42.452.01  Soviet Russia  Spring 2010

M. Hickey  Office:  Old Science Hall Room 130      Office Phone: 389-4161

mhickey@bloomu.edu      Office Hours:  W, 5:00-6:00; T, Th. 2:00-3:30 and by appt.

NOTE changes to due dates for assignments

link to exam question

Navigation links for this syllabus:

Basic course information:

• Brief introduction to the course   

• Required Texts    

• Course grade components and grade scale  

• Policies regarding absences and late papers

• Mandatory paper form

• On using endnotes
• On bibliography form
• On plagiarism (quoting, paraphrasing, and summarizing correctly to avoid plagiarism)
• On disruptive behavior

Explanations of graded course assignments:

• Class Participation    

• Individualized Readings Papers and Reports    

• Document Analysis Paper #1

• Document Analysis Paper #2   

• Final Exam                 

 Weekly Schedule and Links to Study Questions  

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Brief introduction to the course: 

This course addresses many the issues central to debates among historians of Soviet Russia, including the following questions: 

• Why was there a revolution in Russia in 1917?

• How did the Bolshevik/Communist Party gain and hold on to power in 1917-1921? 

• How did the Communist Party/Soviet government leadership reassemble the fragments of Russia’s former empire?

• Did Soviet policies in the 1920s represent a real alternative to those of the Stalin Era?

• What enabled Stalin’s rise to power in the 1920s?

• What did the Stalinist programs of rapid industrialization and forced collectivization mean in practice?

• What explains the escalating use of state terror by Communist Party/Soviet government in the 1930s?

• How did Soviet citizens cope with the enormous strains associated with Stalinism?

• How and at what costs did the USSR defeat Hitler? 

• How and to what extent did subsequent Soviet leaders confront the legacies of Stalinism?

• How did the Cold War shape the policies of the Communist Party/Soviet government leadership in the 1940s-1980s?

• What elements of the Soviet system impeded reform in the post-Stalin era?

• What dynamics ultimately led to the collapse of the Soviet system?

This course is a seminar. We will read (a lot); in class, you will discus the readings; your papers will analyze the readings. 

Assignments in this course are designed to help you meet the following objectives: 

• develop an advanced level of understanding of 20th century Russian history
• develop an understanding of how 20th century Russian history fits into broader patterns of modern history
• develop an understanding of how Soviet history has evolved as a scholarly discipline, particularly in the United States
• gain a basic familiarity with techniques for locating secondary and primary sources on Russian and Soviet history
• improve your skill at read secondary sources for argument
• improve your skill at reading, contextualizing and analyzing primary sources
• improve your oral communication skills
• improve your writing skills, with particular reference to writing according to the conventions used by historians 

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Required Texts:

Hiroaki Kuromiya, Stalin (London:  Pearson-Longman, 2005).

Donald J. Raleigh, ed., Russia's Sputnik Generation:  Soviet Baby Boomers Talk About Their Lives (Bloomington:  Indiana University Press, 2006).

Lewis Siegelbaum and Andrei Sokolov, Stalinism as a Way of Life:  A Narrative in Documents (New Haven and London:  Yale University Press, 2000).

Ronald Grigor Suny, The Soviet Experiment:  Russia, the USSR, and the Successor States (New York:  Oxford University Press, 1998).

INSTRUCTOR'S HANDOUTS

Strongly recommended:

A grade of "A" in this course means that your cumulative score on assignments equals 93 percent or more of possible points. A-=90-92; B+=88-89; B=83-87; B-80-82; C+=78-79; C=73-77; C-=70-72; D+= 68-69; D=60-67.

Your grade will be based upon: Class Participation (20 percent); a Individualized Readings Papers and Report (total 30 percent); Two Document Analysis Papers (10 percent each); and a Final Exam (30 percent).  

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Absence Policy:  Your participation grade will fall by 10 percent for every unexcused absence.  I will consider an absence "excused" only in cases of medical, family, or university/work-related events about which you have informed me in advance, in writing, or in cases that are documented in writing by the university administration. 

If as a result of an unexcused absence you miss giving a presentation, you will fail that assignment.

Late Paper Policy:   I will deduct 10 percent from the grade for every 24 hours that passes after a paper's due date.  The only circumstance under which I will allow a paper to be late is if you have an excused absence (see above). 

Mandatory paper form

• You will send me your papers as e-mail attachments, in MS WORD.  Put your name in the file title.

• Papers must be in 12 point Times Roman font, DOUBLE SPACED, with one inch margins. 

• Type your name in the top right hand corner of the first page. 

• All pages must be numbered at the bottom center of the page. 

• Single-indent the first sentence of each paragraph.

• Do not "double-skip" between paragraphs. 

• All quotations must be placed in quotation marks, except in the case of bloc quotations. 

• All quotations, paraphrases, and direct summaries must be accompanied by endnotes in proper form.  See the linked pages On Plagiarism (Quoting, paraphrasing, and summarizing correctly to avoid plagiarism) and On using endnotes. 

