Month: April 2018

Comment on Vasily Aksyonov and the stilyagi movement by cnritchey

Kathryn, great post! This is one of my favorite topics in Soviet history and I think you did a great job of explaining the background behind it. American culture allowed the youth to escape the terrors that they had faced under Stalin, especially related to the purges. I love the images you used as well!

Comment on From Stalin with Love: The Victor’s Plight by Caroline Ritchey

Ethan, great post! Even after everything they went through as soldiers in WW2, veterans still had to face immense struggles. I think it’s interesting how you mentioned this leading to a breakdown of “blind patriotism,” and Soviet cultural propaganda once again comes to the rescue. I think your last sentence was great and an interesting trend to follow throughout this class.

Comment on Freedom from the Gulags by cnritchey

Great post! The releasing of some prisoners from the gulags was definitely controversial at the time but I think Solzhenitsyn’s work emphasized why it was so important and how terrible the conditions in the gulags were. Maura also had a great post on this topic (https://mauramcd.wordpress.com/2018/04/02/the-worst-thing-about-prison-was-the-dementors/) and I think you’d find it interesting!

Comment on The New Boss by cnritchey

Great work explaining all the confusion around the succession of Stalin! I think it’s interesting how many of Beria’s works were used against him as “anti-Communist,” and his arrest shows Khrushchev’s cunning political maneuvering.

Comment on A Dog Called Laika by cnritchey

Alden, great post! It’s easy to see from your post why the United States was so nervous about winning the space race. I also found it interesting how you mentioned Laika really had no chance for survival. Was there any public discontent with this unethical use of animals, or was it overshadowed by the Soviet technological feat?

Comment on The Worst Thing About Prison was… the Dementors by cnritchey

Maura, I loved your post! Your title is great and I think you did a great job explaining the tensions of releasing prisoners from the gulags. Although I think now, we tend to see their release as something positive, I think it’s easy to see how at the time it would have been a very controversial move. Your last paragraph was really interesting– even after being “freed” from gulags, these former prisoners faced extremely oppressive restrictions in everyday life.

Comment on Soviet Successors by cnritchey

Taylor, great post! I think it’s interesting that after Stalin personally consolidated so much power that he wanted to distribute it among three people. Despite all the politics that went into determining the single leader, I think it’s important to note that agriculture was one of Khrushchev’s main platforms and helped him become Stalin’s sole successor.

Comment on Styling with Stilyaga by cnritchey

I was so excited to read your post because the stilyaga is one of my favorite movements in Soviet history!! I like how you mentioned that the term grew to mean more than just this one movement, but anyone who was not fitting social norms. Despite this movement being social and cultural, rather than political, why do you think it was looked down upon so much? Did the Soviet government do anything to try and end this movement?