Foreign Policy in Statu Nascendi

Chugrov, S.

doi:10.1057/9781137488459.0016

Cited by 1 publication

(2 citation statements)

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“…I convinced myself that the ideas of Marx and Lenin were very pure and just.' 44 Clearly, 'seeing' itself is a complex thing. Some noticed the disparity between propaganda and reality more quickly than others and interpreted it differently.…”

Section: The Problem Of Perceptionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…I tried to depict agreement with them, that is to say to chat, but at the same time not to become a traitor. 92 Leonid Pliushch, a member of the Initiative Group for Human Rights, who spent a number of years in psychiatric hospitals, also concluded that this strategy was not a good one: 'I decided to deceive the KGB. I agreed [to be an informer], but had no intention of doing so.…”

Section: Challenging the Liementioning

confidence: 99%

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Truth-telling, Conscience and Dissent in Late Soviet Russia: Evidence from Oral Histories

Boobbyer

2000

European History Quarterly

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To succeed in Soviet society, it was necessary to speak in politically correct terms. The system had its rituals and ‘rules of the game’. Yet in the Brezhnev era, intellectuals started to challenge the official propaganda, and a culture emerged which emphasized the importance of ‘truth-telling’. This article explores this culture through oral history. Based on forty-one interviews with dissidents and reformist intellectuals, it shows how the consciences of dissidents were formed in Soviet Russia, and gives examples of the strategies which were adopted to avoid lying and breaking free of fear. Behind the Soviet state’s broader relationship with the intelligentsia, it conducted a more intimate negotiation with the conscience of each individual. In each person’s life, there was a kind of moral contract with the state, and its terms were continually changing. Even the smallest things could be considered acts of dissent if the circumstances were comprehended. The potential for the outburst of ‘truth-telling’ which took place under Gorbachev is very evident.

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Section: The Problem Of Perceptionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Challenging the Liementioning

confidence: 99%