Warning: I will not tolerate plagiarism in any form.  If you plagiarize on an assignment, you will fail the course and I will file a complaint with the Office of Student Standards.

• Please be sure that you have read the following policies regarding this course:

  On plagiarism (quoting, paraphrasing, and summarizing correctly to avoid plagiarism)

  On disruptive behavior

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Class Participation: 20 percent

The most basic component of participation is being present in class.  Therefore, I will deduct 10 points from your participation grade for each unexcused absence.  (See above, Policies regarding absences and late papers.)

Beyond your being in the room, my expectations regarding your participation are that you:

• complete the reading assignments for each week before our class session that week (the exception being the first week of class)
• take notes on all assigned readings so that you are able to ask and answer questions in an informed manner
• take notes on all course lectures and discussions
• Did I mention that I expect you to take notes?
• ask questions about anything that is unclear to you (I will explain as many times and ways as necessary)
• ask questions when you would like more information (I will answer in class if there is time and outside of class if there is not)
• answer questions that I pose to you in class (in an informed manner)
• participate in small group discussions and activities in an informed manner
• present assigned individualized reading assignments to the rest of the class in a clear, direct, and informed manner

What does "in an informed manner" mean? 

• It means that your participation must show you have completed and thought about the readings. 
• You will find lists of key questions for each week's discussion linked to the weekly syllabus.  Be ready to discuss these in class.

Your grade will be based upon the quality of your participation in class (on how your participation has added to the class, rather than on how many times you spoke). 

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Individualized Readings Papers and Report:  Total of 30 (10 percent for paper one; 20 percent for paper 2) 

Define a topic for your Individualized Readings Report: 

Pick any topic regarding Soviet Russia that interests you.

You need to be sure that you have a strong interest in the topic, because you're going to read two scholarly books (or the equivalent) on the topic. 

Obtain permission for the topic:

• You must provide me with a typed written statement of a sentence or two defining your prospective topic by the end of WEEK III.  If you have not done so by the end of Week III, you will fail the assignment.

• I will approve the topic if it is "doable" (if it is neither too broad nor too narrow and if there are adequate readings available).

• If I do not approve the topic, you will have one week to find and get approval for a different topic.

Finding secondary source readings on the topic:

You must locate and read 2 book length studies on your topic.  You can substitute scholarly journal articles for one book (4 article = 1 book).

The readings must meet the following criteria:

    For books:

• A monograph based upon the author's own research in primary sources

• published by a scholarly press

• at least 120 pages long

    or

• a collection of scholarly essays by one or more authors, based upon their own research in primary sources

• published by a scholarly press

• at least 120 pages long

    For journal articles:

• a research article based upon the author's own research in primary sources (not a book review or a survey of literature)

• published in a peer-reviewed scholarly journal

• at least 20 pages long

• again, the substitution rate if 4 articles per book

Tips for locating BOOKS on your topic: 

• Remember that you are looking for secondary sources that fit the criteria outlined above.

• The Andruss Library has a small but decent collection of monographs on Soviet History, which you can locate by doing "subject" and "keyword" searches in the library's on-line catalog.  Once you find the call number for books on your topic, actually go up into the stacks and browse!  See if a particular book strikes you as interesting. 

• If you are browsing through books in the stacks at Andruss Library, look at the bibliographies in those books.  What other books have those authors read?  That might lead you to something of interest.

• If you don't find anything in the stacks that catches and holds your attention, try doing "subject" and "keyword" searches on your topic using the data bases and search engines linked to the Andruss Library web site, such as "WorldCat."  

• If you get frustrated, ask me for help!  I can probably suggest a few books or articles that might interest you.  But do this as a "last measure"--part of the exercise is for you to find books and articles on your own.

IMPORTANT!  It is very likely that you will need books or articles that are not in the Andruss Library collection.  In those cases, you will want to order the book using Interlibrary Loan.   This can take several weeks, so get a jump on the process.  It is your responsibility to obtain the books.

Tips for finding Scholarly Articles on your topic: 

• If you have found a book on the topic, look at the bibliography and/or the footnotes.  Has the author cited or listed any journal articles that look interesting to you?

• Try doing "subject" and "keyword" searches on your topic using the Andruss Library electronic databases designed for locating scholarly journal articles, such as “Historical Abstracts.”

• You can consult the “Suggestions for Further Reading” at the end of each chapter in the Suny book. 

• If you get frustrated, ask me for help! 

Our library has a limited print run of the two most important Russian-Soviet history journals published in the USA (The Russian Review and the Slavic Review), and full text digital access to recent issues of these and other journals on Russian history.  We also have full runs (print and/or digital full text) of other journals that print essays on Russian history, such as the Journal of Modern History and The Journal of Social History. 

If you find a reference to an article that we do not have in our library, there is a chance that it may exist in a digital text versions through our library's databases. 

IMPORTANT:  It is very likely that you will need to order some articles using Interlibrary Loan.  This can take several weeks, so get a jump on the process; it is your responsibility to obtain the articles, so don't delay!

Approval of reading list:

• You must present me with a typed list of your chosen readings by the end of WEEK IV.   The list must be in proper bibliography form (see link on bibliography form).

