Questions on Von Geldern and Stites for Week 7
The First Cruise (1931)
In this account, written by a team of shock workers, what sorts of matters/issues do the shock workers seem to care about, and how were "ideal" workers supposed to behave?
Why do these authors give so much attention to the pro-Communist sympathies of German workers?
What impression do these authors give of life in the capitalist countries during the Great Depression?
What do you think Soviet readers were supposed to get from this account?
How the Steel Was Tempered (Nikolai Ostrovsky, 1932-34)
These are portions of a "classic" Socialist Realist novel. The first portion is set during the Civil War. What characteristics made Pavel Korchagin a Bolshevik hero figure?
The second portion of the novel (beginning on 168) is set during the industrialization drive of the First Five Year Plan. What similarities do you see between the ways that the the tasks of industrialization and the tasks of the Civil War are portrayed? Did Pavel approach his job as if he were still at war? Explain. What characteristics make Pavel a hero of socialist construction?
Suny explained that the regime hoped to use enthusiasm for building socialism to overcome the country's technical deficiencies. Do we see this attitude in Ostrovsky's novel? Explain.
The Story of the Great Plan (M. Ilin, 1930)
How does the part of this essay called Iron Workmen reflect the official goals of the First Five Year Plan?
How does the author explain the advantages of mechanization and the need to employ new industrial technology for capital goods production?
How does the author explain the need to accelerate the pace of industrialization?
How does the author explain the importance of factories meeting their share of the plan?
In chapter XII of this account, the author compares the city of the present (meaning 1930) to the Soviet city of the future (set in 1980!). How does he describe the hardships of life in 1930, and how does he think life will change by 1980?
According to Ilin, what is the ultimate goal of the First Five Year Plan? In what way might this story have inspired children (and adults) to work towards fulfilling the plan?
The Stakhanov Movement Explained (Aleksei Stakhanov, 1936)
What does Stakhanov tell about his youth?
How does Stakhanov explain his "method" of production? How did he manage to hew 102 tons of coal in just six hours?
How does Stakhanov explain the reasons that other people joined the "movement" to exceed production quotas? What technical changes does he say made this possible, and what psychological factors were involved?
According to Stakhanov, what were the results of Stakhanovism?
According to Stakhanov, who opposed this movement?
How does Stakhanov's account compare to what we have read in Suny about the results of Stakhanovism?