5.3 Culture and Society Flashcards
How did the Orthodox Church fare under Lenin?
Lenin had allowed for religious freedom but destroyed the power of the Russian Orthodox Church.
Church lands were seized. Births, marriages, deaths and schools were secularised and atheist propaganda circulated. Some priests were persecuted.
In 1927, the Patriarch of the Orthodox Church promised to stay out of politics in return for state recognition of the church.
How did the Orthodox Church fare under Stalin?
Religious schools were closed down and creeds were forbidden.
Between 1929 and 1940 the holy day of Sunday was abolished. Workers were instead employed to work 6 of 7 days a week, with 1/6 of workers having each day off.
Many Priests were purged or sent to the GULAGs.
How did Muslims fare under Stalin?
Their lands, schools, mosques and sharia courts were abolished.
Pilgrimages to Mecca were banned and prayers and fasts were reduced. The wearing of a veil was banned too.
This led to backlash, with Traditionalist Muslims murdering those who obeyed the Soviet regime. Many priests were imprisoned and executed too.
What was the state of religion by 1941 in the USSR?
By 1941, almost 40,000 Christian Churches and 25,000 Muslim mosques had been closed and converted into schools, cinemas, clubs, warehouses, museums and grain stores.
The regime had struggled completely to kill off religion as in a 1937 census, over 500,000 Soviet citizens described themselves as believers despite the dangers of expressing controversial views.
How did Women fare under Lenin?
Lenin had glorified the idea of “liberation” of women, outlawing sex discrimination, making divorce and abortion easier and allowing women to take jobs alongside men.
Why did Stalin revert back to traditional policies when considering women?
There was an overall fall in the population growth during the 1930s (which wasn’t helped by the purges or overcrowded apartments).
There was also disruption caused by family break ups and an ever growing fear of war.
How did Women fare under Stalin?
Marriage was made more important and wedding rings were reintroduced. Women were portrayed as more feminine in media instead of as workers.
In June 1936 a Family Code was made law which:
- Made abortion illegal, increasing the birth rate
- Made divorce harder and more expensive to achieve
- Banned contraception excluding on medical grounds
- Granted tax exemption to mothers of six or more and bonus for each additional child under ten in the family
- Fixed child support to 60% of income
- Punished children the age of 12 or higher the same way as adults
- Criminalised adultery
- Enforced decrees against prostitutes and homosexuality
What was the result of Stalin’s policies on Women?
Despite the new emphasis on family life, the number of women working in factories continued to increased.
The divorce rate remained high at 37% and there was a ratio of 3 abortions for every live birth.
Those single and divorced (especially women) were more likely to be left unemployed without compensation which led to increases in the amount of prostitutes.
How was education changed by Stalin?
Many schools became the responsibility of collective farms or town enterprises whilst universities were put under control of the Vesenkha, the economic planning agency.
There was more emphasis put on the training of high specialists with courses in maths, science and technology. For the less able, increasing amounts of practical work was required.
Teachers were given higher status and were likely to be party members, but could be arrested if they did not live up to standards. They were encouraged to set up targets under the Stakhanovite System.
How successful was Stalin’s education plans?
- By 1941, 94% of the population in towns could read, and 86% in the countryside. This was much higher than the 65% before the revolution. This was desired, as the more that could read, the more that could be effected by propaganda
- The USSR churned out many strong science graduates despite the number of students reaching higher education falling
What was Komsomol which started in 1926?
This was a youth organisation for those 10-28 years which taught communist values.
Smoking, drinking and religion was discouraged, whilst social work, sports, politics and drama clubs were organised to inspire socialist values.
Komsomol was closely linked to the party and directly affiliated in 193. It members swore an oath to live, study and fight for the fatherland and assisted the Red Army and police.
Many members of Komsomol became enthusiastic about the industrialisation drive and flocked towards projects like Magnitogorsk.
What opposition was there to the Youth Organisations?
Some young people were more interested in Western culture, like fashion and jazz, despite the regime banning such occupations, deeming it as hooliganism.
Others opted out of Komsomol, whilst some set up secret opposing youth clubs. However direct confrontation with the Soviet System was rare.
How did working men fare under Stalin?
Due to the skill shortage caused by the purges, those who were skilled and willing to work in the harsh conditions were rewarded with high pay. That is, until war struck and resources had to be diverted into the war effort.
However, life for the majority of workers was tough, many of whom were farmers forced to migrate into the cities. They were unused to the labour discipline and many would move from job to job.
Living conditions were bad too, there was little privacy and overcrowding was a huge problem.
The punishment for petty crime or alcoholism was harsh, with the smallest misdemeanour resulting is the stripping of all their belongings.
How did Stalin’s USSR differ from Lenin’s?
Lenin used the leading communists in the Politburo to debate over laws whilst Stalin soloed policy making, with the party often being ignored.
The Old Bolsheviks, who had carried authority had all been killed by Stalin.
Stalin’s NKVD had much wider powers than Lenin’s Cheka.
Lenin used terror against real or potential threats whilst Stalin seemingly randomly used widespread terror.
Lenin did use censorship but allowed for some freedom in arts, schools and limited party influence in rural areas. Whereas Stalin gave little opportunity for independent thought, (totalitarian).
