Dissident Histories in the Soviet Union: From De-Stalinization to Perestroika

Author:   Dr. Barbara Martin
Publisher:   Bloomsbury Publishing PLC
Volume:   14
ISBN:  

9781788310536


Pages:   312
Publication Date:   16 May 2019
Format:   Hardback
Availability:   Manufactured on demand   Availability explained
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Dissident Histories in the Soviet Union: From De-Stalinization to Perestroika


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Overview

How was it possible to write history in the Soviet Union, under strict state control and without access to archives? What methods of research did these 'historians' - be they academic, that is based at formal institutions, or independent - rely on? And how was their work influenced by their complex and shifting relationships with the state? To answer these questions, Barbara Martin here tracks the careers of four bold and important dissidents: Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn, Roy Medvedev, Aleksandr Nekrich and Anton Antonov-Ovseenko. Based on extensive archival research and interviews (with some of the authors themselves, as well as those close to them), the result is a nuanced and very necessary history of Soviet dissident history writing, from the relative liberalisation of de-Stalinisation through increasing repression and persecution in the Brezhnev era to liberalisation once more during perestroika. In the process Martin sheds light onto late Soviet society and its relationship with the state, as well as the ways in which this dissidence participated in weakening the Soviet regime during Perestroika. This is important reading for all scholars working on late Soviet history and society.

Full Product Details

Author:   Dr. Barbara Martin
Publisher:   Bloomsbury Publishing PLC
Imprint:   Bloomsbury Academic
Volume:   14
Weight:   0.617kg
ISBN:  

9781788310536


ISBN 10:   1788310535
Pages:   312
Publication Date:   16 May 2019
Audience:   Professional and scholarly ,  Professional & Vocational
Format:   Hardback
Publisher's Status:   Active
Availability:   Manufactured on demand   Availability explained
We will order this item for you from a manufactured on demand supplier.

Table of Contents

Acknowledgements Note on Transliteration and Abbreviations Introduction 1. The Party's Call to Denounce Stalin's Crimes 2. From a Reopening of the Stalin Question to a Closure of the Ideological Lid 3. Voicing Opposition to Stalin's Rehabilitation 4. Writing History through the Voice of the Repressed 5. Exiting the System 6. From 'Inner Immigration' to Exile 7. Diverging Truths 8. Unleashing the Past Conclusion Timeline of Events Bibliography Index

Reviews

After Stalin's death and his successors' brief, partial attempts at de-Stalinization, a vibrant culture of dissident history writing sprang up in the late Soviet Union, offering a more frank and critical perspective than the increasingly staid official historiography. Barbara Martin's meticulously researched, lucid account offers the first ever comparison of the four leading 'unofficial' historians of this period: ranging from the world-famous dissidents Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn and Roi Medvedev to the bold historical accounts by Anton Antonov-Ovseenko and Aleksandr Nekrich. Full of fascinating biographical detail and richly nuanced in its analyses of these historical texts and their authors, Martin's book will be essential reading for historians of late socialism, dissent and the politics of historical writing. * Polly Jones, Associate Professor in Russian, University College, University of Oxford, UK * This book is a major contribution to our understanding of the dissident phenomenon in the former Soviet Union. Meticulously researched, drawing on a vast repository of archival material, illuminated by interviews conducted with some of the giants in the drama of dissidence, Barbara Martin sheds new, nuanced light on the nature of Soviet dissidence. Going beyond the cliched binary of dissidents versus the state, Martin reveals the complex dynamics between Soviet authorities and dissidents of various political hues, which enabled some to survive but forced others into exile. Above all, this book is a reminder of the crucial role of Stalinist history in legitimating the Soviet state, and conversely of dissident history in delegitimating it. * Roger D. Markwick, Professor of Modern European History, The University of Newcastle, Australia *


Precise and illuminating. * Times Literary Supplement * Barbara Martin's meticulously researched, lucid account offers the first ever comparison of the four leading 'unofficial' historians of the late Soviet Union. Full of fascinating biographical detail and richly nuanced in its analyses of these historical texts and their authors, Martin's book will be essential reading for historians of late socialism, dissent and the politics of historical writing. * Polly Jones, Associate Professor in Russian, University College, University of Oxford, UK * This book is a major contribution to our understanding of the dissident phenomenon in the former Soviet Union. Diligently researched and drawing on a vast repository of archival material, Barbara Martin sheds new light on the nature of Soviet dissidence, beyond the cliched binary of dissidents versus the state. Above all, Martin reminds us of the crucial role of Stalinist history in legitimating the Soviet state, and conversely of dissident history in delegitimating it. * Roger D. Markwick, Professor of Modern European History, The University of Newcastle, Australia *


After Stalin's death and his successors' brief, partial attempts at de-Stalinization, a vibrant culture of dissident history writing sprang up in the late Soviet Union, offering a more frank and critical perspective than the increasingly staid official historiography. Barbara Martin's meticulously researched, lucid account offers the first ever comparison of the four leading 'unofficial' historians of this period: ranging from the world-famous dissidents Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn and Roi Medvedev to the bold historical accounts by Anton Antonov-Ovseenko and Aleksandr Nekrich. Full of fascinating biographical detail and richly nuanced in its analyses of these historical texts and their authors, Martin's book will be essential reading for historians of late socialism, dissent and the politics of historical writing. * Polly Jones, Associate Professor in Russian, University College, University of Oxford, UK *


Barbara Martin's meticulously researched, lucid account offers the first ever comparison of the four leading 'unofficial' historians of the late Soviet Union. Full of fascinating biographical detail and richly nuanced in its analyses of these historical texts and their authors, Martin's book will be essential reading for historians of late socialism, dissent and the politics of historical writing. * Polly Jones, Associate Professor in Russian, University College, University of Oxford, UK * This book is a major contribution to our understanding of the dissident phenomenon in the former Soviet Union. Diligently researched and drawing on a vast repository of archival material, Barbara Martin sheds new light on the nature of Soviet dissidence, beyond the cliched binary of dissidents versus the state. Above all, Martin reminds us of the crucial role of Stalinist history in legitimating the Soviet state, and conversely of dissident history in delegitimating it. * Roger D. Markwick, Professor of Modern European History, The University of Newcastle, Australia *


Author Information

Barbara Martin is Research Associate at the Pierre du Bois Foundation, Switzerland. She has published a number of articles in peer-reviewed journals (including Slavic Review) and has co-edited a book on the dissident historical journal Pamiat', published in Russian.

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