In 1956, Nikita Khrushchev totally denounced Stalin (following his death in 1953) at the Soviet Communist Party’s Twentieth Congress in February. This condemnation led to multiple crises in Europe, particularly in Hungary and Poland. In particular, Poland and Hungary had communist parties with … Continue reading →
Week 9 Posts
Akademgorodok, or ‘Science City’
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Hidden away in the frozen forests of Siberia and away from the eyes of the bureaucracy resides a city built for the scientist and the researcher. It was believed that Akademgorodok would be the harbinger of scientific breakthroughs that would … Continue reading →
Cleaning Up the Mess
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In March of 1953, Joseph Stalin died under suspicious circumstances, ending his quarter-century-long reign over the Soviet Union. With his death, the party machine he established gradually crumbled as various personalities tried to consolidate power. The eventual victor was Nikita … Continue reading →
The Mysterious Gift
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In February of 2014, the world was shocked on February 26, just three days after the Sochi Olympics ended, and the days following when reports began to surface that Russian troops were deployed in Crimea. Russia had poured billions of dollars into the 2014 Winter Olympics and other things in order to attempt to portray […]
The Great Russian Melting
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“The Thaw,” written by Il’ia Ehrenburg in 1954, is a novel which follows the lives of three different types of Soviet men, including the stark contrast of the life of an industrial manager and an artist. What makes “The Thaw” so special is that Ehrenburg intentionally breaks from the Stalinist belief that communism was the […]
Dasvidaniya China
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Besides domestic political issues, Stalin’s death changed the Soviet Union’s relationship with China as Nikita Khrushchev’s ideological differences and anti-Stalinist reforms drove a wedge between the two communist neighbors. After the formation of the Chinese Communist Party in 1921, China developed a very close relationship with Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. Mao Zedong and the…
Sputnik and the Space Race
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On Octorber 4, 1957 the first successful space launch occurred and the world looked on in awe as infinite new possibilities were born. The Soviet Union successfully launched Sputnik 1 from the Baikonur cosmodrome in Kazakhstan into a low orbit … Continue reading →
Literary Life
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Boris Pasternak was a poet in 1956 after the Thaw of 1954 that created some trouble due to his literary work. The Thaw, written by Il’ia Ehrenburg, was the first example of poets and novelists experimenting with their literary content, although it was timid and short lived. From 1956-1957, Soviet writers began to test the limits […]
To free or not to free?
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Women went through several phases during the Soviet period in which they were encouraged to leave the home, then discouraged, and so on. With each decade that went by, the flip-flopping continued. The emancipation of women can be viewed in … Continue reading →
Control By Sports
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One problem that is faced by the leaders of a communist or authoritarian state is what to do with the free time of their citizens. Free time is dangerous to to these types of states as it can lead to various forms of opposition since the citizens have time to form groups and realize that … Continue reading »