• The literacy rate remained low, around a 60% literacy rate.

• Positive changes - some did well out of land distribution, consolidating the best for them self. Some prospered by turning to industrial enterprise.

• Social mobility began to occur as nobles sons chose to join the business, or peasants sons rose to middle class manager of factory positions.

• In urban areas, peasants lost their former identity. They instead associated with those whom they lived and worked, sharing grievances and becoming targets for political agitators. This discontented class provided the impetus for the overthrow in 1917

However, the orthodox church continued to influence both government and community. There was an outpouring of patriotism and support for the Tsar when war broke out. 1914, all classes rallied to defend the Russian Motherland.

Political discontent spread easily through towns and cities. Strike activity was rare before the events of 1905. It escalated again in 1912 and 1914 where there were 3000 stoppages. Government repression was violent.

• Middle class - striking feature was the absence of a middle class, there were a small number of professionals (doctors) of whom formed an educated 'intelligentsia', these were often sons of nobles.

• Peasants were hit hard by taxation and with urban workers and tradesmen provided 90% of imperial income. Nobility and Clergy were exempt from the payment of any direct monetary tax.

• Growing class, result from industrial expansion and education.
• Include bankers, doctors, teachers and administrators.
• Enterprises included building railways and starting factories.
• Lower middle class could become managers or work shop owners.

• Around 2% of the population by the 1890s:
• • Some peasants worked in towns and returned to farming at peak times
• • Others became urban workers or worked for migrant groups building railways.
• Growing class 1 in 3 inhabitants in St Petersburg by 1864 were peasant born.
• Suffered poor working and living conditions.

• The richer peasants - Kulaks:
• • Did well out of emancipation
• • Bought up land and employed labour
• • Might buy grain from poorer peasants in autumn and sell back for profit in spring
• Poorer peasants:
• • Suffered more after emancipation
• • became landless labourers, often in debt
• • experienced poor living standards
• • poor health and low life expectancy
    

• Small but diverse group, mostly of noble status
• Personal land holdings decreased since emancipation
• Employed in:
  
  • Professional activities (e.g University professors)
  • business, commerce, transport or industry
  • Zemstva and/or provincial governorships
• Often retained much of their previous wealth and status
  

There was evidence that the orthodox church was losing control over peoples lives. It was becoming less relevant in industrialising towns, and countryside superstition was becoming more powerful than priest influence.

The classless society

Following Marxist theory, the Bolshevik revolution campaigned against the 'class' enemies of the proletariat (the burzhui).

POLICIES FOR MARXIST FUFILLMENT:

• Class titles were abolished.
• 'Former people' (nobles and bourgeoise) were forced into menial tasks; their homes were turned into communal worker housing (Komunalki).
• During the civil war, rations were allocated according to class (workers and soldiers received the most).
• Following some relaxation of the policy under the NEP, Stalin continued class-based attacks.
  
  

The communist goal was to create a 'socialist man' with a sense of social responsibility and a willingness to serve the state.

The proletariat

'Proletarianism was an important step in creating the 'socialist man'. Despite this working life was harsh.

After the short 'workers control' period of 1917-18, discipline in factories was restored.

HARSHER POLICIES:

• After 1918, workers could not level their jobs and could be imprisoned or shot for missing targets.

  
  

• Unions became a means of controlling workers.

• 'Living and working conditions remained grim throughout the NEP, and worsened because of collectivisation and the drive towards industrialisation.
  
  

OPPURTUNITIES POST 1931 (INDUSTRIALISATION):

• Propaganda campaigns such as the stahanovite movement (named after a miner whose inflated achievements were hailed as an example to others) increased 'socialist competition'.
• Education improved, the purges created vacancies at higher levels, and social mobility increased.
  
  

REALITY:

• Living conditions still remained poor. Wages remained low.
• Market prices were high.
• From 1940, the prospect of war led to firmer discipline, and an end to many of the benefits of the 1930s.

LENINS POLICIES

Before revolution, peasant women had been mainly expected to look after households and children. They had no legal rights or privileges. In November 1917, the new government outlawed sex discrimination:

• Women given the right to own property.
• Removed church influence, facilitated divorce and legalised abortion.
• Gave women the right to work.
• Gave girls the same education rights as boys.

STALINS POLICIES

In the 1930s Stalin revived traditional ideas:

• Family was portrayed as all-important and women are encouraged to give up paid employment when married.
• Marriage was encouraged; divorce and abortion were attacked, adultery became a criminal offence and contraception was banned.
• Financial incentives offered for bigger families.
  
  

However, the numbers of women in work or education grew (in industry or collective farms), helped by an increase in state nurseries and in child-clinics. The divorce rate remained high, abortion continued and although the majority of people married, the population growth-rate fell.

Education

Education was seen as essential to build a socialist society.

