Images of the Second World War in the diary of Vincas Ragauskas, a cadet at Vilnius Infantry School and a soldier of the 16th Rifle Division

Straipsnyje analizuojamas Vilniaus pėstininkų mokyklos kursanto, Raudonosios armijos 16-osios šaulių divizijos karininko Vinco Ragausko dienoraštis, atkreipiant dėmesį į 1940–1945 m., kai autorius mokėsi šioje mokykloje ir dalyvavo karo veiksmuose, įrašus. Pristatoma autoriaus biografija, aiškinamasi, kokiomis aplinkybėmis buvo rašomas šis dienoraštis, jo tekstų patikimumo lygis, nuodugniai analizuojami karo veiksmų ir kasdienybės vaizdai, užfiksuoti šiuose užrašuose.This article examines the wartime diary of a cadet at Vilnius Infantry School and an officer of the 16th Rifle Division of the Red Army, this being one and the same person, one Vincas Ragauskas. This diarist’s official biography shows that he found his place in the prevailing regime (he served in the Soviet army during the war and in the post-war years). At the same time, it is not possible to state unequivocally how strongly the war had united him with the Soviet system, and how many doubts about the war and its consequences he had. The diary he left includes detailed descriptions of events and provides opinions which could not have been published in the official Soviet press if left uncensored. The diarist himself alludes to the dangers of writing a diary (censorship, and unnecessary attention from outsiders), so the question of how credible it is can most certainly be raised. How much could the author have omitted? How distorted could be the images of war? In the diary it is possible to find a good many declarative Soviet phrases or repetitions of official Soviet clichés, as well as critical remarks regarding the pre-war Lithuanian regime. The author expresses a good deal of feelings regarding his longing for the homeland and the need for it to be liberated, as well as an idealised depiction of medieval Lithuania, comparing his contemporary struggle against Nazi Germany with Lithuanian struggles against the northern crusaders. Some of the facts or their interpretations which are mentioned in the diary (regarding the patriotism of the 16th Rifle Division, or images of the ‘liberation’ of Lithuania, and so on) do not correspond to the material which has been provided by other sources. In the diary the war is often seen as a tragic and meaningless phenomenon, thereby revealing the author’s humanistic attitude, which may have led to insights into the side of war that could have only been seen by those who have participated in it. The author expresses his strong opinion on the heroism of the Soviet soldiers, but also describes the constant human costs suffered on the front (especially in the battles which took place in the period between February-March 1943, near Alexeyevka, in the Oryol Oblast, and in Courland, Latvia, and so on). From the historical point of view, the most valuable part of the diary is where it describes the everyday life of soldiers during the war, as this has not been discussed in Soviet and pro-Soviet publications, and where it talks about people’s mental decline under wartime conditions, as well as difficult living conditions for soldiers, alcohol consumption, marauding, and more