• I must approve your selections.  I may very well reject some of your selections.  For that reason, it is a good idea for you to prepare some alternative choices.

• If you do not obtain my approval for your reading list, you will fail the assignment.   

Paper One:  a Précis Assignment:  10 percent

You will write a précis of one of your individualized readings (a book, but not a collection of essays).  

A précis is a very concise summary.  Writing a précis requires that you understand the author's main argument.   

Why do this? 

Historians must learn to "read for argument."   Whenever you read a book or article, you must understand the author's main point (the "thesis").  Historians don't just list "facts"; they interpret evidence and make arguments that explain what the "facts" mean.  Reading for argument helps you read faster and more effectively. 

Writing a précis gives you "instant recall" of the argument, which is a very handy tool for writing papers (e.g., historiographic essays).  Once you learn to write a précis, you can apply that skill to readings in any class.   

INSTRUCTIONS:

Without quoting the author at all, you must explain the thesis of book in no more than three paragraphs. 

• At the head of your paper, list the author, title, and publication information in bibliography format.

• Begin your paper by stating as clearly as possible the fundamental question that the author is trying to answer (or the basic problem that the author is trying to solve). 

• In three paragraphs, explain as clearly as possible the main point the author makes in answering that question/solving that problem.

• Do this without quoting!

Remember, I am asking you to explain the THESIS!

Due Week XI

I will grade your précis on the basis of its logic, clarity, and accuracy. 

Paper Two:  a Comparison and Contrast Paper 

Once you have mastered explaining a book's thesis, the next step is comparing and contrasting different authors' arguments on the same topic.

That is the core of this assignment.

INSTRUCTIONS: 

You must write a short essay (4-5 pages, not counting endnotes) on your individualized readings in which you:

• clearly identify all the books or articles with correct bibliographic entries at the heading of your paper

• explain the thesis of each reading and provide extensive evidence to support your contention regarding the books' theses

• compare and contrast the theses of your readings

• compare and contrast the arguments in each reading to what authors read in common argued about the topic (For instance, if Suny discussed the topic in The Soviet Experiment, what did he argue?  If Kuromyia discussed the topic in Stalin, what did he argue?)

Your paper must follow the mandatory paper form for this course.

The paper is due at our class session on Week XII.

I will grade your précis on the basis of its logic, clarity, and accuracy. 

Report in class on your readings (mandatory, not graded)

In class on either Week XIII or Week IV, you will present that class with a 5-10 minute oral report that summarizes your Comparison Contrast Paper.  This is an ungraded-mandatory assignment:  if you do not report, I will deduct 10 percent from your class participation grade.

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Document Analysis Papers:  2 @ 10 percent each

Document Analysis Paper 1

During Weeks II-III, we will be reading M. Hickey, Fighting Words:  Conflicting Voices in the 1917 Russian Revolution (INSTRUCTOR'S HANDOUT).  You will choose one document from this book on which you will write a document analysis paper.

• Your paper must be between 2 and 4 pages long and it must follow the mandatory paper form.
• Your paper must presents a thesis (your own main point about the document) that explains the evidence in this document. 
• At the heading of your paper, be sure to properly identify the document.
• Be sure to explain who wrote or created the document, where, and when.
• Be sure to explain the context of the document (in what situation was it written?).
• Present a thesis (a main point) in interpreting the document:  what does it mean?  What does it show us?
• Be sure to present evidence from the document itself that supports your thesis (remember that historians have to back up their arguments using specific evidence).
• You may quote the document when necessary (in which case you must provide endnote citations in proper form). 

I will grade your paper on the basis of its logic, clarity, and accuracy. 

Due Week V

Document Analysis Paper 2:

During Weeks VII-IX, we will be reading Lewis Siegelbaum and Andrei Sokolov, Stalinism as a Way of Life, a collection of documents on life in the USSR during the 1930s.  You will choose one document from this book on which you will write a document analysis paper.

• Your paper must be between 2 and 4 pages long and it must follow the mandatory paper form.
• Your paper must presents a thesis (your own main point about the document) that explains the evidence in this document. 
• At the heading of your paper, be sure to properly identify the document.
• Be sure to explain who wrote or created the document, where, and when.
• Be sure to explain the context of the document (in what situation was it written?).
• Present a thesis (a main point) in interpreting the document:  what does it mean?  What does it show us?
• Be sure to present evidence from the document itself that supports your thesis (remember that historians have to back up their arguments using specific evidence).
• You may quote the document when necessary (in which case you must provide endnote citations in proper form). 

I will grade your paper on the basis of its logic, clarity, and accuracy. 

Due Week X

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Final Exam: 30 percent

The final exam is a take-home final exam.  It requires that you draw together material from all of our assigned readings and also from outside readings.  It will be due at our scheduled final exam meeting.  Your essay must be at least ten pages long (typed, double-spaced), not counting endnotes (see On Endnote Form).  I will grade your exam on the basis of its logic, clarity, accuracy, and use of relevant evidence.  It is due at our final exam session.   

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Link to key questions for discussion: