Notes of The Tale of the Rout of Mamai in the Context of the Collective Imagery Concerning the Battle of Kulikovo

2015 ◽  
Vol 42 (2) ◽  
pp. 217-241
Author(s):  
Kati Parppei
Keyword(s):  
Soviet Union ◽  
Illustrative Case ◽  
Collective Identities ◽  
Power Structures ◽  
The Soviet Union ◽  
External Threat ◽  
Major Turning Point ◽  
Soviet Russia ◽  
The Russian Empire ◽  
Illustrative Case Study

Representations of military exploits are commonly used as “building material” in the post-Soviet reconstruction of collective identities. In the case of medieval battles, the scarcity of sources as well as temporal distance has allowed the production of relatively liberal representations, making them adjustable material for supporting contemporary ideas and power structures. The Battle of Kulikovo provides an illustrative case study. It took place in 1380 between troops commanded by Muscovite Grand Prince Dmitrii Ivanovich and Mongolian Emir Mamai. In Russian national historiography the battle has been considered as a major turning point. One of the most central sources used by national historians has been The Tale of the Rout of Mamai, presumably originally produced at the turn of the 16th century. In this article the text is examined as a reflection of certain contemporary religious-political developments. It can be claimed that the dualistic approach of the text, which emphasizes unified resistance against an external threat, has been applicable in strengthening ideas of internal cohesion in the Grand Duchy of Muscovy, the Russian empire and the Soviet Union, as well as post-Soviet Russia, creating an anachronistically toned basis for the collective imagery concerning the battle.

scholarly journals “Honeymoon” of the Russian Empire and the United States during WWI

2021 ◽  
Vol 14 (3) ◽  
pp. 273-292
Author(s):  
Victoria I. Zhuravleva ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Soviet Union ◽  
Interdisciplinary Approach ◽  
The United States ◽  
Russian Empire ◽  
Point Of View ◽  
Liberal Internationalism ◽  
Secondary Sources ◽  
The Soviet Union ◽  
Soviet Russia ◽  
The Russian Empire

The article focuses on the debatable issues of Russian-American relations from 1914 until the fall of Tsarism, such as the degree of the two countries’ rapprochement, ethnic questions, the positive dynamics of mutual images and the intensified process of Russians and Americans studying each other. Based on primary and secondary sources, this work intends to emphasize that the conflict element in bilateral relations did not hamper cooperation between the two states. The author’s multipronged and interdisciplinary approach allowed her to conclude that the United Sates was ready to engage in wide-ranging interaction with the Russian Empire regardless of their ideological differences. From the author’s point of view, it was the pragmatic agenda that aided the states’ mutual interest in destroying the stereotypes of their counterpart and stimulated Russian Studies in the US and American Studies in Russia. Therefore, the “honeymoon” between the two states had started long before the 1917 February Revolution. However, Wilson strove to turn Russia not so much into an object of US’ “dollar diplomacy”, but into a destination of its “crusade” for democracy. The collapse of the monarchy provided an additional impetus for liberal internationalism by integrating the Russian “Other” into US foreign policy. Ultimately, an ideological (value-based) approach emerged as a stable trend in structuring America’s attitude toward Russia (be it the Soviet Union or post-Soviet Russia).

scholarly journals Gross Output and Labour Productivity in the Timber Processing Complex of the USSR in 1927/1928–1937

2020 ◽  
Vol 16 (3) ◽  
pp. 304-316
Author(s):  
Ivan V. Zykin
Keyword(s):  
Soviet Union ◽  
Labour Productivity ◽  
Timber Harvesting ◽  
Forest Industry ◽  
Labour Productivity Growth ◽  
The Soviet Union ◽  
Soviet Russia ◽  
The Russian Empire ◽  
Regional Forest ◽  
The Cost

Introduction. The forest industry played an important role in the economy of the Russian Empire, the Soviet Russia and the Soviet Union and took a significant place in the project of “socialist industrialization” of the late 1920s – early 1940s. One of the key indicators of the functioning of the industry is the cost of gross products, including per worker. The historiography of this topic consists mainly of studies of foreign and domestic scientists on the Soviet economy and works on the history of the regional forest industry. The idea of the dynamics of the cost of gross output of the forest industry during the period of “socialist industrialization” is not formed, which actualizes the analysis of its functioning during the years of active development. The chronological framework of the study is 1927/1928–1937, the period of implementation of the first and second five-year plans. Materials and Methods. The theoretical and methodological basis is the concept of modernization. The peculiarities of statistical accounting of feasibility indicators in the forest industry, the application of “unchanged” prices 1926/1927 are justified. Results. The conclusion was made about the uneven dynamics of the cost of gross products (including per worker) among the components of the forest industry. At a faster pace, labour productivity increased in the forest chemical, furniture industries, the production of standard houses and building parts. The area of timber harvesting showed the slowest pace. According to the results of two five-year plans, the planned values of gross production and labour productivity in the timber industry were not achieved. Discussion and Conclusions. The first five-year plan outlined a significant increase in the cost of gross output of the forest industry and an increase in their share in the industry of the Soviet Union by this indicator. In the second five-year plan, the pace of development of the complex was assumed to be lower than in the country’s industry. With a significant overall increase in the cost of gross output in 1926–1934, labour productivity increased slowly. The use of data on the Ural Economic Region, one of the leading regional timber complexes in the country, demonstrated the preservation of low rates of labour productivity growth in 1935–1938.

scholarly journals Ethnic Structure of St Petersburg – Petrograd – Leningrad in the Period of 1703-1991

2013 ◽  
Vol 31 (1) ◽  
pp. 87-105
Author(s):  
Bartłomiej Garczyk
Keyword(s):  
Soviet Union ◽  
Russian Empire ◽  
Unique Character ◽  
National Minorities ◽  
The Soviet Union ◽  
National Capital ◽  
History Of ◽  
Soviet Russia ◽  
The Russian Empire ◽  
The City

Abstract This article presents a multinational and multireligious character of St. Petersburg since the founding of the city to the collapse of the Soviet Union. An ethnic and cultural mosaic was also an important feature in other centers of Russia, including Moscow and Odessa, as well as forming part of the national capital of the Russian Empire in Warsaw, Riga and Tallinn. St. Petersburg is a city but of a symbolic and unique character. It is the subject of literary impressions and creative inspiration for generations of artists. In addition, St. Petersburg - Petrograd - Leningrad was the capital of a multinational and multireligious Russian Empire, Soviet Russia, and since 1918, it was the second most important city of the Soviet Union. The author’s intention is also to present the history of St. Petersburg - Petrograd - Leningrad, as seen through the prism of the history of national minorities living in it.

CINEMA IN TURKISH-SOVIET RELATIONS IN THE ATATURK PERIOD

2020 ◽  
Vol 2 (1) ◽  
pp. 31-37
Author(s):  
TEKEREK MELTEM ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Soviet Union ◽  
International Relations ◽  
World War ◽  
The Soviet Union ◽  
The First World War ◽  
Long Time ◽  
Soviet Russia ◽  
The Russian Empire ◽  
The 19Th Century ◽  
First World

Cinema had been found at the end of the 19th century. The first cinema shows in the Ottoman Empire and the Russian Empire had been held in 1896. Since the beginning of the 20th century, cinema, which was an effective tool in propaganda, had some experiences until the end of the First World War. After the war, developments in international relations brought Turkey and Soviet Russia closer together. Thus, good relations that started in 1919 will have been continued for a long time. During this period, cinema was used by the Bolsheviks in Russia about realizing the objectives of the regime, and this experience affected Turkey. Therefore, one of the issues which mentioned in the relations between the two countries was the cinema. Turkey wanted to benefit from propaganda and indoctrination power of cinema in Atatürk period dominated by the friendly relations between the two countries. This study aims to examine how cinema reflected on the relations between the two countries during the Atatürk period. It has been seen that cinema had an important status in relations between Turkey and Soviet Russia. The interaction on cinema started in the 1920s and continued in the 1930s. Although the cooperation continued between the two countries about the cinema, Turkey had been sensitive to any threat to the regime which could be coming from the Soviet Union in this process.