LENIN:

• Free education was provided at all levels in co-educational schools.
• New secondary schools combined with general education with vocational training.
• Traditional learning was combined with physical work..
• Textbooks and exams were largely abolished.
• Some freedom, creativity and individualism were permitted.
• Physical punishment was banned.
  
  

STALIN:

• Education for all was abandonned; some single-sex schools were reintroduced.
• Although 'Practical work' was encouraged for the less able students, the focus was on teaching inudstrial skills.
• Collective farms or town enterprises were responsible for many schools.
• Universities were controlled by the veshenka, the economic planning agency.
• A rigid curriculum was enforced.
• Nationalism was promoted and military training introduced.
• Teachers were set high targets and closely supervised.
  
  

By 1941 there were marked educational improvements including a high rise in literacy.

Youth organisations

• In 1918 a young communist league was formed for youngsters aged 14-21 years.
  
  • A junior section (the pioneers) followed in 1922.
  • In 1926 the organisation was renamed the 'Komsomol' and the age-range was extended to between 10-28 years.
    
    

CONTINUED & GREW WITH STALIN:.

• It taught communist values through clubs, community centres and camps and had its own newspaper.
• It was closely linked to the communist Party
  
  • directly affiliated in 1939.
• Members took an oath to live, study and fight for the fatherland;
  
  • they wore a uniform
  • helped carry out party campaigns
  • assisted the red army and police.

Stalin, 1929-41

• Worship restrictions.
• New six-day week had no sunday.
• Muslim practices restricted.
• 1936 constitution criminalised religious propaganda (although priests regained the right to vote).
• By 1641, around 65,000 churches and mosques had been converted into other buildings.
• However, religious belief remained strong.

Self-determination

• Lenin's nationality decree of 1917 fulfilled the Bolshevik promise of self-determination.
• However, when this led to separatist movements, the Bolsheviks disagreed as to whether or not to impose integration on the nationalities.
• Stalin brutally suppressed movements towards independance in Georgia in 1922.

Anti-Semitism

• The communists abolished anti-semetic laws in 1917, encouraged national languages, and granted representation within the party to major nationalities.
• In 1926, Jews were given a 'National Homeland' in the far east provences.

Stalinist state

The Stalinist state remained officially opposed to racial discrimination. Most campaigns were politically rather than racially motivated.

Propaganda

LENIN

• used propaganda to convert people to Socialism. Strong visual messages were a powerful way of appealing to illiterate peasants.
  
  

STALIN

• exploited his own propaganda machine to gain support for collectivisation and industrialisation. The socialist message was reinforced by images of happy, productive workers, while heroes were praised as role models.
• propaganda also reinforced his own position, portraying him as a mighty, all-knowing leader, and a natural successor to Marx, Engels and Lenin. Stalin encouraged a cult status for Lenin after his death, and developed his own 'cult personality'.

Cultural change

LENIN

• Greater freedom immediately after the revolution allowed culture to thrive. Freedom of expression was encouraged and the 1920s became the 'silver age' of Russian literature, poetry and music.
  
  

STALIN

• The Stalinist era reversed these developments. The visual and performing arts were seen as valuable only if they supported the creation of the 'socialist man'. Creativity was replaced with conformity.

  
  

• From 1932, writers musicians, artists and film-makers had to belong to unions, which controlled their output. Writer and other artists were expected to depict 'social realism' - namely and uplifting vision of soviet life in the socialist future. Literature and Art were to illustrate the inevitable 'march to communism' and glorify the working man.

Social weaknesses

Quality of Life did not improve significantly under Stalin:

• Living standards remained low.
• Freedom of movement was restricted.
• Censorship and propaganda dominated.
• Mass organisations manipulated the people.

Social Strengths

• Communist control in the countryside had been strengthened: Peasants were living and working in the Kolkhozes, supervised by Party officials and NKVD units stationed at each MTS.
• Urbanisation had created a far stronger proletariat.
• Socialist values were promoted through education, propaganda the leadership cult, public celebrations, arts, culture and show trials.

SOCIAL CONDITION BY 1964

• Living standards began to rise rapidly and consumers began to benefit from industrialisation.
• Generated a mood of optimism with a seemingly 'better society' being built in the USSR.
• Still massive unsolved problems in Society.
  

Churches

Persecution was temporarily halted.
The churches were used to boost morale and encourage patriotism.

Soldiers and workers

All sections of society were recruited and centrally deployed for war work.

Working hours increased.

Discipline (in both factories and army) was tightened.

Propaganda and culture

Intense propaganda was used to promote unity.
Posters and the press encouraged heroism and self-sacrifice
Artists and musicians enjoyed more freedom, to encourage an atmosphere of national reconciliation.

Partisans

Many soviet citizens and soldiers left behind the German lines formed partisan groups, using sabotage against the enemy.

They risked terrible Nazi reprisals, as did innocent civilians caught behind German lines.

Women and family

The importance of family was emphasised.

