The Soviet Union, by the time of its creation, was the first modern state that had to confront the rising issue of nationalism. With a progressive nationality policy, it systematically promoted the national consciousness of its ethnic minorities and established for them institutional forms comparable of a modern state. In the 1920s, the Bolsheviks, seeking to defuse national sentiment, created hundreds of national territories. They trained new national leaders, established national languages, and financed national cultural products. This was a massive historical experiment in governing a multiethnic state. Later under Stalin, these policies had to be revised to comply with emerging domestic and international problems, which resulted from those once progressive policies.
This paper will present the issue of Russian nationalism and nationality policy in the Soviet Union. The analysis will be based on six different monographs dealing with the issue at different periods of Soviet history. Each has a different approach and at times a different thesis on Russian nationalism or an interpretation of the political events accompanying the Soviet nationality policy.
First, on the following pages, I will give a brief summary of the six books discussed in this paper. Then, I will tell the main thesis of each book and underlie it by the author’s arguments. In the conclusion, I will compare the book’s arguments in a historiographical manner and see where similarities between the arguments exist, where the books complement each other and at which points they disagree with each other. At the end, I will try to give a comprehensive overview of the issue discussed, due to the frame and limited space of this paper.
Table of Contents
- Introduction
- Chapter Summaries of Books
- Eric Lohr, Nationalizing the Russian Empire
- Richard Pipes, The Formation of the Soviet Union
- Jeremy Smith, The Bolsheviks and the National Question
- Terry Martin, Affirmative Action Empire
- David Brandenberger, National Bolshevism
- Yitzhak M. Brudny, Reinventing Russia
Objectives and Key Themes
This paper analyzes Russian nationalism and nationality policy in the Soviet Union (1917-1991) through a historiographical lens, examining six monographs that offer diverse perspectives on this complex issue. The analysis compares and contrasts the authors' arguments, identifying points of agreement and disagreement to provide a comprehensive overview.
- The evolution of Russian nationalism and Soviet nationality policies from the Tsarist era to the collapse of the USSR.
- The impact of World War I on the development of national identity and state policies in Russia.
- The implementation and transformation of Bolshevik nationality policies under Stalin.
- The interplay between Marxist ideology, national identity, and state-building in the Soviet Union.
- The role of intellectuals and the intelligentsia in shaping and challenging Soviet nationality policies.
Chapter Summaries
Eric Lohr, Nationalizing the Russian Empire: Lohr's work examines Tsarist Russia during World War I, focusing on the campaign against "enemy aliens." He argues that the wartime scapegoating of minorities, particularly Germans and Jews, significantly strengthened the national state through increased state control over the population and economy. This involved expanding documentary control, enhancing police oversight, and transferring businesses to state institutions. Lohr highlights this as a key precedent for the extensive state control later employed by the Bolsheviks, emphasizing the continuity of certain state practices across regimes. The campaign also fostered a sense of nationality and ethnicity as functions of wartime policies, a precedent later utilized by the Soviet regime. Furthermore, the war contributed to a shift towards a more autarkic economy, a trend that continued and intensified under the Bolsheviks.
Richard Pipes, The Formation of the Soviet Union: Pipes analyzes the Bolshevik regime during the revolution and civil war, focusing on its efforts to unify the territories under its control. He describes the challenges faced by the regime in regaining control over peripheral regions that had declared independence or autonomy. Pipes emphasizes the "carrot and stick approach" used by the Bolsheviks to bring these regions back into the fold, employing the "mask of federalism" to mask centralized control. His work highlights the difficulties in forging a unified state amidst the complexities of national identity and competing political aspirations.
Jeremy Smith, The Bolsheviks and the National Question: Smith's study, covering the same period as Pipes, contrasts by focusing on the implementation of Bolshevik nationality policies rather than the military and political conquest. His chronological, country-by-country approach details the administrative policies involved in nation-building, including border demarcation, state structure creation, and cultural policies related to education and language promotion. While agreeing with Pipes on many points, Smith's emphasis on policy implementation offers a different perspective on the process of creating a multi-ethnic Soviet state.