Translation and Transformation: English-Language Children's Literature in (Soviet) Russian Guise

2015 ◽  
Vol 8 (1) ◽  
pp. 1-16 ◽  
Author(s):  
Judith Inggs
Keyword(s):  
Children's Literature ◽  
Soviet Union ◽  
English Language ◽  
Children’S Literature ◽  
Socialist Realism ◽  
The Political ◽  
Philosophy Of Action ◽  
The Soviet Union ◽  
Free Translation ◽  
Soviet Russia

This article investigates the perceived image of English-language children's literature in Soviet Russia. Framed by Even-Zohar's polysystem theory and Bourdieu's philosophy of action, the discussion takes into account the ideological constraints of the practice of translation and the manipulation of texts. Several factors involved in creating the perceived character of a body of literature are identified, such as the requirements of socialist realism, publishing practices in the Soviet Union, the tradition of free translation and accessibility in the translation of children's literature. This study explores these factors and, with reference to selected examples, illustrates how the political and sociological climate of translation in the Soviet Union influenced the translation practices and the field of translated children's literature, creating a particular image of English-language children's literature in (Soviet) Russia.

Staging the Great Victory

2021 ◽  
Vol 65 (1) ◽  
pp. 95-123
Author(s):  
Catherine Schuler
Keyword(s):  
Soviet Union ◽  
Crucial Role ◽  
History And Memory ◽  
Counter Narratives ◽  
The Soviet Union ◽  
Great Patriotic War ◽  
Soviet Russia ◽  
Great Victory

A war of history and memory over the Great Patriotic War (WWII) between the Soviet Union and Germany has been raging in Vladimir Putin’s Russia for almost two decades. Putin’s Kremlin deploys all of the mythmaking machinery at its disposal to correct narratives that demonize the Soviet Union and reflect badly on post-Soviet Russia. Victory Day, celebrated annually on 9 May with parades, concerts, films, theatre, art, and music, plays a crucial role in disseminating the Kremlin’s counter narratives.

De-Russification of Government as a Factor in the Disintegration of the USSR

2021 ◽  
Vol 47 (4) ◽  
pp. 362-398
Author(s):  
Boris Mironov
Keyword(s):  
Law Enforcement ◽  
Soviet Union ◽  
National Policy ◽  
Power Structures ◽  
Administrative Positions ◽  
Political Inequality ◽  
Government Administration ◽  
The Soviet Union ◽  
Democratic Principle ◽  
Legislative Branch

Abstract In the Soviet Union from 1917 to 1990, the political inequality of the nationalities’ representation in institutions of governance was overcome, non-Russians’ participation in the power structures increased, and Russians’ role in administration correspondingly decreased. The increased non-Russian percentage in governance was mainly due to the introduction of the democratic principle in government formation, according to which ethnicities should participate in proportion to their number. By 1990 in the USSR overall, Russians had a slight majority in all power structures, corresponding roughly to their higher share in the country’s population. In the union republics, however, the situation was different. Only in the RSFSR did all peoples, Russian and non-Russian, participate in government administration in proportion to their numbers, following the democratic norm. Elsewhere, Russians were underrepresented and therefore discriminated against in all organs of power, including the legislative branch. Representatives of non-Russian titular nationalities, who on average filled two-thirds of all administrative positions, predominated in disproportion to their numbers. Given these representatives’ skill majority in legislative bodies, republican constitutions permitted them to adopt any laws and resolutions they desired, including laws on secession from the USSR; and the executive and judicial authorities, together with law enforcement, would undoubtedly support them. Thus, the structural prerequisites for disintegration were established. Thereafter, the fate of the Soviet Union depended on republican elites and the geopolitical environment, because of the Center’s purposeful national policy, aimed toward increasing non-Russian representation among administrative cadres and the accelerated modernization and developmental equalization of the republics.

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