Women's burdens increased - they were essential wartime workers but also expected to raise large families.

Women worked in industry, on farms or in the armed forces, but received little reward.

Living condtions

Food shortages led to the death of millions.

Many had to flee the German advance or relocate to factories in the east.
Housing and fuel shortages were acute.
Health problems increased.

Many died in the Gulag.

Social change under Stalin, 1945-53

LITTLE CHANGE

• Standards of living for ordinary people did not improve.
• Peasants income remained low.
• In towns working and living conditions remained harsh.
• Workers could still be relocated.
• Party officials received higher rations.
• Women were expected to work as well as run the household and look after their children.
• Shortages of consumer goods.

Social change under Khrushchev, 1953-64

Khrushchev was committed to improving the living standards of the Soviet People. Through de-Stalinisation and economic reforms:

LARGE CHANGE

• Consumer goods were more readily available.
• Housing initiatives helped alleviate overcrowding.
• Taxation was lowered and pensions improved.
• Working hours were reduced and there was a move towards equal wages.
• Trade unions were given more responsibilities and greater influence in employment negotiations.
• Educational provision, medicine and welfare services and transport were improved.
  
  

HOWEVER:

• High-ranking Party officials retained privileges.
• Living standards were still significantly lower than in the western industrialised states.

Social life and Cultural change

After the repression and the fear of 'Zhandovschina'*, Khrushchev's de-Stalinisation policies brought greater personal freedom for soviet citizens:

POLICIES:

• Greater openness to Western influence Restrictions on Western contact reduced, reading of foreign literature permitted, some travel from USSR allowed.
  
  • Brought discontent to rigidity of Soviet life especially amongst young people which led to increased hooliganism and protests.
• Rehabilitation of writers and Musicians who had been persecuted under Stalin - even if their work criticised the Stalinist regime.
  
  

HOWEVER:

• Artistic works still judged on their commitment to 'social responsibility' - any that challenged communism or Soviet State were outlawed.
  

The Churches

Khrushchev revived the old Socialist campaign against the Churches:

• Children forbidden from being taught religion - not allowed to be taught by parents or attend services, education was atheistic.
• Thousands of monasteries, convents, Orthodox Churches and seminaries were closed - many converted to museums or community centres promoting socialist values.
• Church service strictly regulated - Pilgrimages also banned.
• Excess religious devotion could lead to imprisonment - clergymen could be sent to labour camps.
  

Ethnic Minorities

Khrushchev did not encourage greater independence for the nationalities:

• Single common language - the party taught that ethnic distinctions would ultimately disappear and that a single common language would be adopted in the USSR.
• Restrictions on Jews maintained.

GENERAL POPULATION

The Russian people endured terrible wartime suffering. Nearly 30 million civilians and soldiers were killed and 25 million in the west lost their homes.
Despite this, War brought hope:

• The sense of collective endeavour revived hopes for change.
• Comradeship among soldiers helped spread new liberal thinking.
• Greater exposure to western influence led to hope for a more open post-war society.
  
  

Such hopes were not achieved. In reality, 1945-53 was among the most bleak of the Stalinist period.

Cultural - High Stalinism

New controls over intellectual life were introduced in the zhdanovchina (named after Zhdanov, who launched a cultural purge in 1946). Stressed conformity to socialist ideals and cult of Stalin. Westernisms condemned as decadent; all things Russian were promoted.

• Anti-soviet authors were condemned and publications banned (particularly those supportive of Western culture.
• Social-realism became the norm in literature, art, music and film.
• Only pro-soviet authors allowed to to visit USSR and few soviets allowed to travel west.

The impact of the Civil war on the national minorities; the 1922 constitution

• After the civil war the government ceased to support 'national self-determination'.
• Interdependence groups were denounced as counter-revolutionary.
• Georgia oppression - 1922, demands from Georgia were brutally crushed on Stalin's orders (Lenin condemned this).
• RSFSR replaced by USSR in December 1922 - union of soviet Socialist Republics. Officially a federation of republics on similar footing, states which made up union were under firm Moscow control.

• Misguided policy? - Intensified national feeling of non-Russians and drove some wealthier citizens to emigrate or opposition, which would have previously been loyal.

A II & ETHNIC MINORITIES

More concerned with control than racial superiority.

• 1863, the Polish rebellion broke out. More than 200,000 Poles had joined in creating an underground national government, which waged a guerilla warfare against the imperial empire - defeated in 1864 after fierce conflict.
• Did not engage in the systematic persecution of racial minorities and used concessions to maintain authority.
  
  • E.g decrees from 1864-75 allowed Latvians and Estonians to revert to Lutheranism.
• Growing friction towards the end of his reign saw a growing intolerance of national differences.
  
  • E.g Prohibition of Ukrainian language publications in 1876.

• 1883, non-orthodox churches were not allowed to build new places of worship, wear religious dress, or spread religious propaganda.