
Cosmonaut
A Cultural History
Cathleen S. Lewis(Author)
University Press of Florida
Published on 8. August 2023
Book
Hardback
324 pages
978-1-68340-370-8 (ISBN)
Description
How the public image of the Soviet cosmonaut was designed and reimagined over timeIn this book, Cathleen Lewis discusses how the public image of the Soviet cosmonaut developed beginning in the 1950s and the ways this icon has been reinterpreted throughout the years and in contemporary Russia. Compiling material and cultural representations of the cosmonaut program, Lewis provides a new perspective on the story of Soviet spaceflight, highlighting how the government has celebrated figures such as Yuri Gagarin and Valentina Tereshkova through newspapers, radio, parades, monuments, museums, films, and even postage stamps and lapel pins.
Lewis's analysis shows that during the Space Race, Nikita Khrushchev mobilized cosmonaut stories and images to symbolize the forward-looking Soviet state and distract from the costs of the Cold War. Public perceptions shifted after the first Soviet spaceflight fatality and failure to reach the Moon, yet cosmonaut imagery was still effective propaganda, evolving through the USSR's collapse in 1991 and seen today in Vladimir Putin's government cooperation for a film on the 1985 rescue of the Salyut 7 space station. Looking closely at the process through which Russians continue to reexamine their past, Lewis argues that the cultural memory of spaceflight remains especially potent among other collective Soviet memories.
Lewis's analysis shows that during the Space Race, Nikita Khrushchev mobilized cosmonaut stories and images to symbolize the forward-looking Soviet state and distract from the costs of the Cold War. Public perceptions shifted after the first Soviet spaceflight fatality and failure to reach the Moon, yet cosmonaut imagery was still effective propaganda, evolving through the USSR's collapse in 1991 and seen today in Vladimir Putin's government cooperation for a film on the 1985 rescue of the Salyut 7 space station. Looking closely at the process through which Russians continue to reexamine their past, Lewis argues that the cultural memory of spaceflight remains especially potent among other collective Soviet memories.
Reviews / Votes
"An innovative study of pop culture, memorabilia, propaganda, and hero worship, Cosmonaut brings the Soviet space program to life from inside Soviet society."-Foreword ReviewsMore details
Language
English
Place of publication
Florida
United States
Target group
Professional and scholarly
Product notice
Paper over boards
Illustrations
20 b&w illus
Dimensions
Height: 235 mm
Width: 157 mm
Thickness: 24 mm
Weight
678 gr
ISBN-13
978-1-68340-370-8 (9781683403708)
Copyright in bibliographic data and cover images is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or by the publishers or by their respective licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Other editions
Additional editions

E-Book
08/2023
University of Florida Press
€36.99
Available for download
Person
Cathleen S. Lewis is curator of international space programs and spacesuits at the Smithsonian Institution's National Air and Space Museum, specializing in Soviet and Russian history. She is coeditor of Spaceflight: A Smithsonian Guide and Air and Space History: An Annotated Bibliography.