Terry Martin, Affirmative Action Empire: Martin analyzes the implementation of nationality policies after 1923 under Stalin, examining their gradual transformation from the 1920s through the "Great Retreat" in the 1930s. He traces the policies from the center in Moscow to the Union republics and local units, using case studies from Ukraine and Central Asia to illustrate the complexities of korenizatsiia (indigenization). The latter part of Martin's book discusses the "revising" of the affirmative action empire through ethnic cleansing and the rise of Russian nationalism under the concept of "the Friendship of the People." He also explores the tension between "soft line" and "hard line" nationalities policies, highlighting how the "soft line" emphasis on forms of nationhood gave way to a harder line when conflicting with the goals of industrialization, state-building, internationalism, and Communism.
David Brandenberger, National Bolshevism: Brandenberger attributes the failure of early Bolshevik nationality policies to the inability of Marxist-Leninist slogans to mobilize the population for industrialization and war preparation. He argues that Stalin's subsequent shift towards appealing to Russian identity as a common denominator constituted "National Bolshevism." This involved reducing Marxism-Leninism to rhetoric and a "return to history," using elements of Tsarist Russia to serve Soviet state-building interests. This approach, Brandenberger contends, became a dominant factor in Stalinist culture and shaped the Soviet Union's future.
Yitzhak M. Brudny, Reinventing Russia: Brudny's study examines Khrushchev's abandonment of Russian nationalism and the Stalin cult, and the subsequent alienation of the Soviet intelligentsia, who drifted towards russocentric and nationalist positions. Under Brezhnev, these intellectuals received state support, filling the ideological vacuum and providing a source of patriotism. However, this policy ultimately backfired, leading to nationalist intellectuals opposing the regime itself.
Keywords
Russian nationalism, Soviet nationality policy, Bolshevik policies, Stalinism, korenizatsiia, national identity, state-building, multiethnic state, World War I, historiography, Marxism-Leninism, National Bolshevism, intelligentsia.
Frequently Asked Questions: A Comprehensive Language Preview
What is the focus of this language preview?
This preview offers a structured overview of six monographs analyzing Russian nationalism and nationality policies within the Soviet Union (1917-1991). It provides a comparative analysis of the authors' arguments, highlighting areas of agreement and disagreement to offer a comprehensive understanding of the subject.
Which books are included in this analysis?
The preview analyzes the following six monographs:
- Eric Lohr, Nationalizing the Russian Empire
- Richard Pipes, The Formation of the Soviet Union
- Jeremy Smith, The Bolsheviks and the National Question
- Terry Martin, Affirmative Action Empire
- David Brandenberger, National Bolshevism
- Yitzhak M. Brudny, Reinventing Russia
What are the key themes explored in these books?
The key themes include: the evolution of Russian nationalism and Soviet nationality policies; the impact of World War I; the implementation and transformation of Bolshevik nationality policies under Stalin; the interplay between Marxist ideology, national identity, and state-building; and the role of intellectuals in shaping and challenging Soviet nationality policies.
What is the methodology used in this preview?
The preview employs a historiographical approach, comparing and contrasting the arguments presented in the six monographs to provide a comprehensive overview of the topic. It identifies points of agreement and disagreement among the authors.
What are the main arguments of each book?
Each book offers a unique perspective:
- Lohr examines Tsarist Russia's wartime scapegoating of minorities, highlighting its impact on strengthening the national state and providing a precedent for Bolshevik control.
- Pipes analyzes the Bolsheviks' challenges in unifying territories, emphasizing their use of a "carrot and stick approach" and the "mask of federalism."
- Smith focuses on the implementation of Bolshevik nationality policies, detailing administrative policies related to nation-building.
- Martin analyzes the transformation of nationality policies under Stalin, focusing on korenizatsiia and its eventual revision through ethnic cleansing and the rise of Russian nationalism.
- Brandenberger argues that Stalin's shift towards appealing to Russian identity constituted "National Bolshevism," using elements of Tsarist Russia to serve Soviet interests.
- Brudny examines Khrushchev's abandonment of Russian nationalism and the subsequent rise of nationalist intellectuals who eventually opposed the regime.
What are the key words associated with this analysis?
Key words include: Russian nationalism, Soviet nationality policy, Bolshevik policies, Stalinism, korenizatsiia, national identity, state-building, multiethnic state, World War I, historiography, Marxism-Leninism, National Bolshevism, intelligentsia.
- Quote paper
- M.A. Pouyan Shekarloo (Author), 2009, Russian Nationalism in the Soviet Union, 1917-1991, Munich, GRIN Verlag, https://www.grin.com/document/144892
