Defending the Motherland: Weekly review and class on Thursday

Tractor drivers and the propaganda of the purge years dominated this weeks posts, which used an array of compelling images, videos and texts to explore the cultural fallout of this tumultuous decade. The weekly stars include nuanced explorations of the poetry and poster art dedicated to tanks, tractors and their drivers, as well as an engaging discussion of Stalin’s cult of personality.
In preparation for this week’s post please attend to the following items for class on Thursday: 1) identify potential artifacts for your next post in MC (pp. 333-410) or on 17 Moments (1943).  You will find valuable overlap and context if you look in both places. You should also consult the relevant section of the Russia Reader. 2) Once you’ve chosen an artifact, please start you research. 3) Bring the Mass Culture book to class with you. 4) for “bonus points,” send a tweet with your selection to #sovietculture.

Image: Irakli Toidze: For the Motherland (1943)