Founded by Vladimir Lenin and other zealots on the premise it would become a political and economic prototype other countries would soon copy Prospects would decline as Josef Stalin followed as predecessor and governed in an increasingly tyrannical manner ID: 500253
Download Presentation The PPT/PDF document "The Soviet Union was formed in December ..." is the property of its rightful owner. Permission is granted to download and print the materials on this web site for personal, non-commercial use only, and to display it on your personal computer provided you do not modify the materials and that you retain all copyright notices contained in the materials. By downloading content from our website, you accept the terms of this agreement.
Slide1Slide2Slide3
The Soviet Union was formed in December 1922.
Founded by Vladimir Lenin and other zealots on the premise it would become a political and economic prototype other countries would soon copy
Prospects would decline as Josef Stalin followed as predecessor and governed in an increasingly tyrannical manner
Most known for his development of SU state-owned economy, its emergence as a nuclear-armed superpower, and its acquisition of satellite states in astern Europe
Led bruising political purges and repressions that killed or imprisoned millions of people.
Communist Party goal was to forge the classless, communist society that German political theorist Karl Marx had sketched in the 19th centurySlide4
In order to produce this “perfect society” Stalin felt that all external and more importantly internal enemies had to be destroyed
From 1934- 1938 half of the urban population was on police lists
Known as The Great Terror
5% of the people were arrested
Found themselves waiting on the death penalty or
en route to a Gulag (Soviet Labor Camp)Slide5
$270
TOTAL:
$15
Misc.
$25
Income Tax
$30
Recreation
$10
Rent, utilities
$55
Clothing
$135
Food
Soviet citizens continued to be the subjects of surveillance
Always required to carry their passports
Living conditions greatly decreased under Stalin
15% of families lived in a single room
47% lived in
two
rooms
Government-funded apartments rented for tiny sumsSlide6
4
Georgians
4.2
Tajiks
4.6
Armenians
6.6
Tatars
6.8
Azerbaijanis
8.1
Kazaks
10
Belorussians
16.7
Uzbeks
44.2
Ukrainians
145.2
Russian
Population (millions)
NationalitiesSlide7
No official language however Russian was preferred in regards to the government and economicsSlide8
“The life of youth is strongly influenced by the state. The government provides daytime nursery schools for the very young and organizes thoroughgoing physical fitness program” (Thayer 126). Slide9Slide10
The inauguration of Stalin’s first Five-Year Plan in 1928 tightened political controls over cultural activity
Led to a censorship in all arts
Believed the only precept for creative ideas was “socialist realism”
Only themes that contribute to strengthening socialismSlide11
500 professional theaters which included 35 for opera and ballet
Ballet is the supreme example of Russian achievement in performing arts
Moscow
Bolshoi Theater is the pride of all Russians
Tradition
dates back to the 18
th
century when Catherine the Great brought Italian choreographer
Angiolini
to St. Petersburg to teach imperial dance
Russia has also given the world some of its greatest musicians/composers
Works were frequently banned during Stalin’s era
Included
: Sergei Prokofiev, Dmitri Shostakovich, Aram KhachaturyanSlide12Slide13
In the 1930’s Stalin began to cut down on the free expression of ideas
All prominent writers had to join the Union of Writers which controlled literary intelligentsia
Writers included: Vladimir Dudintsev, Yuri Trionov, Yevgeny Yevtusheknko, Vasily Aksenov
Slide14
As their world was drastically changing around them, they still tried to keep some traditions alive.
Easter or ‘
Paskha
’
represents the major Russian religious celebration of the year
Could not be eliminated by the communists
Celebrated with special bread called
Paskha
and colored Easter eggs
Usually celebrated at a later date than in the West
Spend all day on the Saturday before in church
Common practice to visit cemeteries and bring eggs,
Paskha
, and beer to gravesites
Most popular Russian souvenir that dates back to the 1800’s
First created by a man named Murmantov Slide15Slide16
Approximately 50% of Soviet Citizens identified themselves with Russian Orthodox Church
The center of faith for devout
Russins
for 6 centuries has been the Monastery of the Holy Trinity and St.
Serguis
in Zagorsk
Church art shone above all other forms
Characteristic
onion-shaped domes of Orthodox churches were developed by native
architects. Slide17