Everyday Stalinism: Ordinary Life in Extraordinary Times: Soviet Russia in the 1930s - Book Report/Review Example

Everyday Stalinism: Ordinary Life in Extraordinary Times: Soviet Russia in the 1930s Introduction The Everyday Stalinism Ordinary Life in Extraordinary Times: Soviet Russia in the 1930s is a work by Sheila Fitzpatrick that strives to understand what life was like in the Soviet urban society in the 1930s, where the communist party had much influence. The 1930s in the Soviet Union were not like any other time in the history of the country, and this is the period of time that Fitzpatrick focuses on. As implied by the title, Fitzpatrick presumes that the urban soviets tried as much as possible to live an ordinary life even when the times were antithesis. The contradiction between the desire of these individuals to live such a life, and the determination of Stalinism to use the urban platform to lay a burly foundation for utter autocracy is the predominant composition of this work by Fitzpatrick. As also insinuated by the work, the work is also based solely in the 1930s. Thesis By focusing on the population living in urban areas in the 1930s, Fitzpatrick is able to bring forth a factual tale of overpopulation, privation, destitution, despair, enforced conformity, and subterfuge to those who proved to be supportive to Stalinism. It is an account of a government’s bureaucracy that so often proved to be nightmare for the urban population in the Soviet Union, and how this population overlooked it all with the hope that theirs was a normal life. The despotism enforced on the people and the ways they responded is what the book revolves around. The 1930’s in the Soviet Union were a very important period as they shaped the country in a very drastic and undesirable way, and also were a period leading to the Second World War in which the USSR would play a leading role. Fitzpatrick tries to understand the lives of those in urban centers where the government control was felt, seen, and heard. Summary The book constitutes of a few chapters, each with insight that compounds on the latter and each building on the impending. The rise of despotism where Stalinism was extensively preached to the urban population and forced on them is the main area of study. The tale begins with the tale of the government rooting privately owned enterprises and utilizing state planning to enhance drastic economic growth. Millions of peasants lost their land to expropriation and were deported to various regions of the country. Millions fled into the cities, where the ordeal was just taking shape. Cities become overcrowded, there was food rationing and the rural regions that provided the food were deserted (pp. 3-4). In the accounts of the urban population, they were tried incessantly by arbitrary and incompetent officials working for the state. Communist party leaders held themselves as socially superior and deemed all forms of resistance as ‘backwardness.’ Notably, Fitzpatrick does not try to challenge the provisions of Stalinism, but rather focuses on the perspectives of the people who viewed the government that was planning a course to a better future. It was an era of utopianism. It is this aspect to the era that the authors strives to bring out most. Major Themes Fitzpatrick highlights various themes all through the work some of which are consistent all through while others are only evident in some chapters. One theme that forms the basis of the thesis and is also present all through the book is that of utopianism. Despotism is another key theme that is evident in most of the work. Other themes include privation, destitution, despair, enforced conformity, and subterfuge. These themes are notable in most chapters of the book but may not be as consistent. Utopianism With all the possible issues and themes that Fitzpatrick could have addressed vis-à-vis the occurrences in the 1930s in the USSR, utopianism seemed most appropriate. Upon reading the book, one understands much about these occurrences but most notably, the sense of utopia in the people is overwhelming. A reader is at will to sense other themes within the context of the work but there is an even powerful sense the utopianism is omnipresent. The title of the book itself is an indication that this was indeed the theme Fitzpatrick set out to explore; ordinary life in extraordinary times. The second chapter of the book focusses on the misery that people in urban centers have to go through with the shortage of food, and the constant subterfuges from the government. It tells of skills that individuals had to perfect so as to “hunt and gather” food among other necessities. The author use the subsequent two chapters of the book (Palaces on Monday and The Magic Table Cloth) to demonstrate the positive social phenomenon of the anticipation of the new world that was now under construction. Although people had to endure with a lot of misery and paucity, most were still expectant of better days to come as continually hammered in by the propaganda from the government. Despotism Another theme that is omnipresent in the work, and one that Fitzpatrick is hesitant to expound on, is that of autocracy. The system that the government enforces on its people is repressive yet makes them believe that it is a transition to better days; a sham that most buy. One of the most cruel eras imposed by the government is during the Great Terror where more than a million suspected to be opposing the government were killed while many others were imprisoned. This bit is contained in the final chapter of the book and talks about the experiences and means in which the people sought both physical and emotional survival. Taints going around about an individual being an “enemy of the people” were basis enough to have one either executed or detained (pp. 205-207). Majority of the population that was made up of uneducated citizens viewed the terror as an unfortunate event, in the same perspective they would deem a flood, famine, or war (p. 192). Many of the educated formed part of the government which means that they played a part in the enforcement of despotism in the country. One sums up, “it is possible to be a wrecker without meaning to be or even being aware of it. It was possible to wear a mask that deceived even oneself” (pp. 193-4). Overall Significance What the book achieves is the understanding of a global event through a very separate platform that does not conform to typical means. Although the author is notably a renowned figure in the history of Russia, the approach taken to compose this work is unique in a way that it makes it more successful. A book on the same but with a direct approach is less likely to have the same impact as Fitzpatrick has attained with exploring a theme that makes the work more captivating. It has allowed one to comprehend the decade in Russian history from a more informed position. The theme of utopianism that is so evident in the book can be taken as an indication of the desire of the people to have changes in the way the country was run. Although most people may be aware of the nature of contribution that the USSR played in both world wars, most are not aware of what happened in between. Soviet studies reveal a lot of information about our world today, but the manner in which Fitzpatrick plays a part in providing more information about the soviets stands out. The work provides an extensive glimpse of the life people had to contend with under Stalinism instead of studying Stalinism from a general angle. It breaks the monotony that people have to go through in order to retrieve information and in so doing becomes a very effective tool of learning about the history of a key nation. Reference Fitzpatrick, Sheila. 1999. Everyday Stalinism: Ordinary Life in Extraordinary Times: Soviet Russia in the 1930s. UK: Oxford University Press. Read More