Bylye Gody

4-10

Authors: Katharina Uhl

The article explores the concept of ‘Soviet subjectivity’ in its various shapes and approaches. This concept was mainly elaborated by the historians Jochen Hellbeck and Igal Halfin during the late 1990s and early 2000s. Their sources were ego-documents of the 1920s and 1930s such as diaries, letters and autobiographies. Taking Stephen Kotkin’s idea of ‘speaking Bolshevik’ as a starting point, historians of ‘Soviet subjectivity’ used ideas of discursive analysis mainly influenced by the French philosopher Michel Foucault to analyze the Stalinist self. The main idea is that individuals constructed and moulded themselves according to a Stalinist set of discourses. Therefore the self appears as dominated by discourse which functions as an elaborated ‘technology of power’. The article focuses on three approaches to ‘Soviet subjectivity’: 1. when Juliane Fürst emphasizes the omnipotent power of Soviet discourse outside which no thinking was possible; 2. Hellbeck’s and Halfin’s ideas were less radical as they put language at the core of construction of the self but leave place for individual interpretation; 3. Kharkhordin, the most prominent representative of the third approach, puts his emphasis on social pressure which is regarded as crucial for implementing Soviet norms and practices. The article finishes by touching on other approaches to ‘Soviet subjectivity’ which have been applied in recent studies, such as the performative approach.

18-22

Authors: Alexey H. Abazov

The common law is investigated as an element of the standard culture of the Kabardians in the XIXth century. Along with the common law, the separate elements of the traditional standard culture of the Kabardians; such as the traditional institutes of social self-regulation, the system of class relations, the family and household culture, a complex of moral ethical standards and behavior rules are distinguished. Specific features of integration of the common law and of certain institutes of the Kabardians into the legal system of the Russian Empire are demonstrated in these examples. It is claimed that after Kabarda's unification with the Russian Empire the common law of the Kabardians underwent essential transformations. It didn’t, however, completely lose its regulatory functions.

29-36

Authors: Susanna D. Bagdasaryan

This article discusses aspects of the state Soviet policy in the formation of a new country daily culture on the basis of development of book culture in the conditions of the fight against illiteracy of the country people the South of Russia. The author analyzes the means and ways of carrying out actions of a cultural revolution in rural society, and the results of the pursued state policy in the concept of the creation of new Soviet society.

43-50

Authors: Viachaslau Menkouski

The article analyzes the historiographical direction "Social History of Stalinism" in the publications of Russian and Belarusian researchers. It is proposed an overview of the use of the term "Stalinism" in the Russian historiography. It compares the ratio of Marxist theory and the practice of socialism in the Soviet Union. The analysis of the Russian-language historiography of Stalinism abroad in the XX–XXI centuries draws attention to the influence of the English-language historiography on the Russian and Belarusian researchers. It explains the importance of "social history" to understand the Stalinist period of Soviet history. Having to replace the concept of totalitarianism, this area has allowed researchers to shift attention from the Soviet leadership to the broad social strata. The Stalinism methodology is studied and how it can be applied to other countries and other historical periods. This allowed a more accurate picture of the life of Soviet society and the State in the 1930–1950's. Attention is paid to the internationalization and globalization of modern historical research as one of the most important specific features. It provides examples of joint projects and publications that focus on the "ordinary people" of the Stalinist Soviet Union, their daily lives, and practice relationships between different social strata.

58-60

Authors: Beate Fieseler, Roger Markwick

The heroic image of the Red Army soldier answering the call of the Motherland to defend her in the Great Patriotic War against fascism has masked the harsh reality of life for their wives and families they left behind on the home front. Wartime propaganda claimed that soldiers’ families were being well looked after. But documents from Yaroslavl’ archives suggest that the wives and families of ordinary soldiers and officers struggled to survive on the ‘second’ home front, especially if they had to care for young children.