Villains

How exciting would Silence of the Lambs be without Hannibal Lecter, or the Wizard of Oz without the Wicked Witch?  Not very.  Thus, every story needs villains and so did mine.  I used three men to provide the necessary evil.  Two of them, Leonoid Shoko and Mister Wolford W. Scott,  played rolls in all three novels, while the third, Komisar Lev Bogdanov,  appears only in Slogans.

Leonoid Schoko

"In the inn's far corner deep in the shadows, a dark form sat at a table.  A large, black shapka covered his head and disappeared into black greasy beard.  The man wore the coarse, outer garments of coachmen and for all the world looked like a great bear slumbering in its cave.  Only occasional flecks of firelight reflecting from his eyes betrayed his wakefulness and revealed the intelligence beneath his bestial exterior."

* * *

 Leonoid Schoko is Hutava's boogeyman.  Son of the village whore, he is an outcast.  Thus by the village's culture, Schoko is regulated to the lowest jobs: removing the villager's night dirt, disposing of dead animals, and scaring village children into behaving. But like most villains, Schoko has a secret.

Schoko is a character you can almost feel sorry for.  I came up with his name from a Russian phase my father used to utter, "Shoko mako."  I never quite understood what it meant since he used it in many different circumstances.  Sometime it meant to hurry, as in "Let's go.  Schoko mako," whereas other times he would eye my shoddy labor with disgust, shake his head and mumble, "Schoko mako."  Either way, the word had a nice ring to it.

Leonoid Schoko

Shoko plays important roles in Ikons and Banners.  In Slogans he receives only a cameo appearance.  I originally wanted to give him a larger role, but I felt blaming the villagers' horrors on Shoko let the Soviet government off the hook.

Mister Wolford W. Scott

"The vice-president sat behind a large, hand-rubbed mahogany desk to the left of the stairs.  In front of the desk, forming a barrier to its approach, was a rectangular table with several chairs, all on the side away from the desk.  Mister Wolford W. Scott had placed himself as near to the mezzanine as possible so as to command a view of the entire bank while conducting business.   No one could enter or move about without his notice.  Mister Wolford W. Scott was proud of his bank and even prouder to be its vice-president.  He walked, talked and dressed himself as befitting a man of his station.  To many, he looked like the cartoon of the capitalist banker brought to life."

* * * 

Mister Wolford W. Scott is vice-president of the National Bank of Joliet.  He's a pompous, bigoted man who begrudgingly accepts immigrants as necessary for the Joliet's economy.  But that doesn't mean he has to treat them fairly.  I always refer to Mister Wolford W. Scott as Mister Wolford W. Scott.  I seldom used a pronoun since Mister Wolford W. Scott is extremely proud of his name and relishes the sound of it.  Also by repeating Mister Wolford W. Scott so often, the reader quickly tires of it and learns to dislike Mister Wolford W. Scott and all Mister Wolford W. Scott stands for.  

In Slogans Wolford W. Scott's bigotry turns to paranoia of the Red Scare.  Believing all Russian immigrants are Bolsheviks, Mister Wolford W. Scott turns his wrath against Massey.

Mister Woldford W. Scott

I once read bank presidents and collage deans all had names that could be said backward or forward.  Mister Wolford W. Scott was derived from a co-worker named Scott Wolford.  The fact his last name, Scott, is that of a former girlfriend is mere coincidence.

Komisar Lev M. Bogdanov

 

Komisar Lev M. Bogdanov

"While his father’s prayers for freedom went unheeded, Lev’s supplications were heard.  His salvation came not from an indifferent god, but from those who understood the value of a fine suit of clothes.  Even on the frozen taiga of the Chelyabinsk Oblast, a man must look his best and what more could a minor official wish than a suit made by a Jewish tailor.

Fourteen years after Bloody Sunday and four months after Lenin’s October Revolution, Bogdanov walked through the gate of Labor Camp 482 a free man and the city of Chelyabinsk became home not only to a fine tailor, but also an exceptional chess player and a very dedicated Communist."

* * *

Komisar Bogdanov can't be described as evil.  He is true believer in social reform and that communism is the only way to save mankind.  Bogdanov's problems begin when the villagers of Unkurda do not accept his philosophy with bread and salt.  Like too many reformers, he then treats the villagers as children whom must be shown the proper path.  

After a year of futility, Bogdanov receives orders from the Central Committee to increase production or suffer personal consequences.  He responds with increased zeal.  When his glowing plans are met with indifference and outright hostility, Bogdanov feels population must be weeded for the good of all.