make my own clothes as she has, learn and actively perform her daily chores, cook food with items readily available in the area, and perhaps even build my own temporary shelter to resemble that of Agafia’s. Overall, I would like to not just ask her about her daily life, but I would actually live her daily life. I would have some bias in that I have lived in a suburban area my whole life, so I would naturally find this experience more difficult in contrast. I would try to mitigate this bias by leaving behind things like cellphones and “first world comforts”, as well as staying there for a longer time period than three days, as mentioned before. In this case I would identify more as a “participant” than a researcher.
Agafia Lykov could be considered very inspiring in the 21st century - as we disconnect further and further from reality and nature, this woman has no other choice than to connect so incredibly deeply to the world around her. While that world may not have many people in it, one could argue Agafia is better off for it.
Many people talk about living off the grid some day. Watching this documentary may inspire either hope or fear into those with this specific desire. While a nice cottage in the woods sounds idilic to some, Surviving in the Siberian Wilderness For 70 Years really shines a light onto the potential difficulties that come with living strictly off the land in modern times.
Sources:
VICE. (2013). Surviving in the Siberian Wilderness for 70 Years. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tt2AYafET68&feature=emb_title