USSR Social Developments Women and the family

Question 1

What role did women play in 1917-1940?

Answer 1

A supporting role either as a wife or as a lesser worker

Question 2

What famous statue depicts women’s roles as ‘supporting’?

Answer 2

The ‘Worker and the Kolhotz woman’ (agricultural worker) as industrialisation was depicted as the primary reason for communism with agriculture supporting this (as it helped the workers more than anything)

Question 3

In the civil war and the first 3 5 year plans, what were posters dominated by?

Answer 3

Men

Question 4

At war, what was Russia’s nickname?

Answer 4

‘Mother Russia’

Question 5

For conscription propaganda, what line did the government take with women?

Answer 5

That they were vulnerable and therefore in need of male security

Question 6

What is an example of a piece of war-time conscription propaganda?

Answer 6

‘Tanya’ - 1942

Question 7

Post-war, what were women depicted as?

Answer 7

Heroic warriors

Question 8

In what year did the first woman go to space and what was her name?

Answer 8

1963, Valentina Tereshkova

Question 9

Why was Valentina a ‘heroine’?

Answer 9

Due to her common, working class background

Question 10

What did Brezhnev feel a women’s role was?

Answer 10

To be a good woman: mother, worker and wife

Question 11

What was Brezhnev’s campaign to encourage women to have more babies?

Answer 11

Prenatalist campaign

Question 12

What was Brezhnev’s prenatalist campaign paired with in the 1970’s?

Answer 12

Criticisms that working women neglected their children and were the reasons for delinquency, alcoholism and family breakup

Question 13

In 1955, what % of the workforce was women?

Answer 13

49%

Question 14

What was Zhenotdel?

Answer 14

The women’s faction of the Communist Party

Question 15

What did Zhenotdel do?

Answer 15

Recruited women in towns to do jobs

Question 16

What was rife under the NEP?

Answer 16

Prostitution

Question 17

In the 1920s, what % of men used prostitutes?

Answer 17

39%

Question 18

In 1928, how many women worked in soviet factories?

Answer 18

3 million

Question 19

In 1940, how many women worked in soviet factories?

Answer 19

13 million

Question 20

In 1940, what % of heavy industry workers were women?

Answer 20

41%

Question 21

What % of male salaries were women paid?

Answer 21

60-65%

Question 22

What jobs were women restricted to and why?

Answer 22

Light industry / Heavy manual labour - Because both these jobs were low skilled

Question 23

In the 1960s, what % of women were in clerical/admin jobs?

Answer 23

74%

Question 24

Under Brezhnev, what was BAM recruitment?

Answer 24

Brezhnev recruited women to keep industrial workers, working on the BAM railway, company

Question 25

In 1985, what % of women were medical doctors?

Answer 25

70%

Question 26

In The 1960s, what % of graduates were women?

Answer 26

50%

Question 27

Under the Virgin Land Schemes, what jobs did women do?

Answer 27

Milkmaids, gardeners, ‘breeders’ of children & low paid, demanding jobs

Question 28

Why did Khrushchev send young women?

Answer 28

To entice men into joining up with the VLS

Question 29

What did women have to be, in order to be chosen for the VLS?

Answer 29

They had to be 26 or under and be single

Question 30

What were women subject to during the VLS as a result?

Answer 30

Sexual abuse/ rape

Question 31

Did mechanisation benefit women and why?

Answer 31

No because tractors were scarce and women weren’t tractor drivers therefore they didn’t benefit

Question 32

What was mechanisation implemented under?

Answer 32

The 6th (1956-59) and 7th (1959-65) 5 year plans

Question 33

In 1970, what % of the lowest paid farmers were women?

Answer 33

72%

Question 34

What % of all farm managers were women?

Answer 34

2%

Question 35

How rare were professional working opportunities for women?

Answer 35

Very rare

Question 36

In 1945, how many women had served in combat roles?

Answer 36

800,000

Question 37

Give an example of a women in combat?

Answer 37

Fighter pilot Lydia Litulyak who shot down 12 German Bomber planes before being killed in action

Question 38

How long lived was wartime sexual equality?

Answer 38

Very short lived

Question 39

in 1918, what % of the party congress delegates were women?

Answer 39

5%

Question 40

in 1918 what % of party members were female?

Answer 40

10%

Question 41

What did party membership raise to in 1928?

Answer 41

12% were female

Question 42

In the 1930s, what was expected of women?

Answer 42

For them to be housewives and caring mothers

Question 43

In the 1953, what happened to the number of women in leading positions in soviets?

Answer 43

It increased

Question 44

What was the negative to women in soviets?

Answer 44

Although female participation increased, they only made up 10% of soviet deputies

Question 45

From 1956-1983, what did the proportion of women in the party rise from and to?

Answer 45

From 19.7% to 26%

Question 46

What years were Zhentodel influential?

Answer 46

1919-1930

Question 47

In what area did Zhenotldel advance women’s rights?

Answer 47

In education, marital and sexual rights

Question 48

By 1930 what % of women were university graduates?

Answer 48

28%

Question 49

In 1919 what legal rights were granted to women?

Answer 49

Right to vote, work and get paid

Question 50

Why were the 1919 legal rights of no use?

Answer 50

Democracy was abolished in 1921 - little time to exercise or be entitled to these rights

Question 51

What year was the Marriage code?

Answer 51

1926

Question 52

What did the marriage code of 1926 establish?

Answer 52

De-facto marriage, easier adoption processes and postcard divorces

Question 53

What % of divorce came from men?

Answer 53

70%

Question 54

What sexuality wasn’t criminalised under Lenin?

Answer 54

Lesbianism

Question 55

What was legalised for women under Lenin?

Answer 55

Prostitution

Question 56

What were the views on abortion under Lenin?

Answer 56

It was legal

Question 57

What was Stalin’s aim with citizens?

Answer 57

To increase birth rate and cut divorce rate

Question 58

In 1936, what did Stalin criminalise?

Answer 58

Abortion and contraception

Question 59

Under Stalin, what was Lesbianism said to be?

Answer 59

An illness

Question 60

What did Stalin do for divorce?

Answer 60

Made it expensive and therefore harder to obtain

Question 61

Following divorce, for a father of 3 or more children, how much money would he have to pay out of his wage for the children?

Answer 61

60%

Question 62

What was the incentive for having 7 children?

Answer 62

2000 roubles a year for 5 years

Question 63

What was the incentive for having 11 children?

Answer 63

5000 roubles a year for 5 years

Question 64

How many men died during WW2?

Answer 64

10 million

Question 65

What % of the population did women make up in 1955?

Answer 65

55%

Question 66

Due to the death of 10 million males in WW2, what increased?

Answer 66

Single mothers

Question 67

In 1956, what were introduced for women to read?

Answer 67

Women’s national magazines

Question 68

What did Khrushchev do to help single mothers?

Answer 68

1955 - Legalised abortion
1956 - Increased state paid maternity from 71-112 days
Expanded creches under the 6th 5 year plan
Created convenience foods under the 7 year plans
Increased the production of fridges

Question 69

What were the problems that still faced women under Khrushchev?

Answer 69

Contraception was hard to find / the double shift of work and motherly duties didn’t end / Domestic housework was still considered a women’s job

Question 70

What did Brezhnev claim had been achieved and therefore did nothing to increase women’s lives?

Answer 70

Sexual equality

Question 71

In 1982 how many more times did women do domestic chores than men?

Answer 71

2 times more

Question 72

What were women’s pension ages lowered to under Brezhnev?

Answer 72

From 60-55