European states (Russia): Evaluate social developments in Russia in the 1930s. Flashcards
Intro/thesis
Stalin’s rule began with a ‘cultural revolution’ in society, which lasted until 1931. After this, in the 1930s, there was an emphasis on traditional values in society.
Paragraphs
-Arts
-Religion and education
-Women and the family
Arts- examples
-Avant-garde artists were excluded, and Socialist Realism became the norm and only accepted art form – depicting utopian societies of thriving socialism.
-Soviet paintings typically depicted a utopian Communist society – successful collectivisation, thriving farms, peasants happy and well-fed.
-Cult of personality
Arts- explanation & historiography
-Art was used mostly for propaganda and to promote an idealized picture of socialist life: supposedly the reality that the Soviet Union had to be optimistic about.
-The economic and political instability of the 1930s helped to foster a cult of personality the further helped Stalin to maintain power.
-With the Great Terror, there was a need to believe that Stalin was a strong leader who could steer the nation through difficult times.
Robert Service: Emphasizes the state control of the arts and the use of art for propaganda in the cultural changes in the 1930s. He believes that the arts ‘had to be optimistic’. Indeed, due to the economic and political context, it was important that people believed in the power of Socialism (cult of personality).
Religion & education- examples
-Complete rejection of religion, taxes on church priests, raids on churches to take objects such as bells for industrialization funds
-By the end of 1930, 80% of village churches were closed.
-There was an emphasis on traditional subjects. Textbooks were prescribed by the government, formal exams were reintroduced, and uniforms were imposed.
-Opportunities for students from working-class backgrounds were better than at any time before and a literacy campaign was launched to ensure that peasants could read and write.
Religion and education- explanation & historiography
-The government realized that education needed to be a key tool in shaping society and that the disruption caused by the Cultural Revolution was unhelpful during this process.
-Culpin and Henig argue that Stalin’s Soviet Union had a largely positive effect on education and work opportunity for young people and that that it was possible for young people to rise up in the social ladder.
Women and the family- examples
-While many women remained in traditional female roles such as clerical work, teaching, and nursing, many others joined men in the new factories, coalmines, and industrial projects such as the building of the Moscow metro
-The change in emphasis can be seen in the new Family Code of May 1936 in which:
- Abortion was outlawed, except when there was a threat to the woman’s life and health
- Divorce was made harder e.g., the fee for registering for divorce was raised to 50 rubles for the first divorce
Women and the family- explanation
-The upheaval caused by collectivization had added to the growing problem of social instability.
-There was concern over the falling birth rate, and juvenile crime was increasing as a result of the huge number of homeless children on the streets.
-Soviet society needed some anchors and the mid-1930s saw a positive move to pro-family, pro-discipline, and anti-abortion policies.
-This change in attitude has been called the “Great Retreat”
-Marriage was to be taken seriously, and children urged to love and respect their parents.
