The Making of the Soviet System
Essays in the Social History of Interwar Russia
Published on 15. September 1994
Book
Paperback/Softback
368 pages
978-1-56584-125-3 (ISBN)
Description
In this now-classic book, Moshe Lewin traces the transformation of Russian society and the Russian political system in the period between the two world wars, a transformation that was to lead to Stalinism in the 1930s. Lewin focuses on the changes stemming from war, revolution, civil war, and industrialization, and he discusses such topics as rural society and religion in the twentieth century; the background of Soviet collectivization; Soviet prewar policies of agricultural procurement; the kolkhoz and the muzhik; Leninism and Bolshevism; industrial relations during the five-year plans of 1928-1941; and the social background of Stalinism. Through this comprehensive approach to understanding the origins and problems of Stalinism, Lewin makes a significant contribution to the study of Russia's social history before the revolution as well as in the Soviet period.
More details
Language
English
Place of publication
United Kingdom
Target group
College/higher education
Professional and scholarly
Product notice
Paperback (trade)
Illustrations
Illustrations
Dimensions
Height: 234 mm
Width: 156 mm
Thickness: 28 mm
Weight
590 gr
ISBN-13
978-1-56584-125-3 (9781565841253)
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Schweitzer Classification
Person
Moshe Lewin was born in Poland and served in the Russian army during World War II. One of the most respected scholars in his field, he has been a Fellow in Russian Studies at Columbia, Princeton, and the Kennan Institute in Washington, D.C. He is the author of many books, including The Gorbachev Phenomenon and The Making of the Soviet System (reissued by The New Press). He is currently professor of history at the University of Pennsylvania.
Content
Social crises and political structures in the USSR; Part 1 The rural ways - mores and magic: rural society in 20th century Russia; popular religion in 20th century Russia; customary law and rural society in the post-reform era. Part 2 Collectivization - or something else?: the immediate background of Soviet collectivization; who was the Soviet Kulak?; "taking grain" - Soviet policies of agricultural procurements before the war; the Kolkhoz and the Russian Muzhik. Part 3 Different Leninisms and social change: Leninism and Bolshevism - the test of history and power; society, state and ideology during the first five-year plan; social relations inside industry during the prewar five-year plans, 1928-41; the social background of Stalinism; grappling with Stalinism.